Efficient unified Montgomery inversion with multibit shifting

Computation of multiplicative inverses in finite fields GF(p) and GF(2/sup n/) is the most time-consuming operation in elliptic curve cryptography, especially when affine co-ordinates are used. Since the existing algorithms based on the extended Euclidean algorithm do not permit a fast software implementation, projective co-ordinates, which eliminate almost all of the inversion operations from the curve arithmetic, are preferred. In the paper, the authors demonstrate that affine co-ordinate implementation provides a comparable speed to that of projective co-ordinates with careful hardware realisation of existing algorithms for calculating inverses in both fields without utilising special moduli or irreducible polynomials. They present two inversion algorithms for binary extension and prime fields, which are slightly modified versions of the Montgomery inversion algorithm. The similarity of the two algorithms allows the design of a single unified hardware architecture that performs the computation of inversion in both fields. They also propose a hardware structure where the field elements are represented using a multi-word format. This feature allows a scalable architecture able to operate in a broad range of precision, which has certain advantages in cryptographic applications. In addition, they include statistical comparison of four inversion algorithms in order to help choose the best one amongst them for implementation onto hardware

Examining the Impact of Corruption on Financial Sector Development in Arab League Countries

Arab League Countries have seen major regulatory and financial reforms in the last two decades and during this period these counties have been marred by corruption. In this background, this study explores the impact of corruption on financial sector development in Arab League countries from 2001 to 2020. By using the dynamic panel data estimation technique of the Generalized Method of Moments on a sample of 20 Arab League countries, the study reports its findings. The finding shows that there is a significant negative effect of corruption on financial sector development. These results favor the notion of the “sand the wheels” hypothesis. The findings of this study highlight the insensitiveness of financial development to corruption during Global Financial Crisis (2008). The results also indicate that there is an adverse effect of corruption on financial development after Arab Spring. The study acknowledges the moderation role of rule of law in the relationship between corruption and financial development.&nbsp

COMPARISON OF ARGON PLASMA COAGULATION AND FORMALIN INSTILLATION IN THE TREATMENT OF RADIATION INDUCED HAEMORRHAGIC PROCTOCOLITIS

Background: Radiotherapy is routinely used in the treatment of pelvic malignancies and about 2–5% of these patients develop radiation-induced proctitis or proctocolitis. This complication of radiotherapy is treated in different ways. Two of these treatments, argon plasma coagulation (APC) and formalin instillation, have both been reported as to be successful modalities, but data comparing them are scarce. We conducted this study to compare these two treatment options. Methods: We reviewed the charts of patients who had radiation-induced proctocolitis and who were treated endoscopically at our tertiary care cancer centre with either APC or formalin instillation. Outcomes of the two treatments were compared in terms of bleeding control after the first session of treatment, the number of sessions required and the nal response to therapy. Results: Out of a total of 26 patients presenting with haemorrhagic radiation proctocolitis, 11 were treated with APC and 15 with formalin instillation. Success after the rst session was 53% in the formalin instillation group compared to 18% in the APC-treated group. On repeated sessions, the final response to both treatment modalities was comparable. Conclusion: Efficacy of APC and formalin instillation in the treatment of haemorrhagic radiation proctocolitis is comparable although formalin showed a better outcome after the first session. Key words: Argon plasma coagulation, formalin instillation, proctitis, radiation-induced colitis

Outcome of Surgical Treatment for Lumber Disc Herniation Causing Painful Incomplete Foot-Drop

Objective:  To determine the outcome of surgical treatment for lumder disc herniation causing the painful incomplete foot drop. Material and Methods:  This retrospective observational study was conducted at the Department of Neurosurgery Lady Reading Hospital, Peshawar. Both Male and female patients with lumbar disc disease causing unilateral incomplete painful foot drop were included in our study. Patients with complete or painless foot drop, bilateral foot-drop, Multiple level disc prolapse, cauda equina syndrome or sciatic neuropathy due to injection injury were excluded. Patients were followed was post-operatively in terms of power in foot dorsiflexion, medical research council (MRC) grade and pain relief  on a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) after 1 month and then after 6 months. Results: Total number of patients included were 43. Age was ranging from 18 years to 54 years and mean age was 33 years. Before surgery,  power of MRC grade 3 or less, but greater than 1 in dorsiflexion was noted in all patients. The pain was scaled using VAS. Post peratively, at 1 month follow up, the foot-drop improved to MRC grade 4 or 5 along with pain relief of ≥ 2 points on VAS in 81. 4% (n = 35) patients and at 6 month follow-up, the figure rose to 93% (n = 40). Conclusion:  Lumbar disc disease can cause a debilitating foot-drop and pain. Improving or restoring a neurology early surgical intervention has proven benefits

An Algorithm for Autonomous Aerial Navigation using MATLAB® Mapping Tool Box

In the present era of aviation technology, autonomous navigation and control have emerged as a prime area of active research. Owing to the tremendous developments in the field, autonomous controls have led today’s engineers to claim that future of aerospace vehicle is unmanned. Development of guidance and navigation algorithms for an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is an extremely challenging task, which requires efforts to meet strict, and at times, conflicting goals of guidance and control. In this paper, aircraft altitude and heading controllers and an efficient algorithm for self-governing navigation using MATLAB® mapping toolbox is presented which also enables loitering of a fixed wing UAV over a specified area. For this purpose, a nonlinear mathematical model of a UAV is used. The nonlinear model is linearized around a stable trim point and decoupled for controller design. The linear controllers are tested on the nonlinear aircraft model and navigation algorithm is subsequently developed for for autonomous flight of the UAV. The results are presented for trajectory controllers and waypoint based navigation. Our investigation reveals that MATLAB® mapping toolbox can be exploited to successfully deliver an efficient algorithm for autonomous aerial navigation for a UAV

Spectrum of Different Spinal Disorders Presenting to Neurosurgical Department of Public Sector Tertiary Care Hospitals of Peshawar

Objectives: To assess the spectrum of different spinal disorders presenting to the Neurosurgical department of public sector tertiary care hospitals of Peshawar.Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective study carried out in the Neurosurgery departments of two public sector tertiary care hospitals in district Peshawar from January 2012 to December 2018. Our inclusion criteria comprised of all those patients who were having spinal abnormalities irrespective of age and gender, admitted either via emergency or OPD. We excluded those patients who were dead on arrival or whose data was lacking including those who did not do their follow up and those who were not given consent for the study.Results: Out of total 5,579 patients, male to female ratio was 1:1.7. The age range was from 6 days to 78 years. Elective cases were 63.61% (n = 3,549) and emergency were 36.37% (n = 2,030). TSCI were 35.01% (n = 1,953) and NTSCI were 3,626 (n = 64.99%). Out of all patients, 91.03% (n = 5,079) were treated surgically. About 79% (n = 4,406) had a good outcome.Conclusion: We collected data and made a survey of the spectrum of different spinal abnormalities resulting from various etiologies focused over the last 6 years. We found a variety of cases presenting to our departments of neurosurgery. Non traumatic spinal injuries are more frequent as compared to traumatic ones

Integration of Data Driven Technologies in Smart Grids for Resilient and Sustainable Smart Cities: A Comprehensive Review

A modern-day society demands resilient, reliable, and smart urban infrastructure for effective and in telligent operations and deployment. However, unexpected, high-impact, and low-probability events such as earthquakes, tsunamis, tornadoes, and hurricanes make the design of such robust infrastructure more complex. As a result of such events, a power system infrastructure can be severely affected, leading to unprecedented events, such as blackouts. Nevertheless, the integration of smart grids into the existing framework of smart cities adds to their resilience. Therefore, designing a resilient and reliable power system network is an inevitable requirement of modern smart city infras tructure. With the deployment of the Internet of Things (IoT), smart cities infrastructures have taken a transformational turn towards introducing technologies that do not only provide ease and comfort to the citizens but are also feasible in terms of sustainability and dependability. This paper presents a holistic view of a resilient and sustainable smart city architecture that utilizes IoT, big data analytics, unmanned aerial vehicles, and smart grids through intelligent integration of renew able energy resources. In addition, the impact of disasters on the power system infrastructure is investigated and different types of optimization techniques that can be used to sustain the power flow in the network during disturbances are compared and analyzed. Furthermore, a comparative review analysis of different data-driven machine learning techniques for sustainable smart cities is performed along with the discussion on open research issues and challenges

Screening of marigold (Tagetes erecta L.) cultivars for drought stress based on vegetative and physiological characteristics

Drought tolerance is an important genotypic character to be exploited for the plant cultivar selection under water deficit conditions. In the recent study, we examined the response of two marigold cultivars (Inca and Bonanza) under different regimes of drought stress. The aim was to determine the best performing cultivar under water/drought stress. Three irrigation treatments include; 4 days (T1), 6 days (T2) and 8 days (T3) in comparison to control 1 day (T0) interval were imposed. Response characters under study were morphological, physiological and anatomical. Complete Randomized Design (CRD) with four replications in two factorial arrangements was followed for experiment layout. The results revealed that increasing water stress adversely affect plant height, in both cultivars. Both cultivars showed a decreasing trend to the number of flowers under water stress. Total chlorophyll contents including a, b were also showed reduction under prolonged drought treatment in both cultivars from (2.7 mg g-1 FW) to (1 mg g-1 FW). Overall, the performance of cultivar (cv.) Inca was satisfactory under water stress regimes. These results are helpful for selecting drought tolerant marigold cultivars in water scarce areas.  Â

COMMUNITY BASED HOME ENERGY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

In a Smart Grid (SG) scenario, domestic consumers can gain cost reduction benefit by scheduling their Appliance Activation Time (AAT) towards the slots of low charge. Minimization in cost is essential in Home Energy Management Systems (HEMS) to induce consumers acceptance for power scheduling to accommodate for a Demand Response (DR) at peak hours. Despite the fact that many algorithms address the power scheduling for HEMS, community based optimization has not been the focus. This paper presents an algorithm that targets the minimization of energy costs of whole community while keeping a low Peak to Average Ratio (PAR) and smooth Power Usage Pattern (PUP). Objective of cost reduction is accomplished by finding most favorable AAT by Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) in conjunction with Inclined Block Rate (IBR) approach and Circular Price Shift (CPS). Simulated numerical results demonstrate the effectiveness of CPS to assist the merger of PSO & IBR to enhance the reduction/stability of PAR and cost reduction