ON THE USE OF REFLECTIVE WRITING EXERCISES FOR IMPROVING STUDENT LEARNING OF CONCEPTUAL AND TECHNICAL PROBLEMS IN ENGINEERING

Self-reflection and reflective writing are often used to promote self-regulated learning amongst students (Nilson, 2013). A number of engineering programs are incorporating greater opportunities for student reflection (Turns et al., 2014); at the same time, there is a growing need for additional research on the impact of selfreflection and reflective exercises in engineering education (Clark and Dickerson, 2019). We describe the implementation and examine the impact of two types of reflective writing exercisesan exam wrapper and selfevaluation in two Electrical and Computer Engineering courses, a fundamental first year course on signals and systems and a final year technical elective course on photonics.

Relation between Coronal Mass Ejections and Sunspot Number during Solar Cycle 24

In this study, we report a statistical study for the relationship between coronal mass ejections (CMEs) and sunspot number (SSN) that were registered during the period 2008-2017 for the solar cycle 24. SSN was extracted from Sunspot Index and Long-term Solar Observations (SILSO), while CMEs number from observations made by the Large Angle and Spectrometric Coronagraph (LASCO) on board the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory mission (SOHO). The present period was adopted to conduct the investigation and obtain the mutual correlation between SSN and CMEs. The relationship between CME, the speed of halo CME, and partial halo CMEs for solar cycle 24 were studied. The analysis of results indicated that the average speed of halo CMEs is almost faster than the average speed of partial halo CMEs.Test results of the annual correlation between SSN and CMEs are simple and can be represented by a linear regression equation. Finally, Gaussian fit as a function of time was performed to compare behavior of numbers the CME and SSN with the years and the results show that the center of the peaks agrees with 2014.

Relevance between Helicobacter pylori Infection and Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in Birjand, Iran

There is evidence that infection by H. pylori can have a critical proportion in the development of hepatocyte injury and both noncancerous and malignant liver conditions including non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). This is attributed to several mechanisms, the most important one being the toxic products of the bacterium H. pylori and oxidative injury for hepatocytes which promotes hepatic injury. The present research was aimed at determining the association between H. pylori infection and the prevalence of NAFLD in Birjand, Iran. Two groups were included in this cross-sectional study at the outpatient university clinic. One group had NAFLD (65 patients) and the other group was healthy controls without NAFLD (65 subjects). The diagnosis of NAFLD was performed using abdominal ultrasound examination and the absence of taking steatogenic medications or alcohol. Serum anti- H. pylori IgG and fecal H. pylori antigen were tested for diagnosing of H. pylori infection using ELISA method. H. pylori infection diagnosis was made if both tests were positive. None of the subjects in either group had symptoms related to the digestive system including dyspepsia, GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease), or epigastric pain suspicious of peptic ulcer disease. There were 37 patients (28.5%) in both NAFLD (22 cases, 33.8%) and control (15 cases, 23.1%) groups whose H. pylori tests (both IgG and fecal antigen) were positive. Statistically, no significant difference was observed between the two studied groups regarding H. pylori infection frequency (p = 0.37). Asymptomatic H. pylori infection rate was not significantly different between NAFLD patients and control subjects in Birjand, Iran.

– (Requirements for activating the investment in the Iraqi insurance company- Applied Study for the Period (2004- 2015: متطلبات تفعيل الاستثمار في شركة التأمين العراقية - دراسة تطبيقية للمدة (2004- 2015) –

The insurance sector is one of the most important sectors of the financial services in the world، and it keeps pace with all other economic activities and contributes to its support، development and stability. This study aims to review the investment in insurance companies and the revenues obtained from it، where insurance companies collect large amounts of premiums that enter and then invest in various areas in economic life، and in order to achieve appropriate returns to cover their obligations towards the policyholders and payment of compensation، Factors necessary for successful investment function in insurance companies.

Nitrite-Phenol-NO Crosstalk: Phenol Oxidation and NO Generation from Nitrite at Copper(II) Sites

Nitrite-Phenol-NO Crosstalk: Phenol Oxidation and NO Generation from Nitrite at Copper(II) Sites

A New Patient of Chanarin Dorfman Syndrome in Egypt

Chanarin Dorfman syndrome (CDS) is an autosomal recessive neutral lipid storage disorder characterized by ichthyosis, and multisystem affection. Here, we report another patient from Egypt. The clinical data from a patient and his family were collected. DNA was isolated from peripheral blood leukocytes. Coding exons and the flanking introns of ABHD5 gene were PCR amplified, purified, and sequenced. Our patient meets the major clinical symptoms of CDS. Direct sequencing of ABHD5 gene led to the identification of a homozygous single nucleotide change (c.700C>T) in our patient. The parents were both heterozygous carriers, while his sister was wild type normal for the identified variant. In conclusion, these results indicate that p.Arg234Ter is a pathogenic mutation associated with the Chanarin-Dorfman syndrome in our patient in this study.

A New Patient of Chanarin Dorfman Syndrome in Egypt

Estimating the incidence rate of hepatitis B and C in East Azerbaijan, Islamic Republic of Iran

The World Health Organization (WHO) has aimed for a 30% reduction in hepatitis B (HBV) and hepatitis C (HCV) incidence by 2020. To achieve this goal, it is important to have updated information about trends in the hepatitis incidence rate. However, there is a lack of up-to-date data from East Azerbaijan province in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Procalcitonin and D-dimer for Predicting 28-Day-Mortality Rate and Sepsis Severity based on SOFA Score; A Cross-sectional Study

To determine the possible relationship of procalcitonin (PCT) and D-dimer with the 28-day-mortality rate and severity of sepsis based on sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score.