Reconstruction in Iraq requires coherent legitimate frameworks that are able to detail obligations, rights and responsibilities of the parties participating in reconstruction projects, regardless their type or delivery system.
Conditions of Contract can be considered an important component of these frameworks. This paper investigates flexibility and appropriateness of the application of Iraqi conditions of contract in reconstruction projects. These conditions were compared to FIDIC Conditions. The objective wasn't comparing individual clauses, but rather exploring the principles and philosophy laying behind each conditions, and to what extent each conditions care about realizing equity between main contract parties. Validity of application on various project delivery systems was also investigated. The structure of Iraqi and FIDIC conditions were compared to determine how the efficiency of use will be effected by the layout, presentation, organization, and detailing of the contents of each conditions. Moreover, some clauses related to the project parties were compared in order to further illustrate the disparity in efficiency of each conditions. The paper concludes that Iraqi conditions of contract in its current state was, and will continue, hindering the reconstruction efforts in Iraq, as well as being a cause of money waste and bad quality of project outputs.
Understanding, promoting, and teaching media literacy is an important societal challenge. STEM educators are increasingly looking to incorporate 21st century skills such as media literacy into core subject education. In this paper we investigate how undergraduate Computer Science (CS) students can learn media literacy as a by-product of collaborative video tutorial production. The paper presents a study of 34 third-year CS undergraduates who, as part of their learning, were each asked to produce three video tutorials on Raspberry Pi programming, using a collaborative video production tool for mobile phones (Bootlegger). We provide results of both quantitative and qualitative analysis of the production process and resulting video tutorials,
... Show MoreImage classification is the process of finding common features in images from various classes and applying them to categorize and label them. The main problem of the image classification process is the abundance of images, the high complexity of the data, and the shortage of labeled data, presenting the key obstacles in image classification. The cornerstone of image classification is evaluating the convolutional features retrieved from deep learning models and training them with machine learning classifiers. This study proposes a new approach of “hybrid learning” by combining deep learning with machine learning for image classification based on convolutional feature extraction using the VGG-16 deep learning model and seven class
... Show MoreTwo dimensional meso-scale concrete modeling was used in finite element analysis of plain concrete beam subjected to bending. The plane stress 4-noded quadrilateral elements were utilized to model coarse aggregate, cement mortar. The effect of aggregate fraction distribution, and pores percent of the total area – resulting from air voids entrapped in concrete during placement on the behavior of plain concrete beam in flexural was detected. Aggregate size fractions were randomly distributed across the profile area of the beam. Extended Finite Element Method (XFEM) was employed to treat the discontinuities problems result from double phases of concrete and cracking that faced during the finite element analysis of concrete beam. Crac
... Show MoreThis paper presents an improved technique on Ant Colony Optimization (ACO) algorithm. The procedure is applied on Single Machine with Infinite Bus (SMIB) system with power system stabilizer (PSS) at three different loading regimes. The simulations are made by using MATLAB software. The results show that by using Improved Ant Colony Optimization (IACO) the system will give better performance with less number of iterations as it compared with a previous modification on ACO. In addition, the probability of selecting the arc depends on the best ant performance and the evaporation rate.
Molecular barcoding was widely recognized as a powerful tool for the identification of organisms during the past decade; the aim of this study is to use the molecular approach to identify the diatoms by using the environmental DNA. The diatom specimens were taken from Tigris River. The environmental DNA(e DNA) extraction and analysis of sequences using the Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) method showed the highest percentage of epipelic diatom genera including Achnanthidium minutissimum (Kützing) Czarnecki, 1994 (21.1%), Cocconeis placentula Ehrenberg, 1838 (21.3%) and Nitzschia palea (Kützing) W. Smith, 1856 (16.3%).
Five species of diatoms: Achnanthidiu
... Show MoreThe performance of composite prestressed concrete beam topped with reinforced concrete flange structures in fire depends upon several factors, including the change in properties of the two different materials due to fire exposure and temperature distribution within the composition of the composite members of the structure. The present experimental work included casting of 12 identical simply supported prestressed concrete beams grouped into 3 categories, depending on the strength of the top reinforced concrete deck slab (20, 30, and 40 MPa). They were connected together by using shear connector reinforcements. To simulate the real practical fire disasters, 3 composite prestressed concrete beams from each group were exposed to high t
... Show MoreBetween decline and appearing dichotomy, art history comes to announce birth of an era that glories past and find new names that are emerged from yearning to past and represented by neo-classical, By refusing the previous approaches and create topics that touché culture and derived from it through s revitalizing ideal beauty standards. One of neo-classical artists, who tried to simulate the classical works, is (Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres), who put framework for semantic aesthetic of the art form by revitalizing past glories and deeply searching myths and cultures through finding special artistic features that emphasizes artist own stylistics and identity. This research studies artistic features of women form in (Jean-Auguste-D
Removal of heavy metal ions such as, cadmium ion (Cd 2+) and lead ion (Pb 2+) from aqueous solution onto Eichhornia (water hyacinth) activated carbon (EAC) by physiochemical activation with potassium hydroxide (KOH) and carbon dioxide (CO2) as the activating agents were investigated. The Eichhornia activated carbon was characterized by Brunauer Emmett Teller (BET), Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) techniques. Whereas, the effect of adsorbent dosage, contact time of pH, and metal ion concentration on the adsorption process have been investigated using the batch process t
Peripheral artery disease (PAD) is associated with increased oxidative stress and impaired endothelial function. Ticagrelor treatment improves antioxidant properties in addition to its antiplatelet effects. This study investigated the impact of Ticagrelor treatment on serum superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels and other biochemical parameters in PAD patients. It also evaluated the potential diagnostic accuracy and clinical utility of specific biomarkers based on receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. Seventy individuals were categorized into healthy control (n=40), baseline PAD patients not on Ticagrelor (B-PAD, n=30), and same PAD patients after treated with Ticagrelor (A-PAD, n=30). Parameters measured included SOD concent
... Show MoreSeepage occurs under or inside structures or in the place, where they come into contact with the sides under the influence of pressure caused by the difference in water level in the structure U / S and D / S. This paper is designed to model seepage analysis for Kongele (an earth dam) due to its importance in providing water for agricultural projects and supporting Tourism sector. For this purpose, analysis was carried out to study seepage through the dam under various conditions. Using the finite element method by computer program (Geo-Studio) the dam was analysed in its actual design using the SEEP / W 2018 program. Several analyses were performed to study the seepage across Kongele