University of the Future: Re-Imagining Research and Higher Education最新文献

Cantilever Beam Metastructure for Active Broadband Vibration Suppression 主动抑制宽带振动的悬臂梁元结构

University of the Future: Re-Imagining Research and Higher Education Pub Date : 2020-10-28 DOI: 10.29117/quarfe.2020.0087

R. F. Ghachi, W. Alnahhal, Osama Abdeljaber

引用次数: 0

Molecular Characterization of Influenza Virus in Intestines and its Effect on Intestinal Microbiota 流感病毒在肠道中的分子特征及其对肠道微生物群的影响

University of the Future: Re-Imagining Research and Higher Education Pub Date : 2020-10-28 DOI: 10.29117/quarfe.2020.0165

H. Khatib, M. Maslamani, P. Coyle, S. Pathan, A. A. Thani, H. Yassine

{"title":"Molecular Characterization of Influenza Virus in Intestines and its Effect on Intestinal Microbiota","authors":"H. Khatib, M. Maslamani, P. Coyle, S. Pathan, A. A. Thani, H. Yassine","doi":"10.29117/quarfe.2020.0165","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29117/quarfe.2020.0165","url":null,"abstract":"Background: Influenza predominantly causes respiratory diseases; however, gastrointestinal symptoms are not uncommonly reported, particularly among high-risk groups. Influenza virus RNA has been also detected in stools of patients infected with pandemic and seasonal influenza, however, the role and the clinical significance of intestinal infection has not been clearly demonstrated. Methods: Here, we used NGS technology to investigate molecular characterization of viral RNA shedding in feces of adults with active influenza infection. Paired nasal and fecal samples were collected from 295 patients showing to emergency department at Hamad Medical Corporation with flu-like symptoms during January 2018 and April 2019. Results: Among these, 90 nasal samples were positive for influenza, of which, 26 fecal samples were positive for influenza in real-time PCR and only five showed virus growth in both monolayer and 3D cell culture. Full genome sequencing of isolated viruses revealed some unique mutations that we are currently in the process of studying their effect on virus kinetics. Then, we investigated the potential impact of respiratory influenza infection on intestinal microbiota diversity and composition. Microbiome analysis results suggest that changes in gut microbiota composition in influenza-infected patients are significantly associated with (1) influenza virus type, and (2) the presence of viral RNA in intestines of infected patients. We also identified bacterial taxa for which relative abundance was significantly higher in the patients with severe respiratory symptoms. Conclusion: Altogether, our findings suggest that influenza viruses can affect intestinal environment either by direct intestinal infection or indirectly by modulating intestinal microbiota.","PeriodicalId":169505,"journal":{"name":"University of the Future: Re-Imagining Research and Higher Education","volume":"488 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-10-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"117020339","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}

引用次数: 0

Choice and Expenditure: A Double Hurdle Model of Private Tutoring in Qatar 选择与支出:卡塔尔私人辅导的双障碍模式

University of the Future: Re-Imagining Research and Higher Education Pub Date : 2020-10-28 DOI: 10.29117/quarfe.2020.0261

B. Mandikiana

引用次数: 5

Factors Influencing Reading News on the Mobile Devices in Qatar in Light of Augmented Reality (AR) & Virtual Reality (VR) 基于增强现实(AR)和虚拟现实(VR)的卡塔尔移动设备新闻阅读影响因素

University of the Future: Re-Imagining Research and Higher Education Pub Date : 2020-10-28 DOI: 10.29117/quarfe.2020.0254

Rima Charbaji

{"title":"Factors Influencing Reading News on the Mobile Devices in Qatar in Light of Augmented Reality (AR) & Virtual Reality (VR)","authors":"Rima Charbaji","doi":"10.29117/quarfe.2020.0254","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29117/quarfe.2020.0254","url":null,"abstract":"Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine and better understand the factors influencing reading news on the mobile devices in Qatar from the viewpoint of intention to adopt augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR). Design/methodology/approach: A large convenience sample of 699 respondents from Qatar was surveyed. Using SPSS, the researcher employed the Kaisers-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) measure of sampling adequacy and the Bartless test of sphericity to establish the construct validity of the instrument. The four extracted and rotated dimensions were found to be reliable and valid. Main findings: Findings from multiple regression analysis have confirmed two out of six hypotheses. Two independent variables (1) nationality and (2) interest in using AR & VR are significant in predicting the use of mobile devices to follow regional and international news in Qatar from the viewpoint of intention to adopt augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR). Implications: Implications of this study are two folds. Hypotheses that are partially supported, suggest an urgent need for further research to uncover the various modes afforded by the smart digital society in Qatar. More proactive approach from decision and policy makers in Qatar’s newspaper printing industry is needed to benefit from the digitalization of international news. Novelty: This article empirically correlates two fields of business research: the digital copy of the real world and reading international news. This piece of research has been published in May 2020 at the scopus indexed International Journal of Advanced Research in Engineering and Technology (IJARET).","PeriodicalId":169505,"journal":{"name":"University of the Future: Re-Imagining Research and Higher Education","volume":"11 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-10-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"129776895","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}

引用次数: 1

Parametric Study on Moment Redistribution of Fiber Reinforced Concrete Continuous Beams with Basalt FRP Bars 玄武岩FRP筋纤维混凝土连续梁弯矩重分布参数化研究

University of the Future: Re-Imagining Research and Higher Education Pub Date : 2020-10-28 DOI: 10.29117/QUARFE.2020.0084

A. Abushanab

{"title":"Parametric Study on Moment Redistribution of Fiber Reinforced Concrete Continuous Beams with Basalt FRP Bars","authors":"A. Abushanab","doi":"10.29117/QUARFE.2020.0084","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29117/QUARFE.2020.0084","url":null,"abstract":"The state of Qatar is suffering from its harsh environment and coastal conditions, which stand for most of the year. As a result, steel-reinforced concrete structures are subjected to rapid corrosion and deterioration. Therefore, there is a necessity to replace the conventional steel reinforcement by fiber-reinforced polymers (FRP) bars. Apart from FRP bars corrosion resistance, their strength to weight ratio is higher than steel reinforcement, which made the FRP, bars a viable alternative to steel reinforcement. Continuous concrete beams are commonly used elements in structures such as parking garages and overpasses. In such structures, forces could be distributed between the critical sections after cracking. This phenomenon is called moment redistribution. It reduces the congested rebars in connections and enhances the ductility of the members. However, the linear-elastic behaviour of FRP materials makes the ability of continuous beams to redistribute loads and moments questionable. This study aims to investigate the capability of moment redistribution of basalt fiber reinforced concrete (BFRC) continuous beams reinforced with basalt FRP (BFRP) bars. Eleven reinforced concrete (RC) continuous beams of 200 x 300 x 4000 mm were tested up to failure under fivepoint loading. The main investigated parameters were the reinforcement ratio (0.6rb, 1.0rb, 1.8rb and 2.8rb; where rb is the balanced reinforcement ratio), stirrups spacing (80 and 120 mm) and volume fractions of Basalt-macro fibers (BMF) (0.75 and 1.5%). A parametric study was then conducted using a validated finite element (FE) model to extend the investigated parameters that may affect the moment redistribution of RC continuous beams. It was concluded that moment redistribution occurs in beams that have at least a ratio of bottom to top reinforcement of 0.3.","PeriodicalId":169505,"journal":{"name":"University of the Future: Re-Imagining Research and Higher Education","volume":"105 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-10-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"126830938","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}

引用次数: 1

Wind Energy Potential along the Onshore and Offshore Qatar 卡塔尔陆上和海上的风能潜力

University of the Future: Re-Imagining Research and Higher Education Pub Date : 2020-10-28 DOI: 10.29117/quarfe.2020.0018

A. Mohammed, E. M. Al-Ansari, S. Razak, V. Subramanian, Vethamony Ponnumony

{"title":"Wind Energy Potential along the Onshore and Offshore Qatar","authors":"A. Mohammed, E. M. Al-Ansari, S. Razak, V. Subramanian, Vethamony Ponnumony","doi":"10.29117/quarfe.2020.0018","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29117/quarfe.2020.0018","url":null,"abstract":"Wind energy is one among the clean and renewable energy resources. The utilization of nonconventional energies over the conventional sources helps to reduce the carbon emissions significantly. The present study aims at investigating the wind energy potential at select coastal locations of Qatar using ERA5 winds. ERA5 is the updated reanalysis product of the European Centre for Medium-range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), in which the scatterometer and in situ wind data are assimilated to improve the accuracy of predictions, thus the long-term and shortterm variabilities are reasonably well captured. Compared to the earlier studies, in this work, we have assessed the wind power at inland and offshore areas of Qatar, considering 40-year long (1979-2018) time series data with hourly ERA5 winds at 10-m height. The results show that there is no significant increase or decrease of wind power around Qatar in the last 40 years in most of the locations, while there is a slight decreasing trend in the offshore areas of Al Ruwais. This indicates that the average wind power is consistently available throughout the years. The links of climatic indices, especially the ENSO events with the wind climate of Qatar, are clearly evident in the long-term data. As obvious, the offshore regions of Qatar have relatively high wind power compared to the land areas. Among the selected locations, the highest annual mean wind power density is obtained in the offshore Al Ruwais (152 W/m2), followed by offshore Ras Laffan (134 W/m2) and land area of Al Khor (120 W/m2). The maximum wind power density varies between 1830 and 2120 W/m2 in the land areas, while it is between 1850 and 2410 W/m2 in the offshore areas of Qatar. The highest wind power is consistently available during the prevalence of shamal winds in winter (January-March) as well as summer (June).","PeriodicalId":169505,"journal":{"name":"University of the Future: Re-Imagining Research and Higher Education","volume":"28 5 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-10-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"116623190","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}

引用次数: 0

A Structural Equation Model of Perceived University Image in Qatar: 卡塔尔大学形象感知的结构方程模型

University of the Future: Re-Imagining Research and Higher Education Pub Date : 2020-10-28 DOI: 10.29117/quarfe.2020.0255

Rima Charbaji

引用次数: 2

Academic Programs Accreditation matters for Graduates Employability: A Case From Qu-Health 学术课程认证对毕业生就业能力的影响:来自q - health的案例

University of the Future: Re-Imagining Research and Higher Education Pub Date : 2020-10-28 DOI: 10.29117/quarfe.2020.0150

H. Bawadi, Ghadir Jayousi, Xiangyun Du, V. Ganji, Abdulhaim Kerkadi, Joyce Mowad, Taghreed Abunada

引用次数: 0

Association between Soft Drink Consumption and Bone Mineral Density among Qatari Women- Analysis of Qatar Biobank data 卡塔尔妇女饮用软饮料与骨密度之间的关系——卡塔尔生物银行数据分析

University of the Future: Re-Imagining Research and Higher Education Pub Date : 2020-10-28 DOI: 10.29117/QUARFE.2020.0182

Aamna Hamid, Zumin Shi, L. Thalib

{"title":"Association between Soft Drink Consumption and Bone Mineral Density among Qatari Women- Analysis of Qatar Biobank data","authors":"Aamna Hamid, Zumin Shi, L. Thalib","doi":"10.29117/QUARFE.2020.0182","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29117/QUARFE.2020.0182","url":null,"abstract":"Background: Decrease in bone mineral density (BMD) increases the risk of osteopenia and osteoporosis. It is common in older women, as the BMD tends to decrease with age, particularly after menopause. While age and hormonal changes are well-established risk factors, other factors have been investigated for possible links to increase the risk of osteoporosis. These factors include dietary patterns and lifestyle. Aim: To explore the association between soft drink consumption and BMD. Method: This cross-sectional study included data from 1000 Qatari women age ≥ 40 year’s participated in the Qatar Biobank Study. BMD levels were measured using the Dual-Energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DXA) scan and the soft drink consumption was assessed using a food frequency questionnaires. Multiple quantile regression models were used to assess the association between bone mineral density and soft drink consumption. Results: While most of the participants did not drink soft drinks (68%), around one third reported consuming soft drinks. A total of 16.4% of participants reported consuming soft drinks < 1 time/ week and 15.6% of participants reported consuming soft drinks ≥ 1 time/ week. There was an inverse association between BMD and soft drink consumption. Compared with non-consumers, ≥ 1 time/week consumption of soft drink had a -0.034 95%CI (-0.056, -0.012) at 0.25 quantile for BMD after adjusting for age, BMI, menopausal status, smoking status, physical activities, milk intake, and fruit and vegetable consumption. Also, BMD was negatively associated with regular soft drinks, but not with diet soft drink and energy drink. Conclusion: High consumption of soft drink is inversely related to BMD among Qatari women. Further longitudinal and clinical studies are required before developing public health intervention to improve bone health by reducing soft drink consumption.","PeriodicalId":169505,"journal":{"name":"University of the Future: Re-Imagining Research and Higher Education","volume":"276 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-10-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"123428440","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}

引用次数: 1

Virtual Screening of Anti-Viral Drugs and Natural Compounds for Potential Inhibition of the Novel SARS-Cov-2 Spike Receptor-Binding Domain 新型SARS-Cov-2刺突受体结合域潜在抑制的抗病毒药物和天然化合物的虚拟筛选

University of the Future: Re-Imagining Research and Higher Education Pub Date : 2020-10-28 DOI: 10.29117/quarfe.2020.0281

Shilu M. Mathew, F. Benslimane, A. Althani, H. Yassine

{"title":"Virtual Screening of Anti-Viral Drugs and Natural Compounds for Potential Inhibition of the Novel SARS-Cov-2 Spike Receptor-Binding Domain","authors":"Shilu M. Mathew, F. Benslimane, A. Althani, H. Yassine","doi":"10.29117/quarfe.2020.0281","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29117/quarfe.2020.0281","url":null,"abstract":"Background: The spike (S) protein of SARS-CoV-2 harbors the receptor-binding domain (RBD) that mediates the virus's entry to host cells. The aim of this study was to identify novel inhibitors that target the RBD domain of S-protein through computational screening of chemical and natural compounds. Method: The S protein was modelled from the recently resolved and the previously described SARS-CoV protein structures. CLC Drug Discovery was used to computationally screen for potential inhibitory effects of currently prescribed drugs (n= 22) anti-viral natural drugs (n=100), natural compounds (n= 35032). QSAR was also performed. Results: Among currently precribed drugs to treat SARS-CoV2, hydroxychloroquine and favipiravir were identified as the best binders with an average of 4Hbonds, the binding affinity (BA): -36.66 kcal·mol−1, and interaction energy (IE): -6.63 kcal·mol−1. After the evaluation of anti-viral compounds, fosamprenavir and abacavir showed effective binding of 5H-bonds, with average BA: -18.75 kcal·mol−1, and IE: -3.57 kcal·mol−1. Furthermore, screening of 100 natural anti-viral compounds predicted potential binding modes of glycyrrhizin, nepritin, punicalagin, EGCG, and theaflavin (average BA: -49.88 kcal·mol−1, and IE: -4.35 kcal·mol−1). Additionally, the study reports 25 natural compounds that showed effective binding with an improved average BA: 51.46 kcal·mol−1. Conclusion: Using computational screening, we identified potential SARSCoV-2 spike inhibitors that bind to the RBD region.","PeriodicalId":169505,"journal":{"name":"University of the Future: Re-Imagining Research and Higher Education","volume":"82 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-10-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"115328185","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}

引用次数: 1