The Contribution of the Means of Communication and Media in Building the Saudi National Identity

The aim of the research is to study the contribution of modern means of communication and media in building and shaping the national identity among the members of the Saudi society by adopting the quantitative approach to measure the extent of the contribution of the means of communication and media in building the national identity from the point of view of the recipient: male and female Saudis. By preparing, distributing and analyzing the results of a questionnaire that was directed electronically to a sample of members of Saudi society and the qualitative approach, to determine the implications of the demographic characteristics of the audience groups, the characteristics of the means of communication and media, and the forms of exposure of the public to the means of communication and media on the role played by the various means of communication and media in building the national identity in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The study reached a set of results and conclusions, the most important of which are: Only a third of the study sample considers the means of communication, the media and social networking sites contribute to the formation of the national identity and that most of them are female. Public exposure to media and communication

Aboriginal and Non-Aboriginal Students Learn About Natural Health Products from Different Information Sources

Natural health products (NHPs) include naturally derived botanical and nonbotanical products. Past research indicates a high prevalence of NHPs use amongst adults in the United States and Canada but does not clearly characterize NHPs use amongst students, ethnic variations of such use, or how users learn about NHPs. We hypothesize that there is a difference between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students in how they learn about NHPs. To investigate this question, we conducted a cross-sectional study at First Nations University of Canada and the University of Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, during the fall of 2011. Aboriginal (n=214) and non-Aboriginal (n=749) students participated in the 28 question survey. Our results indicate that Aboriginal students who use NHPs are found in all age groups, are mostly female, are smokers and nonsmokers, and learn about NHPs from Elders and healers. Compared to nonAboriginal students, Aboriginal students rely significantly less on alternative and conventional health providers, electronic media, print media, and advertising as their sources of information about NHPs. Thus, Aboriginal students use Elders or healers as a primary source of information to learn about NHPs, as compared to non-Aboriginal students. Future work should investigate the role of Elder traditional educators to convey NHPs information directed specifically to Aboriginal university students

Water-gated transistor using ion exchange resin for potentiometric fluoride sensing

We introduce fluoride-selective anion exchange resin sorbents as sensitisers into membranes for water-gated field effect transistors (WGTFTs). Sorbents were prepared via metal (La or Al)-loading of a commercial macroporous aminophosphonic acid resin, PurometTM MTS9501, and were filled into a plasticised poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) phase transfer membrane. We found a potentiometric response (membrane potential leading to WGTFT threshold shift) to fluoride following a Langmuir–Freundlich (LF) adsorption isotherm with saturated membrane potential up to ~480 mV, extremely low characteristic concentration c1/2 = 1/K, and picomolar limit of detection (LoD), even though ion exchange did not build up charge on the resin. La-loading gave a superior response compared to Al-loading. Membrane potential characteristics were distinctly different from charge accumulating sensitisers (e.g., organic macrocycles) but similar to the Cs+ (cation) selective ion-exchanging zeolite mineral ‘mordenite’. We propose a mechanism for the observed threshold shift and investigate interference from co-solutes. Strong interference from carbonate was brought under control by ‘diluting’ metal loading in the resin. This work sets a template for future studies using an entirely new ‘family’ of sensitisers in applications where very low limit of detection is essential such as for ions of arsenic, mercury, copper, palladium, and gold

Fundamental investigation into tool wear and surface quality in high-speed machining of Ti6Al4V alloy

This paper reports a fundamental investigation consisting of systematic trials into the response of Ti6Al4V alloy to high-speed machining using carbide inserts. It is a useful extension to work previously published, and aims at assessing the impact of the process parameters, depth of cut, cutting speed and feed rate in addition to cutting length, and their interrelations, on observed crater and flank wear and roughness of the machined surface. The results showed that abrasion was the most important flank wear mechanism at high speed. It also showed that increased cutting length accelerated crater wear more than exhibited flank wear and had considerable effect on surface roughness. In particular, crater wear increased by over 150% (on average), and flank wear increased by 40% (on average) when increasing cutting length from 40 to 120 mm. However, cutting the same length increased surface roughness by 50%, which helps explain how progression of tool wear leads to deteriorated surface quality. ANOVA was used to perform statistical analyses of the measured data and revealed that cutting length and depth of cut had the greatest effect on both crater and flank wear of the cutting tool. These results confirm that high-speed machining of Ti6Al4V alloy is a reliable process, with cutting speed identified as having a relatively small influence on the tool wear and resultant roughness of the machined surface relative to other parameters

Design and manufacture of functional catalyst-carrier structures for the bioorthogonal activation of anticancer agents

Novel palladium (Pd)-loaded titanium (Ti) devices with high biocompatibility and catalytic activity were prepared using a range of fabrication methods such as powder metallurgy (i.e. sintering with and without space-holder), sputtering, pulsed laser deposition and supersonic cluster beam deposition. The surface of the Ti-[Pd] devices were physico-chemically characterised to confirm the non-alloyed state of the Pd coating onto the titanium substrate. The Pd thickness was optimised to achieve maximum surface area (i.e. maximum catalytic effect) using the minimum amount of material in each method for cost effective production. The catalytic response of the different Ti-[Pd] devices was evaluated under biocompatible conditions by employing an off-on Pd-activatable fluorescent probe. The most robust coating of Pd was produced by an optimised magnetron sputtering method. The sputtered Ti-[Pd] devices were selected to induce the bioorthogonal uncaging of the anticancer drug Vorinostat from a pharmacologically-inactive Pd-activatable precursor in cancer cell culture, demonstrating the capacity of these devices to mediate a local anti-tumour effect via in-situ release of a clinically approved drug. This approach is the first step towards surgically implantable devices that could facilitate targeting affected areas with high spatial selectivity, improving pharmacological activity and reducing systemic side effects through localised treatment directly at the cancer site

A Phytochemical Analysis, Microbial Evaluation and Molecular Interaction of Major Compounds of Centaurea bruguieriana Using HPLC-Spectrophotometric Analysis and Molecular Docking

Centaurea is one of the most important genera within the family Asteraceae. An investigation of the phytochemical composition of Centaurea bruguieriana using Gas-Chromatography coupled to Mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was performed. Antimicrobial activity was evaluated using the minimum inhibitory concentration method (MIC) and validated by molecular docking for the major compounds of the most active fraction (1,10-di-epi-cubenol and methyl 8-oxooctanoate) of C. bruguieriana against three bacterial receptors (TyrRS, DNA gyrase, and dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR)). Evaluation of antioxidant activity was conducted using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2′-azino-bis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) assays. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to identify and quantify the contents of major compounds from ethyl acetate fraction (luteolin 7-O-glucoside, chlorogenic acid, kaempferol and isorhamnetin). The antimicrobial activity test showed that the chloroform fraction was more active against all microbial strains. The results of the molecular docking of two major compounds from chloroform fraction showed that good affinities were made between 1,10-di-epi-cubenol and the three selected receptors (TyrRs: −6.0 Kcal/mol against −8.2 Kcal/mol obtained with clorobiocin (standard); DNA gyrase: −6.6 Kcal/mol against −9.1 Kcal/mole obtained with clorobiocin; DHFR: −7.4 Kcal/mol against −6.3 Kcal/mol obtained with SCHEMBL2181345 Standard). Antioxidant evaluation showed that the ethyl acetate fraction was the most active fraction in DPPH (IC50 49.4 µg/mL) and ABTS (IC50 52.8 µg/mL) models. HPLC results showed the contents of luteolin 7-O-glucoside (7.4 µg/mg), and chlorogenic acid (3.2 µg/mg). Our study demonstrated that C. bruguierana is a promising source of bioactive compounds

A Phytochemical Analysis, Microbial Evaluation and Molecular Interaction of Major Compounds of Centaurea bruguieriana Using HPLC-Spectrophotometric Analysis and Molecular Docking

Centaurea is one of the most important genera within the family Asteraceae. An investigation of the phytochemical composition of Centaurea bruguieriana using Gas-Chromatography coupled to Mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was performed. Antimicrobial activity was evaluated using the minimum inhibitory concentration method (MIC) and validated by molecular docking for the major compounds of the most active fraction (1,10-di-epi-cubenol and methyl 8-oxooctanoate) of C. bruguieriana against three bacterial receptors (TyrRS, DNA gyrase, and dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR)). Evaluation of antioxidant activity was conducted using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2′-azino-bis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) assays. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to identify and quantify the contents of major compounds from ethyl acetate fraction (luteolin 7-O-glucoside, chlorogenic acid, kaempferol and isorhamnetin). The antimicrobial activity test showed that the chloroform fraction was more active against all microbial strains. The results of the molecular docking of two major compounds from chloroform fraction showed that good affinities were made between 1,10-di-epi-cubenol and the three selected receptors (TyrRs: −6.0 Kcal/mol against −8.2 Kcal/mol obtained with clorobiocin (standard); DNA gyrase: −6.6 Kcal/mol against −9.1 Kcal/mole obtained with clorobiocin; DHFR: −7.4 Kcal/mol against −6.3 Kcal/mol obtained with SCHEMBL2181345 Standard). Antioxidant evaluation showed that the ethyl acetate fraction was the most active fraction in DPPH (IC50 49.4 µg/mL) and ABTS (IC50 52.8 µg/mL) models. HPLC results showed the contents of luteolin 7-O-glucoside (7.4 µg/mg), and chlorogenic acid (3.2 µg/mg). Our study demonstrated that C. bruguierana is a promising source of bioactive compounds

Internet risks for children: Parents' perceptions and attitudes: An investigative study of the Saudi Context

Internet has become a part of our children’s daily activities at home and at school. The benefits of the Internet for children are huge and include education and entertainment. However, the same technologies also pose some risks that parents need to identify and guard against. A lack of awareness can cause children to encounter serious danger and become victims of Internet criminals. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no previous research has been conducted in Saudi Arabia on parent’s awareness of the risks of Internet use to their children and how Saudi’s parents seek to mitigate those risks. This paper investigates the associations and correlations between what parents do and what children say about online risks. It compares and contrasts parents’ mediation strategies and their children’s online habits with the aim of investigating which parental mediation strategy has taken place to reduce the risk of online activity against children. The findings indicate a substantial gap between what children do online and what their parents know. The majority of parents are interested in monitoring their children’s online activities and collaborating with their children on those activities, but most parents also do not have a strategy for accomplishing this. The survey indicated an absence of collaboration between parents and children to ensure online safety. This is not a result of a lack of interest, but rather a result of a shortage of resources due to time constraints, and poor knowledge of the Internet, or lifestyle choices

Sensing aromatic pollutants in water with catalyst-sensitized water-gated transistor

Some materials that are active heterogeneous catalysts for the breakdown of non-ionic aromatic solutes in water are found to act as potentiometric sensitizers for same solutes. As an example, here the aromatic water pollutant, benzyl alcohol, was sensed with a limit of detection below its potability limit of 19 μM. Our findings are rationalized on the grounds that both catalysis and sensing rely on adhesion of analyte/substrate on the sensitizer/catalyst. Specifically, a set of powdered transition metal-doped zeolites and related frameworks that catalyze the oxidation of waterborne aromatic pollutants were dispersed in phase transfer matrices. Matrices were introduced into water-gated thin film transistors that act as potentiometric transducers. Potentiometric sensing of non-ionic waterborne pollutants is limited to molecules with a ‘free’ molecular dipole, i.e., a dipole that is not locked in the molecular plane. The present work establishes an application for catalysts beyond catalysis itself. The use of catalysts as sensitizers is recommended for wider uptake and in reverse, to screen candidate catalysts