An Empirical Examination of E-Government Virtual Services: Mediating Role of Users’ Perceived Usefulness

Government websites are the repository of information where citizens can timely access substantial and reliable information. It is normal to find antagonism between formulators and users of e-government virtual services (EGS). This study is designed to assess the quality of virtual services provided by Pakistani government websites. Data is collected from 278 university graduates using simple random sampling technique. Results of Smart PLS show that the survey respondents exhibit positive attitude towards perceived system quality (PSQ) and perceived information quality (PIQ) of the websites. They also perceive e-government websites useful and display their satisfaction to e-government virtual services. Finally, findings provide support to mediating role of users’ perceived usefulness (UPU). Policymakers and practitioners can take advantage of the findings to design more citizen centered government websites to optimize their satisfaction with mandatory services

Proposed Integrated System for Library Services and Online Education: A Pakistani Perspective

Purpose: Education is the basic need of each community member and educational institutions play a vital role in the development of any community and country as a whole. Also, libraries plays significant role in educating people or fulfilling educational needs of the society members. COVID-19 pandemic affects all sectors of life including educational institutes. However, libraries play dramatic role in the delivery of electronic services like e-thesis, e-books, e-research articles and virtual reference. The proposed study will provide a step-by-step guideline to individual researchers, research organizations, educational assessments organizations, government departments and policy development departments to plan and execute such innovative projects for the betterment of the educational system in the country. Similarly, libraries will get benefit to engage officially in providing e-services to community members. Through this proposed proposal the researchers may be able to identify the current status of educational institutions and their libraries in Pakistan in terms of educational institutions\u27 and their libraries strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats for the delivery of online educational programs and e-services of libraries during COVID-19 pandemic or in such other accidental situations. Research Methodology: The proposed study will be conducted through Explanatory Sequential Mixed Method Research to meet study objectives. Practical Implications: The proposed study will help in identifying strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats to online educational programs and e-services of libraries. Also, propose suggestions to educational institutions and libraries on the basis of identified strengths and opportunities for their better utilization. Similarly, it will identify the issues like weaknesses and threats to online educational programs and libraries in universities and will propose strategies for covering such deficiencies for the smooth delivery of online education and library online services while utilizing the existing resources. Also, benchmarking other developed organizations and may introduce resource sharing modules among the different organizations to overcome less developed organizations\u27 deficiencies while utilizing developed organizations existing resources

Nematicidal and allelopathic responses of Lantana camara root extract

The impact of root leachates of Lantana camara L., a tropical weed, against Meloidogyne javanica, the root-knot nematode, was tested under laboratory and pot conditions. Concentrated and diluted root leachate caused substantial mortality of M. javanica juveniles. Significant suppression of the nematode was achieved when soil was treated with a full-strength concentration of the leachate. Whilst this high concentration retarded plant height and shoot fresh weight, more diluted concentrations actually enhanced plant growth. To establish whether this inhibition of plant growth from the leachate was the result of depleted nitrogen levels in the soil due to the leachate, soil treated with such leachates was given urea as an additional nitrogen source. Urea not only enhanced nematode suppression activity of the root leachates but also increased seedling emergence and growth of mungbean. Application of the L. camara root leachates in combination with Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a plant growth-promoting rhizobacterium, significantly reduced nematode population densities in roots and subsequent root-knot infection, and enhanced plant growth. While a high concentration of root leachate slightly reduced P. aeruginosa colonization in the rhizosphere and inner root tissues, the nematicidal efficacy of the bacterium was unaffected. The root leachate of L. camara was found to contain phenolic compounds, including p-hydroxybenzoic acid, vanillic acid, caffeic acid, ferulic acid and a quercetin glycoside, 7-glucoside. It also contained weak enzymic hydrogen cyanide

Causes Of The Decline Of Education In Pakistan And Its Remedies

Low literacy rate and poor quality of education are the major drawbacks of the educational system in Pakistan. Our education is influenced by a number of factors that cause this downfall. Some of them are more prominent, such as low enrollment and high dropout rate at the primary level, different standards of education, low budget allocation for education sector, political interference, low quality of curricula and textbooks, rapid growth in population, poverty and unemployment, poor quality of teachers and irrelevant induction of duties, and our substandard evaluation system. Although the government claims for some bold steps to overcome these problems, there is still room for improvement.&nbsp

Ocular manifestation, complications and aetiological factors in Stevens-Johnson syndrome/toxic epidermal necrolysis

Abstract OBJECTIVE: To describe the ocular manifestations of Stevens-Johnson Syndrome/Toxic Epidermal Necrosis among inpatients at a tertiary care hospital. METHODS: The retrospective observational descriptive study was carried out at the Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, and comprised data on age, gender, aetiology and ocular findings related to patients diagnosed with Stevens-Johnson Syndrome/ToxicEpidermal Necrosis between January 2000 and December 2011. SPSS 19 was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: There were 87 patients; 48(55.2%) of them being males.The overall mean age was 33.2±22.2 years, ranging from 1 month to 84 years. The most common aetiology was idiopathic 20(23%) followed by non-steroidal inflammatory drugs and anti-epileptics 11(12.6%) each. Besides, 84(96.6%) patients had oral mucosal involvement whereas 45(51.7%) had ocular and 27(31.0%) had genital-mucosal involvement. Glassroding was performed in 16(18.4%) patients due to minor conjunctival adhesions. CONCLUSION: Ocular manifestations of varying severity were frequent, with drugs being the most common aetiolog

Incidental renal cell carcinoma in pelvic malignancies

Simultaneous diagnosis of renal cell carcinoma with pelvic malignancies is rare but a well-documented phenomenon. It is not uncommon to have incidental renal masses on imaging done for investigating other tumors. There are no established guidelines for the treatment of patients with dual malignancies. The management of such patients is challenging and requires a multidisciplinary approach. We present a series of three cases with a diagnosed pelvic malignancy but further workup revealed a kidney tumor. Both the malignancies were evaluated individually and diagnosed as two different primary neoplastic lesions. This case series examines each distinct patient\u27s presentation, discusses the diagnosis, and compares and contrasts the findings while discussing the literature on this topic

Assessment of Panoramic Radiographic Variables as Predictors of Inferior Alveolar Nerve Injury During Third Molar Extraction

Objective: To assess the role of radiological predictive markers on orthopantomogram for inferior alveolar nerve (IAN) injury related to the removal of mandibular third molar surgery and the occurrence of post-operative IAN paresthesia. Material and Methods: This prospective observational study was conducted on 60 patients (aged 17-35 years) indicated for extraction and showed one or more of the seven previously known panoramic radiographic risk signs of IAN injury. Variables such as age, sex, tooth angulation, and relationship with the inferior alveolar canal (IAC) were assessed to see their outcome on IAN injury. Data analysis is presented through tables and descriptive methods. Results: Among patients, 26 were male and 34 were female, with a mean age of 26.17 years. Out of seven radiological predictive markers, only six were found in this study, whereas one marker, viz. interruption of white line of the canal was not found. After surgical removal of the lower third molar, only two patients with radiographic signs showing the deflection of roots and darkening of roots continued with sensory deficit 5 weeks post-operatively. Conclusion: The risk of inferior alveolar nerve injury during lower third molar surgery is very low, even in patients with radiological predictive markers