Construction projects are complicated in nature and require many considerations in contractor selection. One of the complicated interactions is that between performance with the project size, and contractor financial status, and size of projects contracted. At the prequalification stage, the financial requirements restrict the contractors to meet minimum limits in financial criteria such as net worth, working capital and annual turnover, etc. In construction projects, however, there are cases when contractors meet these requirements but show low performance in practice. The model used in the study predicts the performance by training of a neural network. The data used in the study are 72 of the most recent roadwork projects in Bahrain. The results are shown in terms of the sensitivity of changing one variable on the performance of all the 72 projects. These results can reflect on the methods currently used on contractors’ assessments in the tendering stage and support decision-makers in assessing contractors and selecting the best bidders.
Lipase enzyme has attracted a lot of attention in recent years because of its diverse biotechnological applications. The present study was conducted to screen germinated seeds of four crops, namely sunflower (Helianthus annuus), flaxor linseed (Linum usitatissimum ), peanut (Arachis hypogaea ) and castor bean (Ricinus communis), for the activity of their lipases. to the study also included the extraction and purification of lipase from the seeds of the most promising crop using different solvents. The results indicated that the maximum enzymatic activity (0.669 U/ml) was obtained when 0.1 M Tris-HCl buffer extract was used after 3 days of seed germination of all the tested species, as compared to the other test solvents
... Show MoreObjective(s):To evaluate the quality of life among secondary and to find out the relationship between students'quality of life and their socio-demographic characteristics of age, gender, residence, marital status, father's and mother's education, and family financial status in Kirkuk City. Methodology: A cross-sectional study is conducted on (100) studentwho are boys and girls aged(13 to 24) years old. These subjects are studying at secondary schools in Kirkuk City.The study is carried out at secondary schools in Kirkuk City from 7th July 7th 2014 to May 7th 2015. A questionnaire is constructed for the purpose
Background: Atrophic postoperative and traumatic scarring are common cosmetic problems for patients. Combining CO2 laser ablation with a fractional photothermolysis system in a treatment known as ablative fractional resurfacing fulfilling the new demands for a lesser risk of side effects and minimal or no downtime.Objective: To assess the safety and efficacy of ablation fractional CO2 laser treatments for surgical scarring .methods: Twenty one patient ( 14 women, and 7 men ) with various skin types , I to IV , aged 3 to 48 years , presents with 24 scars between June and December 2012 , four patients excluded from study because they are not continued in follow up , the remaining 17 patient completed all 3 treatments & 6 months follow
... Show MoreThis work deals with determination of optimum conditions of direct diffusion bonding welding of austenitic stainlesssteel type AISI 304L with Oxygen Free High Conductivity (OFHC) pure copper grade (C10200) in vacuum atmosphere of (1.5 *10-5 mbr.). Mini tab (response surface) was applied for optimizing the influence of diffusion bonding parameters (temperature, time and applied load) on the bonding joints characteristics and the empirical relationship was evaluated which represents the effect of each parameter of the process. The yield strength of diffusion bonded joint was equal to 153 MPa and the efficiency of joint was equal to 66.5% as compared with hard drawn copper. The diffusion zone reveals high microhardness than coppe
... Show MoreThe Pulse Coupled Oscillator (PCO) has attracted substantial attention and widely used in wireless sensor networks (WSNs), where it utilizes firefly synchronization to attract mating partners, similar to artificial occurrences that mimic natural phenomena. However, the PCO model might not be applicable for simultaneous transmission and data reception because of energy constraints. Thus, an energy-efficient pulse coupled oscillator (EEPCO) has been proposed, which employs the self-organizing method by combining biologically and non-biologically inspired network systems and has proven to reduce the transmission delay and energy consumption of sensor nodes. However, the EEPCO method has only been experimented in attack-free networks without
... Show MoreThree Schiff bases from Benzaldehyde and Salicylaldehyde have been synthesized (A, 1and 2) and two of them (1and 2) have been tested for anti-inflammatory activity. The p-aminobenzene sulfonamide has been synthesized from acetanilide through the addition of excess chlorosulfonic acid then concentrated ammonia solution; Schiff base of this derivative (2) exhibited good level of activity against egg-white induced edema in rat hind paw, while the other tested derivative exhibited no activity.
Key words: Schiff bases, sulfonamide derivatives, salicylaldehyde
Aims: To assess the success rate and implant stability changes of narrow dental implants (NDIs) during the osseous healing period. Materials and methods: This prospective observational clinical study included 21 patients with narrow alveolar ridge of restricted mesiodistal interdental span who received NDIs. The alveolar ridge width was determined by the ridge mapping technique. Implant stability was measured using Periotest® M immediately after implant insertion then after 4 weeks, 8 weeks and 12 weeks postoperatively. The outcome variables were success rate and implant stability changes during the healing period. The statistical analysis included one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey\'s multiple comparisons test, values < 0.05 w
... Show MoreReverse shoulder arthroplasty is an increasingly common surgical intervention. However there are concerns and known limitations in relation to such joint replacement, while novel designs of reverse shoulder prostheses continue to appear on the market. Many claim to offer improvements over older designs but such assertions are difficult to validate when there is no consensus as to how such implants should be tested in vitro or even if such testing is necessary. In order to permit appropriate in vitro testing of reverse shoulder prostheses a unique, multi-station test rig was designed which was capable of applying motion in three axes to test prostheses. The shoulder simulator can apply up to 110° of motion in the flexion–extension and abd
... Show MoreThis study evaluates 22 patients with retained foreign bodies in the maxillofacial region that were all caused by penetrating missile injuries. Surgical intervention for the retrieval of the foreign bodies was carried out in 20 patients through the existing wounds and through separate incisions; all patients were followed up for a minimum of 2 months during which all the complications were registered and managed. Preoperative imaging is a prerequisite for the accurate localization of the foreign body and the subsequent successful removal of it. All patients developed complications that were categorized in this study into those that result from the injury itself and those that occur because of the retrieval procedure, the latter category bei
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