120 research outputs found
Political violence and necropolitics in Omar Shahid Hamidâs The Prisoner
This article examines violence and necropolitical experiences in the management of life and death
in Pakistanâs largest city, Karachi and its representation by Omar Shahid Hamid in his debut novel
The Prisoner (2013). Pakistanâs western border and the largest city Karachi have long been
epicentres of violent actions in the backdrop of wars (for instance, the Soviet and the âWar on
Terrorâ) in neighbouring Afghanistan. The relationship of governing authorities with violence and
necropolitics is analysed in the light of critical approaches from the works of Michael Foucault
(2008), Achille Mbembe (2001 & 2003), Giorgio Agamben (1998 & 2005), and Judith Butler
(2004). Through the analysis of the fictional narrative, this paper examines local and global
deployment of various strategies of occupation, domination and subjugation that aims to manage
human bodies through social, economic, political and religious discourses. This article argues that
violence and death are used as a means of control over human bodies as represented in the novel,
a situation in which some lives are disposable and are reducible to âbare lifeâ by state and nonstate
actors. Against this backdrop, the article highlights how some lives matter more than others
in Karachiâs political landscape. This article also suggests that the landscape in The Prisoner is an
embodiment of what Agamben called the âstate of exceptionâ, a state where (some) people are
deemed unworthy of life, and are therefore, removed. It is hoped that this article will be useful to
understand complex issues of Karachi
Effect of Shale Distribution on Hydrocarbon Sands Integrated with Anisotropic Rock Physics for AVA Modelling: A Case Study
Hypertrophic gastric folds with hypomagnesemia, linking the dots
A Caucasian man in early 80s was seen in Gastroenterology Clinic, following, referral from the Endocrinology Clinic for concerns for CT Abdomen requested for tiredness and weight loss of three kilograms. The patient also had microcytic picture with low MCV and Ferritin and hypomagnesemia. The CT suggested gross circumferential thickening of the wall of stomach with advice for invasive investigations to further characterise the CT findings. The Endoscopy suggested grossly enlarged rugae in the stomach, and enlarged gastric polyps. Patient was assured no new sinister abnormality. Treatment challenges to consider were to stop acid suppression by prescribing Proton Pump Inhibitors (PPIs) which would lead to stomach ulcers, or to continue with PPIs with sequalae of worsening of hypertrophic gastric folds, enlarged gastric polyps and hypomagnesemia. It would be necessary to consider risk versus benefits in either situation to determine an appropriate treatment plan in the long term. With background of Zollinger-Ellison Syndrome and MEN1 with heterozygous mutation with gastrinoma of the duodenum, and frailty he was advised to continue with Proton Pump Inhibitors with twice weekly correction of Magnesium infusions, and Iron tablets following Multi-disciplinary meeting
ISRAELITES APOSTASY AND DEATH PENALTY: A RESEARCH REVIEW
Regarding the chain of Prophethood, Allah Almighty sent most of the Prophets to BanÄ« IsrÄÄ«l. These prophets directed them to monotheism and prevented from disbelief and polytheism. The history of the ancient nations shows that the most disobedient nation was BanÄ« IsrÄÄ«l which took the path of apostasy many times and they were severely punished for this crime. In relation to apostasy's penalty, both the QurâÄn and the Bible have a common statement. Both books are convinced of the death penalty for apostates. However, the critics mostly criticize Islam only and ignore the teachings and severe punishments of the Bible. This short article reviews the apostasy and punishment of the Children of IsrÄÄ«l and seeks to prove that the decision of both the Bible and the QurâÄn is the same when it comes to apostasy punishment
Visual Improvement after Endoscopic Endonasal Transsphenoidal Excision of Pituitary Gland Tumor
Objective: To evaluate the frequency of improved visual acuity after Endoscopic Endonasal Transsphenoidal excision of pituitary gland tumor.Study Design: Descriptive case series.Materials and Methods: In our study, Pre-operative visual acuity was noted by using the Snellenâs chart. Then patients underwent pituitary gland excision though Endoscopic Endonasal Transsphenoidal approach under general anesthesia. After surgery, patients were shifted in postsurgical wards and then will be discharged from there and were examinedfor 3 months in OPD. Snellenâs chart was used to evaluate patents for visual acuity after 3 months by an experienced ophthalmologist having at least 4 years residency experience If visual acuity increased â„ 1 line, then improved visual acuity was labeled.Results: Improved visual acuity after pituitary gland tumor excision was seen in 59(89.39%) patients. Age and gender of patients did not show any statistically significant association for improved visual acuity.Conclusions: Results of this study showed that pituitary gland tumor excision through Endoscopic Endonasal Transsphenoidal approach is effective in terms of visual acuity improvement. Our main objectives in pituitary surgery are protection and reinstatement of vision and this surgical approach give maximum cover to vision restoration
Selective Harmonics Elimination in Multilevel Inverter Using Bio-Inspired Intelligent Algorithms
Multilevel inverters are powerful electronic devices that are used for the conversion of DC input voltage into AC output voltage and mostly used in medium and high voltage operations. In these operations, pulse width modulation (PWM) frequency is distorted because of electromagnetic interference (EMI) and switching losses which are caused by dv/dt stress. To achieve a pure sinusoidal waveform at output of multilevel inverter is a primary purpose so that a smaller number of harmonic contents are produced. Selective harmonic elimination PWM technique is used in cascaded multilevel inverter for the mitigation of lower harmonics by solving nonlinear transcendental equations and maintains the required fundamental voltage. An objective function is derived from SHE problem to calculate switching angles. For the solution of objective function, optimization approach such as bio-inspired intelligent algorithms are used. In this paper, Genetic Algorithm (GA), Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) and Bee Algorithm (BA) are used to determine the optimum switching angles for cascaded multilevel inverters to get low total harmonic distortion (THD) in output voltage. These computed angles are analyzed in MATLAB simulation model to authenticate the results. And there will be direct comparison among these algorithms
BlockU: extended usage control in and for Blockchain
An electronic business transaction among untrusted bodies without consulting a
mutually trusted party has remained widely accepted problem. Blockchain resolves
this problem by introducing peer-to-peer network with a consensus algorithm and
trusted ledger. Blockchain originally introduced for cryptocurrency that came with
proof-of-work consensus algorithm. Due to some performance issues, scientists
brought concept of permissioned Blockchain. Hyperledger Fabric is a permissioned
Blockchain targeting business-oriented problems for industry. It is designed for efficient
transaction execution over Blockchain with pluggable consensus model; however,
there is limitation of rapid application development. Hyperledger introduced a
new layer called Hyperledger Composer on top of the Fabric layer, which provides an
abstract layer to model the business application readily and quickly. Composer provides
a smart contract to extend the functionality and flexibility of Fabric layer and
provides a way of communication with other systems to meet business requirements.
Hyperledger Composer uses role-based access control (RBAC) model to secure
access to its valuable assets. However, RBAC is not enough because many business
deals require continuous assets monitoring. Our proposed model, BlockU, covers all
possible access control models required by a business. BlockU can monitor assets
continuously during transactions and updates attributes accordingly. Moreover, we
incorporate hooks in Hyperledger Composer to implement extended permission
model that provides extensive permission management capability on an asset. Subsequently,
our proposed enhanced access control model is implemented with a minimal
change to existing Composer code base and is backward compatible with the current
security mechanism.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Performance by Unified Model Analysis (PUMA)
Evaluation of non-functional properties of a design (such as performance, dependability, security, etc.) can be enabled by design annotations specific to the property to be evaluated. Performance properties, for instance, can be annotated on UML designs by using the UML Profile for Schedulability, Performance and Time (SPT) . However the communication between the design description in UML and the tools used for non-functional properties evaluation requires support, particularly for performance where there are many alternative performance analysis tools that might be applied. This paper describes a tool architecture called PUMA, which provides a unified interface between different kinds of design information and different kinds of performance models, for example Markov models, stochastic Petri nets and process algebras, queues and layered queues. The paper concentrates on the creation of performance models. The unified interface of PUMA is centered on an intermediate model called Core Scenario Model (CSM), which is extracted from the annotated design model. Experience shows that CSM is also necessary for cleaning and auditing the design information, and providing default interpretations in case it is incomplete, before creating a performance model
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