Personalized Gravestones: Your Life\u27s Passion for All to See and Hear

In the past several years, a trend has developed that in an earlier age would have seemed inappropriate and perhaps even morbid; the increased personalization of gravestones (memorials). What makes this trend interesting is the variety of shapes, designs, manufacturing processes, and types of personalization actually appearing on gravestones, including seven-inch LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) screens recessed into the face of memorials. This paper discusses gravestones (memorials) in a religious context. It examines the rapidly developing market for elaborately designed memorials both in their traditional forms, typically vertical and created out of granite with just a name and date of death, to memorials in every conceivable size, shape and colour portraying scenes of the deceased\u27s everyday life. Although this paper concentrates on memorials found in Christian, mostly Catholic and Protestant cemeteries, references to personalization, or lack of it, in Jewish and Muslim cemeteries are also discussed. Briefly addressed are references to advances in the latest engraving processes that are now making these personalized memorials possible

Knowledge of primary paediatric care providers regarding attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and learning disorder: a study from Pakistan

Introduction: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and learning disorder (LD) remain prevalent globally and are also speculated to have a high occurrence in Pakistan. An early diagnosis and intervention in these disabilities is imperative for achieving good clinical and functional outcomes. This can be ensured by an effective screening at the level of primary paediatric care in the developing countries. We aimed to explore the ability of general practitioners (GPs) and paediatricians in Pakistan to screen for ADHD and LD based on their awareness regarding the risk factors and symptomatology of ADHD and LD. Methods: A total of 96 paediatricians and 98 GPs practising in Karachi, Pakistan were included in the study. Data was collected employing a self-administered questionnaire. Results: Only 13.7 percent of the GPs and 21.6 percent of the paediatricians were shown to have knowledge sufficient to effectively screen for / diagnose ADHD. Alarmingly, not a single GP was adequately familiar with the established risk factors and clinical symptoms of LD. The level of knowledge was not influenced by age, gender, and clinical practice attributes of the physicians. Doctors who regularly read medical journals and attend medical education seminars showed slightly better trends. Conclusion : We hypothesise that this demonstrated lack of knowledge at the level of primary care in Pakistan prevents an early screening of ADHD and LD. A multipronged strategy targeted at the provision of objective screening tools for primary paediatric care providers, regular continuing medical education seminars and an emphasis on paediatric mental health in undergraduate and postgraduate curricula may ensure an early detection of ADHD and LD in Pakistan

The maintenance of elevated active chlorine levels in the Antarctic lower stratosphere through HCl null cycles

The Antarctic ozone hole arises from ozone destruction driven by elevated levels of ozone destroying ("active") chlorine in Antarctic spring. These elevated levels of active chlorine have to be formed first and then maintained throughout the period of ozone destruction. It is a matter of debate how this maintenance of active chlorine is brought about in Antarctic spring, when the rate of formation of HCl (considered to be the main chlorine deactivation mechanism in Antarctica) is extremely high. Here we show that in the heart of the ozone hole (16–18 km or 85–55 hPa, in the core of the vortex), high levels of active chlorine are maintained by effective chemical cycles (referred to as HCl null cycles hereafter). In these cycles, the formation of HCl is balanced by immediate reactivation, i.e. by immediate reformation of active chlorine. Under these conditions, polar stratospheric clouds sequester HNO3 and thereby cause NO2 concentrations to be low. These HCl null cycles allow active chlorine levels to be maintained in the Antarctic lower stratosphere and thus rapid ozone destruction to occur. For the observed almost complete activation of stratospheric chlorine in the lower stratosphere, the heterogeneous reaction HCl + HOCl is essential; the production of HOCl occurs via HO2 + ClO, with the HO2 resulting from CH2O photolysis. These results are important for assessing the impact of changes of the future stratospheric composition on the recovery of the ozone hole. Our simulations indicate that, in the lower stratosphere, future increased methane concentrations will not lead to enhanced chlorine deactivation (through the reaction CH4 + Cl  ⟶  HCl + CH3) and that extreme ozone destruction to levels below  ≈ 0.1 ppm will occur until mid-century

Does the interaction between the knowledge management process and sustainable development practices boost corporate green innovation?

Green innovations are being deployed in manufacturing industries to promote organisational sustainability by embracing sustainable development practices (SDPs). However, little is known about how corporate green innovation (CGI) is influenced by the knowledge management process (KMP). To fill this gap, we have developed a multidimensional framework based on the resource-based view (RBV) theory that provides a foundation for sculpturing the process by which KMP was observed to capture and sustain CGI through SDPs. Data were collected from 393 respondents of large- and medium-sized manufacturing corporations in Pakistan and analysed using partial least squares structural equation modelling (SEM) and fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA). This study provides several key findings. First, KMP dimensions (acquisition, dissemination and application) significantly improve the SDPs' dimensions (environment, economic and social). Second, SDP dimensions play a significant role in achieving CGI. Third, the implementation of SDPs partially mediates the relationship between the KMP and CGI. Furthermore, the fsQCA results signify the robustness of all integrated constructs. Our results demonstrate that investing in and adopting the latest technologies and sustainable practices are not only valuable for long-term success but the soft concerns such as managing organisational knowledge are also vital in the current knowledge-based economy. Finally, in light of our findings, theoretical and managerial implications, with propositions for future studies, have been provided at the end of the paper

Development of a stress scale for pregnant women in the South Asian context: the A-Z Stress Scale.

Stress in pregnancy can lead to low-birth-weight and preterm babies and to psychological consequences such as anxiety and depression during pregnancy and the puerperium. Previous scales to measure stress contain items that overlap with the symptoms of pregnancy. A stress scale was developed based on in-depth interviews with pregnant women in Pakistan. Construct validity, test-retest reliability and inter-rater reliability were carried out. Cronbach alpha was 0.82 for the 30 short-listed items, with item-total correlations of 0.2-0.8. Multidimensional scaling determined 2 dimensions: socioenvironmental hassles and chronic illnesses. This was the first scale developed for pregnant women based on stressors in a developing country in South Asia

The Achievable Rate of Interweave Cognitive Radio in the Face of Sensing Errors

Cognitive radio (CR) systems are potentially capable of mitigating the spectrum shortage of contemporary wireless systems. In this paper, we provide a brief overview of CR systems and the important research milestones of their evolution, along with their standardization activities, as a result of their research. This is followed by the detailed analysis of the interweave policy-based CR network (CRN) and by a detailed comparison with the family of underlay-based CRNs. In the interweave-based CRN, sensing of the primary user's (PU) spectrum by the secondary user's (SU) has remained a challenge, because the sensing errors prevent us from fulfilling the significant throughput gains that the concept of CR promises. Since missed detection and false alarm errors in real-time spectrum sensing cannot be avoided, based on a new approach, we quantify the achievable rates of the interweave CR by explicitly incorporating the effect of sensing errors. The link between the PU transmitter and the SU transmitter is assumed to be fast fading. Explicitly, the achievable rate degradation imposed by the sensing errors is analyzed for two spectrum sensing techniques, namely, for energy detection and for magnitude squared coherence-based detection. It is demonstrated that when the channel is sparsely occupied by the PU, the reusing techniques that are capable of simultaneously providing low missed detection and false alarm probabilities cause only a minor degradation to the achievable rates. Furthermore, based on the achievable rates derived for underlay CRNs, we compare the interweave CR and the underlay CR paradigms from the perspective of their resilience against spectrum sensing errors. Interestingly, in many practical regimes, the interweave CR paradigm outperforms the underlay CR paradigm in the presence of sensing errors, especially when the SNR at the SU is below 10 dB and when the SNR at the PU is in the range of 10-40 dB. Furthermore, we also provide rules of thumb that identify regimes, where the interweave CR outperforms the underlay CR

Large sharing networks and unusual injection practices explain the rapid rise in HIV among IDUs in Sargodha, Pakistan

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Of the nearly 100,000 street-based IDUs in Pakistan, 20% have HIV. We investigated the recent rise in HIV prevalence from 12 to 52% among IDUs in Sargodha despite > 70% coverage with syringe exchanges.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We interviewed approximately 150 IDUs and 30 outreach workers in focus group discussions.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We found six rural and 28 urban injecting locations. Urban locations have about 20–30 people at any time and about 100 daily; rural locations have twice as many (national average: 4–15). About half of the IDUs started injecting within the past 2 years and are not proficient at injecting themselves. They use street injectors, who have 15–16 clients daily. Heroin is almost exclusively the drug used. Most inject 5–7 times daily.</p> <p>Nearly all injectors claim to use fresh syringes. However, they load, inject and share using a locally developed method called scale. Most Pakistani IDUs prefer to double pump drug the syringe, which allows mixing of blood with drug in the syringe. The injector injects 3 ml and keeps 2 ml (the scale) as injection fee. The injector usually pools all the leftover scale (now with some blood mixed with drug) either for his own use or to sell it. Most IDUs backload the scale they buy into their own fresh syringes.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>Use of an unprecedented method of injecting drugs that largely bypasses fresh syringes, larger size of sharing networks, higher injection frequency and near universal use of street injectors likely explain for the rapid rise in HIV prevalence among IDUs in Sargodha despite high level provision of fresh syringes. This had been missed by us and the national surveillance, which is quantitative. We have addressed this by hiring injectors as peer outreach workers and increasing syringe supply. Our findings highlight both the importance of qualitative research and operations research to enrich the quality of HIV prevention programs.</p

Massive, Absorption-selected Galaxies at Intermediate Redshifts

The nature of absorption-selected galaxies and their connection to the general galaxy population have been open issues for more than three decades, with little information available on their gas properties. Here we show, using detections of carbon monoxide (CO) emission with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), that five of seven high-metallicity, absorption-selected galaxies at intermediate redshifts, $z \approx 0.5-0.8$, have large molecular gas masses, $M_{\rm Mol} \approx (0.6 - 8.2) \times 10^{10} \: {\rm M}_\odot$ and high molecular gas fractions ($f_{\rm Mol} \equiv \: M_{\rm Mol}/(M_\ast + M_{\rm Mol}) \approx 0.29-0.87)$. Their modest star formation rates (SFRs), $\approx (0.3-9.5) \: {\rm M}_\odot$ yr$^{-1}$, then imply long gas depletion timescales, $\approx (3 - 120)$ Gyr. The high-metallicity absorption-selected galaxies at $z \approx 0.5-0.8$ appear distinct from populations of star-forming galaxies at both $z \approx 1.3-2.5$, during the peak of star formation activity in the Universe, and lower redshifts, $z \lesssim 0.05$. Their relatively low SFRs, despite the large molecular gas reservoirs, may indicate a transition in the nature of star formation at intermediate redshifts, $z \approx 0.7$.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures; accepted for publication in Astrophysical Journal Letters. Minor changes to match the version in press in ApJ

Seed priming with different agents mitigate alkalinity induced oxidative damage and improves maize growth

Soil alkalinity is a severe threat to crop production globally as it markedly retards plant growth. Different techniques are used to mitigate alkaline stress, but priming techniques are considered the most appropriate. The current study was carried out in complete randomized design (CRD) to evaluate the effect of different priming techniques on maize crop grown under different levels of alkalinity stress. The experiment was comprised of different treatments of alkalinity stress (AS) including, control, 6 dS m-1 and 12 dS m-1 and different priming techniques including control, hydro-priming (HP), osmo-priming (OP) with potassium nitrate: KNO3) and redox-priming (RP) with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). Results indicated that alkalinity stress significantly reduced plant growth and biomass production and induced severe alterations in physiological attributes and antioxidant activities. Soil alkalinity significantly reduced the root and shoot growth and subsequent biomass production by increasing electrolyte leakage (70.60%), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2: 31.65%), malondialdehyde (MDA: 46.23%) and sodium (Na+) accumulation (22.76%) and reduction in photosynthetic pigments, relative water contents (RWC), total soluble proteins (TSP) and free amino acids, potassium (K+) accumulation. However, priming treatments significantly alleviated the alkalinity-induced toxic effects and improved plant growth. OP (KNO3) remained the top performing. It appreciably improved plant growth owing to the improved synthesis of photosynthetic pigments, better RWC (16.42%), TSP (138.28%), FAA (178.37%), and K+ accumulation (31.385) and improved antioxidant activities (APX and CAT) by favoring the Na+ exclusion and maintenance of optimum Na+/K+. In conclusion, KNO3 priming is an imperative seed priming practice to improve maize growth and biomass production under alkalinity stress