Impact of Programming Features on Code Readability

Readability is one important quality attributes for software source codes. Readability has also significant relation or impact with other quality attributes such as: reusability, maintainability, reliability, complexity, and portability metrics. This research develops a novel approach called Impact of Programming Features on Code Readability (IPFCR), to examine the influence of various programming features and the effect of these features on code readability. A code Readability Tool (CRT) is developed to evaluate the IPFCR readability features or attributes. In order to assess the level if impact that each one of the 25 proposed readability features may have, positively or negatively on the overall code readability, a survey was distributed to a random number of expert programmers. These experts evaluated the effect of each feature on code readability, based on their knowledge or experience. Expert programmers have evaluated readability features to be ordered then classified into positive and negative factors based on their impact on code readability or understanding. The survey responses were analyzed using SPSS statistical tool. Most of proposed code features showed to have significantly positive impact on enhancing readability including: meaningful names, consistency, and comments. On the other hand, fewer features such as arithmetic formulas, nested loops, and recursive functions showed to have a negative impact. Finally, few features showed to have neutral impact on readability

Genetic diversity and relationship analysis of the Brassica napus germplasm using simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers

Oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.) is an important oilseed crop worldwide. The objective of this research was to study the genetic diversity and relationships of B. napus accessions using simple sequence repeat (SSR). A set of 217 genotypes was characterized using 37 SSR markers of mapping on the B. napus genome. The detected alleles were 2 to 11 at each of the 37 markers, with an average of 5.29 per marker. Unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean (UPGMA) clustering enabled the identification of two general groups with increasing genetic diversity as follows: (1) group I was further divided into three groups (A, B and C), group A included 121 accessions, and consisted of the yellowseeded and black-seeded cultivars and breeding lines. The group B included 70 accessions and consisted mainly of the yellow-seeded cultivars and breeding lines, which were mostly cultivated in China. The group C included 10 accessions and consisted of the black-seeded cultivars and breeding lines with low levels of erucic acid. (2) Group II included 16 accessions consisted mainly of breeding lines and German cultivars, which were black-seeded lines with high levels of oleic acid (>80%) and low erucic acid and seed glucosinolate. The grouping of accessions by cluster analysis was generally consistent with known pedigrees, which included the grouping of lines derived both by backcrossing or self-pollination with their parents. The molecular genetic information gained enables also help breeders and geneticists to understand the structure of B. napus germplasm and to predict which combinations would produce the best off-spring which is potentially interesting with respect to increasing heterosis in oilseed rape hybrids.Key words: Brassica napus L., genetic diversity, microsatellites, SSR markers

International Consensus Statement on Rhinology and Allergy: Rhinosinusitis

Background: The 5 years since the publication of the first International Consensus Statement on Allergy and Rhinology: Rhinosinusitis (ICAR‐RS) has witnessed foundational progress in our understanding and treatment of rhinologic disease. These advances are reflected within the more than 40 new topics covered within the ICAR‐RS‐2021 as well as updates to the original 140 topics. This executive summary consolidates the evidence‐based findings of the document. Methods: ICAR‐RS presents over 180 topics in the forms of evidence‐based reviews with recommendations (EBRRs), evidence‐based reviews, and literature reviews. The highest grade structured recommendations of the EBRR sections are summarized in this executive summary. Results: ICAR‐RS‐2021 covers 22 topics regarding the medical management of RS, which are grade A/B and are presented in the executive summary. Additionally, 4 topics regarding the surgical management of RS are grade A/B and are presented in the executive summary. Finally, a comprehensive evidence‐based management algorithm is provided. Conclusion: This ICAR‐RS‐2021 executive summary provides a compilation of the evidence‐based recommendations for medical and surgical treatment of the most common forms of RS

Attitudes of Medical and Health Sciences Students towards Abortion in Jordan

Background. Jordan laws on permitting abortion are considered moderate. Religion is one of the key determinants of people’s attitudes towards abortion and plays a crucial role in people’s readiness to accept or refute this practice. In this study, we examined the attitudes of medical and health sciences students towards abortion. Methods. In this cross-sectional study, a self-administered questionnaire survey was distributed to students at Jordan University of Science and Technology. Attitudes towards abortion were tested using 16 items that were included in the survey. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression models were used in the analysis. Results. A total of 1324 students in the medicine and dentistry colleges participated in the study. Two-thirds of the participants were women. Most participants were 20–25 years old, and they grew up in a family of 6–8 members. The overall attitude towards abortion was negative, except if the pregnancy was a threat to the mother’s life (91.5%) or if the conception occurred from rape (54.2%). Otherwise, the students indicated that every conceived child has the right to be born (76.8%) and that abortion is considered murder (53.1%). Furthermore, the students who were more likely to support abortion were those attending the medical college, living in a city, and/or raised in smaller families (p=0.04). Conclusions. Compared with other students, medical students were more supportive of abortion. This implied the necessity to include training on safe abortion in the medical curriculum and increase public awareness of the importance of safe abortion

Anterior versus posterior approach to treat cervical spondylotic myelopathy, clinical and radiological results with long period of follow-up

Background: Cervical spondylotic myelopathy increases with age, but not all cases are symptomatic. It is usually diagnosed clinically and radiologically (X-ray and magnetic resonance imaging). Surgical treatment is indicated in severe symptomatic cases, while treatment controversy exists in the presence of less severe cases. Anterior and posterior approaches are generally used for decompression with no significant differences in the results of both. Methods: A total of 287 patients of cervical spondylotic myelopathy were treated at our hospital between January 2004 and December 2015. Only 140 patients were eligible for our study. They had at least 5 years of follow-up using full clinical scores and radiological evaluation. They were divided into two groups: group I with 73 patients (aged 23–79 years) underwent posterior decompression, lateral mass instrumentation, and fusion, while group II with 67 patients (aged 33–70 years) underwent anterior decompression, instrumentation, and fusion. Neck Disability Index, local score, and X-ray were used in the evaluation of the patients. Results: Preoperative mean ± standard deviation of Neck Disability Index of both the groups was 32.06 ± 6.33 and 29.88 ± 5.48, which improved in the last visit (>5 years) to 5.81 ± 7.39 and 2.94 ± 5.48 for groups I and II, respectively (p value <0.05). The local score of groups I and II was (P = 1, F = 21, G = 31, E = 19) and (P = 1, F = 12, G = 36, E = 18), which on discharge day improved to (P = 1, F = 4, G = 12, E = 55) and (P = 0, F = 3, G = 6, E = 58) at last follow-up, respectively. Fusion rate was nearly equal for both the groups during all the follow-up intervals and it was 91.1% and 91.7% in the last follow-up. Conclusion: There were no significant differences in the clinical and radiological results between the anterior and posterior approaches used in the surgical treatment of spondylotic cervical myelopathy. However, statistically significant results of Neck Disability Index of anterior approach were not clinically important and may be due to changes in the size and shape of the neck in group II

Adaptation of Poa alpina to altitude and land use in the Swiss Alps

Current land use and climate change are prompting questions about the ability of plants to adapt to such environmental change. Therefore, we experimentally addressed plant performance and quantitative-genetic diversity of the common Alpine Meadow Grass Poa alpina. We asked how land use and altitude affect the occurrence of P. alpina in the field and whether its common-garden performance suggests adaptation to conditions at plant origin and differences in quantitative genetic diversity among plant origins. Among 216 candidate grassland sites of different land use and altitude from 12 villages in the Swiss Alps, P. alpina occurred preferentially in fertilized and grazed sites and at higher elevations. In a common garden at 1,500 m asl, we grew two plants of >600 genotypes representing 78 grassland sites. After 2 years, nearly 90% of all plants had reproduced. In agreement with adaptive advantages of vegetative reproduction at higher altitudes, only 23% of reproductive plants from lower altitudes reproduced via vegetative bulbils, but 55% of plants from higher altitudes. In agreement with adaptive advantages of reproduction in grazed sites, allocation to reproductive biomass was higher in plants from grazed grasslands than from mown ones. For 53 grasslands, we also investigated broad-sense heritability H2, which was significant for all studied traits and twice as high for grazed as for mown grasslands. Moreover, possibly associated with their higher landscape diversity, H2 was higher for sites of villages of Romanic cultural tradition than for those of Germanic and Walser traditions. We suggest promoting diverse land use regimes to conserve not only landscape and plant species diversity, but also adaptive genetic differentiation and heritable genetic variation

On Improving the Performance of Logistic Regression Analysis Via Extreme Ranking

Logistic regression models for dichotomous or ordinal dependent variables is one of the generalized linear models. They have been frequently applied in several fields. In this chapter, we present more efficient and powerful performance of the logistic regression models analysis when a modified extreme ranked set sampling (modified ERSS) or moving extreme ranked set sampling (MERSS) are used and further improving the performance when a modified Double extreme ranked set sampling (modified DERSS) is used. We propose that ranking could be performed based on an available and easy to rank auxiliary variable which is associated with the response variable. Analytically and through simulations, we showed the superiority performance of the logistics regression analysis when modified ERSS, MERSS, and DERSS are used compared with using the simple random sample (SRS). For illustration purposes of the procedures developed, we use a real dataset from 2011/12 National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH)

On Improving the Performance of Logistic Regression Analysis via Extreme Ranking

Invited presentation given at International Symposium on Statistics and Biostatistics (ISBS) at the University of Pretoria