Corpus callosum defect with dilated lateral ventricles and an occipital cyst in an Egyptian child with Diamond-Blackfan anemia

Diamond-Blackfan anemia (DBA), an inherited bone marrow failure syndrome characterized by anemia that usually presents before the first birthday or in early childhood, is associated with birth defects and an increased risk of cancer. Although anemia is the most prominent feature of DBA, the disease is also characterized by growth retardation and congenital malformations, in particular craniofacial, upper limb, heart, and urinary system defects that are present in approximately 30%-50% of patients. Herein, we present a patient with Diamond-Blackfan anemia associated craniofacial anomalies, pyramidal manifestations and corpus callosum defect and dilated lateral ventricles opening with each other and opening with a posterior occipital cyst, an association that to date has not been reported.Key Words: Diamond-Blackfan anemia, corpus callosum, dilated ventricles, occipital cyst

From Underground to Elite: Egyptian Bloggers before and after the 2011 Uprising

This research looks at how the shift in the status of Egyptian bloggers from underground dissident voices to mainstream political and media players affected the plurality they add to the public space for discourse in Egypt’s authoritarian settings. The role of the internet – and more recently social media and bloggers – in democratic transition has been studied by various media scholars since the introduction of the worldwide web and especially after the Egyptian and Tunisian uprisings of 2011. But no work has been done to study how bringing those once-underground bloggers into the public and media spotlight affected the nature of the blogosphere and the bloggers themselves. Star bloggers were not only covered by the media after January 25th, 2011, they also started joining the media as column writers; a move that had various effects on them and the blogosphere but was never examined in media studies. The plurality the blogosphere adds to the Egyptian public space for discourse in light of those changes as well as in light of the financial and practical sustainability of blogging was hence never looked at in a context similar to Egypt’s. Guided by modified theories of the public sphere and theories of hegemony and manufacturing consent, I look at whether bloggers have been co-opted into the historical bloc in the process of renewing the social order and how this affects them and the online sphere. Also, guided by theories of power and media elites, I look at bloggers’ backgrounds to assess whether they come from power elites and are transforming into media elites, thus limiting the plurality of the online sphere. Finally, guided by theoretical works on institutionalizing and commercializing the internet, I look at how those shifts into mainstream affect the independence and freedom of the blogs and microblogs. The research uses a comparative study to assess how those changes affect prominent versus less prominent bloggers and compare their backgrounds. The study uses quantitative content analysis and framing analysis of chosen media outlets and interviews with bloggers, marketeers and media professionals. The findings trace an increase in media coverage of bloggers post January 25th, 2011, especially in the prominent bloggers category, and an overall positive framing of bloggers post the uprising. This led to the mainstreaming of bloggers into the media as well as public work, which had various implications on the freedom they had over their content and voice, both online and offline. It also points to a dramatic decrease in bloggers’ activity on their blogs in favour of mainstream and social media and due to star bloggers becoming more career-oriented and their failure to make blogs financially sustainable. The findings also indicate that more prominent bloggers seem to come from more elite backgrounds than others and enjoy luxuries that allow them the time, technology and security to post online. This research concludes that the shifts in bloggers’ status post-January 25th have limited the plurality they add to the discourse in Egypt

Comparative micromorphology of the seed surface of Solanum melongena L. (eggplant) and allied species

The seed surface microstructure of Solanum melongena L., S. incanum L. and some other species were examined using SEM. Seeds were given enzyme (Driselase) etching treatment prior to examination to sweep off the outer layer of cells which obscured observation. Most seeds were characterised by hair-like structures or fibrils which surrounded each cell and which are strands of thickening in the lateral walls of the outer epidermal cells of the testa. Seed coat structure of S. melongena and S. incanum was found to be highly uniform in the samples examined indicating a close relationship between them. The seed coat patterns of S. torvum Sw., S. tomentosum L., S. aethiopicum L., S. kwebense Br. and Wr. and S. cinereum R.Br. were considerably different not only from S. melongena and S. incanum but also between themselves which supports the distinctness of these taxa

Improvement in the delivery of urban water supply services in Afghanistan by corporatisation of water utility

The Afghanistan Urban Water Supply and Sewerage Corporation (AUWSSC) was formed in 2006 (transformation of the previous government enterprise into a corporation). The liquidation of the previous enterprise, the transferring of assets and liabilities, the selection of the senior management team and the functioning of AUWSSC as an independent budget entity took several years. Nevertheless, the water supply network and services have increased significantly since the AUWSSC became operational. For example, the water production capacity per day has increased by 23%, the total water system network pipelines have increased by 35%, the customer service connection registrations have increased by 37%, and the total revenue generation per year has increased by more than 50%. At the same time, several challenges remain and key recommendations are given, from field level improvements, to hiring of capable staff, to development of procedures and guidelines, which would help enhance the services of the corporation

Shear Behavior of Steel I-Beams Strengthened With CFRP Strips

This paper studies the behavior of simply supported steel I-beams strengthened with carbon fiber reinforced polymers (CFRP) strips on the web as shear reinforcement. The experimental program contains seven simply supported steel beams. One of them was considered as a control beam and the other specimens were strengthened with different schemes; varying the position of CFRP strips to the web, its number of layers and its angle of orientation. The results show that applying CFRP strips on the web of the steel I-beams was an effective strengthening method for increasing the load bearing capacity and decreasing the deformations. Using two layers of diagonal CFRP strips on both sides of the web realized the highest increasing in the load capacity. Moreover, finite element analysis method has been utilized to analyze the tested specimens using ANSYS. A great convergence between the experimental results and the corresponding ones obtained from finite element simulation