Course Coordination In Academic Sector: An Expert System Foundation

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has come out from science fiction movies and it is now enabling machines to behave like human experts. Computers have some advantages over human beings because of their immunity toward perturbation factors. These factors include fatigue, stress and diminished attention. This ability makes computers more efficient and reliable in decision making. The real goal of AI is to computerize human intelligence. In this paper we explored “Expert Systems” that is one of the most important branches of AI. In expert systems, we simulate expertise of domain experts in computer systems. Machines can work like doctors, engineers and consultants and can be able to learn and use their judgmental power to conclude the situations. In academia, many subjects are being offering in every degree programs. A course coordinator is an expert who allot related subject to instructors by using some factual and heuristic knowledge. The real task is to simulate the judgment ability that he obtained after many years of experience. We proposed an expert system that will stimulates the intelligence of course coordinator and will make reliable decisions.

Diagnostic Accuracy of Serum Prostate Specific Antigen and Gleason Score in Determining the Presence of Skeletal Metastasis in Prostate Cancer Patients: a Pakistani Perspective

Objective: To determine the cut-off values for serum Prostate Specific Antigen and Gleason score for predicting bone metastasis of Prostate cancer. Methodology: This diagnostic accuracy study was conducted in Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), Islamabad from 2015 to 2018. 330 patients of Prostate cancer were enrolled in the study. Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) and Gleason Scores (GS) were determined using commercially available ELECSYS® assays in the Modular Analytics E170 (Roche Diagnostics) and histopathology respectively. Tc99m methylene diphosphonate (MDP) was used to perform the Bone scan. Any correlation between these variables was nvestigated to determine a cut-off value for PSA and GS. Results: Out of the total 330 patients included in the sample, BS was positive for metastasis in 186 (56.4%) patients and negative in 144 (43.6%) patients. Amongst these 186 positive patients, 5 (2.7%) had PSA < 20 ng/ml, 174 (93.5%) had PSA between 20 and 90 ng/ml, and 9 (4.8%) had PSA > 90 ng/ml. Out of the 144 patients with negative BS, 142 (98.6%) had PSA < 20ng/ml. Only 2 (1.4%) had PSA in the range of 20 and 90 ng/ml, while none had PSA > 90 ng/ml. In the 147 patients with PSA < 20 ng/ml, 142 (96.6%) did not have any skeletal metastases. Of the 183 patients with PSA > 20 ng/ml, 181 (98.9%) had positive bone scans. Using a cut-off value of 20 ng/ml for serum PSA, 142 unnecessary scans would have been unnecessary. Out of the 186 patients with positive bone scan (BS), 3 (1.6%) patients had GS < 7, 160 (86.0%) patients had GS between 7 and 9, and 23 (12.4%) patients had GS > 9. Out of the 144 patients with negative BS, 84 (58.3%) had GS < 7, 60 (41.7%) had GS between 7 and 9, and none of the patients had a GS more than 9. Of the 87 patients with GS < 7, 3 (3.4%) patients had a positive BS while 84 (96.6%) patients had a negative BS. Of the 243 patients with GS > 7, 183 (75.3%) had a positive BS while 60 (24.7%) patients had a negative GS. These results indicate that a GS > 7 cannot be reliably used to rule in the need for a BS in patients with Prostate cancer.         Conclusion: Our study reports that serum PSA < 20 ng/ml can be safely used to omit a bone scan. It also suggests that Gleason Score < 7 nullifies the need to conduct a bone scan. However, serum PSA is a better and more reliable indicator of bone metastases as it has better sensitivity and specificity values as compared to GS. If these results are applied in hospitals all over the country, we can significantly reduce the burden on our resources and prevent unnecessary, low-yield diagnostic tests from being carried out.   &nbsp

A Case Study of Tariq Road Underpass, Karachi: Environmental Analysis

The construction projects are rising in Pakistan to overcome the flow of traffic on the main road of big cities. Karachi is the metropolitan city of Pakistan facing uncontrolled growth and urbanization, which leads to an increase in the demand for urban transport facilities. The study focuses on the assessment of the environmental impacts of the Tariq Road underpass construction site. The data was collected with the help of community consultation using analytical methods. It includes public chat, site visits, interviews, questioners, and the samples collection of environmental components. The results show that the most common hazards were related to excavation, working practice variation, and personal protective equipment (PPEs). Faulty and unmaintained machinery with the lack of proper barrier producingnoise and air pollution

Ethyl 3-(3-oxo-3,4-dihydro­quinoxalin-2-yl)propano­ate

In the title compound, C13H14N2O3, the fused ring system is almost planar (r.m.s. deviation = 0.015 Å). The r.m.s. deviation for all the non-H atoms of the mol­ecule is 0.065Å. In the crystal, N—H⋯O and C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds generate polymeric chains along the b axis containing alternating centrsymmetric R 2 2(8) and R 2 2(20) loops

Perioperative registries in resource-limited settings: The way forward for Pakistan

Capable of improving surgical quality, perioperative registries can allow performance benchmarking, reliable reporting and the development of risk-prediction models. Well established in high-income countries, perioperative registries remain limited in lower- and middle-income countries due to several challenges. First, ensuring comprehensive data entry forums to power the registries is difficult because of limited electronic medical records requiring sustained efforts to develop and integrate these into practice. Second, lack of adequate expertise and resources to develop and maintain registry software necessitates the involvement of software developers and information technology personnel. Third, case ascertainment and item completion are challenging secondary to poor-quality medical records and high loss-to-follow-up rates, requiring telemedicine initiatives as an adjunct to existing care for the assessment of post-discharge outcomes. Lastly, standardised coding of clinical terminology is warranted for ensuring interoperability of the registries for which adaptation of the existing disease and procedural codes can be a sustainable and cost-effective alternative to the development of new codes

2-Bromo-4-methyl­benzonitrile

The title mol­ecule, C8H6BrN, is almost planar (r.m.s. deviation for the non-H atoms = 0.008 Å). In the crystal, weak π–π stacking inter­actions [centroid–centroid separations = 3.782 (2) and 3.919 (2) Å] generate [100] columns of mol­ecules

Effect of Dilution of Propofol on Pain at Site of Injection: Comparison Between 1% vs. 0.33% Formulation

Objective: To study the effect of propofol dilution on pain at injection site with formulations of 1% and 0.33%. Methodology: A randomized controlled trial was conducted for 24 months at the Department of Anaesthesia and Critical Care, Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences Islamabad. A total of 100 patients were included in the study. Patients were divided into two equal groups: group C received 1% propofol while patients of group D received 0.33% formulation diluted with distilled water. Patients received propofol at the start of anesthesia before any premedication. A 5ml volume was injected over a period of 5s in an 18G cannula over dorsum of hands. Behaviourial pain scale was used and descriptive data analysis was done. Results: Then mean age of patients was 37.36±14.77 with 46 males and 56 females. Pain at the injection site was experienced in 20 (40%) patients of group C whereas 16 (32%) patients experienced pain in group D. There was no association of pain with a strength of propofol solution (p value 0.405). Conclusion: Strength of propofol solution has no association of pain at the injection site and dilution has no better effect in terms of pain scor

1,4-Bis(pyrimidin-2-yl­sulfanyl)­butane

The –SCH2CH2CH2CH2S– portion of the title compound, C12H14N2S2, adopts an extended zigzag conformation. The angles at the tetra­hedral carbon atoms are marginally increased [113.63 (12)° and 111.38 (17)° for S—C—C and C—C—C respectively] from the idealized tetra­hedral angle. The mol­ecule lies on an inversion center located at the mid-point of the butyl chain. In the crystal, there is a π–π stacking inter­action between inversion-related pyrimidine rings with mean inter­planar spacing of 3.494 (2) Å

4-[2-(Benzyl­sulfan­yl)acet­yl]-3,4-dihydro­quinoxalin-2(1H)-one

In the title compound, C17H16N2O2S, the pyrazinone ring is non-planar (r.m.s. deviation = 0.1595 Å), with maximum deviations for the 4-position N atom and the adjacent non-fused-ring C atom of 0.2557 (15) and −0.2118 (16) Å, respectively. The dihedral angle between the benzyl ring and pyrazinone rings is 30.45 (18)°. Inter­molecular N—H⋯O hydrogen-bonding inter­actions forms inversion dimers which lead to eight-membered R 2 2(8) ring motifs. The dimers are further connected by C—H⋯O inter­actions

Prediction of forming limits for porous materials using void-size dependent model and bifurcation approach

The scientific literature has shown the strong effect of void size on material response. Several yield functions have been developed to incorporate the void size effects in ductile porous materials. Based on the interface stresses of the membrane around a spherical void, a Gurson-type yield function, which includes void size effects, is coupled with the bifurcation theory for the prediction of plastic strain localization. The constitutive equations as well as the bifurcation-based localization criterion are implemented into the finite element code ABAQUS/Standard within the framework of large plastic deformations. The resulting numerical tool is applied to the prediction of forming limit diagrams (FLDs) for an aluminum material. The effect of void size on the prediction of FLDs is investigated. It is shown that smaller void sizes lead to an increase in the ductility limits of the material. This effect on the FLDs becomes more significant for high initial porosity, due to the increase of void-matrix interface strength within the material