Land use change, particularly the expansion of urban areas and associated human activities at the expense of natural and semi-natural areas, is a major ecological issue in urban areas around the world. Climate change being a very strong additional driver for changing the temperature and habitat in the cities. This also applies to Baghdad, Iraq, where urbanisation and climate change exerts a major pressure on the natural habitats of the city, and thus may affect the ability of city planners to adapt to future climate change scenarios. Here we present evidence of substantial growth in urban areas, increases in temperature, and degradation of natural vegetation within Baghdad city by using Remote Sensing techniques and an assessment for the Jadriyah and Umm Al-Khanazeer site (JUKI). These changes were associated with loss of bird species richness within the area, which was previously the only Important Bird Area (IBA) within the city. A standardised scoring system (following Birdlife International global framework) was used to assess Pressure-State-Response: JUKI site scored 3-5 for pressure (Medium), two for the state (Moderate), and two for the response (Low). Despite the degradation highlighted in Baghdad city, the JUKI site still has 88% intact habitat to support bird trigger species. We conclude that the site urgently needs a detailed management plan to ensure the protection of its habitats and avian fauna, and that the area should be declared as a protected area according to the “IUCN Category IV: Habitat/Species Management Area; to provide a means by which the urban residents may obtain regular contact with nature”, and re-designated JUKI as an IBA site. The study also identifies the most affected areas in the city of Baghdad, which should take the priority of the afforestation efforts and any future restoration campaigns.
The present paper deals with prepared of ternary Se80-xTe20Gex system alloys and thin films. The XRD analysis improved that the amorphous structure of alloys and thin films for ternary Se80-xTe20Gex (at x=10and 20at.%Ge) which prepared by thermal evaporation techniques with thickness 250 nm. The optical energy gap measurements show that the optical energy gap decreases with increasing of (Ge) content from (1.7 to 1.47 eV)
It is found that the optical constants, such as refractive
index ,extinction coefficient, real and imaginary dielectric
constant are non systematic with increasing of Ge contents
and annealing temperatures
In this work, porous Silicon structures are formed with photochemical etching process of n-type Silicon(111) wafers of resistivity (0.02.cm) in hydrofluoric acid (HF) of concentration (39%wt) under light source of tungeston halogen lamp of (100 Watt) power. Samples were anodized in a solution of 39%HF and ethanol at 1:1 for 15 minutes. The samples were realized on n-type Si substrates Porous Silicon layers of 100m thickness and 30% of porousity. Frequency dependence of conductivity for Al/PSi/Si/Al sandwich form was studied. A frequency range of 102-106Hz was used allowing an accurate determination of the impedance components. Their electronic transport parameters were determined using complex impedance measurements. These measu
... Show MoreGlass Fiber Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) bars have gained popularity as a corrosion-resistant alternative to traditional steel reinforcement in Reinforced Concrete (RC) elements. This study investigates the flexural behavior of PRC panels reinforced with GFRP bars. The study variables included the GFRP reinforcement ratio and the number of embedded steel section distributions. Six concrete panels were fabricated, each measuring 2500 mm in length, with a rectangular cross-section of 750 mm in width and 150 mm in thickness. All panels were reinforced with GFRP bars and divided into two groups based on the reinforcement ratios of 0.532% and 0.266%. For each group, one panel served as the control specimen, while the remaining two were inte
... Show MoreThe maximization of the net present value of the investment in oil field improvements is greatly aided by the optimization of well location, which plays a significant role in the production of oil. However, using of optimization methods in well placement developments is exceedingly difficult since the well placement optimization scenario involves a large number of choice variables, objective functions, and restrictions. In addition, a wide variety of computational approaches, both traditional and unconventional, have been applied in order to maximize the efficiency of well installation operations. This research demonstrates how optimization approaches used in well placement have progressed since the last time they were examined. Fol
... Show MoreBackground: Practicing self-medication is common and a worrisome issue because of irrational drug use. This study aimed to evaluate self-medication knowledge and views among the final year pharmacy students in Iraq. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted from December 2018 to January 2019. A pre-validated and self-administered questionnaire was recruited to survey pharmacy students at the University of Baghdad and Al-Rafedain University College. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 20 (SPSS v. 20) software used to save and analyze the data. Results expressed as numbers and percentages. Results: A total of 344 students (response rate: 94.24%) with a mean age of 22.10 years includ
... Show MoreThe Iraqi sports journalism has paid great attention to sports events through press coverage of all its forms and arts, especially the coverage of the World Cup of football which is one of the most watched events in the world. Thousands of journals are preparing for the immediate coverage of such event which is a daunting task in itself. Newspapers have devoted a wider space to this great event in its pages as well as the weakly sports newspapers work on issuing a daily special issue. The importance of this research sheds light on the coverage of major events such as World Cup in Iraqi newspapers. The topic is new
... Show MoreGeneral survey for wheat rust diseases in Iraqi fields was done during the seasons of 2010, 2011 and 2012. The survey covered different fields in southern, middle and northern regions. Results of the first season indicated that most of Iraqi cultivars such as Tmmoze2, IPA 99 and Mexipak showed different types of susceptibility to both yellow and leaf rust infection. Disease severity increased when the conditions were favorable for infections with using susceptible cultivars. The severity of leaf rust was less in the north region comparing with the middle and south regions. Most of the introduced cultivars such as Sham6 and Cimmyto showed susceptible reaction to yellow and leaf rust. Yellow rust was in epiphytotic form at the Iraqi-Syrian-Tu
... Show Morein this paper, we give a concept of
Aging of asphalt pavements typically occurs through oxidation of the asphalt and evaporation of the lighter maltenes from the binder. The main objective of this study is to evaluate influence of aging on performance of asphalt paving materials.nAsphalt concrete mixtures, were prepared, and subjected to short term aging (STA) procedure which involved heating the loose mixtures in an oven for two aging period of (4 and 8) hours at a temperature of 135 o C. Then it was subject to Long term aging (LTA) procedure using (2 and 5) days aging periods at 85 o C for Marshall compacted specimens. The effect of aging periods on properties of asphalt concrete at optimum asphalt content such as Marshall Properties, indirect tensile strength at 25 o C,
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