Phase discriminating capacitive array sensor system

A phase discriminating capacitive sensor array system which provides multiple sensor elements which are maintained at a phase and amplitude based on a frequency reference provided by a single frequency stabilized oscillator. Sensor signals provided by the multiple sensor elements are controlled by multiple phase control units, which correspond to the multiple sensor elements, to adjust the sensor signals from the multiple sensor elements based on the frequency reference. The adjustment made to the sensor signals is indicated by output signals which indicate the proximity of the object. The output signals may also indicate the closing speed of the object based on the rate of change of the adjustment made, and the edges of the object based on a sudden decrease in the adjustment made

Standard setting in written assessment

The term "standard setting" refers to the process of establishing the minimum passing score for students on a test. It is not simply a matter of arbitrarily establishing a cut score for a test; rather, it is a laborious process by which a panel determines the cut score for a specific test in a particular context. In medication education, certifying medical students as a doctor is very critical. The decision made to graduate health-care practitioners should be based on rigorous methods to determine how much graduated doctors are safe for people's lives. For this reason, standard setting lays at the heart of the assessment. This chapter illuminates the standard setting process and discusses pertinent methods used in medical education, particularly for written tests. By the end of this chapter, the reader is expected to be able to 1. Recognize concepts in standard setting and their importance in medical and health professions education. 2. Explain the common methods of standard setting in written assessment.</p

The preparation, metal binding ability and catalytic activity of poly itaconate copolymers with pendant ethylene amine groups

A polymeranalogous reaction in homogeneous medium was carried out to prepare poly itaconate copolymers with pendant ethylene imine groups. Three copolymers, poly- (MHpI+DHpI), poly (MBI+DBI) and poly (MMI+DMI) were prepared, characterised and their composition analysed. The acid groups in the monoesters were reacted with ethylene diamine, diethylenetriamine, triethylenetetramine or tetraethylenepentamine in the presence of dicyclohexyl car bodiimide. Two types of polymer-metal complexes, polymer chelates and pendant-type polymer-metal complexes were prepared. The complexation between the polymeric ligands and cobalt(II) chloride or copper(II) chloride was studied by visible spectroscopy. The electron microscopy study of these polymer-metal complexes shows that the size and the number of the metal ion clusters increases proportionally with the mole percentage of the metal ions. The catalytic activity of the polymer-metal complexes on the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide has been studied. Graphical and mathematical methods were used to show and compare the catalytic activity of these polymer-metal complexes. It was found that the catalyst efficiencies were in the decreasing order of: poly(MHpI+DHpI)/EN/ Co(en)2Cl] 2+ 2Cl" ^ poly(MMI+DMI)/EN/[ Co(en)2Cl] 2+ 2C1~ ^ poly(MHpI+DHpI)/TEPA/CoCl2 ^ poly(MHpI+DHpI)/TEPA/CuCl2^ poly (MMI+DMI) /TEPA/CoCl^ poly (MMI+DMI) /TEPA/CuC12. The thermal stability of these modified polymers and polymer-metal complexes confirms that degradation was a random chain scission process and that the thermal stability of the polymer-metal complexes were higher than the polymeric ligands due to crosslinking. The viscoelasticity study shows that the modulus in the rubbery region increases when the mole percentage of the pendant ethylene amine group was less than 6.3. The glass transition temperature increases and becomes broader and ill-defined as the mole percentage of pendant ethylene amine group increases due to enhanced inter molecular interactions in the system

The implementation of social accountability in medical schools in Eastern Mediterranean region:A scoping review

Objectives: Social Accountability is a relatively new approach in medical education, Information about its implementation is scarce in the Eastern Mediterranean Region. The objective of this scoping review was to investigate the patterns and trends in reporting the social accountability (SA) of medical schools in the Eastern Mediterranean region (EMR). Methods: Using the Arksey and O'Malley approach, we conducted literature searches between 1995 and 2022 in the following databases: Scopus, Web of Sciences, CINAHL, PubMed, and Google Scholar using the search terms social accountability, medical school, faculty of medicine, Eastern Mediterranean Region, EMRO region. Using qualitative theme analysis, the extracted, coded, and analyzed data were reported. Results: The screening of various databases revealed 164 articles, 26 articles were finally included in the review. The 26 included articles originated from only seven out of the 22 EMR countries: Iran, Sudan, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Morocco, and Pakistan. The articles included were categorized under six themes: defining the SA and compliance with SA values and concepts, accreditation, educational program, perceptions of faculty and students, admission of students, and measurement of social accountability. Conclusions: The publications related to SA from the EM regions countries revealed similarities with other parts of the world in that the SA concept is not effectively translated into real day-to-day activities in medical schools. More work is needed from leaders in education and health systems to examine SA enablers and improve the uptake of the concept.</p

Perceptions of Assistant Principals’ and Principals’ of Bahrain Government Schools about the Impact of the Bahrain Teachers College Educational Leadership Program on Their Performance

This article examines the perceptions of school assistant principals and principals who completed the Bahrain Teachers College higher diploma of education leadership program about its impact on their performance. The study sample consisted of 141 program graduates from 9- cohorts. A multilevel concept in measuring the impact of the educational leadership program on the graduates’ performance was employed. The framework consisted of 4 levels: self-learning, changing others, embedding changes in school practices and sustainability of change and scaling up the school performance. The study questionnaire was designed on the basis of this framework. Results show that the Educational Leadership program positively affected its graduates’ performance in the 4 levels. The majority of the program graduates agreed that the program positively affected their personal qualities, leadership styles and practices to support school development, school staff, students’ performance and school ranking. The majority of the program graduates also agreed that the program positively affected their skills in dealing with curriculum innovations, professional development, research, strategic planning, staff appraisal, communication with community, using ICT, improving students’ learning and applying educational ethics. &nbsp; &nbsp; Keywords: Education Leadership, School Principals’ Performance, Leadership Styles, School Practices, Leadership Skill

Optical Fiber Biosensor toward E-coli Bacterial Detection on the Pollutant Water

In this study, Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanorods based fiber optic biosensor has been reported for rapid and sensitive detection of Escherichia Coli (E-coli). A thin layer of Gold nanoparticles (Au) (around 50 nm) is coated on the tip of a multimode plastic optical fiber.&nbsp; ZnO Nanorods are grown on Au layer thorough hydrothermal technique. This sensor showed a very fast response within the first 10 second of contacting the present of polluted water with E-coli Different concentrations of E. coli from (1000 to 4000 CFU/ml) have been tested and a sharp trend of sensitivity was observed. This sensing platform shows promising potential for regular water and food quality monitoring of various pathogenic microorganisms

Variation in gas chromatography (GC) analysis in setting up laboratory protocols for waste to energy novel fixed bed reactor setups

Gas Chromatography coupled with Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS) has been applied in various analytical chemistry works. However, to fine tune a system that can serve the purposes of pyrolysis oil identification has proven to be a laborious effort, especially when considering the fact that no standard protocol exists for such analysis. In addition, obtained products were yielded from a newly commissioned unit with a unique and novel design. In this study, a US patent office claimed reactor [SULTAN-1, Pyrolysis Reactor System for the Conversion and Analysis of Organic Solid Waste, Patent application number: 15,487,351] that degrades polyolefinc virgin and waste materials to obtain petroleum refinery and petrochemical feedstock, has been commissioned. The reactor produces three distinct physical states of matter products accumulated as testing specimens, i.e. solids, gaseous and oil. The samples analysed in this work were of the gas and oil produced by pyrolysis of end of life tyre (ELTs) shavings that required to have a special recipe to work with in the laboratory. Various MS cords were utilised and experimental setups to fine tune the process, and special emphasis was given on the gas samples variation in this communication. To reach the desired analysis results with high repeatability, a plethora of experiences of lab personnel and laboratory-based experimental work was accumulated. Laboratory protocols were also setup for this work. These will be detailed along the process execution which yielded a standard laboratory best practice analytical method as part of the State of Kuwait newly initiated Government Initiative project

Probiotics: Past, Present and Future Challenges

The term probiotic (prolife) is utilized to describe useful living microorganisms, intended to colonize the large bowel, when consumed in adequate amounts, they confer physiological health benefits to the host. In the last decade, probiotics have been widely used as a nutritional supplement and became a rapidly developing research topic that gained importance in medicine. Recent clinical trials have found that consumption of beneficial bacterial species can manipulate gut flora and reduce or prevent the development of certain serious diseases. This brief review article is intended to discuss the status of research on probiotics, and the value of their consumption in human health

10 years of experience in adopting, implementing and evaluating progress testing for Saudi medical students

Objectives: The progress test (PT) is a comprehensive examination that is designed to match the knowledge acquisition necessary at graduation and monitors progress during the entire period of an undergraduate program. Qassim College of Medicine (QCM) began using the multi-institutional PT in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). This study aimed to determine if the PT can be utilized to assess the progress of medical students at different Saudi medical colleges with different educational approaches, as well as whether this testing modality could be accepted by other colleges. Methods: Beside the establishment of a PT committee, comprehensive blueprinting was crafted to sample 200 A-type multiple choice questions (MCQs) from different disciplines. The PT is a paper-and-pencil model and is answered in a 4-h period. All PT items followed a uniform design. Results: In total, 13 rounds of the progress test have been conducted. The number of participating colleges increased from three (with 285 students) in the first test (May 2012) to more than 20 (with &gt;6000 students) in the ninth round (February 2017). The average % scores for first-year students ranged from 3.0% to 7.9% while the average scores for fifth-year students ranged from 34.0% to 43.0%. Conclusion: The conduction of this meticulously crafted test to evaluate knowledge achievement at medical graduation is a fruitful tool and helps to provide constructive feedback for test-takers and other stakeholders relating to their relative positions among other fellows at the national level.</p