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PurposeThe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has a significant influence on many aspects of life, including education. As a result, the education system in emerging nations such as Bangladesh needs a rapid transition from conventional to technology-based distance learning. This study looks at the current state of higher education and how well online courses that use technology work.Design/methodology/approachThis study used a structural equation model (SEM) to analyze the 392 student records taken from several universities in Bangladesh.FindingsThis research showed that students are more likely to use a digital higher education system if faculty are willing, students are eager and the economy is stable. Students who have had a bad experience with digital learning should know that a virtual evaluation system is needed. The willingness of students to use technology also plays a significant role in whether or not the students will take online classes. The research shows that combining traditional classroom and online learning is the best way to create a long-term learning system.Originality/valueThe model suggested in this study has a big effect, and Bangladesh policymakers should consider this model when planning a new kind of technology-based education.

The increasing consumption of non-renewable energy and consequent global warming calls for use of renewable energy at scale. Bangladesh is moving toward ensuring renewable energy for all households by 2025 and has already been ranked 2nd in the world in providing off-grid solar home systems. Yet, national energy generation is largely dependent on fossil fuels and covers about one-third of the rural households. Driven by thriving economic development, villages of Bangladesh are experiencing rapid socio-economic-spatial transformation. However, most of the rural population lives with short of energy and safe water which is the main obstacle in sustainable transformation of rural settlements. To compensate for this shortage, they rely on traditional renewal energy sources such as biomass and solar energy to meet their daily needs. Regarding this energy-water scenario, this research aims to explore the potential of planning renewable energy integrated homestead from a physical-spatial design perspective taking a typical village as the case. With a multidisciplinary-exploratory approach the research is designed with a two-fold methodological framework: 1) investigation of existing energy status (consumption, needs and affordability) and water security (usage, sources and quality); 2) mapping spatial patterns of available energy and water services; and 3) exploration of existing homestead morphology to examine the scope of integrating renewable energy and rainwater harvesting systems in an efficient and cost-effective manner. Based on the triangulation of findings from these investigations, the research develops a Renewable Energy and Safe Water Integrated Spatial Model towards sustainable transformation of rural settlements.

A growing population with rising per capita income has intensified the competition for limited land in Bangladesh. As regulation of land use is largely absent in rural areas, agricultural land use is getting indiscriminately converted into non-agricultural uses. This conversion is threatening agro-based food security of the country in general and of the rural households in particular. Regarding this issue, the current government has emphasized the rural homestead as a ‘production unit’ of agro-farming. As an important source of food and nutrition, homestead farming is an integral part of rural settlements where women play a vital role. However, in most of the cases, it is done in an un-integrated and rudimentary manner. As a result, they are unable to yield the maximum from homestead farming. In this context, the research focuses on designing integrated homestead agro-farming based on case studies of two homesteads of a typical village in Batiaghata, Khulna. With an exploratory approach the research methodology is designed with a three-stage framework. Stage I includes investigation of the categories and needs of agro-products focusing on the role of women in production, processing, management and consumption; Stage II includes exploration of existing spatial-morphological patterns and extent of different types of agro-farming; while Stage III includes development of design schemes for integrated homestead agro-farming. Based on the triangulation of findings, this research contributes strategic physical-spatial design considerations for integrated homestead agro-farming towards ensuring household food security in a socially sustainable and agro-ecologically resilient manner.

Integrating socio-economic development-led spatial-physical design intervention in traditional settlement needs a deeper understanding of the social-cultural-economic dimensions of the people, place, and environment. Such intervention at the settlement level involves the challenge of context-sensitive placemaking concerning the existing social-cultural-economic space systems that contain the social way of life and livelihood. This research explored this challenge taking Bang-Phli, Samutprakan, Thailand, a successful water-integrated placemaking project. With a mixed research approach that combines methods from design ethnography and built environmental design, this study focused on exploring the spatial-physical design approach, process, and considerations behind the context-sensitive placemaking. Outcomes of this research suggests how people-place-environment sensitive placemaking can nurture the co-existence of socio-cultural way of life, environmental stewardship, and economic development in traditional settlement in a socially and environmentally sustainable manner.

The present study was conducted to determine the variations of heavy metal (Cu, Pb, Ni, Cr, Cd, and Zn) bioaccumulation in edible muscles among the wild, pond-, gher- and cage-cultured tilapia, fol...

In this study, effects of bloodmeal on onion (Allium cepa L. CV. BARI peaj-1) cultivation to increase yield and related attributes have been tested. The effect of blood meal as fertilizers has been compared with growth hormone treatment and other conventional fertilizer. In the field, the different amount of growth elements treated were at the rate of 2550, 241.90 and 0.17 kg/ha for blood meal, urea and gibberellic acid (GA3), respectively. The yield performance was 172.84, 189.59 and 153.34 MT/ha for GA3, urea and blood meal, respectively. Using GA3 is expensive, and use of urea, a chemical fertilizer, can have adverse effect on soil. Blood meal, a biological ingredient, appears to be a bio-rationale amendment for production and sustained yield of onion. The results will need to ground truth tested in the field. Bangladesh J. Sci. Ind. Res.56(2), 87-94, 2021

Many of the aquatic pathogenic microflora belong to the non-lactose fermenting (NLF) Enterobacteriaceae and emergence as well as the spread of antibiotic resistance in them is now a serious threat to public health worldwide. Growth of textile industries has heavily flourished acting as hub for the ready-made garments factories in Bangladesh. Textile industry effluents may contain heavy metals and it is not clear whether their disposal is strictly monitored or not and their impact on the aquatic microflora have not been properly investigated and monitored. To assess the impact of heavy metals on the emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance in NLF Enterobacteriaceae, samples were collected from four different locations of drains running down effluents from five (n=5) different textile industries located in Savar, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Total bacterial counts (TBCs), minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of heavy metals, antibiotic susceptibility, binary exposure and plasmid profile experiments were performed. TBCs from day 1 to day 5 revealed that most colony forming units (CFUs) uncountable at 10-6 dilution could be counted at 10-10 dilution. A total of 100 NLF bacterial isolates were categorized as type-1 and type-2 using 4 differential media. The MICs of 100% isolates in both type-1 and type-2 for nickel (Ni), lead (Pb) and chromium (Cr) were 0.6 mM, 0.6 mM and 1.0 mM, respectively. In case of type-1, most (38%) showed resistance to azithromycin (AZM) and least (2%) to cefotaxime (CTX). In case of type-2, most (48%) showed resistance to AZM and least (8%) to CTX. Binary exposure experiments revealed the combined effect of heavy metals and antibiotics. Where in most cases, zone of inhibition increased or remained unchanged. In few cases, zone of inhibition decreased. This finding indicated that the heavy metals typically exert negative or no effects on antibiotic resistance in the isolates tested. Plasmid profiling of the type-1 and type-2 NLF isolates resistant to both the antibiotics and heavy metals revealed that one of the five type-1 isolates contained very large plasmid (14 Kb) and four of the eight type-2 isolates contained 13 Kb plasmids and two contained 12 Kb plasmids. These findings indicated that these isolates possibly possess the ability to sequester metals before being discharged into the soil and/or water environment. Keywords: Antibiotics, effluents, heavy metals, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), resistance.

It is crucial to monitor the microbial ambience in heavy metal enriched industrial effluents that generally discharge into the environment. Therefore, the present study aimed to understand the load of heavy metals in multidrug-resistant lactose fermenting microorganisms isolating from textile industry effluents. Samples were collected from five different textile industrial canals. In most of the cases, the colony forming units (CFUs) per plate were uncountable at 10-6 dilution but countable at 10-10 dilution. A total of 100 lactose fermenting (LF) isolates were selected using 4 differential media and tested for the determination of minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of heavy metals and antibiotic susceptibility. For nickel (Ni), the MIC was 0.3 mM for almost 98% isolates. The MIC was 0.5 mM for chromium (Cr) in almost 99% isolates. For lead (Pb), 100% isolates had a MIC of 0.4 mM. The most prevalent (36%) resistance pattern was found for sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim (SXT) and only 10% isolates showed resistance to cefotaxime (CTX). The combined effect of heavy metals and antibiotics revealed that in most cases, the antibiotic zone of inhibition was increased. Plasmid profiling showed that among 14 selective isolates, high sized (21kb) plasmid was found in 6 isolates. Key words: Antibiotics, effluents, heavy metals, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), antimicrobial resistance.

Vertical heavy metal profiling reflects the history of the deposition of metals and helps to understand the characteristics of accumulation in various layers of the sediment. Nevertheless, no previous studies in Bangladesh had focused on the vertical distribution of heavy metals in core sediments. In this study, vertical distribution, contamination level and potential ecological risks of six heavy metals (Zn, Cu, Pb, Cr, Ni, Mn) from the core sediment of ship breaking were assessed and compared with the non-ship breaking area of Bangladesh. The concentration (µg/g) of heavy metals in the 0–10 cm (surface), 10–20 cm (middle) and 20–30 cm (bottom) of sediment cores was as follows, respectively: Zn (35.54–100.68, 37.27–258.02, 42.78–66.45); Cu (16.38–75.25, 30.64–92.02, 34.99–52.98); Pb (4.84–132.08, BDL–204.48, BDL–23.51); Cr (14.57–42.13, 25.31–42.71, 15.26–36.34); Ni (4.02–42.23, 4.94–43.70, 4.40–43.13); Mn (198.74–764.16, 257.77–980.50, 255.62–856.44). The heavy metal content of core sediment from the shipbreaking region was substantially higher than that of non-shipbreaking area. Except for Ni, heavy metal content was highest in the middle layer, followed by the upper and lower layers of the sediment core. Contamination exponents such as enrichment factor, contamination factor and geo-accumulation index (Igeo) revealed contamination by Zn, Cu and Pb while potential ecological risk factor ( $$E_{r}^{i}$$ ) and risk index suggested low ecological risk by studied heavy metals except for Pb. Correlation matrix, cluster analysis and principal component analysis indicated that all studied heavy metals could have similar anthropogenic origins.

A matured canola plant has different types of stems based on the diameter, such as narrow (immature), medium (mature), and wide (over mature). Therefore, this study was focused on investigating the properties of the extracted canola (HYREAR 3) fibers from 3 different diameter of stems (narrow, medium and wide). The physical (average length, aspect ratio, contact angle, and moisture regain) and mechanical (load at break, elongation at break, tensile stress, young’s modulus, and tenacity) properties of fibers were measured. ANOVA showed that stem diameter had effects on all fiber properties except for average length and elongation at break. Fiber diameter also had significant effects on load at break, elongation at break, aspect ratio, tensile stress, and young’s modulus. In corrgram, it was found that tensile stress, young’s modulus, and aspect ratio were negatively correlated to fiber diameter whereas load at break and tenacity were positively associated. Mean values showed that stem diameter had effects on all fiber properties except for average length. The mean values of fiber diameter, load at break, elongation at break, tenacity, and contact angle were highest and the lowest mean values were observed for tensile stress, young’s modulus and aspect ratio in fibers of 7 - 10 mm stems (medium matured), hence found to be less stiff. Moisture regain ability showed that canola fibers isolated from ≥8 mm stem diameter were more hydrophobic whereas contact angle measurement showed relatively more hydrophobic nature of 7 - 10 mm stem fibers. Therefore, this study provided an insightful understanding of the quality of the canola fibers of different stems which will ultimately help to choose the best stem to extract different qualities of fibers for commercial uses.

Chemical softener (Cepreton UN) is used to soften the cellulosic fiber (cotton) in the textile industries to make clothes better to touch. Therefore, this study investigated the effects of Cepreton UN on both physical (length, aspect ratio, contact angle, and moisture regain) and mechanical (load at break, elongation at break, tensile stress, young’s modulus, and tenacity) properties of the lignocellulosic canola (HYREAR 3) fibers extracted from narrow, medium, and wide stems. ANOVA showed that fiber diameter had strong effects on elongation at break, load at break, tensile stress, young’s modulus, and aspect ratio for all fibers. Corrgram values showed that tensile stress, young’s modulus, and aspect ratio were negatively correlated to fiber diameter whereas load at break and tenacity were mostly positively correlated to fiber diameter. The fibers were treated with 2% and 10% Cepreton UN and compared with control fibers. In most cases, the fiber diameter was decreased in both 2% and 10% treated medium stem fibers. The mean values of elongation at break, load at break, tenacity, and contact angle were decreased for 10% and increased for 2% and the mean values of tensile stress, young’s modulus, and aspect ratio were decreased for 2% and increased for 10% treated medium stem fibers. Moisture regain (%) mostly decreased for 2%, and increased for 10% treated fibers. Low pH (4.5) had an almost similar effect on fibers as 2% Cepreton UN. Overall, 2% Cepreton UN treatment is found to be better than 10% to make canola fibers less stiff and low pH was found to be an alternative softener treatment strategy.

This paper deals with the rock physical analysis of primary reservoir rocks in the X gas field, which includes identifying the transition zone between mechanical and chemical compaction zones and the amount of cement in the reservoir rock. The analysis is performed by plotting different log data (Gamma-ray, density, neutron porosity, and sonic log) against depth, constructing the cross plot, and plotting of sonic and porosity logs with cement model. The transition zone, which is the boundary between mechanical and chemical compactions, indicates a sharp increase in density and a decrease in porosity with no lithological change at 2,576 m depth (Well-2). Among three gas sands, the upper gas sand and upper part of the middle gas sand are located within the mechanical compaction zone. The lower parts of the middle gas sand and lower gas sand are within the chemical compaction zone. Cement model analysis showed that the upper gas sand and upper part of the middle gas are composed of unconsolidated sand. In contrast, the lower part of middle gas sand and lower gas sand comprise of consolidated sand, having almost 2% contact cement.

The application of sequence stratigraphy to resolve the miscorrelation between different genetic units in reservoir characterization in a gas field of Surma Basin is dealt with. Interpretation of available seismic and wireline logs (gamma ray, resistivity, density and neutron porosity) give the sequence stratigraphic correlation of reservoir sands. The reservoirs geometry, its extent, seal architecture and trapping styles have been revealed better with this correlation. There is juxtaposition of two reservoir sands, namely A1 and A2. A1 is located at older highstand sand, whereas A2 is in the younger lowstand sand. Lithostratigraphically they might be same but sequences stratigraphy reveals that they are different and deposited at different times. Moreover, the concept reveals that lowstand sand has better reservoir quality than any highstand and transgressive sand. Asiat. Soc. Bangladesh, Sci. 45(2): 209-216, December 2019

This study builds a high-resolution sequence stratigraphic framework for the Surma Group in the X Gas field. At first, electrofacies and depositional sequences were interpreted from wire line logs. Then, the field wide configurations of these sequences have been identified in seismic using reflection terminations (of flap, onlap, top lap and down lap relationship). Finally, wire line log and seismic interpretations were integrated to establish sequences stratigraphic framework in the Surma Group. Electrofacies analysis has revealed four major facies associations namely: (i) Bell shaped fining upward facies corresponds to retrogradational shoreface to tidal flat deposits, (ii) Funnel shaped coarsening upward facies corresponds to progradational shoreface to tidal flat, (iii) Cylindrical aggradational facies interpreted as stacked channel and (iv) Symmetrical or Bow shaped facies corresponds to heterolithic unit. The succession of Surma group of about 3100+ m has been divided into twelve depositional sequences. With exception of depositional sequence 1, 11 and 12, most of them are composed of three system tracts: sandy lowstand system tract, shaley transgressive system tract and heterolithic to shaley highstand system tract. Repetitive occurrence of incised valley, shoreface sand as well as tidal channel sand separated by transgressive system tract shelfal mud resulted in sand-shale alternation in the Surma Group. The lower depositional sequences (up to sequence-6) are shale dominated and equivalent to the Lower Surma Group. The upper six sequences are sand dominated, have more channel incisions and sequence boundary representing the Upper Surma Group

The biggest question in the present gas crisis is where to find gas in the onshore of Bangladesh. The exploration strategies so far taken over the Surma Basin give importance only to the structural traps (fault-bounded anticlines). Already most of the anticlinal structures have been drilled and now they are at nearly matured stage. Therefore, most sustainable solutions are revising all the gas fields with sequence stratigraphic concept and find out the hidden possibilities of stratigraphic traps that are being still neglected. In this paper, interpretation of available logs and seismic has revealed the sequence stratigraphic concept of the reservoirs as well as new exploration prospect in the portion of Fenchuganj Gas field. The study reveals seven prospective reservoir zones, PR-1 to PR-7 from older to younger in studied area. Prospective reservoir PR-1 and PR-4 are belong to highstand system tract whereas PR-2, PR-3 and PR-5 are in the lowstand system tract. Upper two reservoirs PR-6 and PR-7 are located within the sand facies of transgressive system tract. Analysis of seismic attribute and log response has yield a prospective future drilling target in the erosional remnant of a highstand system tract truncated against lowstand-incised valley and capped by transgressive shale. Based on the seismic amplitude (bright spot), two exploration prospects were also identified in the stratigraphic traps located on the flank of the Fenchuganj structure. One is highstand sand truncated against shale-filled valley and the other one is lowstand channel sand sealed by transgressive shale, which demand further investigation. Thus, this approach provides new insights for local and international oil companies that there are huge possibilities of finding stratigraphic traps in the tidal deposits of regressive shelves that are yet to be well documented.

The purpose of this article is to reconsider the concept of progress in the context of educational colonialism in Bangladesh. It attempts to interpret contemporary conditions concerning progress in...

The study assessed the contamination level of seven heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Cr, Ni, Zn, As, and Cu) along with their potential ecological risks in sediments from the Halda river which is the largest natural carp breeding ground in South Asia. The concentration levels (mg/kg) of seven heavy metals from ten sampling sites were organized in the following descending order: Zn (71.89) > Cr (31.86) > Cu (31.85) > Ni (26.67) > Pb (20.46) > As (2.69) > Cd (0.05). Among the metals, Zn, Cr, Ni, and Cu exceeded some standard limits. Sediment quality guidelines (SQGs) suggested that the concentration of Pb, Cu, and Ni could occasionally cause an adverse effect on the ecosystem. However, the geo-accumulation index (Igeo), contamination factor (CF), and pollution load index (PLI) for heavy metals suggested that the contamination level was low. Moreover, the risk index (RI) and potential ecological risk index ( $$ {E}_r^i $$ ) confirmed the low ecological risk (as RI < 100 and $$ {E}_r^i $$ < 30) from heavy metals for the river ecosystem except for the Pb and Cu. High CF and $$ {E}_r^i $$ values for Pb in one site (S4) are deemed as combining elements of multiple metallic portions used in industrialization. The univariate and multivariate statistical analyses such as correlation matrix, principal component analysis, and cluster analysis of the metals for different sites signified that the metals were originated from similar anthropogenic activities like untreated industrial effluents and wastage disposal to the river system.

This article examines the challenges in quality assurance in higher education in the context of Bangladesh through the lens of “managerial leadership.” It focuses on unveiling the issues in management and leadership that affect quality performance at program level. The public universities of Bangladesh have remained outside any internal/external assessment or accreditation process until the government initiated a nationwide quality assurance program in 2015. This is attributed largely to the culture of ignorance of accountability among the academics that has created a landscape of mutually indemnified systems of inefficient management at all levels: university, school, and discipline. To this end, this study investigates the role of concerned authorities in realizing the fullest potential of existing constitutional responsibilities, developing necessary policies and regulations accordingly, and ensuring proper implementation and monitoring of the policies. Underpinned by a context-bound theoretical framework, this article reports the research outcomes through triangulation of findings from reflections of former vice-chancellors, deans, and heads on their own managerial-leadership experiences. Based on empirical findings, this paper unveils how lack of effective leadership has led to “lack of accountability,” that in turn, has created “inefficient management” in public universities in Bangladesh.

Whole genome sequences (DNA sequences) of four uncultured archeon clones (1B6:CR626858.1, 4B7:CR626856.1, 22i07:JQ768096.1 and 19c08:JQ768095.1) were collected from NCBI BioSample database for the construction of digital data on tRNA. tRNAscan-SE 2.0 and ENDMEMO tools were used to identify and sketch tRNA structure as well as calculate Guanine-Cytosine (GC) percentage respectively. Eight true/functional tRNAs were identified from above 4 sequences which showed cove score greater than 20% with no variable loop. The tRNAs from the uncultured archeon clones were classified as Ala, Arg, Ile, Thr, Pro and Val type tRNA with cove score ranging from 34.22%-79.03%. The range of GC content was found 42.89%-56.91%; while tRNA contributed GC content ranging from 52%-64.86% to the total GC content in these sequences. The data fabricated in this study could be very useful for studying the diversity of tRNA among prokaryotes.

To study the phosphorus transformation in soils, experiment was conducted in the laboratory. In this study, three different bench-mark soil series of three different Agro-ecological Zones namely, Brahmaputra (Jamuna) floodplains (Dhamrai series, Areni-Eutric gleysols), Low Ganges River Floodplain (Ishurdi series, Chromi-calcaric Gleysols), and Madhupur Tract (Tejgaon series, Chromi-Calcaric Gleysols ) of Bangladesh were selected. For conducting this experiment, all the determination was performed triplicate. The changes of phosphorus fractions were discussed. Soil Phosphorus pools were assessed by sequential P fractionation on days 0, 7, 20 and 40. The inter conversions of different P- fractions were noticed during the course of incubation experiment. The magnitude of these changes differed among soils, being greatest in the Dhamrai soil. Principal component analysis of the data showed that the size of the P pools was related to soil properties; high concentrations of Ca-P were associated with high pH and calcium concentrations, high concentrations of Fe-P and residual P were correlated with high aluminium. It can be concluded that soil P pools can be generalized across the three soil used in this study, but that the size of the P pools is affected by soil properties.Bangladesh J. Sci. Ind. Res.53(1), 7-12, 2018

not availableJahangirnagar University J. Biol. Sci. 5(2): 57-60, 2016 (December)

The microbial activity of ten selected Azospirillum isolates was measured in terms of the amount of CO2 evolved by the isolates after incubation for 5 days which ranged from 6.88 to19.25 mg. Nitrogen fixing efficiency all of the isolates was determined by microkjeldhal method and the nitrogen fixing efficiency ranged from 10.03 to 13.11 mg N/g substrate. The growth of Azospirillum isolates was significant affected by different physiological factors such as pH, temperature and salinity. Most of the isolates showed optimum growth at pH 6.8, temperature 37°C and in the absence of NaCl. Azospirillum has the potential to be used as a substitute and or supplement of N-fertilizers. Further research is needed to estimate N-supplement potentials of biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) systems at the farm level.Jahangirnagar University J. Biol. Sci. 3(1): 47-53, 2014 (June)

Uterine artery pseudoaneurysm (UAP) occurs rarely and can develop after various gynecologic or obstetric procedures. The delayed diagnosis of this disease often results in life-threatening hemorrhage. Here is described a case of UAP after cesarean section. The patient visited gynecology outpatient department of AHD 60 days after cesarean section done outside AHD because of abnormal per vaginal bleeding. After her cesarean section she had undergone laparotomy outside AHD for post partum haemorrhage but those papers were not available. From there she was sent to our radiology department for color Doppler TVS examination and here she was diagnosed as a case of UAP using color Doppler ultrasonography. The most frequent cause of UAP is cesarean section, which accounted for 47.4% of all cases. Previous studies show that the definitive diagnosis was made at angiography (41.2%), computed tomography (29.4%), or color doppler ultrasonography (29.4%). Almost all cases (94.1%) were conservatively treated with transcatheter uterine artery embolization. Consideration of UAP in the differential diagnosis is crucial for proper treatment before rupture and to preserve fertility.Pulse Vol.7 January-December 2014 p.56-60

High dose I-131 therapy is administered to thyroid cancer patients after thyroidectomy. In the treatment process when a radiopharmaceutical is administered to patients, they become a mobile source of radiation. After the treatment, contamination may arise from large amount of activity, which is excreted during the period of hospitalization. To reduce the rate of exposure it is essential to monitor workplace. This study determines the rate of radiation exposure in the room where the patient stays during the period of hospitalization as well as the adjacent rooms and surrounding areas. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/bjnm.v17i1.22491 Bangladesh J. Nuclear Med. 17(1): 50-54, January 2014

To determine the prevalence of refractive error (RE), presbyopia, spectacle coverage, and barriers to uptake optical services in Bangladesh.Rapid assessment of refractive error (RARE) study following the RARE protocol was conducted in a northern district (i.e., Sirajganj) of Bangladesh (January 2010-December 2012). People aged 15-49 years were selected, and eligible participants had habitual distance and near visual acuity (VA) measured and ocular examinations were performed in those with VA6/18. Those with phakic eyes with VA6/18, but improving to ≥6/18 with pinhole or optical correction, were considered as RE and people aged ≥35 years with binocular unaided near vision ofN8 were considered presbyopic.A total of 3,043 people were examined, of which 143 had RE (4.7%, 95% CI: 3.9-5.5). Among people aged ≥35 years (n = 1402), 869 had presbyopia (62.0, 95% CI: 59.4-64.5). Spectacle coverage for RE and presbyopia were 13.3% (95% CI 7.7-18.9) and 3.2% (95% CI 2.2-4.6), respectively. "Unaware of the problem" was the main reason for not utilizing any optical services among the people with RE (92.8%) and presbyopia (89.5%). Extrapolating the survey findings to the 2011 national census data, the magnitude of RE among people aged 15-49 years in Bangladesh is estimated to be 3,493,980 people (95% CI 2,899,260-4,088,700), of whom 3,029,280 people do not use any spectacles.The burden of RE and presbyopia is substantial in Bangladesh. Improving awareness and availability of refraction services is required to correct REs and presbyopia in Bangladesh.

Heavy metals to man through aquatic life occur with the consumption of affected fish which is detrimental to the human body, having toxic and carcinogenic effects. In Bangladesh, the practice of Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) culture has become popular due to its great demand to people. This study aimed at determining levels of Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, Ni in feed used for tilapia culture (N=18), in sediment (N=9) and water (N=9) of three culture pond of three different farms of Noakhali region in Bangladesh. Heavy metal concentration was detected by Atomic absorption spectroscopy. The average metal concentration in fishes of farm 1, farm 2 and farm 3 following trend Pb>Cr>Cu>Ni>Cd, Pb>Ni>Cr>Cu>Cd, and Pb>Ni>Cu>Cr>Cd, respectively. The level of selected heavy metals was below detection limit in a water sample. The order of heavy metal concentration in feed samples of each farm was decreased in the similar sequence of Cu>Cr>Ni>Pb>Cd. Heavy metal concentrations in the sediment of farm 1 was decreased in the order of Cu>Ni>Pb>Cr>Cd but metal concentrations in the sediment of farm 2 and farm 3 were decreased in the similar manner of Ni>Cu>Cr>Pb>Cd. The results show evidence of bioaccumulation of heavy metals in the fish with alarming levels that are higher than IAEA-407 limits, therefore, posing a potential risk for the consumer.

Zika virus (ZIKV) is an aedes mosquito borne pathogen belonging to the member of flaviviridae subgroup is the causative agent of an emerging disease called Zika fever, known as a benign infection usually presenting as influenza like illness with cutaneous rash. Due to recent epidemic outbreaks it is realized as a major health risk which need enhanced surveillance, but no attempt has been made to design an epitope based peptide vaccine against Zika virus. Viral envelope proteins are derived from host cell membrane proteins with some viral glycoproteins and are used to cover their protective protein capsid, help the viruses to enter host cells and help them to avoid the host immune response. In this study, amino acid sequence of ZIKV envelope glycoprotein was obtained from a protein database and examined with in silico approaches to determine the most immunogenic epitopes for B cell and T cell which could induce humoral as well as cell mediated immune response. Both the linear and conformational epitopes for B cell were predicted by immunoinformatics tools housed in IEDB resources. The peptide sequence DAHAKRQTVVVLGSQEGAV from position 121 and peptide sequence from 117-137 amino acids were predicted as most potential B cell linear and conformational epitopes respectively. Epitopes for CD4+ and CD8+ T cell were also predicted by using tools within IEDB resource and peptide sequence MMLELDPPF from position 250-258 amino acids was predicted as most immunogenic CD8+ T cell epitope with immune response evoking ability prediction score (I pMHC) of 0.09139 and conservancy of 52.17%. The innate immune response for ZIKV envelope glycoprotein was determined by interferon (IFN)-gamma effectuation and mimicking capacity by immunoinformatics and molecular docking study respectively. However, this is an introductory approach to design an epitope based peptide vaccine against Zika virus; we hope this model will be very much helpful in designing and predicting novel vaccine candidate.

This research paper has attempted to discover Effect of Customers' Satisfaction on the Development of Hospitality and Tourism Industry in Bangladesh with Special Reference to Hotel City Inn Limited, Khulna. This study has been conducted through sample survey of 150 customers (75 from room service and 75 from restaurant service) The study has used five broad satisfaction-specific factors named as reliability, responsiveness, assurance, empathy and tangible which have many sub factors. The most important satisfaction specific factor is tangible as it has got the highest mean value among five satisfaction specific factors. The regression model number one is showing that marital status, responsiveness, assurance and tangible have statistically significant effect on overall satisfaction level from restaurant services whereas for room service marital status, income, room booking system and responsiveness have statistically significant effect on the overall satisfaction. This research has also found that there is no statistically significant effect of overall customer' satisfaction from restaurant service on the development of hospitality and tourism industry in Bangladesh but there is statistically significant effect of overall customer' satisfaction from room service on the development of hospitality and tourism industry in Bangladesh.

This study is conducted to identify the factors that motivate the customers to select commercial banks for their valuable transactions. Necessary data are collected from 206 respondents. It is found that easy account opening is the most important variable as it has the highest mean value 4.25. From varimax rotation matrix it is observed that responsiveness is the most important factor to customers which includes friendliness, personality, counseling and foreign exchange service. Special services such as loan and deposit schemes, electronic fund transfer service, cash management service, merchant banking, supporting the customer in bad time have also been found as important. Convenience, assurance, reliability and safety factors are also of considerable importance to customers to choose a bank. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/jbt.v7i2.16452 Journal of Business and Technology Vol.7(2) 2012: 19-35

The study focused on birth complication and early medical illness as detrimental developmental factors having adverse impact on children and adolescents’ cognitive abilities and academic attainment. To assess cognitive abilities Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children - Fourth edition (WISC-IV) was administered on 44 (26 boys, 18 girls) students of primary and secondary level schools of Dhaka city. The performance of last two consecutive school examinations was taken as a measure of academic attainment. The results revealed that higher percentages of students who had serious medical illness during early childhood demonstrated poor academic attainment. It has also revealed significant difference in students’ working memory as well as verbal working memory in terms of academic achievements and serious medical illness during childhood. The results of this study have implications for early screening of children with developmental risk factors for early identification of possible poor cognitive abilities and poor academic attainment. Dhaka Univ. J. Biol. Sci. 22(2): 109-117, 2013 (July)

Hong Kong's built environment is characterized by compact urban form with vertical distribution of land uses. The large mixed-use urban complexes, accessed through multilevel spatial structure, have various types of movement spaces like square, atrium, podium, footbridges, etc. This variety of spatial expression induces a varied pattern of movement that in turn has implications for the extreme high-density urban living. Using visibility graph analysis, this study investigates the effect of visual dimensions on the patterns of multilevel pedestrian movement. Owing to the prominence of local urban design parameters such as the mass transit railway, level variation, and vertical transitional spaces, this study develops an integrated model that includes the visibility variables and variables to take into account the effects of these key urban design parameters in a single statistical model. Findings of the study reveal that the visibility properties seem to have significant effects on the patterns of multilevel movement. The study outcome suggests that notwithstanding the strong influence of the local urban design parameters, the visual dimension of the multilevel space system may prove to be an important parameter for the description of pedestrian movement in other highly complex but comparable built environments.

To identify reasons for the non-uptake of referral for children with disability identified though the Key Informant Method in Bangladesh.Core data was collected and analysed using qualitative methodologies. Fifty-one semi-structured interviews were completed with parent(s) of children who had attended a screening camp at the invitation of a Key Informant, but had not taken up their subsequent referral for health or rehabilitative services. Thematic analysis of the interview data resulted in emerging trends that were critically analysed according to the research objective.Seven thematic reasons for non-uptake of referral were identified: severity of the disability; family and community; direct and associated cost; location of referral; negative camp experience; deliberate non-uptake; and procedural problems. Parents often discussed multiple reasons for non-uptake, interrelating socio-cultural, logistical and experiential factors.Understanding the reasons for the parents of children with disability not taking up referral is important for the design and implementation of appropriate, relevant and contextual medical and rehabilitative services. The role of Key Informants may be developed from case detection, to include facilitation of effective and efficient uptake of services.Programmes to identify children with disability and facilitate subsequent rehabilitation or treatment need to have extensive pre-planned strategies for referral mechanisms and follow up. Although Key Informants were not the focus of investigation, the present study suggests that there is potential for the role of the Key Informants to be extended beyond that of a case detection, to inform and facilitate referral processes and encourage the uptake of services.