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Reading is important for students by contributing significantly to success in their studies and their career development. A questionnaire-based survey was conducted in the English Department of the College of Basic Education, Public Authority for Applied Education and Training (PAAET), in Kuwait. Based on 410 responses of EFL college students in Kuwait on their reading practices, it was found that students read mainly for entertainment, and reading does not appear to be a popular activity among students. Fiction, fashion, and best sellers were the three main types of reading, indicating that academic reading was not a priority. Only a small proportion of students used e-books. Most students perceived such features of e-books as their portability and ability to store more information as likely to attract more students to e-reading, and indicated that they would be attracted to reading e-books themselves if circumstances change. This indicates a good potential to promote e-reading among students if steps are taken to make e-books and e-readers available to them through libraries and academic institutions. E-reading is also expected to become more popular among students if it could be linked to academic reading, particularly to the availability of text books in e-format. Libraries in Kuwait should start more proactive program to promote e-books and e-reading among college and university students.

Third places are those that offer a space outside of work and home for people to escape the stress associated with the primary spaces of their lives. Through social interactivity these help in acquiring some emotional support provided by a close and intimate attachment. Such social support can turn into social resources for individuals and can lead to forming communities that may become incubators for social capital through regular visits to shared socializing places. This paper focuses on social interaction that takes place through the third place and the communities that are being created as a contributing factor to knowledge management. The study being reported in this paper investigated the role of coffee shops as third places in building communities and social capital in Kuwait. A mixed-method approach was used to conduct the study. These methods included qualitative methods such as extended conversations in the form of semi-structured interviews and quantitative methods of using questionnaires distributed to coffee shop staff and visitors. Results indicated that importance attached to providing facilities by coffee shops reflected that the owners perceived these as third places. The facilities attracted customers to coffee houses where interactions took place that helped to build communities. The pattern of visits by customers showed that mostly they come in groups and have meetings and gatherings that facilitated and encouraged interactions. The communities that are being built in the coffee shops are indicative of these being perceived as third places by owners, customers, and staff. This study shows the potential of coffee shops as a major sector of the food industry promising a valuable contribution in transformation and transition to a knowledge-based economy in Kuwait. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Resistance exercise is known to be effective in reducing glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) in people with type 2 diabetes. However, studies, so far, have employed supervised resistance exercise in a laboratory or gym facility which limits the future translation of such exercise in to clinical practice and recommendations. Our primary aim, therefore, is to test the hypothesis, in a randomized controlled trial, that home-based resistance exercise training and gym-based resistance exercise training both reduce HbA1c levels in people with type 2 diabetes compared to control. We will also investigate the effects of home- and gym-based resistance exercise training on muscle strength and body composition.Methods: The current study is a three-arm randomised controlled trial which will be conducted with 150 eligible people with type 2 diabetes to compare home-and gym-based resistance exercise training with usual care in Kuwait. The interventions will be delivered by exercise specialists and last for 32 weeks. The primary outcomes are HbA1c with secondary outcomes measuring muscle function, body composition, physical activity and quality of life.Discussion: Ethical approval has been granted by the Dasman Diabetes Institute ethical review committee (RA/197/2019). Study findings will be disseminated through presentation at scientific conferences and in scientific journals.Trial Registration: NCT04136730: Retrospectively registered on 21 October 2019. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined activities involving the finding, organizing, managing, and re-finding of information by knowledge workers in Kuwait. This research also conducted a review of the tools needed for effective personal information management (PIM) and assessed perceptions about improving PIM through Internet use. Data were collected through semistructured interviews conducted among 26 graduates of the Department of Information Studies at Kuwait University. These participants are currently employed in different sectors engaged in a variety of informationrelated activities. This study's findings indicated that participants gathered different types of information from a variety of sources. This information was stored using several devices and services, including desktop computers, shared drives, clouds, bookmarked websites, e-mail correspondence, and favorites lists. Participants organized information in personal folders according to categories such as subject/topic, time, project, document type, and geographical region. Preferred methods for information re-finding included searching by keyword and browsing through folders. Interviewees reported problems of information overload, fragmentation, and anxiety. Most were active in social media via mobile device, while some of them used Siri or Ask Google to retrieve information. Tools used for PIM included calendars, tasks, schedules, e-mail management tools, clouds, and social networking tools. Participants reported that the Internet helped with personal information management practices, but that some privacy issues arose in this context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Health information systems (HISs) provide automated solutions for the clinical, informational, and managerial life of a hospital. These systems are optimally used when the knowledge workers are adequately equipped with the needed competencies. Three Kuwaiti hospitals have been engaged in adopting and using the same HIS. Jahra Public Hospital, one of the three, has been making progress in the use of HIS. It was hypothesised that capabilities and preparedness of knowledge workers are correlated with their extent of use of the HIS. Data were gathered from 124 healthcare knowledge workers using stratified random sampling. It was found that skills and abilities of these knowledge professionals are strongly correlated with their use of information and communication technologies (ICT) and HIS. Almost all the professionals used HIS, yet there was a wide variation in the use of HIS modules and applications. We also examined whether personal attributes of knowledge workers made any difference in their ICT and HIS skills and use. Results however revealed no such association. These professionals attached a great deal of importance with formal training, but urged that these knowledge workers had enhanced and involved role. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chemometric exploration of desalinated and bottled water in Kuwait was employed to interpret the spatial variation in the physicochemical parameters. The data set consisted of the concentrations of principal macronutrient elements, ions, trace elements, temperature, pH, electrolytic conductivity, and total dissolved solids measured in indoor, outdoor, and bottled water samples. Quantitative assessment of the Cd, Hg, and Sb contents revealed rare cases of elevated concentrations; however, these concentrations were always below international health agency standards. Two general clusters of similar parameters were discovered in the variables mode and were associated with “natural” water characteristics or “conditions” of the pipeline system. We found that an increase in temperature facilitates the leaching of metals from the metallic equipment in the system. Spatial variation in the water quality was discovered, which indicates that residential areas fed from the Az-Zoor plant are supplied with water that contains lower concentrations of Ca, Cr, Mg, Mo, Ni, Na, TDS, and SO42−than the desalinated water produced and fed from the Doha plant. However, on the basis of the aluminum concentration in the water, cement mortar lining is assumed to be prevalent in the pipeline systems of the Mubarak Al-Kabeer, Ahmadi, Umm Al-Haiman, and Sorra areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The levels of the trace elements aluminum (Al), arsenic (As), boron (B), barium (Ba), beryllium (Be), cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), cobalt (Co), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), lead (Pb), manganese (Mn), mercury (Hg), molybdenum (Mo), nickel (Ni), antimony (Sb), selenium (Se), strontium (Sr), titanium (Ti), vanadium (V), and zinc (Zn) were determined in 93 brands of non-carbonated (BW) and carbonated (CBW) bottled water available in Kuwaiti markets and in 321 samples of desalinated household water (HW) collected from 99 sampling locations, which covered 95% of Kuwait's residential areas. The study yielded a large range of results for most of these elements, and the difference between the lowest and highest measured values exceeded three orders of magnitude for some elements in a number of the BW and CBW brands. With a few exceptions, the results for the HW and BW were found to comply with the United States-Environmental Protection Agency and World Health Organization guideline values. The elements Fe, Pb, Hg, and Ni exceeded these GVs in 8.5, 0.3, 1.2, and 1% of the HW samples, respectively. One brand of BW exceeded the GV for B, while the levels of B, Ba, Be, Fe, and Mn exceeded the GVs in 35, 15, 5, 75, and 25% of the CBW brands, respectively. Correlations were found between the levels of some elements and either the desalination plant that produced the HW or the country of origin of the BW or CBW. The levels of the elements Al, Cu, Fe, and Zn in HW were higher in the summer than in the winter, with 14, 14, 42, and 18% increases, respectively. Nutritional evaluation revealed that significant percentages of the DRIs of Cr, Cu, Fe, and Se can be provided by drinking 2 L of HW, and significant percentages of the DRIs of B, Cr, Cu, and Mo can be provided by drinking 2 L of BW. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study is aimed at investigating information behavior of journalists in Kuwait. It attempted to seek answers to questions such as how search for information is initiated, what information sources are preferred and how successful is information finding? Journalists were asked to report critical incidences of information finding related to their recent journalistic assignment through a questionnaire. Analysis of 42 critical incidents indicated that journalistic assignments were in four major areas: political, cultural business, and sports. In most cases, background information was most frequently sought type of information. Internet was the most frequently used information source even though some journalists perceived that information available on the various websites may not be very objective. A follow up study is planned to be carried out to discuss the findings with a selected group of journalists using focus group discussions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Three hundred and twenty-two samples of desalinated household water were collected from 99 sampling locations that covered 95% of Kuwaiti's residential areas. Seventy-one brands of bottled water were collected from Kuwaiti markets. The water quality parameters that were studied included pH, electrical conductivity (EC), total dissolved solids (TDS), F−, Cl−, Br−, ${\rm NO}_{2}^{- } $, ${\rm NO}_{3}^{- } $, ${\rm SO}_{4}^{2- } $, ${\rm PO}_{4}^{3- } $, ${\rm BrO}_{3}^{- } $, ${\rm ClO}_{3}^{- } $, ${\rm ClO}_{2}^{- } $, and the major macronutrients Na+, K+, Ca2+, and Mg2+. The analysis yielded a large range of results for most of these parameters, with differences in some cases exceeding 10-fold. With a few exceptions, the results were found to comply with US-EPA and WHO standards. Only the water in two brands of bottled water was acidic (pH < 6.5). The TDS was found to be higher than the US-EPA regulated value in 4 and 3% of the household samples and bottled water brands, respectively. The fluoride levels were generally higher in bottled water than in household water. However, the household water that was produced by the Doha desalination plant and some of the European brands of bottled water were the best samples studied in terms of their quantity of Ca2+, Mg2+, and Na+ compared with the DRI values for those substances. EC and TDS were positively correlated with ${\rm NO}_{3}^{- } $, ${\rm SO}_{4}^{2- } $, Na+, K+, Ca2+, and Mg2+ for household water but only with Ca2+ and Mg2+ for bottled water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eighty five Arab patients with classical and definite rheumatoid arthritis were typed to determine the prevalence of HLA A, B, C, and DR antigens. A significant increase in the prevalence of HLA-A10, B8, B21, and DR3 was found in comparison with a control population matched for age and sex. HLA-DR5 was significantly decreased in the patient group. The classical association of HLA-DR4 with rheumatoid arthritis could not be confirmed in the Arab patients resident in Kuwait, supporting reported observations in different ethnic groups of associations with HLA antigens other than HLA-DR4 and indicating a heterogeneous genetic susceptibility to rheumatoid arthritis. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Chemical analysis of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and semivolatiles (SVs), including pesticides, was performed on 623 and 568 samples, respectively, of household drinking water, as well as on 113 samples from 71 brands of bottled water available in Kuwaiti markets. The analysis was performed according to United States Environmental Protection Agency (US-EPA) Methods 524.2 and 525.2. Nine VOCs and eight SVs were found in household water. Furthermore, between one and seven of 12 VOCs were detected in 93% of the bottled water brands. All bottled waters were found to be completely free of SVs. Styrene was the main pollutant found in all brands packaged in polystyrene containers of sizes 200-mL and 250-mL, with levels generally higher than the WHO guideline value of 20 µg/L. The levels of styrene, toluene, ethyl benzene and xylenes were found to increase with storage time, which indicates that these VOCs were migrating from the container material. No effect was detected due to changes in the storage temperature. All detected VOCs and SVs in household and bottled waters, except styrene, were found at concentrations much lower than those established as safe by WHO guidelines and US-EPA maximum contaminant levels (MCLs), respectively. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Modelling spatial variation of total trihalomethanes (TTHMs) based on the quality of drinking water and parameters of distribution network showed three intervals (low, moderate, and high) for TTHMs abundance in various governorates in Kuwait. The majority of differences in TTHMs spreading were found between samples collected at Ahmadi, Jahra and Capital Governorate, as well as at Hawalli and Jahra. Spatiotemporal variations of TTHMs in household drinking water carried out by the self-organizing map (SOM) approach indicated that discontinuously sampled locations could be analyzed in a multivariate way in order to reveal the factors controlling the quality of water. In the group of analyzed variables, several mutual correlations were discovered; however, the highest relative abundance of TTHMs, and hence the correlation, was associated with dibromochloromethane (DBCM) and bromoform (BFM). The SOM-based classification helped to uncover the relationship between the THMs level and the distance from the supplying water treatment plant, and hence an indirect relation to its operational efficiency. The products of the Az-Zoor and the Shuaiba plants were of the best quality and contained the lowest levels of each of the four THMs as well as TTHMs. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]