Government Ownership Effect on Staffing Level and Financial Performance: A Case Study on Kuwaiti Banks

It has always been believed that government ownership would lead to bad financial performance and overstaffing in any organization. This study aims to examine the effect of government ownership on staffing level and the financial performance of Kuwaiti bank over the period 2010-2018. Using the financial data of ten banks listed at Kuwait stock exchange (KSE), results shows that there was s statistically significant direct relation between government ownership and overstaffing and statistically significant inverse relation between government ownership and the financial performance of banks measured by return on assets (ROA). On the other hand results show that there was no relation between overstaffing and the financial performance of Kuwaiti banks

Energy saving monitoring using fuzzy logic for computing lab

The important issue for societies, enterprises and governments is to improve energy efficiency and reduce energy demand consumed by large number of computers and servers that could have an extensive impact on the environment. ICT creates many environmental issues such as high consumption of electrical energy from large number of computers and other I.T equipment’s. I.T industry has invented that Green Information Communication Technology (GICT) is a good way to treat with the major environmental and energy related problems faced by every country because it improves overall energy productivity while also maintaining the healthy energy consumption. In this paper, a brief overview on Green ICT implementation in IIUM computer lab by the help of energy audit in ICT lab, survey questionnaires and interview sessions. The paper will contribute by presenting the prototype which is based on energy saving monitoring by using Fuzzy Logic algorithm. Moreover, in this paper we will also giving our recommendations on Green ICT practices

Decoupled and Descattered Monopole MIMO Antenna Array with Orthogonal Radiation Patterns

This chapter introduces a novel design concept to reduce mutual coupling among closely-spaced antenna elements of a MIMO array. This design concept significantly reduces the complexity of traditional/existing design approaches such as metamaterials, defected ground plane structures, soft electromagnetic surfaces, parasitic elements, matching and decoupling networks using a simple, yet a novel design alternative. The approach is based on a planar single decoupling element, consisting of a rectangular metallic ring resonator printed on one face of an ungrounded substrate. The decoupling structure surrounds a two-element vertical monopole antenna array fed by a coplanar waveguide structure. The design is shown both by simulations and measurements to reduce the mutual coupling by at least 20 dB, maintain the impedance bandwidth over which S11, is less than −10 dB, and reduce the envelope correlation coefficient to below 0.001. The boresight of the far-field radiation patterns of the two vertical monopole wire antennas operating at 2.4 GHz and separated by 8 mm (λo/16), where λo is the free-space wavelength at 2.45 GHz, is shown to be orthogonal and inclined by 45° with respect to the horizontal (azimuthal) plane while maintaining the shape of the isolated single antenna element

Screening and Evaluation of Deleterious SNPs in APOE Gene of Alzheimer's Disease

Introduction. Apolipoprotein E (APOE) is an important risk factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD) and is present in 30–50% of patients who develop late-onset AD. Several single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are present in APOE gene which act as the biomarkers for exploring the genetic basis of this disease. The objective of this study is to identify deleterious nsSNPs associated with APOE gene. Methods. The SNPs were retrieved from dbSNP. Using I-Mutant, protein stability change was calculated. The potentially functional nonsynonymous (ns) SNPs and their effect on protein was predicted by PolyPhen and SIFT, respectively. FASTSNP was used for functional analysis and estimation of risk score. The functional impact on the APOE protein was evaluated by using Swiss PDB viewer and NOMAD-Ref server. Results. Six nsSNPs were found to be least stable by I-Mutant 2.0 with DDG value of >−1.0. Four nsSNPs showed a highly deleterious tolerance index score of 0.00. Nine nsSNPs were found to be probably damaging with position-specific independent counts (PSICs) score of ≥2.0. Seven nsSNPs were found to be highly polymorphic with a risk score of 3-4. The total energies and root-mean-square deviation (RMSD) values were higher for three mutant-type structures compared to the native modeled structure. Conclusion. We concluded that three nsSNPs, namely, rs11542041, rs11542040, and rs11542034, to be potentially functional polymorphic

Investigating the relationship between peak inspiratory flow rate and volume of inhalation from a Diskus™ Inhaler and baseline spirometric parameters: a cross-sectional study

Drug delivery from a Dry Powder Inhaler (DPI) is dependent on the peak inspiratory flow rate (PIFR) generated. Currently available methods for estimating PIFR from most DPIs are limited and mainly rely on subjective assessment. We aim to show that spirometric and Diskus™ PIFR and Inspiratory Vital Capacity (IVC) are related to the underlying respiratory condition and that spirometric PIFR can be used to assess whether Diskus™ PIFR will be adequate when using this DPI. Healthy volunteers and patients with asthma, COPD, neuromuscular disease and non-respiratory disorders were recruited (n = 85). Demographics and baseline lung function by spirometry were recorded. Flow and volume readings were taken while patients used a Diskus™ DPI, housed in an airtight container connected to a spirometer. T-tests were performed to compare mean spirometric and Diskus™ PIFR/ IVC between groups. Stepwise regression analysis of Diskus™ PIFR versus spirometric PIFR, spirometric IVC, age, gender, condition, BMI, FEV1 and FVC was performed. The Diskus™ PIFR for the COPD and Neuromuscular Disease group was more than 10 L/min lower than the Healthy or Asthma groups (p \u3c 0.05). The mean spirometric and Diskus™ IVC of the Healthy group was significantly (\u3e0.75 L) higher than the mean for the other three groups (p \u3c 0.05). Diskus™ PIFR was moderately correlated with spirometric PIFR and age (Adjusted R2 = 0.58, p \u3c 0.0001). PIFR generated using a Diskus™ DPI is dependent on the underlying disease and age. A spirometric PIFR of less than 196 L/min should prompt further investigation into the suitability of a patient for a Diskus™ DPI, with possible consideration of alternate devices

Functionalized Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotube-Reinforced Epoxy-Composites: Electrical And Mechanical Characterization

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) got great attention because of their interesting physical and mechanical properties. Due to these interesting properties observed at the nanoscale have motivated scientific community to utilize CNTs as reinforcement in composite materials. In the present study, different CNTs and epoxy nano-composites with different wt% (1, 2, 3, and 4%) of f-MWCNTs were prepared and their surface morphology and orientation has been investigated in detail. Further, the surface investigation, electrical and mechanical tests were carried out on CNTs-filled and unfilled epoxy at maximum sonication time 30 minute to identify the loading effect on the properties of the materials. Experimental results depicts well dispersion of f-MWCNTs, significant improvement that the resistivity of pure epoxy decreased from 108 .m to average value 103 .m with 1, 2, 3, and 4wt% f-MWCNTs. The 4.5wt% CNTs/epoxy was attributed to poor dispersion of f-MWCNTs in the nanocomposte. The hardness of nanocomposite loading 1, 2, 3, 4wt% of CNTs, increased 20.7%, 23.02%, 25.62%, 29.09% respectively as compared to pure epoxy. We believe that our strategy for obtaining CNT–reinforced epoxy nanocomposites is a very promising technology and will open a new doors in fields of aviation, aerospace, marine and sporting goods

Stochastic versus Ray Tracing Wireless Channel Modeling for 5G and V2X Applications: Opportunities and Challenges

Due to the rapid development of wireless communication applications, the study of Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) communication systems has gained comprehensive research activities since it can significantly increase the channel capacity and link reliability without sacrificing bandwidth and/or transmitted power levels. Researchers tend to evaluate the performance of their MIMO antenna arrays using various channel modeling tools. These channel models are mainly categorized into either deterministic channels based on Ray Tracing (RT) tools or Stochastic Channel Models (SCM). In this chapter, we compare these two categories in terms of the MIMO channel capacity using a complete description of the antennas at the transmitting and receiving ends in terms of 3D polarimetric radiation patterns and scattering parameters. The performance is evaluated for 5G New Radio (NR) Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) and Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communication (URLLC) services and Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) systems using state-of-the-art commercial SCM and RT tools to provide information regarding the capabilities and limitations of each approach under different channel environments and the Quality of Experience (QoE) for high data rate and low latency content delivery in the 5G NR sub-6GHz mid-band Frequency Range-1 (FR1) N77/N78 bands

Measuring environmental resilience using Q-methods: a Malaysian perspective

© 2022 The Authors. Published by MDPI. This is an open access article available under a Creative Commons licence. The published version can be accessed at the following link on the publisher’s website: https://doi.org/10.3390/su142214749Communities increasingly need tools that can help them assess the environmental risks they face to understand better their capacities in mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery. Environmental resilience (ER) is a crucial feature of community resilience that is not adequately covered in the literature. This paper proposes an inclusive, participatory approach to achieve stakeholder engagement on the definitions, objectives, and indicators for measuring ER at the community level. This study uses a 5-step approach utilising Q-methods to contextualise a resilience index for Environmental Resilience (ER). An initial set of 57 indicators from 13 frameworks from the literature was reduced to 25 by combining the indicators of similar type, format and terminology. A total of 10 participants from two groups (academics and practitioners) took part in the interviews and Q-sort workshops in Malaysia in this study. Both stakeholder groups identified Ecosystem monitoring as one of the most critical indicators to understand ER, closely followed by rapid damage assessments and an effective communication system. The exercise also revealed marked differences between them regarding the importance of fair access to basic needs and services for citizens, a priority for academics, and the value of building green infrastructure, a priority for practitioners, with the most significant difference between the two groups on the importance of measuring the natural defences of a community. The Environmental Resilience Capacity Assessment Tool (ER-CAT), proposed in this paper, can be used by local governments and communities for engagement, discussion and consensus building to select the resilience indicators that are most relevant to them in their contexts.The authors express their gratitude to the Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) for the financial support under the International Grant, EP/PO28543/1, entitled “A Collaborative Multi-Agency Platform for Building Resilient Communities” for the work reported in this paper. This work was also supported by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) under the Grant ES/T003219/1 entitled “Technology Enhanced Stakeholder Collaboration for Supporting Risk-Sensitive Sustainable Urban Development”.Published onlin