Pub Date : 2021-10-20DOI: 10.29117/quarfe.2021.0166
Mustafa Almallah, Shabna Sayed Mohammed, Q. Hussain, Wael K. M. Alhajyaseen
The illegal overtaking/crossing of stopped school buses has been identified as one of the leading causes of students’ injuries and fatalities. The likelihood of students in getting involved in a school bus-related crash increases during loading/unloading. The main objective of this driving simulator study was to study the effectiveness of different treatments in improving students’ safety by reducing the illegal overtaking/crossing of stopped school buses. Treatments used in this research are LED, Road Narrowing and Red Pavement. All proposed treatments were compared with the control condition (i.e., typical condition in the State of Qatar). Seventy-two subjects with valid Qatari driving license were invited to participate in this study. Each subject was exposed to three situations (i.e., Situation 1: the school bus is stopped in the same traveling direction, Situation 2: the school bus is stopped in the opposite traveling direction, Situation 3: the school bus is not present at the bus stop). Results showed that LED and Road Narrowing treatments were effective in reducing the illegal overtaking/crossing of stopped school buses. Moreover, the stopping behavior for drivers in LED and Road Narrowing was more consistent compared to the Red Pavement and control conditions. Finally, LED and Road Narrowing treatments motivated drivers to reduce their traveling speed by 5.16 km/h and 5.11 km/h, respectively, even with the absence of the school bus. Taking into account the results from this study, we recommend the proposed LED and Road Narrowing as potentially effective treatments to improve students’ safety at school bus stop locations.
{"title":"Investigating the impact of Innovative Treatments on Driving Behavior at School Bus Stops: A Driving Simulator Study","authors":"Mustafa Almallah, Shabna Sayed Mohammed, Q. Hussain, Wael K. M. Alhajyaseen","doi":"10.29117/quarfe.2021.0166","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29117/quarfe.2021.0166","url":null,"abstract":"The illegal overtaking/crossing of stopped school buses has been identified as one of the leading causes of students’ injuries and fatalities. The likelihood of students in getting involved in a school bus-related crash increases during loading/unloading. The main objective of this driving simulator study was to study the effectiveness of different treatments in improving students’ safety by reducing the illegal overtaking/crossing of stopped school buses. Treatments used in this research are LED, Road Narrowing and Red Pavement. All proposed treatments were compared with the control condition (i.e., typical condition in the State of Qatar). Seventy-two subjects with valid Qatari driving license were invited to participate in this study. Each subject was exposed to three situations (i.e., Situation 1: the school bus is stopped in the same traveling direction, Situation 2: the school bus is stopped in the opposite traveling direction, Situation 3: the school bus is not present at the bus stop). Results showed that LED and Road Narrowing treatments were effective in reducing the illegal overtaking/crossing of stopped school buses. Moreover, the stopping behavior for drivers in LED and Road Narrowing was more consistent compared to the Red Pavement and control conditions. Finally, LED and Road Narrowing treatments motivated drivers to reduce their traveling speed by 5.16 km/h and 5.11 km/h, respectively, even with the absence of the school bus. Taking into account the results from this study, we recommend the proposed LED and Road Narrowing as potentially effective treatments to improve students’ safety at school bus stop locations.","PeriodicalId":9295,"journal":{"name":"Building Resilience at Universities: Role of Innovation and Entrepreneurship","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-10-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"85305314","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-10-20DOI: 10.29117/quarfe.2021.0198
A. AlKhereibi, A. Abuzaid, T. Wakjira
This paper presents a novel study on the examination of explainable machine learning (ML) technique to predict the mode choice for communities with a majority of blue-collared workers. A total of 4875 trip records for 1050 blue-collared workers have been used to predict their travel mode choices based on 11 trips and socio-economic attributes. The data used in this paper are obtained from the Ministry of Transportation and Communication (MoTC), which targeted blue-collared workers as they represent 89% of the total population in the State of Qatar. A total of four ML models are evaluated to propose the best predictive model. The four models were examined using different performance metrics. The models’ prediction results showed that the random forest (RF) model had the highest accuracy with a predictive accuracy of 0.97. Moreover, SHapley Additive exPlanation (SHAP) approach is used to investigate the significance of the input features and explain the output of the RF model. The results of SHAP analysis revealed that occupation level is the most significant feature that influences the mode choice followed by occupation section, arrival time, and arrival municipality.
{"title":"Blue-collared Workers’ Travel Behavior Modeling using “exPlainable” Machine Learning Model: The Case of Qatar","authors":"A. AlKhereibi, A. Abuzaid, T. Wakjira","doi":"10.29117/quarfe.2021.0198","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29117/quarfe.2021.0198","url":null,"abstract":"This paper presents a novel study on the examination of explainable machine learning (ML) technique to predict the mode choice for communities with a majority of blue-collared workers. A total of 4875 trip records for 1050 blue-collared workers have been used to predict their travel mode choices based on 11 trips and socio-economic attributes. The data used in this paper are obtained from the Ministry of Transportation and Communication (MoTC), which targeted blue-collared workers as they represent 89% of the total population in the State of Qatar. A total of four ML models are evaluated to propose the best predictive model. The four models were examined using different performance metrics. The models’ prediction results showed that the random forest (RF) model had the highest accuracy with a predictive accuracy of 0.97. Moreover, SHapley Additive exPlanation (SHAP) approach is used to investigate the significance of the input features and explain the output of the RF model. The results of SHAP analysis revealed that occupation level is the most significant feature that influences the mode choice followed by occupation section, arrival time, and arrival municipality.","PeriodicalId":9295,"journal":{"name":"Building Resilience at Universities: Role of Innovation and Entrepreneurship","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-10-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"85368324","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-10-20DOI: 10.29117/quarfe.2021.0042
C. Arro, Mohammad I. Ahmad, N. Bensalah
Solid polymer electrolytes provide an alternative approach to providing improved safety whilst concurrently acting as a performance enhanced separator within Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). This investigation studies the effects of Lithium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide (LiTFSI) salts in a polymer blend with Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) and Poly (vinylpyrrolidone) (PvP) or Poly (4-vinylpyridine) (P4VP) on the performance of SPE membranes. Characterization by X-ray diffraction and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy highlights the changes due to LiTFSI, specifically amorphization. Performance studies with increasing LiTFSI showed improved thermal stability and the inhibition of PVDF endotherms on differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) profiles. The drawbacks of increased LiTFSI content were evident on the mechanical performance with decreased thresholds on the tensile strength. Inversely, improvements on the dielectric performance and conductivity were observed with excellent workability from a wide electrochemical stability window of 0.5 to 3.64 V vs. Li+/Li. Additionally, the incorporation of metal-fillers; Aluminum Oxide, Zirconia Oxide and Silicon Oxide was similarly studied.
{"title":"Investigation on the effect of LiTFSI salt on PVDF-based Solid Polymer Electrolyte Membranes for Lithium-Ion Batteries","authors":"C. Arro, Mohammad I. Ahmad, N. Bensalah","doi":"10.29117/quarfe.2021.0042","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29117/quarfe.2021.0042","url":null,"abstract":"Solid polymer electrolytes provide an alternative approach to providing improved safety whilst concurrently acting as a performance enhanced separator within Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). This investigation studies the effects of Lithium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide (LiTFSI) salts in a polymer blend with Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) and Poly (vinylpyrrolidone) (PvP) or Poly (4-vinylpyridine) (P4VP) on the performance of SPE membranes. Characterization by X-ray diffraction and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy highlights the changes due to LiTFSI, specifically amorphization. Performance studies with increasing LiTFSI showed improved thermal stability and the inhibition of PVDF endotherms on differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) profiles. The drawbacks of increased LiTFSI content were evident on the mechanical performance with decreased thresholds on the tensile strength. Inversely, improvements on the dielectric performance and conductivity were observed with excellent workability from a wide electrochemical stability window of 0.5 to 3.64 V vs. Li+/Li. Additionally, the incorporation of metal-fillers; Aluminum Oxide, Zirconia Oxide and Silicon Oxide was similarly studied.","PeriodicalId":9295,"journal":{"name":"Building Resilience at Universities: Role of Innovation and Entrepreneurship","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-10-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"75333179","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-10-20DOI: 10.29117/quarfe.2021.0064
Suraj Adewale Bello
This study is aimed at evaluating exposure to bisphenol A in drinkable water. Much studies have not been conducted on Bisphenol A in the drinkable water globally, in Arabian Gulf and particularly in Qatar. This assessment studies the probable risks associated with exposure of children as well as adults to bisphenol A in drinkable water around Doha. The risk assessment was conducted based on the water analyses collected over the two seasons (winter and summer) as well as most recent bisphenol A toxicity data published by the Environmental Protection Agency, USA (US EPA). It was found that the concentration levels of bisphenol A (0.0002205mg/kg b.w./day, 0.0001515mg/kg b.w./day) in both seasons fell below acceptable levels (0.05mg/kg b.w./day). Statistical analysis established that there is no variation in the concentration levels during summer and winter. The calculated health risk assessment measured in terms of hazard quotient or hazard ratio and hazard index were less than one (summer 6.18E-02 < 1, winter 14.24E-02 < 1). Hence, non-carcinogenic health risk was found to be within the safety limit for bisphenol.
{"title":"A Case Study of Qatar: Health Risk Assessment associated with Bisphenol A","authors":"Suraj Adewale Bello","doi":"10.29117/quarfe.2021.0064","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29117/quarfe.2021.0064","url":null,"abstract":"This study is aimed at evaluating exposure to bisphenol A in drinkable water. Much studies have not been conducted on Bisphenol A in the drinkable water globally, in Arabian Gulf and particularly in Qatar. This assessment studies the probable risks associated with exposure of children as well as adults to bisphenol A in drinkable water around Doha. The risk assessment was conducted based on the water analyses collected over the two seasons (winter and summer) as well as most recent bisphenol A toxicity data published by the Environmental Protection Agency, USA (US EPA). It was found that the concentration levels of bisphenol A (0.0002205mg/kg b.w./day, 0.0001515mg/kg b.w./day) in both seasons fell below acceptable levels (0.05mg/kg b.w./day). Statistical analysis established that there is no variation in the concentration levels during summer and winter. The calculated health risk assessment measured in terms of hazard quotient or hazard ratio and hazard index were less than one (summer 6.18E-02 < 1, winter 14.24E-02 < 1). Hence, non-carcinogenic health risk was found to be within the safety limit for bisphenol.","PeriodicalId":9295,"journal":{"name":"Building Resilience at Universities: Role of Innovation and Entrepreneurship","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-10-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"84447703","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-10-20DOI: 10.29117/quarfe.2021.0113
Israa Elbashir, Aisha Aisha Nasser J M Al-Saei, P. Thornalley, N. Rabbani
Background and aims: In 2020 a global pandemic was declared caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). The pandemic is still ongoing and continues to cause considerable mortality and morbidity world-wide and new variants of the virus are emerging. Rapid development and rollout of vaccines for SARS-CoV-2 is in progress to counter the pandemic but has been tempered by the emergence of new SARS-CoV-2 variants, many of which exhibit reduced vaccine effectiveness. To date there is no approved antiviral treatment for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Several studies have shown that Manuka honey has virucidal/antiviral effect. Methylglyoxal (MG), a bioactive component in Manuka honey, has antiviral activity in vitro. MG may modify arginine residues in the functional domains of viral spike and nucleocapsid proteins, resulting in loss of charge, protein misfolding and inactivation. The aim of this study was to characterize the antiviral activity of Manuka honey against SARS-CoV-2 in vitro Materials and methods: Wild-type SARS-CoV-2 with titers of multiplicities of infection (MOI) 0.1 and 0.05 were incubated with 2-fold serial dilutions of 250+ Manuka honey (equivalent to 250 to 31 µM) in infection medium (Dulbecco's Modified Eagle Medium + 2% fetal bovine serum + 100 units/ml penicillin + 100 µg/ml streptomycin) for 3 h. Manuka honey treated and untreated control SARS-CoV-2 was incubated with confluent cultures of Vero cells in vitro for 1 h, cultures washed with phosphate-buffered saline and incubated in fresh infection medium at 37°C for 4 - 5 days until 70% of virus control cells displayed cytopathic effect. We also studied the effect of scavenging MG in Manuka Honey with aminoguanidine (AG; 500 µM) on virucidal activity. The antiviral activity of MG was judged by median tissue culture infectious dose (TCID50) assays. Data analysis was by logistic regression. TCID50 (mean ± SD) was deduced by interpolation. Results: Diluted Manuka honey inhibited SARS-CoV-2 replication in Vero cells. SARS-CoV-2 was incubated in diluted Manuka honey in medium at 37°C for 3 h before adding to Vero cells. Manuka honey dilutions down to 125 µM MG equivalents completely inhibited cytopathic effect of SARS-CoV-2 whereas 31.25 µM and 62.5 µM MG equivalents had limited effect. Logistic regression and interpolation of the cytopathic effect indicated that the TCID50 = 72 ± 2 µM MG equivalents for MOI of 0.1. Prior scavenging of MG by addition of AG resulted in virus replication levels equivalent to those seen in the virus control without AG. Conclusion: Manuka honey has antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2 when incubated with the virus in cell-free media at no greater than ca. 40-fold dilutions of 250+ grade. Anti-viral activity was inhibited by AG, consistent with the anti-viral effect being mediated by MG. Manuka honey dilutions in MG equivalents had similar antiviral effect compared to authentic MG, also consistent with MG content of Manuka
{"title":"Evaluation of antiviral activity of Manuka honey against SARS-CoV-2.","authors":"Israa Elbashir, Aisha Aisha Nasser J M Al-Saei, P. Thornalley, N. Rabbani","doi":"10.29117/quarfe.2021.0113","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29117/quarfe.2021.0113","url":null,"abstract":"Background and aims: In 2020 a global pandemic was declared caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). The pandemic is still ongoing and continues to cause considerable mortality and morbidity world-wide and new variants of the virus are emerging. Rapid development and rollout of vaccines for SARS-CoV-2 is in progress to counter the pandemic but has been tempered by the emergence of new SARS-CoV-2 variants, many of which exhibit reduced vaccine effectiveness. To date there is no approved antiviral treatment for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Several studies have shown that Manuka honey has virucidal/antiviral effect. Methylglyoxal (MG), a bioactive component in Manuka honey, has antiviral activity in vitro. MG may modify arginine residues in the functional domains of viral spike and nucleocapsid proteins, resulting in loss of charge, protein misfolding and inactivation. The aim of this study was to characterize the antiviral activity of Manuka honey against SARS-CoV-2 in vitro Materials and methods: Wild-type SARS-CoV-2 with titers of multiplicities of infection (MOI) 0.1 and 0.05 were incubated with 2-fold serial dilutions of 250+ Manuka honey (equivalent to 250 to 31 µM) in infection medium (Dulbecco's Modified Eagle Medium + 2% fetal bovine serum + 100 units/ml penicillin + 100 µg/ml streptomycin) for 3 h. Manuka honey treated and untreated control SARS-CoV-2 was incubated with confluent cultures of Vero cells in vitro for 1 h, cultures washed with phosphate-buffered saline and incubated in fresh infection medium at 37°C for 4 - 5 days until 70% of virus control cells displayed cytopathic effect. We also studied the effect of scavenging MG in Manuka Honey with aminoguanidine (AG; 500 µM) on virucidal activity. The antiviral activity of MG was judged by median tissue culture infectious dose (TCID50) assays. Data analysis was by logistic regression. TCID50 (mean ± SD) was deduced by interpolation. Results: Diluted Manuka honey inhibited SARS-CoV-2 replication in Vero cells. SARS-CoV-2 was incubated in diluted Manuka honey in medium at 37°C for 3 h before adding to Vero cells. Manuka honey dilutions down to 125 µM MG equivalents completely inhibited cytopathic effect of SARS-CoV-2 whereas 31.25 µM and 62.5 µM MG equivalents had limited effect. Logistic regression and interpolation of the cytopathic effect indicated that the TCID50 = 72 ± 2 µM MG equivalents for MOI of 0.1. Prior scavenging of MG by addition of AG resulted in virus replication levels equivalent to those seen in the virus control without AG. Conclusion: Manuka honey has antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2 when incubated with the virus in cell-free media at no greater than ca. 40-fold dilutions of 250+ grade. Anti-viral activity was inhibited by AG, consistent with the anti-viral effect being mediated by MG. Manuka honey dilutions in MG equivalents had similar antiviral effect compared to authentic MG, also consistent with MG content of Manuka ","PeriodicalId":9295,"journal":{"name":"Building Resilience at Universities: Role of Innovation and Entrepreneurship","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-10-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"83747980","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-10-20DOI: 10.29117/quarfe.2021.0162
Alaa Abuhzaimah, Emad AbuShanab
This effort seeks to explore the major factors that play an essential part in enhancing students ‘satisfaction with online learning experience in higher education in Qatar, before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model was expanded by integrating three new components to study student’s satisfaction with online learning such as course design, student engagement and assessment method. Quantitative research methods were adopted, and data were collected from 750 students at four Universities in Qatar through an online survey questionnaire. The SPSS statistical software was applied to test the research model and to examine the reliability and validity of the data obtained from the questionnaire. Based on the findings, student engagement, assessment method, course design and continuance in the use of online learning were shown to have a substantial influence on students’ satisfaction. Performance expectancy and social influence were exhibited to have a considerable impact on continuance in the use of online learning. Nevertheless, the influence of effort expectancy and facilitating conditions on continued use of online learning was found to be statistically insignificant. Moreover, the effects of age, gender, educational level, and nationality were also explored. It was found that there was a considerable discrepancy among the two genders, the different ages, educational level and nationalities on the different constructs of the model. The results of this study offer many academic institutions the opportunity to understand the factors affecting students’ satisfaction with online learning in Qatar. The findings definitely, provide insight into how colleges and universities in Qatar can effectively improve online students’ experience with online learning. Moreover, this research presented a conceptual model to shed the light on the shortness and provide a better explanation and understating of the factors affecting students’ overall satisfaction and the relationships between them.
{"title":"Factors affecting Students’ Satisfaction with Online Learning in Higher Education in Qatar","authors":"Alaa Abuhzaimah, Emad AbuShanab","doi":"10.29117/quarfe.2021.0162","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29117/quarfe.2021.0162","url":null,"abstract":"This effort seeks to explore the major factors that play an essential part in enhancing students ‘satisfaction with online learning experience in higher education in Qatar, before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model was expanded by integrating three new components to study student’s satisfaction with online learning such as course design, student engagement and assessment method. Quantitative research methods were adopted, and data were collected from 750 students at four Universities in Qatar through an online survey questionnaire. The SPSS statistical software was applied to test the research model and to examine the reliability and validity of the data obtained from the questionnaire. Based on the findings, student engagement, assessment method, course design and continuance in the use of online learning were shown to have a substantial influence on students’ satisfaction. Performance expectancy and social influence were exhibited to have a considerable impact on continuance in the use of online learning. Nevertheless, the influence of effort expectancy and facilitating conditions on continued use of online learning was found to be statistically insignificant. Moreover, the effects of age, gender, educational level, and nationality were also explored. It was found that there was a considerable discrepancy among the two genders, the different ages, educational level and nationalities on the different constructs of the model. The results of this study offer many academic institutions the opportunity to understand the factors affecting students’ satisfaction with online learning in Qatar. The findings definitely, provide insight into how colleges and universities in Qatar can effectively improve online students’ experience with online learning. Moreover, this research presented a conceptual model to shed the light on the shortness and provide a better explanation and understating of the factors affecting students’ overall satisfaction and the relationships between them.","PeriodicalId":9295,"journal":{"name":"Building Resilience at Universities: Role of Innovation and Entrepreneurship","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-10-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"82242730","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-10-20DOI: 10.29117/quarfe.2021.0127
T. Al-Hathal, Lolwa Al-Ghazal, B. Mukhalalati, A. Awaisu, A. El-Awaisi, F. Mraiche, M. Diab, D. Stewart, S. Elshami
Background: Job satisfaction in healthcare is of special interest as has a direct relation with the quality of care provided to patients. It is affected by several factors including the nature of the work, level of educational preparedness and achievements. Objectives: This study aims to explore College of Pharmacy - Qatar University (CPH-QU) alumni’s satisfaction with employment and the profession, level of educational preparedness and achievements in the practice. Methods: A sequential exploratory mixed-method designs was adopted. Seven Focus Group (FG) discussions were performed and a self-reported survey distributed to all alumni graduated between 2011-2020. Results: A total of 135 alumni answered the survey (response rate 63%). Majority of respondents were non-Qatari (97%) and 52% of them were recent graduates and obtained doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) as an additional degree (58%). The study findings suggest that CPH alumni are moderately satisfied with the practice and the profession, and Qatari alumni are more satisfied. However, majority of them (44.55%) are not satisfied with the available opportunities for professional development. The level of satisfaction about achievements was significantly high only in the field of research and presentation activities. A general agreement about the level of educational preparedness was dominant, especially in clinical knowledge and skills and experiential training they received. Conclusion: The overall satisfaction about workplace and the profession in CPH-QU alumni is moderate and higher among Qatari graduates. Alumni agreed that they were well prepared to meet the practice requirements and mostly satisfied in achieving research and presentation related activities.
{"title":"Examination of Job Satisfaction, Achievements, and Employment Preparedness among College of Pharmacy Alumni: A Study From Qatar","authors":"T. Al-Hathal, Lolwa Al-Ghazal, B. Mukhalalati, A. Awaisu, A. El-Awaisi, F. Mraiche, M. Diab, D. Stewart, S. Elshami","doi":"10.29117/quarfe.2021.0127","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29117/quarfe.2021.0127","url":null,"abstract":"Background: Job satisfaction in healthcare is of special interest as has a direct relation with the quality of care provided to patients. It is affected by several factors including the nature of the work, level of educational preparedness and achievements. Objectives: This study aims to explore College of Pharmacy - Qatar University (CPH-QU) alumni’s satisfaction with employment and the profession, level of educational preparedness and achievements in the practice. Methods: A sequential exploratory mixed-method designs was adopted. Seven Focus Group (FG) discussions were performed and a self-reported survey distributed to all alumni graduated between 2011-2020. Results: A total of 135 alumni answered the survey (response rate 63%). Majority of respondents were non-Qatari (97%) and 52% of them were recent graduates and obtained doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) as an additional degree (58%). The study findings suggest that CPH alumni are moderately satisfied with the practice and the profession, and Qatari alumni are more satisfied. However, majority of them (44.55%) are not satisfied with the available opportunities for professional development. The level of satisfaction about achievements was significantly high only in the field of research and presentation activities. A general agreement about the level of educational preparedness was dominant, especially in clinical knowledge and skills and experiential training they received. Conclusion: The overall satisfaction about workplace and the profession in CPH-QU alumni is moderate and higher among Qatari graduates. Alumni agreed that they were well prepared to meet the practice requirements and mostly satisfied in achieving research and presentation related activities.","PeriodicalId":9295,"journal":{"name":"Building Resilience at Universities: Role of Innovation and Entrepreneurship","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-10-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"89292705","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-10-20DOI: 10.29117/quarfe.2021.0061
Dina Isaifan, Y. Suleiman
Mangroves, Avicennia marina, are highly productive coastal ecosystems with capacity to store carbon within plants and in sediments. Micropytobenthos (MPB) in the sediments also fix carbon and play a significant role in carbon burial. However, there is paucity of information on the role of MPB in coastal carbon budget. We quantified the biomass of MPB as an important carbon pool in the mangrove of Al Thakhira, located at the east coast of Qatar. Sediments at different tidal levels namely, supratidal, intertidal, and subtidal were collected and analyzed for grain size, chlorophyll (a), total carbon, and inorganic carbon contents. Results indicated that sand was the dominant species (60%), followed by silt (39%) and clay (1%) at all tidal levels. While the supratidal level had significantly higher silty sand content, silt dominated the intertidal levels. Moreover, chlorophyll (a) was significantly influenced by tidal levels with highest levels in the subtidal level sediments, where mangroves grow extensively. Results also demonstrated that as we move towards the intertidal zone, the total carbon content in sediments gets higher. Finally, chlorophyll (a) and TOC% were positively associated (r=0.643) in all tidal zones. As we move towards the mangrove subtidal growth area, the total carbon content in sediments gets higher. This work recommends that mangrove forests in Qatar be protected by special sanctuaries and law-enforcement to maintain this natural and dynamic blue carbon ecosystem.
{"title":"Quantifying Biomass of Microphytobenthos in sediments of Mangroves in the east coast of Qatar","authors":"Dina Isaifan, Y. Suleiman","doi":"10.29117/quarfe.2021.0061","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29117/quarfe.2021.0061","url":null,"abstract":"Mangroves, Avicennia marina, are highly productive coastal ecosystems with capacity to store carbon within plants and in sediments. Micropytobenthos (MPB) in the sediments also fix carbon and play a significant role in carbon burial. However, there is paucity of information on the role of MPB in coastal carbon budget. We quantified the biomass of MPB as an important carbon pool in the mangrove of Al Thakhira, located at the east coast of Qatar. Sediments at different tidal levels namely, supratidal, intertidal, and subtidal were collected and analyzed for grain size, chlorophyll (a), total carbon, and inorganic carbon contents. Results indicated that sand was the dominant species (60%), followed by silt (39%) and clay (1%) at all tidal levels. While the supratidal level had significantly higher silty sand content, silt dominated the intertidal levels. Moreover, chlorophyll (a) was significantly influenced by tidal levels with highest levels in the subtidal level sediments, where mangroves grow extensively. Results also demonstrated that as we move towards the intertidal zone, the total carbon content in sediments gets higher. Finally, chlorophyll (a) and TOC% were positively associated (r=0.643) in all tidal zones. As we move towards the mangrove subtidal growth area, the total carbon content in sediments gets higher. This work recommends that mangrove forests in Qatar be protected by special sanctuaries and law-enforcement to maintain this natural and dynamic blue carbon ecosystem.","PeriodicalId":9295,"journal":{"name":"Building Resilience at Universities: Role of Innovation and Entrepreneurship","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-10-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"89473829","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-10-20DOI: 10.29117/quarfe.2021.0054
Walid Aboueata, A. Massoud, S. Al-Obaidi
Electric Vehicles (EVs) have attracted researchers’ attention to further develop and enhance this strategic area. Compared to fuel-based vehicles, EVs are more in demand nowadays due to their high performance and modern features. Integrating renewable energy sources such as PV and fuel cells to EVs expands this technology’s research area to increase system reliability. Fuel-cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) introduce more challenges to the researchers to integrate this type of renewable energy source to charge the EV battery while driving. In this paper, design and control of a modular DC-DC converter for fuel-cell based EVs has been studied. A maximum power point tracking (MPPT) technique is used to extract the FC’s maximum power. Since the FC produces a relatively low voltage, a high gain DC-DC converter is required to step up the voltage to the battery’s rated voltage. This can be achieved through an input-parallel output-series Cuk-based DC-DC converter. The system small-signal model and control are presented to ensure equal current sharing at the input side while maintaining equal output voltage sharing even with a mismatch in the system module. The presented concept has been elucidated through simulation using Matlab/Simulink platform.
{"title":"Military Fuel Cell-Based Vehicles: Modular Power DC-DC Converter System","authors":"Walid Aboueata, A. Massoud, S. Al-Obaidi","doi":"10.29117/quarfe.2021.0054","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29117/quarfe.2021.0054","url":null,"abstract":"Electric Vehicles (EVs) have attracted researchers’ attention to further develop and enhance this strategic area. Compared to fuel-based vehicles, EVs are more in demand nowadays due to their high performance and modern features. Integrating renewable energy sources such as PV and fuel cells to EVs expands this technology’s research area to increase system reliability. Fuel-cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) introduce more challenges to the researchers to integrate this type of renewable energy source to charge the EV battery while driving. In this paper, design and control of a modular DC-DC converter for fuel-cell based EVs has been studied. A maximum power point tracking (MPPT) technique is used to extract the FC’s maximum power. Since the FC produces a relatively low voltage, a high gain DC-DC converter is required to step up the voltage to the battery’s rated voltage. This can be achieved through an input-parallel output-series Cuk-based DC-DC converter. The system small-signal model and control are presented to ensure equal current sharing at the input side while maintaining equal output voltage sharing even with a mismatch in the system module. The presented concept has been elucidated through simulation using Matlab/Simulink platform.","PeriodicalId":9295,"journal":{"name":"Building Resilience at Universities: Role of Innovation and Entrepreneurship","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-10-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"88732506","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-10-20DOI: 10.29117/quarfe.2021.0060
Khazna alrajhi
Recently more attention or interest has been developed towards the role of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi (AMF) in plant growth. Qatar, which is a part of the Arabian Gulf region, is mostly arid with hot and dry climatic conditions. The current research aims to investigate the Occurrence, species composition and abundance of AMF in Qatar, for which rhizosphere soil samples and roots of 16 plants belonging to 12 families from eight locations were collected. The AMF from different samples were identified based on the sequencing of the PCR product of the amplified conserved ITS region. The results showed that the AMF infection rate varies with location and plant species. Tamarix aphylla recorded the highest AMF infection rate (100%), followed by Blepharis ciliaris (98%) and Sporobolus ioclados (92%). AMF spore counts per 100g of soil ranged from 29.3 spores in Blepharis ciliaris to 643 spores /100g in Fagonia indica. The spore counts per location is variable and the range was 29.3 to 643/100g soil, however, no correlation has been detected between root colonization rate and spore counts. While all AMF identified at species levels were reported in other regions this research will be the first to investigate the AMF biodiversity from Qatar. However, new species are still expected since some were identified only at higher taxonomic levels. Claroideoglomus drummondii and Rhizophagus irregularis were the most widespread species while Claroideoglomus claroideum and Diversispora aurantia were the less present. This study provides comprehensive biological data about taxonomy, distribution and prevalence of AMF in Qatar soil, which opens new research towards developing its future applications for environmental conservation and sustainable agriculture.
{"title":"Biodiversity of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi in Plant Roots and Rhizosphere Soil from different arid locations of Qatar","authors":"Khazna alrajhi","doi":"10.29117/quarfe.2021.0060","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29117/quarfe.2021.0060","url":null,"abstract":"Recently more attention or interest has been developed towards the role of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi (AMF) in plant growth. Qatar, which is a part of the Arabian Gulf region, is mostly arid with hot and dry climatic conditions. The current research aims to investigate the Occurrence, species composition and abundance of AMF in Qatar, for which rhizosphere soil samples and roots of 16 plants belonging to 12 families from eight locations were collected. The AMF from different samples were identified based on the sequencing of the PCR product of the amplified conserved ITS region. The results showed that the AMF infection rate varies with location and plant species. Tamarix aphylla recorded the highest AMF infection rate (100%), followed by Blepharis ciliaris (98%) and Sporobolus ioclados (92%). AMF spore counts per 100g of soil ranged from 29.3 spores in Blepharis ciliaris to 643 spores /100g in Fagonia indica. The spore counts per location is variable and the range was 29.3 to 643/100g soil, however, no correlation has been detected between root colonization rate and spore counts. While all AMF identified at species levels were reported in other regions this research will be the first to investigate the AMF biodiversity from Qatar. However, new species are still expected since some were identified only at higher taxonomic levels. Claroideoglomus drummondii and Rhizophagus irregularis were the most widespread species while Claroideoglomus claroideum and Diversispora aurantia were the less present. This study provides comprehensive biological data about taxonomy, distribution and prevalence of AMF in Qatar soil, which opens new research towards developing its future applications for environmental conservation and sustainable agriculture.","PeriodicalId":9295,"journal":{"name":"Building Resilience at Universities: Role of Innovation and Entrepreneurship","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-10-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"75921056","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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