Architecture in Sudan: The Post–Independence Era (1956-1970). Focus on the Work of Abdel Moneim Mustafa

This article is part of a study on the Sudanese social and political context during the formation of the Modern Movement and the manifestations in built form and spatial expression during the period 1900-1970. The study has been on–going for several years and includes a literature search, local surveys (of unpublished and undocumented information) as well as photographs taken by the authors, sourced from architects or published material. It is argued that the Sudanese response to the International Style was in fact early experimentation in critical regionalism. The most notable architectural heritage in Sudan are the archaeological remains at Kerma and Napata as well as the remains of ancient Meroe about 180 km north of Khartoum. These cultures demonstrated sophistication in building materials and construction techniques. Due to climate changes, political changes and religious changes over a large stretch of time (642AD with the signing of the Bagt Treaty–1898 at the demise of the Mahdist era) the qualities of the built environment became more transient and rudimentary in character with a greater focus on manifesting tradition through body images, clothing and rituals that were not necessarily tied to a particular physical location rather than through monuments. With foreign interest in the strategic location of the Sudan, and as a part of the scramble for Africa, came specific stylistic and technical manifestations

Understadning Faraid: the Case of University Students

The purpose of the study is threefold (1) to examine the level of faraid awareness among university students, as well as (2)the factors that may influence it, and (3)to investigate whether there is any difference between the various groups of respondents based on gender, education level, age and country of origin. The study uses three main statistical techniques to analyse the data, namely, one sample t-test, MANOVA and multiple regression. The data was gathered by distributing the questionnaire to 150 students of International Islamic University Malaysia. The findings indicate that overall the students have good knowledge about faraid. Nevertheless, the students were found to have a misconception and misunderstanding regarding female share in inheritance in Islam. In addition, the findings show that there is significant education level difference in faraid awareness. Finally, the findings conclude that among the variables initially included in the study, only facilitating conditions is significantly influencing the level of awareness of the university students

Effect of Different Parameters on Intrinsic Uniformity Test For MEDISO Single-Head Gamma Camera

The most basic and sensitive routine quality control (QC) of gamma camera is that of intrinsic uniformity. Intrinsic uniformity must be assessed daily and after each repair, it must be critically evaluated and any necessary action must be undertaken before using the gamma camera for patient imaging. The main objective of this work is to determine the best parameters for daily quality control testing of intrinsic uniformity for the single-head gamma camera from MEDISO Company installed at Institute of Nuclear Medicine - University of Gezira. Intrinsic uniformity test was done by placing a point source 99mTcO- (99mTc) in front of the detector with removed collimator to measure the effect of correction matrix, source-to-camera distance, a count rate and activity volume on intrinsic uniformity. The results showed that the best intrinsic uniformity image obtained at distance of 100 cm, with correction matrix, activity volume in range of 0.1 - 0.4 ml in 3 ml syringe and count rate between 25 - 30 kcps which took less than 14 min to get uniform image. &nbsp

An Enhanced Software Quality Testing Approach Using Metamorphic Testing Technique

The software testing process plays an important role in improving the quality of the software product. The product or program which is free from errors greatly contributes to assuring the quality of the software. An oracle in software testing is a person (tester) who performs the testing process. The oracle problem is the difficulty of determining the expected outcomes of selected test cases. A tester (oracle) may not always be available, or might be available but the process is too expensive and difficult to apply. The research presented in this paper proposes an approach for reducing the effect of the oracle problem during testing software and hence enhancing the quality of testing. Metamorphic Testing (MT) approach has been introduced and applied to generate a follow-up test case for multiple executions of program under test and verify the result automatically.  An experimental method has been used to explain the mechanism of work for (MT). JUNIT tool which supports MT has been used to apply selected case studies (trigonometric function, geometric shapes classification, booking web service). The obtained results showed a good enhancement in the testing process. The importance of this research lies in overcoming oracle problem or alleviates it and thus, the research contributes to knowledge the domain by guiding researchers to use the metamorphic method because of its great advantages, as well as evaluating the effect of metamorphic method through empirical studies

Numerical solution for open channel flow with submerged flexible vegetation

The purpose of this study is to explore the suitability of numerical models in estimation o f velocity and flow resistance (Manning n) in open channels with totally submerged flexible vegetation. A three dimensional (3D) numerical model based on arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian (ALE) approach has been employed to simulate the effects of various characteristics of selected flexible vegetations to the velocity distribution and flow resistance. The modeling involved simultaneous solution of Navier Stokes equation f or o pen channel flow, s tress-strain relationship for the vegetation structure and ALE algorithm for the moving vegetation boundaries. The numerical computation has been carried out with a n aid of a commercial finite element software package, COMSOL Multiphysics 3.4. The numerical results were validated using experimental data carried out in the laboratory using real vegetations. The accuracy of numerical model compared t o experimental results w as measured in terms of mean absolute error (MAE). The results show that the numerical model which combined the three applications as mentioned above able to predict the velocity and the flow resistance coefficient in open vegetated channel with reasonable accuracy. The MAE calculated for velocity and Manning n is ±0.02

Analysis of complex contagions in random multiplex networks

We study the diffusion of influence in random multiplex networks where links can be of $r$ different types, and for a given content (e.g., rumor, product, political view), each link type is associated with a content dependent parameter $c_i$ in $[0,\infty]$ that measures the relative bias type-$i$ links have in spreading this content. In this setting, we propose a linear threshold model of contagion where nodes switch state if their "perceived" proportion of active neighbors exceeds a threshold \tau. Namely, a node connected to $m_i$ active neighbors and $k_i-m_i$ inactive neighbors via type-$i$ links will turn active if $\sum{c_i m_i}/\sum{c_i k_i}$ exceeds its threshold \tau. Under this model, we obtain the condition, probability and expected size of global spreading events. Our results extend the existing work on complex contagions in several directions by i) providing solutions for coupled random networks whose vertices are neither identical nor disjoint, (ii) highlighting the effect of content on the dynamics of complex contagions, and (iii) showing that content-dependent propagation over a multiplex network leads to a subtle relation between the giant vulnerable component of the graph and the global cascade condition that is not seen in the existing models in the literature.Comment: Revised 06/08/12. 11 Pages, 3 figure

Pengembangan Instrumen Antecedent Gap ServQual

Di tengah-tengah persaingan yang demikian ketat, dengan menggunakan metode Antecedent Gap ServQual dan deskriptif analisis, maka, tampak dengan jelas betapa keunggulan yang kompetitif menjadi acuan bagi segenap Awak Kabin

Multi-level Multi-objective Quadratic Fractional Programming Problem with Fuzzy Parameters: A FGP Approach

The motivation behind this paper is to present multi-level multi-objective quadratic fractional programming (ML-MOQFP) problem with fuzzy parameters in the constraints. ML-MOQFP problem is an important class of non-linear fractional programming problem. These type of problems arise in many fields such as production planning, financial and corporative planning, health care and hospital planning. Firstly, the concept of the -cut and fuzzy partial order relation are applied to transform the set of fuzzy constraints into a common crisp set. Then, the quadratic fractional objective functions in each level are transformed into non-linear objective functions based on a proposed transformation. Secondly, in the proposed model, separate non-linear membership functions for each objective function of the ML-MOQFP problem are defined. Then, the fuzzy goal programming (FGP) approach is utilized to obtain a compromise solution for the ML-MOQFP problem by minimizing the sum of the negative deviational variables. Finally, an illustrative numerical example is given to demonstrate the applicability and performance of the proposed approach

INFLUENCE OF BINDING SOLUTION CONCENTRATION, DRYING DURATION AND DRYING TEMPERATURE ON PHYSIOCHEMICAL PERFORMANCE OF NORFLOXACIN GRANULES AND TABLETS

Objective: To investigate the possible individual and joined influences that binding solution concentration, drying temperature and drying duration might have on the physiochemical attributes of granules and tablets using norfloxacin as a model drug. Methods: According to implemented 23 central composite designs, each of the investigated variables were examined at 5 different levels through different 16 formulation runs. For each formulation, obtained granules were qualified for their bulk density, tap density, Hausner ratio, percent of fine and drug content properties whereas the respective tablets were evaluated for their weight variation, drug content, friability, hardness, disintegration, and drug dissolution attributes. Results: Indicated that concentration of binder solution, as compared to drying temperature and drying duration, measured more profound influences on granules' tap density, Hausner ratio, % fine and drug content either through its individual linear and quadratic effects or through its joint effect with drying durations (p<0.05 at 95% CI for all influences). Whilst tablets' friability appeared to be noticeably influenced by the three investigated variables (P ranged 0.001-0.017 at 95% CI), tablets' hardness and disintegration were found to be considerably affected only by binder solution concentration (p = 0.001 and 0.082 at 95% CI, respectively). Moreover, none of the investigated variables has measured a significant influence on tablets' drug content or drug dissolution properties. Conclusion: The study concluded that quadratic and joint influences of variables on attributes of granule and tablet formulations shouldn't be overlooked and better to be considered in the screening design