A Comparison of Performance between TFRC and UDP over a Mobile IP Network

In this project we will study three performance metrics (packet loss, packet delay and jitter) of two different transport layer protocols over a Mobile IP Network. The researcher will be implementing TFRC and UDP in the Mobile IP Network, to identify which protocols could support mobility. Network Simulation NS-2 was proposed for implementing previous items and to present and interpret the results

Long Time Stability Investigation for Structural and Magnetic Properties of Ti-doped Barium Ferrite

Barium hexaferrite (BHF) (BaFe12O19) and its substituted derivatives have been considered as the most potential magnetic candidates with considerable chemical stability and physiochemical characteristics. BHF with x ferrite ions substituted by titanium (Ti-doped BTHF) (BaTixFe12-xO19) (x=1 and x=3) was prepared from ferric oxide (Fe2O3), barium oxide (BaO), and titanium oxide (TiO2) of purity >98%. The materials were mixed with deionized water and then dried at 1100°C and 1200°C overnight. For the formation of BaFe12O19 phase, the mixture was annealed at a rate of 10°C/min in static air atmosphere until reaching 1200°C and then maintained for 10 h. Structural properties of these samples were measured using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy, while magnetic properties were measured using vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) device. Magnetic and structural characteristics are investigated after preserving Ti-doped BHF samples at room temperature and ambient conditions for 12 years. The samples are characterized using the same previous techniques to find out the possible effect of long period storage on their properties. The results showed that the storage process has little effect on these properties where the granular size increased due to increased oxidation. XRD tests also showed the absence of Ti at low ratios due to increased oxidation of ferrite. VSM results showed increased magnetic properties after storage due to increased iron oxide

Proliferative and Glycolytic Assessment of the Whole-Body Bone Marrow Compartment

Objective: Quantitative assessment of active bone marrow (BM) in vivo is yet to be well-defined. This study aims to compare total body BM volume estimations obtained from use of both18F-FLT PET/CT and 18F-FDG PET/CT in order to consolidate higher cellular proliferation rates with imaging the highly active red BM in pancreatic cancer. Methods: This phase I pilot study includes seven patients with pancreatic cancers who underwent both 18F-FLT and 18F-FDG imaging each acquired within a week’s duration. A CT-based classifier is used for segmenting bone into cortical and trabecular regions. The total BM volume is determined through statistical thresholding on PET activity found within the trabecular bone. Results: Results showed that 18F-FLT measures of red BM volume (RBV) were higher than those obtained from 18F-FDG (∆=89.21 ml). RBV obtained using 18F-FLT in males were found to have high correlation with measured weight (R2=0.61) and BMI (R2=0.70). The red BM fraction obtained from 18F-FLT was significantly different between males and females, with females showing much higher red bone matter within the trabecular bone (p<0.05). In contrast to 18F-FLT, 18F-FDG BM measurements showed that RBV was significantly different between males and females (p<0.05). Results also show that spinal activity SUV threshold for red BM segmentation is significantly different between 18F-FLT PET and 18F-FDG PET (p<0.05). Conclusion: By combining 18F-FLT-PET and 18F-FDG-PET, this study provides useful insights for in vivo BM estimation through its proliferative and glycolytic activitie

The Effect of Oil and Filer Contents on the Porosity of Lead Acid Battery Separators Produced From Polyethylene

In this investigation a high density polyethylene (HDPE) was used as a substitute to polyvinylchloride in the production of lead acid battery separators. This has been achieved by preparing mixtures of different percentages of the feed materials which include a high density polyethylene (HDPE) locally produced, filler materials such as silica and oils such as dioctylphthalate (DOP) or paraffin which were added to the mixture to improve the final properties of the separator. The materials were compounded by two roll-mills under the same conditions. The following parameters are involved: <br /> 1- Studying the use of a high density polyethylene as a binder to film components with (15-30) wt.%.<br /> 2- Studying the use of finely divided silica sand with (25-45) wt.% as a medium to oil adsorption.- Studying the use of two type plasticizers (Paraffin or DOP) with (35-55) wt. %. as a creative medium to films porosity.The best results of the feed materials in the mixture were selected so as to give the highest porosity using 15 wt. % PE, 30 wt. % filler, and 55 wt. % oil. It has been found that the films with DOP oil give higher porosity

Detection of Bacteria Causing Early Onset Pneumonia among Neonates Admitted to NICU In Children Hospital, Zagazig University

Background: Early onset pneumonia could be caused by bacteria, virus or fungi. Early identification and treatment with antibiotics is vital in reducing mortality and morbidity. Objectives: The current study aimed for detection of organisms that cause early onset pneumonia guided by nasopharyngeal aspirate culturing, in addition to blood culturing. Patients and methods: This study was applied on 36 neonates admitted to NICU in Zagazig University Children Hospital, during the period from October 2018 to April 2019. Results: There was no relation between gestational age and birth weight with neonatal pneumonia (NP) incidence rates. The prevalence of confirmed early onset NP with positive blood culture was 88.9%. The hospital stays of studied subjects were 7.2 ± 3.5 days. Neonatal pneumonia caused by Gram negative bacteria (53.1%) was more common than Gram positive bacteria (46.9%). K. pneumonia (37.5%) was the most common microorganism isolated from the blood cultures. S. saprophyticus (21.8%) was the most frequently recovered CONS isolate from blood cultures, followed by S. cohnii (9.4%) and S. haemolyticus (6.3%). The most prevalent organism isolated from BAL fluid was Klebsiella (38.5%).Conclusion: Neonatal sepsis remains a major problem in neonates. Gram-negative bacteria were the most common cause of early onset NP in Zagazig University Hospital with K. pneumonia being the most common pathogen. Regular periodic surveillance of the causative organisms of neonatal pneumonia is needed to implement the rational empirical choice of antibiotic prescription while waiting for blood culture result to come out

THE ROLE OF SELF-DISCREPANCY IN GENERATING FUTURE ANXIETY AMONG UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

Purpose of the study: The current study examines the level of self-perception (realism, idealism, and duty) among Yarmouk University students. It also identifies the level of their self-discrepancy and its relation to future anxiety and explores the differences regarding the level of these self-discrepancies and the future anxiety according to the variables of specialization, the level of the study, and GPA. The study argues that while there is a significant statistical negative relationship between the level of future anxiety and the actual self among university students there is no significant statistical correlation between the level of future anxiety and the ideal self and the ought self. Methodology: The study was conducted on a sample of (200) university students of the Faculty of Education at Yarmouk University. Higgins’ (1987) scale which consists of (30) paragraphs and the scale of future anxiety which consists of (27) paragraphs were applied to the study sample using the descriptive correlational approach. Main Findings: There were no significant statistical differences regarding the level of self-discrepancy (real/ideal) and (real/due) due to the variables of specialization, the level of study, and the GPA. Also, there were no significant differences regarding the level of future anxiety among Yarmouk University students according to the variables of specialization, the level of study, and the GPA. Yet, there was a statistically significant negative relationship between the level of future anxiety and the actual self. Applications of this study: Universities across the globe, such as Yarmouk University and the University of Jordan, may find it significant to know that university students have a moderate level of self-perception and do not have a correspondence between the characteristics of the self in its three dimensions. Thus, such universities may need to think of establishing certain training and counseling programs that aim at developing the students' perception of themselves and their understanding of the self. Novelty/Originality of this study: Considering that a few Arabic studies address future anxiety among university students who will graduate and impact their local communities, the paper points at the need for establishing certain counseling courses that help university students better understand themselves and decide their needs accordingly.&nbsp;&nbsp

Smart job searching system based on information retrieval techniques and similarity of fuzzy parameterized sets

Job searching for the proper vacancy among several choices is one of the most important decision-making problems. The necessity of dealing with uncertainty in such real-world problems has been a long-term research challenge which has originated from different methodologies and theories. The main contribution of this work is to match the applicant curriculum vitae (CV) with the best available job opportunities based on certain criteria. The proposed job searching system (JSS) implements a series of approaches which can be broken down into segmentation, tokenization, part of speech, gazetteer, and fuzzy inference to extract and arrange the required data from the job announcements and CV. Moreover, this study designs a fuzzy parameterized structure to store such data as well as a measuring tool to calculate the degree of similarity between the job requirements and the applicant’s CV. In addition, this system analyses the computed similarity scores in order to get the optimal job opportunities for the job seeker in descending order. The performance evaluation of the proposed system shows high recall and precision percentages for the matching process. The results also confirm the viability of the JSS approach in handling the fuzziness that is associated with the problem of job searching

Group theoretic approach for solving the problem of diffusion of a drug through a thin membrane

AbstractThe transformation group theoretic approach is applied to study the diffusion process of a drug through a skin-like membrane which tends to partially absorb the drug. Two cases are considered for the diffusion coefficient. The application of one parameter group reduces the number of independent variables by one, and consequently the partial differential equation governing the diffusion process with the boundary and initial conditions is transformed into an ordinary differential equation with the corresponding conditions. The obtained differential equation is solved numerically using the shooting method, and the results are illustrated graphically and in tables

Earnings Management, Management Compensation, Managerial Ability and Market Competition

As a result of the agency problem, earnings management may take place due to the high contracting costs, shareholders’ bounded rationalities, and information asymmetry. Therefore, three main groups of motives have been identified to explain earnings management behaviour at the contracting, capital market, and external levels. While the previous studies have individually examined those motives, this thesis provides evidence that they interact in determining earnings management behaviour. The first empirical chapter of this thesis focuses on the contracting factors and examines the impact of earnings management on executive compensation conditioned on managerial ability. It finds that managers who utilize accrual earnings management receive higher compensation than those who undertake real earnings management. However, high quality managers are rewarded less for accrual earnings management and punished less for real earnings management. The second empirical chapter examines the non-linear effect of market concentration as an external motive of earnings management. It documents that accrual earnings management increases in concentrated markets as the quantity of information decreases. However, the sophisticated real earnings management starts to substitute for discretionary accruals at higher levels of market concentration when the quality of information declines. The third empirical chapter combines factors from the contracting and external motives. It examines the effect of market competition on the relationship between managerial ability and earnings management. The results show that in the face of increased competition, high quality managers manipulate earnings via accruals rather than more costly real earnings management. Overall, the results of this thesis show that management compensation is a crucial factor in assessing the costs of earnings management at the firm level. An optimal level of market concentration exists and should be considered by the regulators. Finally, understanding how industry level factors influence managerial decisions at the firm level is essential to explaining earnings management behaviour

18F-FLT Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography Imaging in Pancreatic Cancer: Determination of Tumor Proliferative Activity and Comparison with Glycolytic Activity as Measured by 18F-FDG Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography Imaging

OBJECTIVE: This phase-I imaging study examined the imaging characteristic of 3’-deoxy-3’-((18)F)-fluorothymidine ((18)F-FLT) positron emission tomography (PET) in patients with pancreatic cancer and comparisons were made with ((18)F)-fluorodeoxyglucose ((18)F-FDG). The ultimate aim was to develop a molecular imaging tool that could better define the biologic characteristics of pancreas cancer, and to identify the patients who could potentially benefit from surgical resection who were deemed inoperable by conventional means of staging. METHODS: Six patients with newly diagnosed pancreatic cancer underwent a combined FLT and FDG computed tomography (CT) PET/CT imaging protocol. The FLT PET/CT scan was performed within 1 week of FDG PET/CT imaging. Tumor uptake of a tracer was determined and compared using various techniques; statistical thresholding (z score=2.5), and fixed standardized uptake value (SUV) thresholds of 1.4 and 2.5, and applying a threshold of 40% of maximum SUV (SUV(max)) and mean SUV (SUV(mean)). The correlation of functional tumor volumes (FTV) between (18)F-FDG and (18)F-FLT was assessed using linear regression analysis. RESULTS: It was found that there is a correlation in FTV due to metabolic and proliferation activity when using a threshold of SUV 2.5 for FDG and 1.4 for FLT (r=0.698, p=ns), but a better correlation was obtained when using SUV of 2.5 for both tracers (r=0.698, p=ns). The z score thresholding (z=2.5) method showed lower correlation between the FTVs (r=0.698, p=ns) of FDG and FLT PET. CONCLUSION: Different tumor segmentation techniques yielded varying degrees of correlation in FTV between FLT and FDG-PET images. FLT imaging may have a different meaning in determining tumor biology and prognosis