Development and Validation of the Inviting Teaching Effectiveness Scale based on the Invitational Theory

This study reports on a new instrument, the Inviting Teaching Effectiveness Scale (ITES), which is a 20-item measure based on the fundamental teaching competencies derived from the principles of Invitational Education (Purkey & Novak, 1984). The initial instrument had included 30 items and was then validated on a random sample of 640 students enrolled at the University of Bahrain. The final version of the developed Scale contains 20 items and measures four aspects of inviting teaching effectiveness: Invitational instruction, inviting relationships, invitational assessment and inviting classroom environment. As the new Scale displayed sound psychometric properties, it can be considered as a potentially useful tool to assess teacher performance and improve teaching practices at tertiary level of education. Information about test construction, reliability, validity, and generalizability are presented and implications and benefits associated with use of the instrument as a tool for measuring teaching effectiveness are discussed

The impact of nano fertilization and salicylic acid on growth, yield and anti-oxidant contents in rocket plant under salt stress

Saabunud / Received 20.01.2022 ; Aktsepteeritud / Accepted 24.04.2022 ; Avaldatud veebis / Published online 24.04.2022 ; Vastutav autor / Corresponding author: Duraid K. A. Al-Taey; [email protected] investigation aimed to study the effect of organic fertilizers, nano-fertilizers and salicylic acid on the growth and yield of rocket (Eruca sativa L.) and the content of active compounds and antioxidants when the plants were exposed to salt stress. The experiment was conducted using a randomized complete block design (RCBD) according to the split-plot system. The main factor was water quality (1.2 dS m–1 and 8 dS m–1). While the combination treatments of Nano fertilizer, Salicylic acid and poultry manure were distributed in sub-plots and each treatment included three replicates. The treatments irrigated with saline water showed a reduction of glucosinolate and ascorbate contents (58 μg g–1 and 105.71 μg g–1, respectively). Salinity led to an increase in glutathione and proline in the leaves (1146 and 2.2 μg g–1, respectively), while the fertilization treatments (poultry manure + nano-NPK; poultry manure + salicylic acid + nano-NPK) resulted in an increase in the glucosinolate content of the leaves under salt stress (85.6 and 89.2 μg g–1, respectively). The nano-NPK treatment achieved a high value of the leaves’ ascorbic acid content under the unstressed conditions (166.73 μg g–1), while the salicylic acid + nano-NPK treatment achieved the highest value of ascorbic acid under salt stress (137.4 μg g–1). The combination of salicylic acid + poultry manure + nano-NPK obtained the highest value of glutathione content in the leaves (1950 μg g–1) under the stress conditions. There is a positive correlation between salt stress and glutathione + proline, while the salt stress condition had a negative effect on glucosinolate, ascorbate and yield

The Effect of using Iraqi Plaster with Type III Dental Stone as Investing Materials on the Vertical Dimension of Occlusion in Acrylic Resin Complete Dentures (A comparative Study)

Aim of study: The aim of this study was to evaluate the Iraqi plaster when used as investing material and studies its effect on the changes of vertical dimension of occlusion of heat cured acrylic resin complete dentures using four different investing methods in compression molding technique.Materials and methods: Forty acrylic resin complete dentures were prepared from heat-cure acrylic resin denture base. The study include 4 groups depending on the type of investing method, Group 1: plaster- stone- mixed, Group 2: plaster- stone- plaster, Group 3: plaster- mixed- mixed, Group 4: plaster- mixed - stone. Each group of them contains 10 dentures. Changes in occlusal vertical dimension were measured before and after denture processing. Collected data were analyzed with analysis of variance and Tukey's test at 95% level of confidence (p=0.05).Results: The mean of changes in dimension of occlusion in different groups were: group1: (0.6337mm), group2: (0.6253mm group3: (1.0171mm), and group4: (0.9837mm).Conclusion: Less dimensional changes was observed in the group of dentures that invested with plaster-stone- plaster when compare with other investing methods. Keywords: Iraqi plaster, stone, flasking, vertical dimension of occlusion

Shrinkage properties of plain and recycled steel–fibre-reinforced rapid hardening mortars for repairs

This article investigates the time dependent transport properties and shrinkage performance of rapid hardening plain and fibre reinforced mortars for repair applications. Two plain and two SFRC mixes with 45 kg/m3 of recycled clean steel fibres made with rapid hardening cements (CSA – calcium sulfoaluminate cement and RSC – calcium aluminate cement) are studied. It is found that mixes with CSA cement have much lower shrinkage values (around 220 and 365 microstrains) compared to mixes with RSC cement (around 2690 and 2530 microstrains), but most of the shrinkage in these mixes is autogenous. Nonetheless, fibres reduce the drying shrinkage of RSC cement mixes by approximately 12%. Model code 2010 and ACI equations can be used to estimate the shrinkage development with time for these mixes provided suitable parameters for each cement type are adopted. Inverse analysis using finite element method is successfully employed to determine the moisture diffusivity and the hygral contraction coefficient of each mix. A comparison is made between the values of shrinkage strain predicted by the numerical models over time, for different depths, and code equations. A simple analytical procedure is used to assess cracking and/or delamination risks due to restrained shrinkage for these materials in overlay applications

Assessments and Historical Changes the Water Quality of Sawa Lake, Southern Iraq for the Period 1977-2020

This investigation pertains to the evaluation of water quality in SAWA Lake, located in the Al-Muthanna province of Southern Iraq, from 1977 to 2020. Understanding the water quality and assessments of this Lake is of great importance. The Lake is home to small, transparent, blind fish measuring approximately 10 cm and is often referred to as the "wonderful" or "strange" Lake due to its many unique features. The study focuses on several elements to represent water quality, including total dissolved solids (TDS), electrical conductivity (EC), pH, and temperature (T), which were measured directly in the field. Additionally, scientific concepts such as K+, Ca2+, Cl-, HCO3, and KSO4 were used in each sample. Scientists have analyzed the density and salinity of the lake water and found that its water density exceeds that of seawater, and its salinity exceeds that of the Gulf of Arabia by about 1.5 times. The water is salty, surrounded by natural lime, and is automatically renewed by nature when it is broken. Its hardness also characterizes it, and its water volume fluctuates depending on the wet and dry seasons. The Lake is roughly 4.74 km in length, and all the elements under study showed an increase in concentration during the periods of 1977, 1983, and 2003 with NaSO4, which later changed to MgCl between 2007 and 2011. The study found that Sawa Lake water was unsuitable for drinking or irrigation purposes between 2016 and 2020 due to the increased concentration of certain elements. This increase in concentration is attributed to the Lake's location, nutrition, and the lack of rain, which means it relies solely on groundwater

Eleven-Year Surveillance of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Infections at an Academic Health Centre

Introduction. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is an important human pathogen associated with nosocomial and community infections. There is a continual focus on the epidemiology of this public health threat owing to the increase in its spread and rapid development of resistance. Aim. We aimed to describe the clinical presentations of MRSA infections at an academic health centre by demonstrating the time trend of antibiotic resistance. Methodology. We retrospectively reviewed cases during an 11-year period (from January 2009 to December 2019) with positive cultures for MRSA from various clinical sites in King Fahad Hospital of the University, to understand their clinical and microbiological profiles. Screening and colonisation samples were excluded. Results. A total of 1338 MRSA isolates were identified, with an increasing trend from 5.2% to 14.5% during 2009–2019. Skin and soft tissue samples were the most common source (52.4%) of MRSA infections. Vancomycin activity remained stable against MRSA, and only one isolate showed resistance to linezolid (<1%). A significant reduction in susceptibility to clindamycin (p = 0.003), trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (p = 0.001), and rifampin (p <0.0001) was detected over the study period. Conclusion. MRSA infections still represent a significant burden on healthcare systems. Our data support the need for constant local and regional surveillance to devise relevant protocols to manage MRSA infections. Empirical therapy needs to consider the changing antimicrobial susceptibility trends among MRSA isolates

Insight into mechanics of AFM tip-based nanomachining: bending of cantilevers and machined grooves

Atomic force microscope (AFM) tip-based nanomachining is currently the object of intense research investigations. Values of the load applied to the tip at the free end of the AFM cantilever probe used for nanomachining are always large enough to induce plastic deformation on the specimen surface contrary to the small load values used for the conventional contact mode AFM imaging. This study describes an important phenomenon specific for AFM nanomachining in the forward direction: under certain processing conditions, the deformed shape of the cantilever probe may change from a convex to a concave orientation. The phenomenon can principally change the depth and width of grooves machined, e.g. the grooves machined on a single crystal copper specimen may increase by 50% on average following such a change in the deformed shape of the cantilever. It is argued that this phenomenon can take place even when the AFM-based tool is operated in the so-called force-controlled mode. The study involves the refined theoretical analysis of cantilever probe bending, the analysis of experimental signals monitored during the backward and forward AFM tip-based machining and the inspection of the topography of produced grooves

Comparison between torsional spring constants of rectangular and V-shaped AFM cantilevers

The properties of force-sensing micro-cantilevers are of fundamental importance for measurements employing atomic force microscopy (AFM) techniques. Due to the well-known arguments of Sader, it is generally accepted that V-shaped cantilevers are more sensitive to lateral forces than rectangular ones. We present results of numerical (finite element modelling) and experimental comparison between torsional spring constants of rectangular and V-shaped commercial AFM cantilevers. As representative example of such beams, we considered AFM probes available commercially. In particular, we tested scaled-up models of V-shaped cantilevers which had the same geometrical shapes as commercial AFM cantilevers. Both the rectangular and the Vshaped larger scale models were made of the same material; they had the same length, thickness, normal spring constant, as well as the same location and shape of the tip base. In the experiments and the simulations, an external lateral load was applied to the free end of the tip. A good agreement between the experimental work and finite element method (FEM) simulations was observed. The results show that the torsional spring constant of the V-shape cantilevers considered here was greater than that of the equivalent rectangular beams by up to 45%. The discrepancy with the results from Sader should be caused by differences in both the load transfer scheme and the geometrical shapes of the V-shaped beams

EVALUATING WATER QUALITY INDEX OF AL HAMMAR MARSH, SOUTH OF IRAQ WITH THE APPLICATION OF GIS TECHNIQUE

This study concerns the water quality index of the Al Hammar marsh. The water quality of station M1, also termed Al-Hamedy, located in the middle of the marsh and related to the Al-Basra governorate, was evaluated from 2011 to 2015, using 12 selected parameters. The parameters include pH, Phosphate (PO4), Nitrate (NO3), Magnesium (Mg), Calcium (Ca), Total hardness (TH), Sodium (Na), Sulphate (SO4), Chloride (Cl), Total dissolved solids (TDS), Alkalinity (Alk.) and Electrical conductivity (EC). The Arithmetic Weighted Index was employed to ascertain the water quality index (WQI) in the Al-Hammar marsh. The findings from this research have been linked to the ArcGIS 10.4.1 software, to produce layers that represent the nature of the spatial distribution of the WQIs, as coloured maps. The results revealed that the marsh quality fell below the class of poor water quality, and the marsh water was brackish due to the high concentration of totally dissolved solids flowing in from the estuaries of the feeding channels coming from the river Euphrates, as well as from the tidal phenomenon via river Shatt Al-Arab

The Effect of Using Modified Flask on the Porosity of Processed Heat- Cure Acrylic Resin

Porosity is an important property of acrylic resin material because it affect other properties like strength, esthetic and cause bacterial or fungal growth lead to unhealthy dentures. This paper Study the possibility of reducing the porosit