Digital Commons Network^™

Piezoelectric Enhanced Noninvasive Laser-Based Detection Of Multiple Vital Signs, Ahmed Saeed Dabi

Theses

In this study, a method for concurrent measurement of heart rate (HR) respiration rate (RR) and blood pressure (BP) using movements of the chest wall is proposed. Unlike conventional approaches that use only laser, in this approach a laser source is used to collect the piezoelectric sensor output without the need for probing. The chest wall movements are transduced using an optical ODSL 8 sensor and a piezoelectric taped to the patient’s chest. Measurement data is used for development of algorithms for estimation of HR, RR and BP. Next measurements are taken while the subjects are breathing and holding their …

Enhancement Of Phenolic Recovery And Bioactivity Of Date Palm Leaf Extract Using Natural Deep Eutectic Solvents And Green Extraction Technology, Raghad Shehadeh Abdal Rahman

Theses

This study was designed to explore date palm leaves, an agro by-product, as a potential source of natural polyphenolic compounds using appropriate green Natural Deep Eutectic Solvent (NADES) and emerging green extraction technologies. Herein, six different NADES were prepared using six different hydrogen donors and choline chloride as hydrogen bond acceptor at a molar ratio of 1:2 (w/w) and different NADES concentrations (10, 20, 40, and 80%, in water, at 40°C). Among the studied NADES, Glycerol-based NADES showed higher phenolic yield compared to saccharide and organic acid-based NADES. Afterward, to enhance the extraction efficiency, NADES were coupled with microwave (MAE-NADES) …

Maternal Effects On Growth Parameters Of Chloris Gayana Under Co2 Enrichment, Ahmed Adnan Mohammed Mashli

Theses

Rhodes grass, Chloris gayana, is commonly used forage plant for grazers, livestock, and cattle. It significantly improves soil fertility and its overall structure by preventing nematode flourishment in soil. It is also used as a cover crop to upgrade soil health by reducing soil erosion and increasing water availability. The present study assessed the effects of CO₂ on the growth, development and maternal effects of C. gayana. The experimental setup was made in such a way that the potential impacts of CO₂ can be measured on the eco-physiological growth of C. gayana by studying successive generations. Generation 1 …

Addictive Social Media Use: Examination Of The Psychometric Properties Of The Arabic Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale And The Mediational Role Of Sense Of Control In The Relationship Between Depression And Social Media Addiction, Louis J. Fourie

Theses

The period of COVID-19 has proven to be a turbulent period where extreme psychological trends can be examined due to lockdown procedures, social isolation, and public fear. The use of technology such as social media has increased with research highlighting the harm of overuse. The purpose of the current study is to investigate the psychometric properties of an Arabic translated version of the Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (BSMAS) to assess for addictive social media use. Secondly, the study further examines the association between depression, social media addiction, and an individual’s sense of control. Specifically, the potential mediational role of …

Phubbing And Fear Of Missing Out As Mediators Between Problematic Social Media Use And Life Satisfaction Among Young Adults, Najeera Peer Meera Levai

Theses

Recent studies have shown certain risk indicators for young adults' decreased life satisfaction as a result of excessive social media use. However, few studies have looked at possible impact of problematic social media on life satisfaction, and less information is known about the mediating factors that contribute to this association. The purpose of the current study was to determine whether problematic social media use predicts life satisfaction among young adults. It also explored whether phubbing behaviour and fear of missing out might both serve as mediators in this relationship. A sample of 351 young adults (18–25, M_age = 19.74 …

The Effect Of Experiential Avoidance And Committed Action On The Relationship Between Anxiety And Quality Of Life In Chronically Ill And Healthy Students, Rufaida Mohammed N Alkhanji

Theses

Chronic illness and anxiety are two factors that have been shown to negatively impact quality of life. In order to better understand the impact of chronic illness on quality of life, researchers have been interested in studying the effects of experiential avoidance and committed action. This thesis aims to examine the roles of experiential avoidance and committed action as potential mediators in the relationship between anxiety and quality of life. It also aims to compare the occurrence of the studied relationships in students with and without chronic illness. 547 participants from two Arab universities completed self-report measures assessing their levels …

المسؤولیة المدنیة عن الاضرار الناشئة عن استخدام الذكاء الإصطناعي في مھنة الطبیب الآلي, سلمى غابش سالم الخمیسي

Theses

The civil liability arising from the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the robotic doctor profession has recently become an innovative topic of discussion in the UAE, as it aims to to employ modern technologies to serve humanity in various fields. This study sheds light on the issue of the role of artificial intelligence in the practice of robotic doctors and the position of the UAE Civil Law, the Federal Medical Liability Law No. (4) of 2016, and the Executive Regulations No. (40) of 2019 and reviewing the report of the European Union Legal Affairs Committeem and the European Parliaments …

Analysis Of The Relationship Between Ieq And Energy Consumption In Uae University Building: Impact Of Thermal And Lighting Comfort On Energy Usage, Salama Abdulla Al Ghaithi

Theses

The Indoor Environment Quality (IEQ) of buildings becomes increasingly critical as people spend more than 90% of their time inside buildings based on the National Human Activity Pattern Survey (NHAPS) (Klepeis et al., 2001). The quality of the indoor environment in a building has been shown to have a significant impact on users' productivity and energy consumption. Further, if tenants are working in a comfortable indoor environment, absenteeism rates and incidental expenses, such as medical expenses, will be reduced. For instance, a comfortable workplace increases productivity by 10-15% and reduces absenteeism by 2.5% (Leyten & Boerstra, 2003). According to the …

Neural Network Based Reactive Control Of Point Absorber Wave Energy Converters, Abdelmoamen Ali Nasser

Theses

The main objective of this work is to develop a neural-network-based Reactive Control (RC) system for wave energy converters. The ability to maximize the power output of WEC while maintaining operation constraints, which can be physical or thermal, is crucial to the development of deployable control strategies. Having a control method that is robust, which means it handles uncertainty and noise very well, is one of the main performance criteria in evaluating the method. Therefore, this work starts by deriving an averaged WEC model to be simulated in MATLAB/Simulink. Additionally, the concepts of resistive loading control and reactive control (approximate …

Sludge-Based Activated Carbon: Characterization And Performance For Removal Of Methylene Blue From Aqueous Solution, Ahmad Anwar Al Madhoon

Theses

Domestic wastewater treatment plants in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) produce 122 thousand tons of dried sludge annually. About 70% of this sludge is dumped in landfills, creating water and soil contamination. Sludge is an energy-rich organic material that could be converted into activated carbon by thermal or chemical processes. Potassium hydroxide has shown great potential as an activating agent for producing high-quality sludge based activated carbon (SBAC). However, its use adds to the cost of the production process. Thus, there is a need for an alternative activating agent that is not costly. One possible chemical is carbide lime which …

The Effect Of Licogliflozin (Sglt1/2 Inhibitor) On Diabetes And Cardiac Complications, Alanoud Gharib Alblooshi

Theses

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a chronic endocrine disease affecting millions of people worldwide. In spite of the advances made in the management of DM, poor glycemic control and diabetes complications are still very common. There is a continuous search for new and more effective drugs to treat DM. One of the drugs currently in clinical trials for the treatment of DM is licogliflozin (LIK066), a dual SGLT1/2 inhibitor, which can be used to treat obesity and diabetes. LIK066 inhibits glucose reabsorption in the kidney and small intestine, thereby reducing hyperglycemia. This study aims to investigate the efficacy of licogliflozin on …

Improving The Growth Performance Of The Mangrove Avicennia Marina Seedlings Using Plant Growth Promoting Actinobacteria, Alanoud Abdulla Al Shamsi

Theses

The combination of commercial fish emulsion (FE) and plant growth-promoting actinobacteria capable of producing plant growth regulators (PGRs) was evaluated as a biofertilizer to enhance growth and development of grey mangrove (Avicennia marina) in the United Arab Emirates. In vitro studies identified the rhizosphere-competent Streptomyces griseorubens UAE1 (Sg) that was able to solubilize phosphorus, produce auxins, cytokinins, gibberellic acid, polyamines, and 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) deaminase. Growth promotion, nutrient contents and PGR levels in tissues of treated mangrove plants with fish emulsion and/or S. griseorubens UAE1 were further assessed in vivo. Under greenhouse and natural open-field nursery conditions, …

Why Post- Leaving Certificate Students In Ireland From Disadvantaged Backgrounds Are Less Likely To Proceed To Third-Level Education, Edward Hayes

Theses

Educational disadvantage continues to be a cause for concern, and addressing it remains at the forefront of education policy in Ireland (Houses of Oireachtas, 2019; Weir et al., 2017). This research extended across the academic years 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 and during the period of the global COVID-19 pandemic, which imposed public health measures, and enforced an emergency online digital learning environment. A socio-economic profile of Ireland’s student body registered an attainment gap between rich and poor, finding that young people from backgrounds of disadvantage continue to be underrepresented at third-level when compared to their middle-class counterparts (HEA, 2020). The primary …

Tailoring The Rehabilitative Environment For People With Sensory Overload, Jennifer Cotter

Theses

Sensory overload is a complex sensory processing disorder which can develop post Acquired Brain Injury (ABI). The condition can be extremely debilitating and people who develop it are further hampered by lack of informational resources, sensory overload is currently under researched in the Acquired Brain Injury rehabilitation sector. This qualitative study documents participants first hand experiences of sensory overload post ABI and includes insights and observations from professionals working in the Acquired Brain Injury rehabilitation sector in Ireland. In this study, sensory overload is the focal point and a new rehabilitation tool in the form of a sensory menu is …

User Behavior Analysis For User Profile Prediction, Islam Al Qaisi

Theses

The importance of user behavior analysis is becoming increasingly valuable to Software as a Service (SaaS) businesses such as EDI (Energy Data Intelligence). Users of big data applications require attention in order not to lose customer loyalty in a competitive business environment. With data analytics techniques, knowledge can be extracted about the user behaviors, and that would be a beneficial exercise to the business when it comes to improving services to the customers whether it’s a tailored customer support, targeted marketing campaigns or enhanced product features. This capstone project is focused on predicting user profiles through their web usage behavior. …

Toward Structural Characterization Of Broadacre Crops Using Uas-Based 3d Point Clouds, Fei Zhang

Theses

The use of unmanned aerial systems (UAS)-based remote sensing methods in precision agriculture (PA) has seen rapid development in recent years. These technologies are expected to revolutionize crop management by capturing imagery data with a high spatial, temporal, and spectral resolution, thereby enabling the decision-making of farm inputs at the sub-field level and on an almost daily basis. However, in real-world operational applications, the potential of UAS-based remote sensing methods has not yet been fully exploited. One of the main research avenues is that of structural characterization of crops in order to assess plant density, leaf density, i.e., overall crop …

Building Community Through Urban Renovation On Pittsburgh's Riverfront, Shian Wu

Theses

Every city has its most important place for citizens to promote informal sociability and urban connection with humans. The riverside is the most important urban connection in Pittsburgh. Each side of the bridge has a different development level. The design of the riverside pedestrian path can build a connection between both sides of the bridge and help urban development in the north side of Pittsburgh. The aim of the study is to analyze the connection between architectural open space, pedestrian trails, and riverway trails and to propose methods that are suitable for developing a mixed-use building that will help improve …

Detailing The Effects Of Cbd On Parp And Survivin Expression In Ewing Sarcoma, Tyler Carter

Theses

Ewing sarcoma (ES) is an aggressive pediatric bone cancer with low five-year survival rates, particularly with recurrent disease because ES often becomes resistant to chemotherapy in these recurrences. Cannabidiol (CBD) has been identified as a potentially promising therapeutic for patients with ES. In other cancer types, CBD has demonstrated effects on two major proteins that contribute to chemotherapy resistance. The first, Poly (ADP-ribose) Polymerase I (PARP1), is a DNA damage repair enzyme that is overexpressed in recurrent ES. Though chemotherapy induces DNA damage in these cancer cells, the high levels of PARP1 facilitate repair of the DNA, allowing the mutated …

Determining Suitable Green Biorefinery Locations In Ireland For Irish Agriculture Using Co-Design, Economic And Geographical Information Systems, Alice Hand

Theses

The aim of this thesis is to investigate potential locations for a suitable green biorefinery model in Ireland, which would offer an opportunity for sustainable diversification to grassland farmers. A mixed method approach was used to collect data to support the design and analyse a green biorefinery model. A three phased methodology was applied representing the Co-design, Economic and the Geographical Information Systems analysis phase. Key stakeholders identified in the co-design phase included farmers, cooperatives, market partners as having a direct impact on a biorefinery. This provided insight to the farmers preferred model. Using these findings, an economic assessment was …

Water Microbial Pollution Risk Simulation And Prediction Using Ml, Dania Al Safadi

Theses

Water quality has been a global concern due to its scarcity as well as it is direct effects on wellbeing and food production. Therefore, many studies have been addressing this matter in order to address the consequences left behind. Consider the harmful effects of polluted water moving uninterrupted over vast distances and through countless homes. The water we drink, cook with, and bathe in would not be safe requiring an immediate response in order to reduce the damage as a direct result of the pollution. The aim of this study was to develop models that could evaluate the microbial water …

A Hybrid Time-Series Pv Power Forecasting Model Implementing Facebook Prophet And Neural Prophet Algorithms, Afra Nasser Al Mansoori, Fatima Ahmed Al Ajami, Maha Ali Mousa

Theses

Globally, countries are limiting their dependency on conventional energy as their primary energy source. From this perspective, the ongoing integration of renewable energy sources with existing systems is the focus of researchers and power utilities. Photovoltaics (PV) is one of the leading solar technologies driving substantial growth in renewable energy applications. Consequently, power utilities are faced with large penetration of PV systems within the existing electrical grid. This ongoing integration introduces new electricity generation profiles, which raises technical challenges affecting grid reliability. Therefore, this work proposes building a PV power short-term forecasting model, which can avoid adverse outcomes of large …

Predicting Electrical Faults In Power Distribution Network, Ahmad Adel Bin Sulaiman

Theses

Electricity is becoming increasingly important in modern civilization, and as a result, the emphasis on and use of power infrastructure is gradually expanding. Simultaneously, investment and distribution modes are shifting from the large-scale centralized generation of electricity and sheer consumption to decentralized generators and extremely sophisticated clients. This transformation puts further strain on old infrastructure, necessitating significant expenditures in future years to ensure a consistent supply. Subsequent technical and prediction technologies can help to maximize the use of the current grid while lowering the probability of faults. This study discusses some of the local grid difficulties as well as a …

Fraudulent Insurance Claims Detection Using Machine Learning, Arif Ismail Alrais

Theses

As the different countries around the world evolve into a more economical-based and stimulating their economy is the goal. The main purpose of most of these countries is to fight off money launderers and fraudsters for better economic growth. A popular fraud topic in this regard is insurance fraud since it costs the companies and the public billions. Applying data analysis and machine learning are great ways used to address many problems regarding any automated system. To address this problem, first extensive research should be made to check out what has been applied and what the most promising solution using …

Traffic Accidents Analysis & Prediction In Uae, Majid Alhosani

Theses

UAE has state-of-the-art roads and traffic infrastructure, and yet there has been a rapid increase in the number of traffic accidents. As per National Agenda 2021, the UAE traffic departments are working to minimize the rate of road traffic death per 100 thousand people. The Traffic and Patrols Directorate in Abu Dhabi launched a road safety management plan. This aims at decreasing the fatalities from traffic accidents to 3 per 100,000 inhabitants by 2021. According to police, distracted driving, sudden swerving, entering a road without ensuring that it is clear, tailgating and speeding without considering the road conditions has caused …

Predicting Delays In The Supply Chain With The Use Of Machine Learning, Raghad Al-Saghir

Theses

The supply chain includes all the steps in an item's life cycle starting from raw material and all the way to the customers. Delays in these steps have always been a problem faced by businesses due to the huge financial loss these delays account for. These delays frequently cause significant financial losses, irritate customers, and loss of customer confidence. The aim of this study is to construct a prediction model that predicts late deliveries before its occurrence with the use of big data and machine learning. The study used Dataco Supply Chain dataset and cleaned, visualized, and trained it using …

Correlation Of Gut Alteration With The Progression Of Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis (Eae) In C57bl/6 Mice, Al Anood Ahmed Al Naqbi

Theses

Background: Experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) is the mouse disease model of multiple sclerosis (MS), a chronic autoimmune disease targeting the central nervous system (CNS) resulting in neuroinflammation, neuroaxonal degeneration, and demyelination. Autoreactive CD4⁺ T cells are known for their role in the pathogenesis of MS. CD8⁺ T cells and NK cells were also found to be associated with the disease.

Aim: There is a limited number of studies investigating the link between gut alterations and immune cells in the gut influencing the outcome of the disease since the vast majority of MS patients experience gastrointestinal (GI) problems. Here, …

Investigating The Role Of Natural Killer (Nk) Cells In Ozanimod-Mediated Remission In Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis (Eae) In C57bl/6 Mice, Doua Youssef Kamyan

Theses

Experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) is an important model of multiple sclerosis (MS) in rodents. The disease is characterized by axonal damages mediated by activated autoreactive T lymphocytes, microglia, and macrophages. Ozanimod (RPC1063) is an immunomodulator that has been recently approved by the FDA for the treatment of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (2020) and ulcerative colitis (2021). It is a selective agonist of the sphingosine1-phophate receptors (1 and 5) involved in lymphocyte trafficking and expressed on naïve and central memory T and B cells as well as NK cells. Ozanimod acts by inducing internalization and degradation of the S1PR which in turn …

Associated Risk Of Blastocystis Infection In Colorectal Cancer, Lena Abdulbaset Labania

Theses

Blastocystis species is an anaerobic intestinal protozoan seen in humans and a wide range of animals. Only nine Blastocystis subtypes are seen in humans. The pathogenicity of Blastocystis spp. has long been controversial. Recently, a subtype-dependent association between Blastocystis spp. and colorectal cancer (CRC) is being debated. Thus, this thesis aims to assess the possible association between Blastocystis spp. infection and CRC condition compared to cancer outside the gastrointestinal tract (COGT) and a cancer-free control (CF) group. This study is the first of its kind in the UAE. Participants were divided into two groups; cancer patients and CF participants. The …

Quality-Of-Service Provisioning For Smart City Applications Using Software-Defined Networking, Basima Kurungadan

Theses

In the current world, most cities have WiFi Access Points (AP) in every nook and corner. Hence upraising these cities to the status of a smart city is a more easily achievable task than before. Internet-of-Things (IoT) connections primarily use WiFi standards to form the veins of a smart city. Unfortunately, this vast potential of WiFi technology in the genesis of smart cities is somehow compromised due to its failure in meeting unique Quality-of-Service (QoS) demands of smart city applications. Out of the following QoS factors; transmission link bandwidth, packet transmission delay, jitter, and packet loss rate, not all applications …

Development Of Phage Therapy Strategies Against Gram-Positive Bacterial Pathogens, Sara Arroyo Moreno

Theses

Bacterial resistance to conventional antibiotics has become an urgent healthcare issue worldwide. In this light, a renewed interest has emerged for therapy with bacteriophages (phages), which are viruses that can specifically infect bacteria. These viruses encode different proteins that degrade specific bonds within the bacterial cell wall, both to inject their genomic material into the bacterial cells and to release the viral progeny: virion-associated hydrolases and endolysins, respectively. Elimination of Gram-positive pathogens with recombinant versions of phage enzymes represents a promising alternative to classical antibiotics. In this thesis, different phage therapy strategies involving either whole phages or the use of …