A Checklist of Birds of Prey of Rawalpindi, Islamabad and Adjacent Areas

Wildlife is declining worldwide due to loss of habitat, pollution, introduction of exotic species, climatic changes etc. Birds of prey are believed to be rapidly declining in Pakistan though no reliable recent data is available and the available literature suggests its previous wide distribution throughout Pakistan. This current study was carried out in the Rawalpindi, Islamabad and some adjacent areas (latitude N 33o27.34-33o48.05 longitude E 72o59.34-73o27.30) to make a checklist of previously and newly existing prey birds as well as to study their general behaviors and biology. Targeted areas were studied at different times of day in different seasons of the year. After identification of prey birds through photographs taken during the study, presence and absence of prey birds was also recorded. Some species, which were formerly not reported in region, were also identified and the relative abundance among different species was calculated

A comprehensive review of the classification of fibromyalgia, its possible genetic and environmental causes, and its epidemiology in Pakistan

Fibromyalgia (FM) is a common form of chronic pain that causes pain all over the body. It is thought to affect between 1% and 5% of the world's people. It happens more often in adults, but it can also happen in children. Its exact cause and effect are still not known. However, it is thought to be linked to neuronal over-sensitization, decreased conditioned pain modulation (CPM), cognitive dysfunction, dementia, and problems with how the brain processes information. It is now a disorder with physical symptoms (SSD). FM does not run in families. But it seems to happen more often in families where FM has happened before. One of the most common reasons why people get fibromyalgia is an SNP in the serotonin transporter gene, which can also cause emotional stress. The effects of genetic polymorphisms on serotonergic and catecholaminergic processes in the central nervous system seem to make fibromyalgia more likely. It can be stopped if it is found and treated quickly. Physical therapy and other treatments that don't involve drugs should be made to fit the person with FM. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given the go-ahead for three treatments. In this review article, we looked again at the possible causes, effects, and treatments for fibromyalgia syndrome. &nbsp

Gender Based Linguistic Variations in Urdu Language and Their Role in Suppression of Females

Sociolinguistics deals with linguistic variations such as dialect, idiolect, genderlect, register etc. It deals with ways of using particular languages and the social roles of speakers of these languages.  It is the speaker-oriented approach. Genders have different characteristics in the use of language, which lead to the gender differences in language. The present study was conducted to analyze the gender-based linguistic variations (variations at discourse and communication level) in Urdu language. Deborah Tannen’s Genderlect theory is the theoretical Background of the study. She has presented six sets of language contrasts that are used as instrument to analyze male and female conversations. It is commonly believed that women language is more sophisticated, apologetic as compared to men. These differences are called gender preferential differences in a patriarchal society with their own fancies and whims. The hypothesis is that men and women have different ways of communicating, based on male and female perception of the world as they are made of different things and contrasting style. The qualitative paradigm used in this study. Direct observation, interview and tape recording are used as tools for the data collection. Recorded conversation has been transcribed and analyzed to provide data from which these issues have been discussed. The researcher has analyzed Urdu language conversation among Urdu speech community living specially in Sialkot, according to Tannen’s speech contrasts. The data was analyzed manually. The findings show that variations occur due to the use of various linguistic devices, style, topic of discussion, power etc. This study is limited to the Urdu speech community. The limitation of my research is that I observed the language of middle class Urdu speech community not the other classes. In this research, I only highlighted variations at communication level, and delimited all other variations such as morphological, syntactic, phonological variations. Future researchers can study these aspects. The study will benefit the whole society in creation of awareness about non-sexist language to give a psychological identity of females in Pakistan

An Appraisal of Justice in Pakistan from the Prism of Platonic Justice

Justice is a precondition of human existence in any civilized society. It is essential for the peace, stability and harmony of the state. The idea of justice occupies a prominent place in the political philosophy of Plato. He was dissatisfied with the then existing disintegrating conditions in Athens, therefore in order to save Athens from collapse, he gave his concept of ideal and just society where absolute justice reigned. Plato concept of justice is twofold that is individually it is a „human virtue‟ which makes an individual excellent and self-consistent while socially it is a social consciousness which makes a harmonious society. Presently Pakistan is passing through a hard time; injustice in both individual and social sphere has degraded the society. The paper explains Plato‟s concept of justice and relates the concept with the state of affairs in Pakistan. The study discusses Plato‟s concept of justice answering the questions as is Platonic concept of justice practicable in a society like Pakistan? Does justice prevail in Pakistan? What factors are responsible for injustices in our society? How justice can bring peace and harmony in Pakistan?&nbsp

Effect of Nitrogen and Phosphorus on Yield and Yield Components of Sesame (Sesamumindicum L.)

Nitrogen is a structural component of chlorophyll and protein therefore adequate supply of nitrogen is beneficial for both carbohydrates and protein metabolism as it promotes cell division and cell enlargement, resulting in more leaf area and thus ensuring good seed and dry matter yield. Theexperiment entitled effect of nitrogen and phosphorus on yield and yield components of sesame were conducted at New Developmental Farm of the University of Agriculture Peshawar during kharif 2013. Randomized complete block design (RCBD) having four replications were used. Nitrogen and phosphorus levels (0, 30, 60, 90 kg ha-1) each were applied in the form of P2O5 from DAP and urea respectively. The whole of phosphorus was applied during seed bed preparation and nitrogen in two splits, half at sowing and half after 80% emergence. The seed rate 4 kg ha-1 of sesame (Local black) was planted on 28th June 2013. Total of 3 irrigations were applied, and other cultural practices were kept uniform for all the treatments. Highest number of pods plant-1 (67), number of seeds pods-1 (54), grain yield (520 kg)

US-India Strategic Bargaining and Power Balancing in South Asia

The relationship between United States and India has transformed fromestrangement to wider engagement since 2004. With the convergence ofinterests and shared values both the US and India came close towards eachother and evolved strategic partnership through civil nuclear cooperation. Thispaper analyze the cost and benefit of strategic partnership with India for US,the impact of India’s emergence as regional power on South Asian balance ofpower and its impact on Pak-US relationship. It also focuses on securitystructure of the region and challenges for the US to maintain strategicpartnership with two rival states (India and Pakistan). The paper also givessome recommendations for balancing power in the region in order to ensuredurable peace not only between India and Pakistan but also in south Asia

IMPACT OF ENTREPRENEURIAL MINDSET ON SMES PERFORMANCE: AN EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE FROM PAKISTAN: Dr. Nadia Nasir, Shama Urooj, Humaira Qudsia Yousaf, Mahwish Zafar, Saqib Manzoor

Purpose: The study is an effort to identify the effects of strategic innovation on performance of small and medium enterprises of Pakistan. The study evaluated the effects of product innovation, process innovation and market innovation on performance of small and medium enterprises of Pakistan.  Design/Methodology/Approach: The sample was drawn from the 102 small and medium enterprises which were operating in the Pakistan. Data was collected from employees of the small and medium size enterprises operating in Pakistan. Structured questionnaire was used to collect the data. Data was analyzed through SPSS software.  Findings: The findings of the study show a positive relationship between innovation and performance. Results proved that introducing new products helps the small and medium size enterprises to increase their performance, or enhancement of current product also helps small and medium size enterprises to increase the performance. Implications/Originality/Value: The study concludes that in current competitive business environment, it is necessary for firm to be innovative in their products, processes and market to enhance their performance. Study findings conclude that strategic innovation is one of the most important factors of the firm for their performanc

Zagreb Polynomials and redefined Zagreb indices of nanostar dendrimers

Dendrimers are profoundly extended natural macromolecules with successive layers of branch units encompassing a central core. Topological indicess are numbers related with graph of a compound to allow quantitative structureactivity/property/lethality connections. These topological indices relate certain physico-chemical properties like stability, boiling point, strain energy and so forth of a compound. In this report, there have been computed redefined first, second and third Zagreb indices of Nanostar dendrimers. The authors also analyzed some Zagreb polynomials of understudy dendrimers

Synergistic effect of reduced graphene oxide layers wrapped in polyaniline sheets to porous blades for boosted oxygen evolution reaction

Electrochemical water splitting is a unique approach for producing renewable energy in hydrogen fuel, though it is limited due to the sluggish kinetics of oxygen evolution reaction (OER). To enhance the efficacy of hydrogen production, it is a need to regulate oxygen evolution reaction. An efficient strategy is to construct a competent electrocatalyst with an immense open, active site, highly stable, porous structure, and large surface area. This study employs an inexpensive, facile, and eco-friendly single-step route to fabricate reduced graphene oxide (rGO) layers wrapped in polyaniline (PANI) sheets to achieve the controlled blades morphology. All the synthesized materials are characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), BET to examine their structural, morphological, and textural properties. Interestingly, when all the synthesized materials are employed for electrochemical measurements, rGO/PANI nanocomposite exhibits exceptional performance with a low overpotential of 221 mV to achieve a current density of 10 mA/cm2, lower Tafel slope of 37 mV/dec, and also high stability of 20 h. Overall, this work could lead up to the fabrication of innovative blade structured nanocomposite as an efficient electrocatalyst and make it applicable for multiple applications.- Deanship of Scientific Research at King Khalid University, Saudi Arabia - Research Groups Program [grant number R.G.P. 1/41/42.]. - Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan

Determination of Difficulty Index in End of Block Examinations of Preclinical Undergraduate Medical Students

Background: Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) are considered a good choice for undergraduate formative assessment as they have higher reliability and are generally feasible. The objective of this study was to evaluate the difficulty index of Multiple-Choice Questions in the end of block examination of preclinical undergraduate medical students at Rawalpindi Medical University. Methodology: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted at Rawalpindi Medical University. End of Block assessment data was collected from Department of Medical Education, RMU. A total of 60 MCQs scores were randomly selected and the difficulty index was calculated after entering data in MS Excel. Data was then entered in SPSS version 24. Means and standard deviations of Difficulty indices were calculated and compared between first-year and second-year students by independent samples students t-test and between subjects by ANOVA. Results: Out of 120 Multiple Choice Items analyzed, in the first year MBBS block exam, 30% were easy, 65% were acceptable and 5% were difficult. In the second year MBBS block exam, 36.67% were easy, 56.67% were acceptable and 6.67% were difficult. There was no significant difference (p=0.986) between the mean difficulty index of first-year MBBS students and second-year MBBS students. However, the mean difficulty index was highest in physiology (66.53 ± 16.262) followed by biochemistry (64.36 ± 16.756) and anatomy (54.80 ± 17.665), and the mean difference between the subjects was statistically significant (p=0.005). The mean difficulty index in first-year MBBS students was highest for Biochemistry followed by Physiology and Anatomy. In second-year MBBS students, the mean difficulty index was highest in Physiology followed by Biochemistry and Anatomy. Conclusion: The difficulty index of Anatomy MCQs was lower indicating that the students find them more difficult than the other two subjects i.e., Physiology and Biochemistry in the first two years of their undergraduate medical studies.     &nbsp