The Impact of Conversion from Traditional to Electronic Dealing on Trade Volume and Market Value of Stocks:An Applied Study on Amman Bourse

This study aims to test the effect of conversion from traditional trading to electronic trading on trade volume, stock market value and liquidity    in Amman Bourse , and investigating the impact of the electronic trading on either transaction costs and operational efficiency,  it is also aims to investigate the ability of investors to earn abnormal return by converting from manual to electronic trading This study will use secondary data by gathering stock market prices before and after dealing with electronic trading.The behavior of stock market value and trade volume  are  studied on the basis of daily movements. On this paper an attempt was made to analyze the stock market value and trading volume of all shareholding companies listed in Amman bourse using monthly data because it is more stable and less volatile.The hypothesizes of this study were examined by  using parametric tests like paired sample t.test. it was found that there was an increase in either trading volume of stocks,   stock market value ,liquidity, operational efficiency, and decreasing in transaction costs    .This study can be a source of help to institutional investors and market makers to improve either way of building their portfolios  and to diversify it and improve their investment decisions. Keywords: trade volume, electronic trading, manual trading, abnormal return, operational efficiency. DOI: 10.7176/RJFA/10-18-08 Publication date:September 30th 201

Experimental investigation of enhanced earth electrode systems under high frequency and transient conditions

This thesis is primarily concerned with experimental tests and computer simulations to determine the high frequency and transient performance of earth electrode systems. The work has involved an extensive review of published literature, theoretical and analytical investigations of earth electrode systems. The experimental investigations on earth electrodes were carried out an outdoor site prior to electrode testing the test site soil resistivity were undertaken. Specifically, the soil resistivity was obtained at the location of the vertical test rod. In order to obtain better understanding of the soil stratification, fourteen profiles of soil resistivity were measured at the field site. From the measurements 2D soil models were constructed to visualise both horizontal and vertical resistivity variation. High frequency and impulse characteristics of vertical test rods up to 6m length and horizontal electrodes up to 88m buried in a non-uniform soil outdoor test site were tested. DC, AC and impulse test results show that increasing the length of electrode reduces the earthing resistance but not impedance. It was shown that, the earth resistance/impedance is constant over a low frequency range, while higher or lower impedance values are observed in the high-frequency range due to inductive or capacitive effects, depending on the length of earth electrode. Improved high- frequency and transient response of earth rods was determined experimentally by connecting horizontal electrode enhancements in star or cross formation at the top of vertical rods. Using these additional enhancements, a reduction in both resistance and impedance has been demonstrated. The addition of horizontal enhancements to the vertical rod can reduce the earth potential rise (EPR) by approximately 70% and 48% for 1.2m and 6m rods respectively. Voltage and current distributions of earth electrode systems under low/high frequency and impulse conditions, for different lengths of vertical rods with horizontal electrode enhancements and along a horizontal electrode with and without insulated conductor, were investigated experimentally and verified by computer simulation. In the case of the of the rods with an added ‘4-cross’ horizontal conductor enhancement, it was shown that the rods carry the majority of the current at low frequency, but this proportion decreases significantly as frequency increases The field test results show that current distribution in earth conductor systems is significantly different under high-frequency and impulse energisation compared with power frequency conditions. Close agreement was obtained between the measured and computed current and voltage High voltage tests in the ground around the vertical electrodes were investigated experimentally. It was observed that when a sufficiently high current magnitude is injected through vertical electrodes, a significant reduction in the impulse resistance by increase in current with a sudden fall of voltage is observed which is called soil ionisation. Such phenomenon does not occur when the vertical electrodes with horizontal enhancements is tested, where the current through all earth electrodes is small

Using Virtual Tours as a University Campus Guide: Al- Zaytoonah University Case Study

Most university campuses, such as the campus of Al-Zaytoonah University of Jordan (ZUJ), are usually large and comprise many buildings. Finding the location of an office, a lecture hall, a service center, etc. is not an easy task for most visitors and even for many students and employees. Therefore, a virtual tour of the campus and its buildings will provide a valuable tool that eases this task, especially when it is available on a public website and accessible without the need for special virtual reality devices. Previous studies on virtual tours focused on their important marketing aspect. On the other hand, this study is focused on using virtual tours as a guide for finding the specific locations that different users seek to visit. Consequently, a virtual tour of ZUJ has been designed and provided via the university website. The building names and numbers are provided on the website in Arabic and English with links to their tours. The tours that lead to the important locations include many significant details inside the buildings such as room numbers, bathroom signs, and door signs. The study showed user satisfaction with the tours and the efficacy of using the website without special virtual reality devices

Mechanical processing of banana slices-stem for fiber extraction

This research aimed to manufacture a simple fiber extraction machine. The machine prototype consisted of available raw materials. The beater cylinder is the most significant component in this machine. The electric motor of 0.75 kW was used to rotate the beater cylinder. The machine theory is based on the repeated rapid beating of the beaters on a slice-stem of banana. This beating simulated what labor does by using hand hammers to eliminate the juice and extract the fibers. The machine was tested under three rotational speeds of the beater cylinder 650, 750, and 850 rpm and using three beater cylinders with a different number of beaters 8, 10, and 12. The fibers produced by the machine were straight, of good quality, and not shredded, this was achieved in abundance when using the cylinder that has 10 beaters with 750 rpm rotational speeds of the beater cylinder. Thus, under these operating conditions, the extraction efficiency, the time required, and machine productivity were 88%, 40 min, and 8.6 kg h-1, respectively. The minimum value of the power required was 0.45 kW at the rotational speed of 650 rpm and using the eight beaters. While the maximum value of the power required was 0.64 kW at the rotational speed of 850 rpm and using the number of beaters 12. At the machine productivity of 8.6 kg h-1, the production cost will be 2.7 L.E. kg-1. While the costs of manual extracting of the fibers were 10 L.E. kg-1

Lightning current performance of conventional and enhanced rod ground electrodes

The correct operation of surge arresters under lightning and switching transient conditions requires that grounding be effective at high frequencies as well as at power system frequency. Effective high frequency grounding also limits the electrocution risk to substation personnel due to transient ground potential rise. This article assesses the performance of high frequency electrodes at typical lightning impulse current magnitudes. The enhancement of such electrodes by addition of bonded horizontal arms in cross and star arrangement is also investigated. The effective impulse resistances for electrodes having lengths up to 4.8 m are calculated over a range of impulse current magnitudes at the same location. The results obtained indicate that, for low impulse current magnitudes, the preionization electrode's resistance (R 1 ) falls with increasing rod length, a behavior reflected in the measured dc resistance. The presence of horizontal enhancement was found to reduce R 1 in all cases. The occurrence of soil ionization in the immediate vicinity of the electrode resulted in a reduced postionization resistance (R 2 ) at higher currents, tending toward a common asymptotic value independent of both the length of the rod and the presence of electrode enhancements. The observed behavior is supported by numerical simulation of electric field and current density distributions, indicating that the high current performance of a grounding rod is heavily influenced by soil ionization and breakdown in high-field regions at the electrode extremities

Overview on Blood Transfusion-Transmitted Diseases

As it is important for the Blood transfusion to be extremely safe, some measures have to be taken long safeguarded the blood supply from the major transfusion transmissible diseases (TTIs).  The risk of transfusion-transmitted infection (TTI) rises with the number of donors exposed, and the effects of TTI are frequently more severe in immune compromised people. TTIs (hepatitis B virus [HBV], HIV, and hepatitis C virus [HCV]) are examples of typical transfusion-transmitted infectious agents. As a result of the gradual application of nucleic acid-amplification technology (NAT) screening for HIV, HCV, and HBV, the residual risk of infected window-period donations has been minimized. Nonetheless, infections emerge far more frequently than is commonly acknowledged, needing ongoing surveillance and individual assessment of transfusion-associated risk. Although there is a constant need to monitor present dangers owing to established TTI, the ongoing issues in blood safety are mostly related to surveillance for developing agents, as well as the creation of quick reaction systems when such agents are detected

Antimicrobial resistance among migrants in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are rising globally and there is concern that increased migration is contributing to the burden of antibiotic resistance in Europe. However, the effect of migration on the burden of AMR in Europe has not yet been comprehensively examined. Therefore, we did a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify and synthesise data for AMR carriage or infection in migrants to Europe to examine differences in patterns of AMR across migrant groups and in different settings. METHODS: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus with no language restrictions from Jan 1, 2000, to Jan 18, 2017, for primary data from observational studies reporting antibacterial resistance in common bacterial pathogens among migrants to 21 European Union-15 and European Economic Area countries. To be eligible for inclusion, studies had to report data on carriage or infection with laboratory-confirmed antibiotic-resistant organisms in migrant populations. We extracted data from eligible studies and assessed quality using piloted, standardised forms. We did not examine drug resistance in tuberculosis and excluded articles solely reporting on this parameter. We also excluded articles in which migrant status was determined by ethnicity, country of birth of participants' parents, or was not defined, and articles in which data were not disaggregated by migrant status. Outcomes were carriage of or infection with antibiotic-resistant organisms. We used random-effects models to calculate the pooled prevalence of each outcome. The study protocol is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42016043681. FINDINGS: We identified 2274 articles, of which 23 observational studies reporting on antibiotic resistance in 2319 migrants were included. The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or AMR infection in migrants was 25·4% (95% CI 19·1-31·8; I2 =98%), including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (7·8%, 4·8-10·7; I2 =92%) and antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (27·2%, 17·6-36·8; I2 =94%). The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or infection was higher in refugees and asylum seekers (33·0%, 18·3-47·6; I2 =98%) than in other migrant groups (6·6%, 1·8-11·3; I2 =92%). The pooled prevalence of antibiotic-resistant organisms was slightly higher in high-migrant community settings (33·1%, 11·1-55·1; I2 =96%) than in migrants in hospitals (24·3%, 16·1-32·6; I2 =98%). We did not find evidence of high rates of transmission of AMR from migrant to host populations. INTERPRETATION: Migrants are exposed to conditions favouring the emergence of drug resistance during transit and in host countries in Europe. Increased antibiotic resistance among refugees and asylum seekers and in high-migrant community settings (such as refugee camps and detention facilities) highlights the need for improved living conditions, access to health care, and initiatives to facilitate detection of and appropriate high-quality treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections during transit and in host countries. Protocols for the prevention and control of infection and for antibiotic surveillance need to be integrated in all aspects of health care, which should be accessible for all migrant groups, and should target determinants of AMR before, during, and after migration. FUNDING: UK National Institute for Health Research Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, Imperial College Healthcare Charity, the Wellcome Trust, and UK National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit in Healthcare-associated Infections and Antimictobial Resistance at Imperial College London

Surgical site infection after gastrointestinal surgery in high-income, middle-income, and low-income countries: a prospective, international, multicentre cohort study

Background: Surgical site infection (SSI) is one of the most common infections associated with health care, but its importance as a global health priority is not fully understood. We quantified the burden of SSI after gastrointestinal surgery in countries in all parts of the world. Methods: This international, prospective, multicentre cohort study included consecutive patients undergoing elective or emergency gastrointestinal resection within 2-week time periods at any health-care facility in any country. Countries with participating centres were stratified into high-income, middle-income, and low-income groups according to the UN's Human Development Index (HDI). Data variables from the GlobalSurg 1 study and other studies that have been found to affect the likelihood of SSI were entered into risk adjustment models. The primary outcome measure was the 30-day SSI incidence (defined by US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria for superficial and deep incisional SSI). Relationships with explanatory variables were examined using Bayesian multilevel logistic regression models. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02662231. Findings: Between Jan 4, 2016, and July 31, 2016, 13 265 records were submitted for analysis. 12 539 patients from 343 hospitals in 66 countries were included. 7339 (58·5%) patient were from high-HDI countries (193 hospitals in 30 countries), 3918 (31·2%) patients were from middle-HDI countries (82 hospitals in 18 countries), and 1282 (10·2%) patients were from low-HDI countries (68 hospitals in 18 countries). In total, 1538 (12·3%) patients had SSI within 30 days of surgery. The incidence of SSI varied between countries with high (691 [9·4%] of 7339 patients), middle (549 [14·0%] of 3918 patients), and low (298 [23·2%] of 1282) HDI (p < 0·001). The highest SSI incidence in each HDI group was after dirty surgery (102 [17·8%] of 574 patients in high-HDI countries; 74 [31·4%] of 236 patients in middle-HDI countries; 72 [39·8%] of 181 patients in low-HDI countries). Following risk factor adjustment, patients in low-HDI countries were at greatest risk of SSI (adjusted odds ratio 1·60, 95% credible interval 1·05–2·37; p=0·030). 132 (21·6%) of 610 patients with an SSI and a microbiology culture result had an infection that was resistant to the prophylactic antibiotic used. Resistant infections were detected in 49 (16·6%) of 295 patients in high-HDI countries, in 37 (19·8%) of 187 patients in middle-HDI countries, and in 46 (35·9%) of 128 patients in low-HDI countries (p < 0·001). Interpretation: Countries with a low HDI carry a disproportionately greater burden of SSI than countries with a middle or high HDI and might have higher rates of antibiotic resistance. In view of WHO recommendations on SSI prevention that highlight the absence of high-quality interventional research, urgent, pragmatic, randomised trials based in LMICs are needed to assess measures aiming to reduce this preventable complication

Laparoscopy in management of appendicitis in high-, middle-, and low-income countries: a multicenter, prospective, cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Appendicitis is the most common abdominal surgical emergency worldwide. Differences between high- and low-income settings in the availability of laparoscopic appendectomy, alternative management choices, and outcomes are poorly described. The aim was to identify variation in surgical management and outcomes of appendicitis within low-, middle-, and high-Human Development Index (HDI) countries worldwide. METHODS: This is a multicenter, international prospective cohort study. Consecutive sampling of patients undergoing emergency appendectomy over 6 months was conducted. Follow-up lasted 30 days. RESULTS: 4546 patients from 52 countries underwent appendectomy (2499 high-, 1540 middle-, and 507 low-HDI groups). Surgical site infection (SSI) rates were higher in low-HDI (OR 2.57, 95% CI 1.33-4.99, p = 0.005) but not middle-HDI countries (OR 1.38, 95% CI 0.76-2.52, p = 0.291), compared with high-HDI countries after adjustment. A laparoscopic approach was common in high-HDI countries (1693/2499, 67.7%), but infrequent in low-HDI (41/507, 8.1%) and middle-HDI (132/1540, 8.6%) groups. After accounting for case-mix, laparoscopy was still associated with fewer overall complications (OR 0.55, 95% CI 0.42-0.71, p < 0.001) and SSIs (OR 0.22, 95% CI 0.14-0.33, p < 0.001). In propensity-score matched groups within low-/middle-HDI countries, laparoscopy was still associated with fewer overall complications (OR 0.23 95% CI 0.11-0.44) and SSI (OR 0.21 95% CI 0.09-0.45). CONCLUSION: A laparoscopic approach is associated with better outcomes and availability appears to differ by country HDI. Despite the profound clinical, operational, and financial barriers to its widespread introduction, laparoscopy could significantly improve outcomes for patients in low-resource environments. TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT02179112