This study aims to use claystone beds exposed in the Injana Formation (Late Miocene) at Karbala-Najaf plateau, middle of Iraq for the manufacturing of perforated and ordinary bricks. The claystone samples were assessed as an alternative material of the recent sediments, which are preferred to remain as agricultural land. The claystones are sandy mud composing of 29.1 - 39.1% clay, 37.2 - 54.8% silt and 14.1-26.8% sand. They consist of kaolinite, illite, chlorite, palygorskite, and montmorillonite with a lot of quartz, calcite, dolomite, gypsum and feldspar. Claystone samples were characterized by linear shrinkage 0.01 - 0.1%, volume shrinkage 0.1 - 0.9%, bulk density 1.2 - 2.11gm/cm3 (1.68 g / cm3 average), and the efflorescence is

The finite element method has been used in this paper to investigate the behavior of precast reinforced concrete dapped-ends beams (DEBs) numerically. A parametric investigation was performed on an experimental specimen tested by a previous researcher to show the effect of numerous parameters on the strength and behavior of RC dapped-end beams. Reinforcement details and steel arrangement, the influence of concrete compressive strength, the effect of inclined load, and the effect of support settlement on the strength of dapped-ends beams are examples of such parameters. The results revealed that the dapped-end reinforcement arrangement greatly affects the behavior of dapped end beam. The failure load decreases by 25% when

Transforming the common normal distribution through the generated Kummer Beta model to the Kummer Beta Generalized Normal Distribution (KBGND) had been achieved. Then, estimating the distribution parameters and hazard function using the MLE method, and improving these estimations by employing the genetic algorithm. Simulation is used by assuming a number of models and different sample sizes. The main finding was that the common maximum likelihood (MLE) method is the best in estimating the parameters of the Kummer Beta Generalized Normal Distribution (KBGND) compared to the common maximum likelihood according to Mean Squares Error (MSE) and Mean squares Error Integral (IMSE) criteria in estimating the hazard function. While the pr

Health service institutions suffer from challenges resulting from the great changes that our world is witnessing today.  This has affected the value that these institutions add to the patient.

This research aims to identify the effect of integrating each of the techniques of QFD and value engineering for the health services provided to the patient to improve the value for him and thus obtain his satisfaction, which is reflected in the reputation of the surveyed hospitals. To achieve this, the descriptive analytical method was used, and a questionnaire was designed to collect the necessary data, which represents a measure of this research. The questionnaire was distri

Simple and sensitive kinetic methods are developed for the determination of Paracetamol in pure form and in pharmaceutical preparations. The methods are based on direct reaction (oxidative-coupling reaction) of Paracetamol with o-cresol in the presence of sodium periodate in alkaline medium, to form an intense blue-water-soluble dye that is stable at room temperature, and was followed spectrophotometriclly at λmax= 612 nm. The reaction was studied kinetically by Initial rate and fixed time (at 25 minutes) methods, and the optimization of conditions were fixed. The calibration graphs for drug determination were linear in the concentration ranges (1-7 μg.ml-1) for the initial rate and (1-10 μg.ml-1) for the fixed time methods at 25 min.

Foreign trade receives a good deal of economists' attention for its active contribution to economic growth, and imports of goods and services that could not be produced locally constitute an important share of the local economy.  Agricultural imports constitute an important share of the total imports due to their role in fulfilling the needs of local markets; however, the agricultural sector in Iraq contributes no more than a limited share of the country's need, which has encouraged the import of a variety of fruits, vegetables and strategic crops and different types of red and white meat. For the sake of identifying the factors affecting the demand on agricultural imports in Iraq, the following factors has been analyzed: th

This study investigates the influence of fear, refuge, and migration in a predator–prey model, where the interactions between the species follow an asymmetric function response. In contrast to some other findings, we propose that prey develop an anti-predator response in response to a concentration of predators, which in turn increases the fear factor of the predators. The conditions under which all ecologically meaningful equilibrium points exist are discussed in detail. The local and global dynamics of the model are determined at all equilibrium points. The model admits several interesting results by changing the rate of fear of predators and predator aggregate sensitivity. Numerical simulations have been performed to verify our theoret

Human resources have been regarded as the most important asset for any organization because of its essential part in achieving the sustainable competitive advantage and survival. Managing human resources is very challenging and requires an effective bundle of practices that contribute to attaining the organizational goals. This study tries to confirm the importance of HRM practices in small businesses which came to play a vital role in the economies of the world, through clarifying the influence of HRM practices on the organizational performance, using a mediating variable (employees’ outcomes). Also the study attempts to highlight the key role of governmental support from view point of small businesses, through verifying the significant