AraDIC : Arabic Document Classification using Image-Based Character Embeddings and Class-Balanced Loss

Classical and some deep learning techniques for Arabic text classification often depend on complex morphological analysis, word segmentation, and handcrafted feature engineering. These could be eliminated by using character-level features. We propose a novel end-to-end Arabic document classification framework, Arabic document image-based classifier (AraDIC), inspired by the work on image-based character embeddings. AraDIC consists of an image-based character encoder and a classifier. They are trained in an end-to-end fashion using the class balanced loss to deal with the long-tailed data distribution problem. To evaluate the effectiveness of AraDIC, we created and published two datasets, the Arabic Wikipedia title (AWT) dataset and the Arabic poetry (AraP) dataset. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first image-based character embedding framework addressing the problem of Arabic text classification. We also present the first deep learning-based text classifier widely evaluated on modern standard Arabic, colloquial Arabic and classical Arabic. AraDIC shows performance improvement over classical and deep learning baselines by 12.29% and 23.05% for the micro and macro F-score, respectively

The Relationship between Public Debt and Economic Growth in Jordan for the Period (1990-2018)

The study aims to identify the effect of public debt on economic growth in Jordan between1990 and 2018. The importance of the study lies in the effects of net public debt on the Jordanian economy and economic stability, and thus the identification of the role of public debt in Jordanian economic growth. To achieve the aim of the study the descriptive analytical approach was used. Simple Linear Regression (SLR) has been employed to measure and analyze the relationship between Net Public Debt (NPD) and Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The study showed that there is a clear negative relationship between the ratio of NPD to GDP and the rate of economic growth in Jordan during the first period of the study, and this relationship became more clear during the period 2006-2018, and this negative relationship became strong when the public debt ratio to GDP exceeded 80.0%. Keywords: Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Net Public Debt (NPD), Net External Debt (NED), Net Domestic Debt (NDD), Economic Growth (EG), Jordan. DOI: 10.7176/JESD/11-12-09 Publication date:June 30th 202

Noninvasive identification of molecular biomarkers of hepatocellular carcinoma in HCV-Egyptian patients

Abstract Background This study was performed to investigate the expression of different biomarkers in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma and its connection with detective biomarkers. To achieve this objective, seventy subjects were examined in this study, sub-grouped to forty HCC patients and thirty HCV-affected patients with matched thirty healthy individuals. The study involved several groups of participants who were matched based on their age and gender. Methods The expression pattern of biomarkers was monitored by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Finally, we utilized a ROC curve to investigate the predictive accurateness of those distinct biomarkers as well as a traditional tumor marker, AFP, in detecting HCC cases. Results The baseline biomarker expression levels were markedly greater in HCC patients than in those affected by HCV or healthy subjects. We stated that the sensitivity and the specificity of the different biomarkers alone did not improve than that of AFP alone. When comparing AFP with different biomarkers, the diagnostic validity improves only when combining with CK-1. Conclusions Overall, our results indicate that CK-1 mRNA expression could help as a noninvasive tumor biomarker for HCC prognosis and diagnosis when combining with AFP

The Role Of Cupping Therapy As A Complementary Therapy on The Pulmonary Functions And Quality Of Life Of Asthmatic Children

<div><b>Aim:</b> The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of flash cupping therapy as a complementary therapy for the treatment of asthmatic children and adolescent in a randomized controlled trial.</div><div><b>Methods:</b> Sixty out-patients [8-15 years] with confirmed mild persistent asthma according to criteria of global strategy for asthma management and prevention were randomly assigned either to a treatment group [flash cupping</div><div>therapy + standard asthma medications] [n=30] or a control group[standard asthma medications] [n=30]. Pediatric Quality of Life Questionnaire and Pulmonary functions [FEV1, FVC, FEV1/FVC Ratio, FEF 25%-75%] were</div><div>measured before and after the treatment for both groups.</div><div><b>Results:</b> Improvement in all measured pulmonary function tests [FEV1, FVC, FEV1/FVC and FEF 25%- 75%], improvement in most of clinical symptoms, and improvement of pediatric quality of life questionnaire were found to be</div><div>significantly higher in treatment group than in control group [p-value < 0.05].</div><div><b>Conclusion:</b> Cupping Therapy may be an effective complementary treatment for mild asthmatic children and has a significant improvement effect on the pulmonary functions and quality of life of asthmatic children. A large scale randomized controlled trial is recommended to confirm these results.</div

The Magnesium-rich formula for functional constipation in infants: A randomized comparator-controlled study

Purpose: To compare the effectiveness of the magnesium (Mg)-enriched formula vs. control formula in constipated infants. Methods: An open-label, interventional, and the comparator-controlled study was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the Mg-enriched formula in formula-fed infants ≤6 months old presenting with functional constipation according to modified Rome IV criteria. Infants were randomized 1:1 to intervention or control formula for 30 days. Parents recorded stool consistency (hard, normal, or watery) and frequency on days 1-7 and 23-29. Physicians recorded patient baseline characteristics and performed the clinical examination at the time of three patient visits (baseline, day 8, and 30). Results: Of the 286 recruited infants, 143 received the Mg-rich formula and 142 received the control formula. After 7 days, significantly more infants had stools with normal consistency with the Mg-rich formula compared to the infants fed with the control formula (81.8% vs. 41.1%; p 25% of infants responded completely to the Mg-rich formula compared to < 5% of infants fed with the control formula (p < 0.001). Parents of infants in the Mg-rich formula group were very satisfied with the treatment (80.8% vs. 10.2%), with the majority willing to continue treatment after 30 days (97.9% vs. 52.6%; p < 0.001). Conclusion: The Mg-rich formula significantly improved stool consistency and frequency compared to the control formula in constipated infants