Search

In the field of medical imaging, there are many ways to visualize disease pathology in the body. Conventional medical imaging techniques use ionizing radiation, which is harmful to the patient on a cellular level. As more and more imaging tests are being ordered, safer alternatives must be developed to protect the public from these harmful effects. Microwave imaging (MWI) is a novel solution that will produce images while keeping the patient safe from harmful radiation. Lower frequency microwaves are not as harmful to DNA and cellular structures. As a result, a MWI system (MWIS) will be safer for method to acquire medical images. Although this technology has been actively researched for several decades, the proposed design differs in that it will attempt to merge the circular data collection patterns of computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging with the reflective nature of radar and ultrasound. Consequently, the proposed system will be able to produce three-dimensional images of the anatomy in a much safer and cheaper manner than conventional imaging methods. As this research is a work in progress, this paper is intended to outline the proposed design as well as current progress of the MWIS.

In a question & answer (Q& A) system, credible users provide answers of higher correctness. However, in a distributed social network based Q& A (SNQ& A) system, an asker does not know a k-hop answerer’s credibility, thus making it difficult for the asker to assess the answer correctness. Therefore, a credibility-enabled distributed SNQ& A system is crucial for determining the correctness of the answers. To this end, we propose CRED, a credibility-enabled distributed SNQ& A system, which facilitates each user to assess the correctness of the provided answers. CRED utilizes subjective logic to build interestwise friend-to-friend credibility opinions under uncertainties. The developed opinions are then accumulated by CRED to get each user’s aggregated credibility opinion, which may reflect the user’s real credibility. CRED forwards a question to users with highest credibility beliefs in the question interest category. Our evaluation results show that, on average, CRED accomplishes higher success ratio, higher answer correctness, and lower answer uncertainty by 12.1%, 16.4%, and 22.2%, respectively, as compared to the best-performing baseline systems.

Background: Diarrhea is communicable disease caused by inflammation of gastrointestinal tract by viruses, bacteria, protozoa or toxin that lead to watery stool mostly accompanied by vomiting and fever. After pneumonia, acute diarrhea is second leading cause of death in younger children. According to world health organization (WHO) and UNICEF, worldwide there are more than two billion of diarrheal cases are reported each year. There are many factors that may risk for diarrhea in children it includes un vaccination, poor economic status, contaminated water, unhygienic food, poultry and domestic animals and lack of education. Aim: To assess and find the major risk factors for diarrhea in children less than 5 years of age. Material and method: An Analytical cross-sectional questionnaire based survey was conducted on children less than five year presenting with AGE in pediatric emergency of Khyber teaching Hospital Peshawar. Risk factors associated with diarrhea such as age, gender, residency, mother’s education, socio-economic status and unvaccinated were examined. Results: A total of 150 participants were enrolled into current study, out of which 58% were male and 42% were female, out of total participant 45.3% belong to rural and 55.7% are from urban areas. Male gender, age Key words: Children, diarrhea, risk factors, unhygienic

Nowadays fast food consumption is increasing among people especially in students, which is one of the main risk factors for development of CHD; whereas CHD are amongst the most serious problems worldwide. Methods: A multi-center cross sectional study was conducted in Rehman Medical College (Medical) and University of Engineering and Technology (Non-Medical) from January 2016 to June 2016.Questionnaire were distributed to 75 students of each Institute. The data were analyzed in SPSS 16.0. Results: Out of 150 students, 109 were males and 39 were females and 2 students didn’t return the questionnaire. Overall medical students had more knowledge as compared to non-medical students regarding CHD and fast food but there were some aspects in which there was little or no difference. Majority (71.2%) of medical students and some (32.0%) of nonmedical students considered increase cholesterol diet as risk factor for CHD. Most of medical students (87.7%) and nonmedical students (92.0%) have never done a diagnostic test for cardiovascular diseases or high cholesterol level.

Background: The golden proportion is a mathematically constant ratio between the larger and smaller length. The ratio is approximately 1.618:1 In terms of proportion, the smaller tooth is about 62% the size of the larger one. Golden, because it is noble, unique, ideal and perfect with many amazing properties. Abbreviated to Greek Letter Phi. First Described by Euclid Where to find golden ratio. In the next few slides, some examples of the Golden Proportion are depicted. Many of them have Golden Mean Gauge, superimposed over the picture. One of the important and critical tasks in esthetic dentistry is creating a harmonious proportion when restoring or replacing. The concept of Golden proportion has often been offered as a corner stone of smile design theory. Aim: To investigate the existence of Golden Proportion between the widths of maxillary anterior teeth of undergraduate dental students at Mayo Hospital Lahore. Methodology: Entire procedure was made simple as the subjects for the study were evaluated in normal clinical situations rather than in complex environment. Each measurement was made thrice by the same operator and the repetitive value was used for accuracy and calibration of results. The golden proportion for each subject was assessed by multiplying the width of the larger component by 62% and compared with the width of the smaller component for proportion to be analyzed. The measurements were recorded and statistically analyzed using Student’s paired t-test at α=0.05. Undergraduate dental student volunteers from Mayo Hospital Lahore. 100 Students (50 males and 50 females). Mean age: 2o– 25 years. Result: Descriptive statistics were calculated for the frequency of participants having various ratios of golden proportions based on sex. Chi square analysis was used to find if there exists any association between sex and various ratios of golden proportions. Alpha error was set at 5% and P value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Frequency and percentage of ratio in the study sample Ratio Males Females Total 1.1 0 (0%) 1 (1%) 1% 1.2 19 (38%) 17 (34%) 36% 1.3 15 (30%) 18 (36%) 33% 1.4 6 (12%) 5 (10%) 11% 1.5 6 (12%) 4 (8%) 10% 1.6 4 (8%) 5 (10%) 9%. Frequency and percentage of ratio in the study sample 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1 2 3. The ratio of 1.2 and 1.3 were more commonly observed in 36% and 33% of individuals than 1.618. The ratio of 1.5 and 1.6 were found in 10% and 9% of the study group evaluated. The 1.2 ratio which was commonly observed was substantiated by Rosensteil et al. Javaheri and Shahnavaz, Jahanbin et al., Decker, Sarver and Ackerman, Howells and Shaw. Conclusion: The results of this study showed golden proportion ratio of 1.6 in 9% of study samples. No major differences in proportion existed between the sexes and symmetry of teeth. Findings of this study were substantiated by other investigations of de Castro et al., Ong et al., Wolfart et al., Shell and Woods done on non-Indian population. The results of this study have inferred that golden proportion is not seen in majority of the patients. Keywords: Assessment, golden proportion, maxillary anterior teeth, under graduate students, Mayo Hospital Lahore.&nbsp

By knowing about the estrogen, progesterone and androgen operations methods we can get knowledge that the androgen receptors are constant at single place. The receptors of the androgen are constant. at the intention cells like intellect and cartilage. By default, these receptors are present and contained on some other cells that result in single anticipated consequences. 80 to 90% burning flashes can be lessened by using the higher amount of progestin. Our current research was conducted at Lahore General Hospital, Lahore from May 2017 to April 2018. It also causes some adverse effects like fatness, watery preservation, and release of fluid from vagina and dryness in oral cavity. Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) is an androgen consequent from adrenal glands. It acts as an initiator of the hormone that can be transformed into persuasive androgen and estrogen. It has been seen in the observation involving less number of patients that it lessened vasomotor indications enhance recent male se hormone and better the presentation of cognitive. There is no androgen discovered still that can be utilized in the females suffering from menopausal syndrome. To maintain the mass of bone and improve the betterment in the sexuality Tibolone can be utilized. We can better the indications of the vasomotor, common betterment, deficiencies in cognitive, loss of mass of bone, mood swings and sexuality by these components. Total beneficial and harsh impressions are also discussed.

Incisional hernias have been reported in up to 20% of patients undergoing laparotomy. The incidence of incisional hernia following Caesarean section by vertical incision is 3.1%. Spontaneous rupture of abdominal hernia is very rare and usually occurs in incisional and recurrent groin hernias. Conservative management such as manual reduction and use of abdominal binder until term has been applied with unreliable success. Additionally, surgical intervention such as antepartum hernial repair has also been undertaken in few women while allowing for normal vaginal delivery at term. The rarity of this condition prompted us to report a case of spontaneous rupture of incisional hernia in a 35 years old pregnant lady who had developed incisional hernia following caesarean section.

There is general agreement that attitudes towards the entrepreneurial activity, and its social function is determinant factors for university students to decide an entrepreneurial career. This study focuses on the impact of entrepreneurship education on student’s motivation and skills towards enterprise education in Mardan. The study was conducted to find out the attitude, motivation, and skills of young student’s towards starting a business. The aim of this study is to find out the impact of entrepreneurial education on students and their motivation and skills towards entrepreneurship in Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan. Data has been collected from a sample of 90 students of Management Sciences Department at AWKUM in Mardan through questionnaires. Data were collected only from Bachelors and Master’s Program Students of Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan. The result reveals that entrepreneurship and entrepreneurship education is having an impact on student’s motivation and skills.

The goal of this project is to investigate quantitatively the performance of different deformable image registration algorithms (DIR) with helical (HCT), axial (ACT), and cone‐beam CT (CBCT). The variations in the CT‐number values and lengths of well‐known targets moving with controlled motion were evaluated. Four DIR algorithms: Demons, Fast‐Demons, Horn‐Schunck and Lucas‐Kanade were used to register intramodality CT images of a mobile phantom scanned with different imaging techniques. The phantom had three water‐equivalent targets inserted in a low‐density foam with different lengths (10–40 mm) and moved with adjustable motion amplitudes (0–20 mm) and frequencies (0–0.5 Hz). The variations in the CT‐number level, volumes and shapes of these targets were measured from the spread‐out of the CT‐number distributions. In CBCT, most of the DIR algorithms were able to produce the actual lengths of the mobile targets; however, the CT‐number values obtained from the DIR algorithms deviated from the actual CT‐number of the targets. In HCT, the DIR algorithms were successful in deforming the images of the mobile targets to the images of the stationary targets producing the CT‐number values and lengths of the targets for motion amplitudes

Compared with community-based question answering systems and modern search engines, social network-based question answering systems are more efficient in addressing non-factual questions. In such systems, askers search answerers among their 1-hop neighbors; however, high-quality answerers may exist in the $k$ -hop neighbors of the social networks who are not known to askers directly. To address this problem, we propose a dynamic SOcial network-based Question Answering System (SOQAS) that finds high-quality answerers to each asker’s question with high response rate and low-response time. The SOQAS finds high-quality answerers in the $k$ -hop dynamic social network and selects optimal relays at each hop to forward the question to, via social referral chains. In particular, the profile information is exchanged among $k$ -hop neighbors, and leveraged for finding high-quality answerers and optimal relays at each hop, so as to increase the response rate and reduce the response time. We conduct trace-driven simulations, which show that, compared with the state-of-the-art schemes, SOQAS achieves: 1) higher average expertise levels by more than 42%, 2) higher average response rate by more than 26%, and 3) lower response time with as high as 27% reduction. Furthermore, under diverse system parameters, such as question arrival rate, keywords per question, answerers per question, number of hops, and predictability, the SOQAS consistently outperforms the state-of-the-art schemes.

Geopolymer paste is a revolutionary building material that the chemical activity of inorganic molecules will create. It is an alternative to traditional Portland cement and is more Eco-friendly. This analysis aimed to classify the mixtures and their process parameters suitable for the development of Geo-polymer paste with one of the ultimate compressive powers, the highest-lowest porosity, and the lowest-lowest final and initial setting time. In the experimental design of the Geo-polymer-based-metakaolin, a Taguchi methodology has been utilized. Five variables parameters were chosen that are mostly to influence the properties of the geopolymer. These are the quantity of Si, alkali, the proportion of alkali reagents, duration of blending, and water amount. These variables’ influence has been calculated at 7 and 28 days on compressive strengths, porosity, density, and setting time. The analysis indicates that the strong compressive strength (115MPa) of Geopolymer paste could be achieved with the formula (1Na2O. Al2O3. 3.8SiO2.xH2O) utilizing suitable processing conditions under which the molar ratio of alkali silicate to alkali hydroxide must be held within the range of 3.25-3.02.

Gel casting technique is a promising technology that has ability to produce near-net shape ceramics via using toxic and non-ecofriendly agents. The current work aim to develop green gel casting technique using water as a solvent, agar as a gelling agent, and the microwave thermal treatment instead of cross linker. 8mo l% Yttria stabilized zirconia was selected as a case study to produce near-net shape ceramics. The experimental work involved the preparation of Yttria stabilized zirconia nanoparticles via chemical precipitation method. The effect study of agar ratio, Yttria stabilized zirconia solid loading percent on the physical, mechanical, surface properties of the prepared ceramics and selecting of suitable casting conditions. The study has been found that the microwave thermal treatment develops thermally activated cross linking in the agar aqueous solution leading to higher glass transition temperature for agar. The green combination (agar aqueous solution and microwave treatment) can be used as alternative to (monomer, solvent, cross linker) Companion. Also, using the ultrasonic treatment can effectively eliminate needs for dispersants, also the vacuum de-airing treatment. Yttria stabilized zirconia ceramic with high dimensional accuracy, low surface roughness (Ra=2. 81 nm) can be obtained using an agar ratio of (0.4%) and solid loading of (65%). The sample can be moulded with complex shape and the green gel, also the pre-sintered body is machineable. The sintered samples have a porosity of (31%) and compressive strength of (234MPa). Regression analysis and genetic algorithm are showed that the obtained microhardness, compressive strength, and surface roughness are predictable.

The objective of this study is to quantitatively evaluate variations of dose distributions deposited in mobile target by measurement and modeling. The effects of variation in dose distribution induced by motion on tumor dose coverage and sparing of normal tissues were investigated quantitatively. The dose distributions with motion artifacts were modeled considering different motion patterns that include (a) motion with constant speed and (b) sinusoidal motion. The model predictions of the dose distributions with motion artifacts were verified with measurement where the dose distributions from various plans that included three-dimensional conformal and intensity-modulated fields were measured with a multiple-diode-array detector (MapCheck2), which was mounted on a mobile platform that moves with adjustable motion parameters. For each plan, the dose distributions were then measured with MapCHECK2 using different motion amplitudes from 0-25 mm. In addition, mathematical modeling was developed to predict the variations in the dose distributions and their dependence on the motion parameters that included amplitude, frequency and phase for sinusoidal motions. The dose distributions varied with motion and depended on the motion pattern particularly the sinusoidal motion, which spread out along the direction of motion. Study results showed that in the dose region between isocenter and the 50% isodose line, the dose profile decreased with increase of the motion amplitude. As the range of motion became larger than the field length along the direction of motion, the dose profiles changes overall including the central axis dose and 50% isodose line. If the total dose was delivered over a time much longer than the periodic time of motion, variations in motion frequency and phase do not affect the dose profiles. As a result, the motion dose modeling developed in this study provided quantitative characterization of variation in the dose distributions induced by motion, which can be employed in radiation therapy to quantitatively determine the margins needed for treatment planning considering dose spillage to normal tissue.

Barium titanates are widely used in the electronics industry because of their high dielectric constant and ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties. These properties are related to the physical properties of the material; thus, the optimization of these properties is crucially important. The aim of the current work is to control the values of the processing parameters to produce the optimum density, porosity, firing shrinkage, and green density of BaTiO3. A genetic algorithm was used to fulfill this aim. The modified pechini method was used to prepare barium titanate powders with five different particle size distributions. Eighty samples were prepared using different processing parameters including the pressing rate, pressing pressure, heating rate, sintering temperature, and soaking time. A genetic algorithm (GA) approach has been applied in order to obtain the optimum processing parameters. The results showed that the best value of the density that can be achieved is 6.02 g/cm3, which is equal to the theoretical density of BaTiO3 using a pressing rate of 3 KN/S, a pressing pressure of around 370–385 Mpa, a sintering temperature of not less than 1400 °C, a soaking time of around 6–8 h, and a heating rate of 2.5 °C/min. The same upper and lower boundary conditions, used to obtain the optimum density, were also employed for the investigation of the porosity, firing shrinkage, and green density. The optimum achieved values were of geometric mean of 6.89%, 3.48 g/cm3, and 17.01% for the porosity, green density, and firing shrinkage, respectively.

Barium titanates is one of the most important ceramics that are widely used in the electronic industry because of its high dielectric constant, its ferroelectricity, and its piezoelectric properties. In the current study, five different batches of barium titanate powders were prepared by modifiedpechini method using the barium chloride and the titanium chloride as a starting materials in order to obtain different particle size distributions.SEM, TGA, DTA, XRD, FTIR, and other techniques have been used to characterize the prepared samples.XRD results suggested that the synthesized BaTiO3has a tetragonal phase.SEM images of the prepared samples reveala polyhedron shapes, on average, also it show that there are markedinfluence of the reactant concentration on the average size of the grains,where the samples prepared from higher solution concentration tend to possess larger grain size compared to that prepared from low concentration.

The research aimed to compare and assess Ifraz-2 and Qandil water treatment plant (WTP) units in Erbil Governorate, Kurdistan Region, Iraq. For obtaining removal efficiency for the units and the whole WTPs, water samples from raw water, after sedimentation process, after filtration unit, and after disinfection were collected from November 2018 to April 2019. The average removal efficiencies for the sedimentation unit, filtration unit, and the entire Ifraz-2 WTP were 92.25%, 64.99%, and 97.54%, respectively. While, the average removal efficiencies for the sedimentation unit, filtration unit, and the entire Qandil WTP were 86.83%, 91.28%, and 99.29%, respectively. Statistical analysis was conducted such as correlations between the removal efficiencies between units, t-test for final treated water, and multiple regression analysis to obtain the effect of the units on the final removal in the storage tank. Comparison between Ifraz-2 and Qandil WTPs were outlined. Results revealed that performance and conditions of Qandil WTP were better than Ifraz-2 WTP.

This study contributes to the extant literature on the nexus among agriculture export, import exchange rate and economic growth in Pakistan. We used annual time series data for 1980-2017 and employ the Non-linear Autoregressive Distributed Lag (NARDL) model. The NARDL testing results affirms asymmetric co-integration among the variables. The study main results show: (i) Co-integration test for long run the positive shocks in export and import have positive significant while exchange rate has positive effect the economic growth. (ii) Co-integration test for short run the positive shocks in import has positive significant and while Export and exchange rate have negative significant effect on economic growth. The symmetrical results show: (i) Export has unidirectional granger causality (ii) Exchange rate has bidirectional granger causality (iii) Import has not ganger causality with economic growth. In addition, the results demonstrated that causality relationship can help out policy maker to design such policies which are useful to economic growth of Pakistan, which could further promote foreign trade to gain the maximum level of economic growth. RESUMO: Este estudo contribui para a literatura existente sobre o nexo entre exportação agrícola, taxa de câmbio de importação e crescimento econômico no Paquistão. Utilizamos dados de séries temporais anuais para 1980-2017 e empregamos o modelo Não-linear Autoregressive Distributed Lag (NARDL). Os resultados dos testes NARDL afirmam a co-integração assimétrica entre as variáveis. Os principais resultados do estudo mostram: (i) no teste de co-integração de longo prazo, os choques positivos nas exportações e importações têm uma significância positiva, enquanto a taxa de câmbio afeta positivamente o crescimento econômico; (ii) Teste de co-integração para curto prazo, os choques positivos nas importações são positivos significativos e, enquanto a exportação e a taxa de câmbio têm um efeito negativo significativo no crescimento econômico. Os resultados simétricos mostram: (i) a exportação tem causalidade unidirecional sobre o crescimento ; (ii) a taxa de câmbio tem causalidade bidirecional sobre o crescimento ; (iii) a importação não tem causalidade sobre o crescimento econômico. Além disso, os resultados demonstraram que a relação de causalidade pode ajudar o formulador de políticas a elaborar políticas úteis ao crescimento econômico do Paquistão, o que poderia promover ainda mais o comércio exterior para obter o nível máximo de crescimento econômico.

The main objective of this article is to examine the impacts of energy consumption and economic growth on environmental quality in Pakistan. We use the ecological footprint (environmental quality) as a target variable, the control variables of gross domestic products are a proxy of economic growth, and energy consumption and gross fixed capital formation are proxies of capital from 1971 to 2014. For this purpose, a unit root test with break dates is employed for a stationary check, and a BDS test is used for nonlinearity. The nonlinear autoregressive distributed lag approach is employed to assess the asymmetric co-integration among the variables. These results confirm the asymmetric co-integration among the variables. The asymmetric causality technique is also applied to scrutinize the causal link between the variables. The asymmetric feedback effect is observed between positive shocks to environmental quality and energy consumption, and symmetrically, environmental quality causes energy consumption. By contrast, the neutral effect is observed among environmental quality, economic growth, and capital. Based on these findings, current energy portfolios should be diversified by either enhancing or incorporating renewable energy technologies, and this is indispensable to support the existing successful strides of environmental policies. Thus, policymakers must buttress their commitments to reduce emissions by sustaining and decarbonizing the trajectory of economic growth.

The structural, magnetic, and optical properties of the pristine and Gd-doped ZnO nanorods (NRs), prepared by facile thermal decomposition, have been studied using a combination of experimental and density functional theory (DFT) with Hubbard U correction approaches. The XRD patterns demonstrate the single-phase wurtzite structure of the pristine and doped ZnO. The rod-like shape of the nanoparticles has been examined by FESEM and TEM techniques. Elemental compositions of the pure and doped samples were identified by EDX measurement. Due to the Burstein–Moss shift, the optical band gaps of the doped samples have been widened compared to pristine ZnO. The PL spectra show the presence of complex defects. Room temperature magnetic properties have been measured using VSM and revealed the coexistence of paramagnetic and weak ferromagnetic ordering in Gd3+ doped ZnO-NRs. The magnetic moment was increased upon addition of more Gd ions into the ZnO host lattice. The DFT+U calculations confirm that the presence of vacancy-complexes has a significant effect on the structural, electronic, and magnetic properties of a pristine ZnO system.

The use of cutting-edge technologies such as the smartphones, smart bracelets, social media, and m-Health, and also mobile applications has begun to increase in medicinal services areas, due to factors such as the low cost, usability, mobility, multiple uses, and being reliable. This encouraged health institutions to increase their investment in healthcare technologies. This article presents the implementation of an integrated architecture for a mobile healthcare system, which is called Medical social media system. This system integrates wearable sensors, smartphones, and oriented social media, so as to enhance the healthcare services in the Iraqi environment. The system can be used by smartphones, running on the Android system and smart-watches. In addition, the website can be utilized by devices like desktops, notebooks, tablets, and smartphones which can be utilized maximally for data collection and analysis via user-system interactivity, utilizes wearable sensors, smartphones that automatically collect life activities information, such as exercises information like heart rate, the breathing rate, and body temperature. In order to provide healthcare services to patients, and medical workers in the Iraqi healthcare sector, the infrastructure still needs to significantly develop, and medical information needs to be shared amidst medical workers and to individuals in general. Moreover, it has been designed to store collected data in a database and to be able to produce reports to users.

The profound appreciation of urban expansion and land use change (LUC) considerably influences the ecosystem functions, services, and biodiversity along with the local and regional climate. Land use has undergone an awful transformation due to rapid urbanization and population growth, which in turn increased land surface temperature (LST) in district Peshawar, Pakistan. The current study tends to capture the influence of land use on LST and agricultural productivity by employing multi-temporal, multispectral satellite data and agricultural production data during the selected years, i.e., 1996, 2003, and 2016. The results demonstrated that barren land considerably decreased while the urban area increased over time in all three phases. Furthermore, significant LST difference was found in different land cover units; e.g., barren land and urban area have the maximum, while water bodies followed by vegetation retain minimum LST in all three phases, i.e., 1996, 2003, and 2016. Similarly, the results from agricultural production revealed that except for wheat crops, which decreased by 7.54% during 1999-2003, the production of all major food crops increased during the selected years. However, the production of sugar cane and barley experienced considerable reduction during the selected years, except for barley, which increased by 22.86% during 2003-2016. The finding of this study provides guidance, policy recommendations, and reference for future researchers. Graphical abstract .

The kinetics of the crystallization of cristobalite in the amorphous silica glass were studied for samples prepared by gel-casting and sintering in air. Avrami and rate equations were used to calculate the rate constants and the activation energy. The results showed that the crystallization obeys the first order and occurs mainly on the surface with activation energy of 543-546kJ/mol. The fewer amounts of OH-groups and the high amount of oxygen vacancies are expected to stand behind the increase in the activation energy as compared with that reported in literatures. Keywords: Devitrification, Gel-Casting, Silica Glass, Cristobalite, Crystallization.

A microwave imaging system that is sensitive for different tissue densities which can image phantoms of patient scale using a large field of view was developed. The different imaging parameters including noise, position and contrast resolutions of this microwave system based on a single transducer and receiver were characterized and an image reconstruction algorithm based on holographic back-projection was developed to reconstruct 2D microwave images.

LBSs are Location-Based Services that provide certain service based on the current or past user's location. During the past decade, LBSs have become more popular as a result of the widespread use of mobile devices with position functions. Location information is a secondary information that can provide personal insight about one's life. This issue associated with sharing of data in cloud-based locations. For example, a hospital is a public space and the actual location of the hospital does not carry any sensitive information. However, it may become sensitive if the specialty of the hospital is analyzed. In this paper we proposed design presents a combination of methods for providing data privacy protection for location-based services (LBSs) with the use of cloud service. The work built in zero trust and we start to manage the access to the system through different levels. The proposal is based on a model that stores user location data in supplementary servers and not in non-trustable third-party applications. The approach of the present research is to analyze the privacy protection possibilities through data partitioning. The data collected from the different recourses are distributed into different servers according to the partitioning model based on multi-level policy. Access is granted to third party applications only to designated servers and the privacy of the user profile is also ensured in each server, as they are not trustable.

The present study reports on the development of cost-effective hybrid geopolymer foam from metakaolin via a direct foaming mechanism to produce pores differ in amount and size to be suitable for wide range of applications such as filtration, catalyst support, acoustic and thermal insulation. The main goal of this research project has been to investigate the possibility of producing geopolymer foam with high compressive strength and high porosity at the same time. The complexity of the structure, the variety of the process parameters, and the impure nature of the starting materials make it hard to optimize the preparation process of HGPF and to evaluate the influence of each processing parameter on the final conducted characteristics. Response Surface Methodology (RSM) has been utilized to examine the influence of the main process parameters, on the compressive strength, and the physical characteristics of the samples with final aim to optimize the preparation process. The study involved investigation of batch (0.2 of K2O). The studied parameters were (silica content, water amount, OPC%, H2O2 %, and Olive oil %).

Harnessing energy resources contributes to achieving economic targets and environmental change, as well as fulfilling energy demands via producing clean energy and new technologies. However, the procedures for accomplishing these interlinked objectives and achieving sustainable development need to be addressed empirically. To this end, we examined the nexus between fossil fuel, renewable energy, and economic growth, using a time series data 1980–2017 of Pakistan. By employing a non-linear autoregressive distributed lag and asymmetric causality approaches, this study determines the asymmetric impact of one variable on the others. During the investigation, the results confirmed asymmetric and nonlinear co-integration between pairs of the variables. An asymmetric feedback causality was observed between positive shocks to economic growth and renewable energy consumption. In contrast, the asymmetric causality test showed that positive and negative shocks in fossil fuel and economic growth had a neutral effect, while a symmetric bidirectional hypothesis was observed between fossil fuel consumption and economic growth. Finally, an asymmetrically unidirectional causal nexus was confirmed between foreign direct investment and economic growth. Prospectively, our findings suggest the significance of clean energy along with the installation of new technologies for achieving sustainable economic growth without undermining environmental intactness and ecosystem.

PURPOSE: A motion algorithm has been developed to extract length, CT number level and motion amplitude of a mobile target from cone-beam CT (CBCT) images. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The algorithm uses three measurable parameters: Apparent length and blurred CT number distribution of a mobile target obtained from CBCT images to determine length, CT-number value of the stationary target, and motion amplitude. The predictions of this algorithm are tested with mobile targets having different well-known sizes that are made from tissue-equivalent gel which is inserted into a thorax phantom. The phantom moves sinusoidally in one-direction to simulate respiratory motion using eight amplitudes ranging 0–20 mm. RESULTS: Using this motion algorithm, three unknown parameters are extracted that include: Length of the target, CT number level, speed or motion amplitude for the mobile targets from CBCT images. The motion algorithm solves for the three unknown parameters using measured length, CT number level and gradient for a well-defined mobile target obtained from CBCT images. The motion model agrees with the measured lengths which are dependent on the target length and motion amplitude. The gradient of the CT number distribution of the mobile target is dependent on the stationary CT number level, the target length and motion amplitude. Motion frequency and phase do not affect the elongation and CT number distribution of the mobile target and could not be determined. CONCLUSION: A motion algorithm has been developed to extract three parameters that include length, CT number level and motion amplitude or speed of mobile targets directly from reconstructed CBCT images without prior knowledge of the stationary target parameters. This algorithm provides alternative to 4D-CBCT without requirement of motion tracking and sorting of the images into different breathing phases. The motion model developed here works well for tumors that have simple shapes, high contrast relative to surrounding tissues and move nearly in regular motion pattern that can be approximated with a simple sinusoidal function. This algorithm has potential applications in diagnostic CT imaging and radiotherapy in terms of motion management.

Various dentistry fields such as teeth treatment, dental restoration, and denture production require the application of three-dimensional intraoral scanners to create digital impressions. This study presents a method to reconstruct a three-dimensional teeth crown by utilizing a prototype intraoral custom design with publicly available software. The system consists of custom containing an endoscope camera and two light sources (white LED and blue laser), a personal control computer, and photogrammetric open source software packages (VisualSFM, CMVS/PMVS, and MeshLab). Photogrammetry methods were used to acquire the three-dimensional teeth model with high precision. Multi images have been captured of the interesting teeth using the custom system from different angles. The capturing process was done in two phases using one illumination source each time. The captured images are loading to Photogrammetry software to generate the three-dimensional dense point cloud. A comparison has been made of the resulted dense point cloud at each phase. Finally, the dense point cloud is loading to MeshLab software to generate the three-dimensional mesh that can be utilized in CAD/CAM software. The results have shown the superiority of using blue illumination with the photogrammetry software that shows good accuracy of teeth crown details and measurements that are related to the reconstruction algorithm which yields in more number of 3D points of the object to generate good three-dimensional meshes of the teeth crown. This study helps to offer low cost, simple design, and a user-friendly system to generate a three-dimensional teeth crown.

Recent research has suggested that answers to the particular questions may be found when the questions are forwarded via suitable friends (or helpers) in a multi-hop manner. In mobile social network-based question answering systems, users are associated with limited resources; therefore, a light-weight scheme is crucial. However, improving the performance of the system with a light-weight scheme is challenging. To this end, we propose a distributed SOcial helpeR selecTion (SORT) scheme where all users share information with their 1-hop friends. SORT records and leverages the information to select and forward the questions to capable and cooperative helpers among the friends to improve the performance of the system. Our extensive trace-driven simulations reveal that, on average, SORT achieves higher response rate, higher best-answer rate, and lower response time by more than 14%, 13%, and 14%, respectively, in comparison to state-of-the-art helper selection schemes. Further, we observe that SORT performs consistently better than the state-of-the-art systems under a diverse number of system parameters.

This work aims to synthesize composite material which combines adequate mechanical properties and high resistance to bacterial adhesion. Such materials are needed in many components in the medical, industrial, and environmental applications. To obtain that combination, high weight percents of anatase nanoparticles, as bacterial adhesion reducer, were incorporated into a matrix of the ABS terpolymer. Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, and Klebsiella pneumonia were selected for the bacterial adhesion tests. The surface properties of the composites were investigated and correlated to the adhesion behavior using nonlinear regression technique. It has been found that adding anatase nanoparticles improves the stiffness and the compressive strength of the terpolymer with a noticeable reduction in the flexural strength due to the development of minor defects in the structure. Nevertheless, a composite containing 10 wt% of anatase nanoparticles exhibited an interesting and adequate combination of the mechanical properties and the resistance to bacterial adhesion. The regression analysis produced a mathematical formula that excellently fits the experimental data. Such formula can be used to predict the bacterial adhesion to a surface based on its multi-scale features.

Modern technology and rapid progress in the development of systems and electronic devices have created a significant gap in protecting the privacy of individuals and communities. Intrusion into clients’ privacy in the past was mostly done through software errors or poor protection of the systems. However, intrusion into privacy in the last few years is mostly due to disclosure of information by customers directly or indirectly. Usually, information separately is not important, but if it can be collected together, it can produce new information that is in breach of privacy. Concerns among individuals or communities about privacy violations have encouraged us to conduct a survey to identify the individual information that generates new information causing privacy violations. This paper focuses on identifying whether the most harm is done by disclosing general information or location information. Another aspect followed by the study is to identify if there are discrepancies in the perception of individuals about their willingness to disclose the information if the data are optional.

In computing, one of the rapidly growing technologies is cloud computing, which comes with great benefits, as well as with some drawbacks. One of the issues examined in the present paper is the secure clients' location sharing method, from the perspective of data integrity and authenticity. These are issues associated with sharing of data in cloud-based locations. The first aspect to analyze is the access mechanism, which raises security issues if it is not secured enough for sensitive data. Data stored in cloud (big data) is often accessed by third party, which increases the exposure to attacks. The privacy violation risks thus become higher. Cloud-stored data usually is processed or used by third party. Data owners (clients) must ensure information privacy of the stored or processed data. The solution proposed in this paper for cloud data management and classification is a schema organized on multiple levels and based on policy in order to increase reliability of cloud computing in terms of confidentiality of sensitive data. The paper is based on a solid security policy structure which follow the specifications and abilities. The algorithm presented in the paper efficiently provides data accuracy and validity with the employment and management of the outlined policies, complying to cloud customers' specifications and cloud providers' possibilities.

Dosimetric consequences of positional shifts were studied using frameless Brainlab ExacTrac X-ray system for hypofractionated (3 or 5 fractions) intracranial stereo-tactic radiotherapy (SRT). SRT treatments of 17 patients with metastatic intracranial tumors using the stereotactic system were retrospectively investigated. The treatments were simulated in a treatment planning system by modifying planning parameters with a matrix conversion technique based on positional shifts for initial infrared (IR)-based setup (XC: X-ray correction) and post-correction (XV: X-ray verification). The simulation was implemented with (a) 3D translational shifts only and (b) 6D translational and rotational shifts for dosimetric effects of angular correction. Mean translations and rotations (± 1 SD) of 77 fractions based on the initial IR setup (XC) were 0.51 ± 0.86 mm (lateral), 0.30 ± 1.55 mm (longitudinal), and -1.63 ± 1.00 mm (vertical); -0.53° ± 0.56° (pitch), 0.42° ± 0.60° (roll), and 0.44°± 0.90° (yaw), respectively. These were -0.07 ± 0.24 mm, -0.07 ± 0.25 mm, 0.06± 0.21 mm, 0.04° ± 0.23°, 0.00° ± 0.30°, and -0.02° ± 0.22°, respectively, for the postcorrection (XV). Substantial degradation of the treatment plans was observed in D95 of PTV (2.6% ± 3.3%; simulated treatment versus treatment planning), Dmin of PTV (13.4% ± 11.6%), and Dmin of CTV (2.8% ± 3.8%, with the maximum error of 10.0%) from XC, while dosimetrically negligible changes (< 0.1%) were detected for both CTV and PTV from XV simulation. 3D angular correction significantly improved CTV dose coverage when the total angular shifts (|pitch| + |roll| + |yaw|) were greater than 2°. With the 6D stereoscopic X-ray verification imaging and frameless immobilization, submillimeter and subdegree accuracy is achieved with negligible dosimetric deviations. 3D angular correction is required when the angular deviation is substantial. A CTV-to-PTV safety margin of 2 mm is large enough to prevent deterioration of CTV coverage.

The aim of this study was to investigate quantitatively the dosimetric factors that increase the risk of clinical complications of rib fractures or chest wall pain after stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) to the lung. The correlations of clinical complications with standard-uptake values (SUV) and FDG-PET activity distributions from post-treatment PET-imaging were studied. Mean and maximum doses from treatment plans, FDG-PET activity values on post-SBRT PET scans and the presence of clinical complications were determined in fifteen patients undergoing 16 SBRT treatments for lung cancer. SBRT treatments were delivered in 3 to 5 fractions using 5 to 7 fields to prescription doses in the range from 39.0 to 60.0 Gy. The dose and FDG-PET activity values were extracted from regions of interest in the chest wall that matched anatomically. Quantitative evaluation of the correlation between dose deposition and FDG-PET activity was performed by calculating the Pearson correlation coefficient using pixel-by-pixel analysis of dose and FDG-PET activity maps in selected regions of interest associated with clinical complications. Overall, three of fifteen patients developed rib fractures with chest wall pain, and two patients developed pain symptoms without fracture. The mean dose to the rib cage in patients with fractures was 37.53 Gy compared to 33.35 Gy in patients without fractures. Increased chest wall activity as determined by FDG-uptake was noted in patients who developed rib fractures. Enhanced activity from PET-images correlated strongly with high doses deposited to the chest wall which could be predicted by a linear relationship. The local enhanced activity was associated with the development of clinical complications such as chest wall inflammation and rib fracture. This study demonstrates that rib fractures and chest wall pain can occur after SBRT treatments to the lung and is associated with increased activity on subsequent PET scans. The FDG-PET activity provides a useful parameter that can be used clinically to predict chest wall complication in lung patients.

Liver abscess remains an important clinical entity. It is the most common intra-abdominal visceral abscess. It has become one of the most common communicable diseases with much more prevalence in underdeveloped and developing countries. Low socio economic conditions, unsanitary habits, immuno-compromised state and alcohol abuse are significant risk factors for amoebic liver abscess. A total of eighty-nine patients are included in this study all with confirmed diagnosis of liver abscess. Multiple variables were determined, such as the patient’s general data, personal, pathological and non-pathological records, symptomatology, vital signs, laboratory tests, cultures, antibiotic therapy, treatment, and follow-up until discharge. In past few years, it has been seen that there is a slight change in the incidence and appearance of this disease. These changes prompted us to study the patients of liver abscess in this region of northern India.

To investigate the doses received by the hippocampus and normal brain tissue during a course of stereotactic radiation therapy using a single isocenter (SI)–based or multiple isocenter (MI)–based treatment planning in patients with less than 4 brain metastases. In total, 10 patients with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) demonstrating 2-3 brain metastases were included in this retrospective study, and 2 sets of stereotactic intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) treatment plans (SI vs MI) were generated. The hippocampus was contoured on SPGR sequences, and doses received by the hippocampus and the brain were calculated and compared between the 2 treatment techniques. A total of 23 lesions in 10 patients were evaluated. The median tumor volume, the right hippocampus volume, and the left hippocampus volume were 3.15, 3.24, and 2.63 mL, respectively. In comparing the 2 treatment plans, there was no difference in the planning target volume (PTV) coverage except in the tail for the dosevolume histogram (DVH) curve. The only statistically significant dosimetric parameter was the V 100 . All of the other measured dosimetric parameters including the V95 ,V 99, and D100 were not significantly different between the 2 treatment planning techniques. None of the dosimetric parameters evaluated for the hippocampus revealed any statistically significant difference between the MI and SI plans. The total brain doses were slightly higher in the SI plans, especially in the lower dose region, although this difference was not statistically different. The use of SI-based treatment plan resulted in a 35% reduction in beam-on time. The use of SI treatments for patients with up to 3 brain metastases produces similar PTV coverage and similar normal tissue doses to the hippocampus and the brain when compared with MI plans. SI treatment planning should be considered in patients with multiple brain metastases undergoing stereotactic treatment. & 2015 American Association of Medical Dosimetrists.