Anchoring Identity in Faith: Narrative of an Anglo-Asian Muslimah in Britain

This article is based on a narrative of an Anglo-Asian Muslimah, studying in a prominent university in the city of Birmingham, England. The trainee teacher was a suitable candidate for my research for the additional characteristics, which she had. She was born as a Muslimah in England, she was neither totally Asian nor English in reality; she was the daughter of a Pakistani mother and an English father. Using narrative analysis, several key themes, such as family, friendship, and cultural practices, emerged. These themes shed light about her life experiences. Significantly, she reveals the important influence of Islam and faith as the core of her identity, which is apparently used as a mechanism in contemporary society. In conclusion, the narrator presents a positive representation of a Muslimah who is at ease with her dual heritage whilst being rooted in Islam. She presents herself as open-minded and undeterred, thus implying that such counter narratives need to be added to the wider Muslim narratives

Public Realm at Qatar University Campus: Perception and sustainability of Open Green Spaces

Open green spaces are considered as an integral part of university campuses worldwide and the related studies reveal the significant impact of the green spaces on the quality of life in the campuses. Thus, scholars have also stressed the need of revitalization of outdoor green spaces in the Qatar university campus. This research investigates whether students‘ perception has an impact on usability of green spaces, precisely, at the Women‘s Engineering Building of Qatar University. It also considers the extent to which regional factors, such as climate and privacy, as per Islamic value, impact the perception of usability of open green spaces. A review of the literature was conducted for exploring the regional influence on perception and usability of green spaces. Site visits and field observation were conducted to understand the spatial nature of the green spaces in terms of privacy and the types of green space usage in the surrounding areas of the Women‘s Engineering Building. User‘s perception of green spaces and their impact on usability were collected through survey questions and questionnaires. In contrast to the views of the scholars, significant difference between perception and usability of the green spaces along the year, the findings reveal that (1) a certain resistance to the usage of the green spaces occurs in summer; (2) there is no significant threat to the perception of privacy, which, in turn, has no impact on the usability of green spaces at Qatar University‘s Women‘s Engineering Building

Dye extraction from Rheum emodi for colouring silk using natural mordants

Applicability of natural dyes has increased several folds in the past few years due to the eco-friendly approach of the people. This paper concerns with the dyeing of silk fabric with colorant extracted from Rheum emodi (commonly known as rhubarb, himalayan rhubarb, Indian rhubarb) in the presence of selected five natural mordants. Extract using hot percolation with methanol was (27.55%) found suitable and maximum absorption (?max) was observed at pH of 10 in aqueous solution. A wide range of shades ranging from yellow to olive green were obtained. As per the visual evaluation Concentration (0.1%), dyeing time (60 min.), mordant concentration (2%) and pre mordanting method were observed optimized for dyeing. From the results of fastness grade for sunlight and washing it is concluded that the samples mordanted with Harda (Terminalia chebula) and Amla (Phyllanthus emblica) were excellent followed byAnar (Punica granatum), Bahera (Termirudia belerica) and Katth (Acacia Catechu)

Anchoring identity in faith: Narrative of Anglo-Asian Muslimah in Britain

This narrative of an Anglo-Asian Muslimah reveals the important influence of Islam and faith as the core of identity, which is apparently used as a mechanism in contemporary society. In conclusion, the narrator presents a positive representation of a Muslimah who is at ease with her dual heritage whilst being rooted in Islam. She presents herself as open-minded and undeterred, thus implying that such counter narratives need to be added to the wider Muslim narratives. It is based on my TQR paper

Religious Education at Crossroads in the UK: Muslim Responses to Registration, Regulation and Inspection

Madrasah education is the bedrock of Muslim communities the world over. They are established, in essence, for the religious, spiritual, moral and social development of Muslim children. Recently, the Department for Education in the UK issued a call for evidence for requiring certain out-of-school settings to be registered, regulated and inspected. Responses to this proposal have been varied, some welcoming it whilst others expressed serious concerns. This paper explores the trends in the responses made to these proposal by three Muslim organisations. It begins by providing a nuanced understanding of the terms maktab and madrasah and shows that the call is not a new one at all. Thereafter, the worry of many politicians, educators and faith groups are considered. The findings reveal that Muslim organisations support and welcome measures to strengthen the safeguarding and well-being of children. However, a summative analysis of their responses reveals that they have serious concerns about many aspects of the proposal and the context within which it has been conceived

Perceptions of the value of Collective Worship amongst trainee teachers in England

This article draws on a survey conducted with primary school trainee teachers in a university in England. The survey set out to investigate their knowledge, understanding and their view about the role that Collective Worship (CW) plays in schools. A sample of 125 participants contributed to the findings of this inquiry by completing a questionnaire. The results demonstrate that these students think that CW makes a significant contribution to the spiritual, moral, social, cultural (SMSC), and emotional and intellectual development of pupils. The most significant finding is that they think worship should be retained. Their views are important as they provide further insights for the debates currently taking place about the status and nature of worship in schools. The research has implications for further studies and to develop the overall knowledge about CW among trainee teachers. © 2016 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group

A unified approach to radius of convexity problems for certain classes of univalent analytic functions

We consider functions f analytic in the unit disc and assume the power series representation of the form f(z)=z+an+1zn+1+an+2zn+2+… where an+1 is fixed throughout. We provide a unified approach to radius convexity problems for different subclasses of univalent analytic functions. Numerous earlier estimates concerning the radius of convexity such as those involving fixed second coefficient, n initial gaps, n+1 symmetric gaps, etc. are discussed. It is shown that several known results, follow as special cases of those presented in this paper

Conceptual Framework for Planning Urban Roadside Vegetation to Enhance Air Quality for Roadside Users

Vegetation is known for enhancing air quality. However, vegetation on urban roads can either increase or decrease exposure to air pollutants. The health of pedestrians and cyclists is particularly of great concern since they are exposed directly to air pollutants, unlike drivers. Dispersion of air pollutants is necessary for exposure reduction on urban roads. The local factors, including street geometry, meteorological conditions, and physical characteristics of vegetation, influence the dispersion of pollutants. There is a lack of framework for planning urban road vegetation to disperse air pollutants. This study summarizes the literature on the influence of local factors; analyses the interrelation between the local factors on the dispersion of air pollutants by trees and hedgerows. It provides a conceptual framework to provide clarity in planning urban roadside vegetation to enhance the air quality for roadside users

Variety Is the Spice of Life:Diverse Social Networks Are Associated With Social Cohesion and Well-Being

Both homophily and heterophily are observed in humans. Homophily reinforces homogeneous social networks, and heterophily creates new experiences and collaborations. However, at the extremes, high levels of homophily can cultivate prejudice toward out-groups, whereas high levels of heterophily can weaken in-group support. Using data from 24,726 adults (M = 46 years; selected from 10,398 English neighborhoods) and the composition of their social networks based on age, ethnicity, income, and education, we tested the hypothesis that a middle ground between homophily and heterophily could be the most beneficial for individuals. We found that network homophily, mediated by perceived social cohesion, is associated with higher levels of subjective well-being but that there are diminishing returns, because at a certain point increasing network homophily is associated with lower social cohesion and, in turn, lower subjective well-being. Our results suggest that building diverse social networks provides benefits that cannot be attained by homogeneous networks

The association between prenatal atrioventricular septal defects and chromosomal abnormalities

Objective Atrioventricular septal defect is associated with a high risk of a chromosomal abnormality, particularly trisomy 21. The aim of this study is to assess the rate of trisomy 21 in fetuses diagnosed with an atrioventricular septal defect and to examine the influence of prior screening on the rate of trisomy 21. Methods Electronic ultrasound database was searched to identify fetuses diagnoses with an atrioventricular septal defect from 2002 to 2014. Rate of trisomy 21 and other aneuploidies was calculated among fetuses with normal situs. The prevalence of trisomy 21 and other aneuploidies was assessed in women with low and high first trimester risk for trisomy 21, using a cut-off value of 1:150 and 1:250. Results A total 110 fetuses with a diagnosis of atrioventricular septal defect were identified. Among the 98 fetuses with normal situs, the prevalence of trisomy 21 was 46% (95%CI: 36-56%). Using a 1:150 threshold, the rate of trisomy 21 within the low-risk group was 41% (95%CI: 27-57%) while in the high-risk group it was 70% (95% CI: 52-83%), significantly higher than in the low risk group (p = 0.028). Similar results were obtained when the 1:250 threshold was applied (66% versus 41%, p = 0.055). Conclusions The rate of trisomy 21 among fetuses identified with an atrioventricular septal defect in the second trimester is high even in those that undergo first trimester combined screening. Some fetuses with a high-risk screening result show a normal karyotype. Therefore, an offer of an invasive procedure to check fetal karyotyping is indicated. Knowledge of these rates may be helpful for parents in the decision making process