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TREE PROVISION ACHIEVING KID’S THERMAL COMFORT THROUGH FINISHING MATERIAL PERFORMANCE IN SUBTROPICAL OUTDOOR PLAYGROUNDS. COMPARISON BETWEEN KING FAHED AND AL BIAA GARDEN IN TRIPOLI, LEBANON
Get PDFOutdoor playgrounds are one of the most spaces needed for kids to make different types of activities, and enhancing thermal comfort in such space consist a critical value due to its impact on kids’ health. Unfortunately, the acceleration of urban heat island (UHI) in outdoor spaces, caused by the presence built-up area has affected the temperature of outdoor spaces especially playgrounds. Many researches highlighted the importance of studying outdoor playground materials to achieve kid’s thermal comfort. Nevertheless, analyzing the impact of providing trees on material performance consist a new research perspective. This research highlight on the importance of using trees as natural element to decrease temperature in outdoor playgrounds to achieve kid’s thermal comfort. The aim of this research is to achieve kid’s thermal comfort by enhancing the performance of outdoor playgrounds finishing materials through providing trees. The study will focus on the variation of playground surfaces temperature through simulating different scenario applied in Malek Fahed and Al Biaa garden in Tripoli, Lebanon. The simulation will be applied in subtropical climate using Envi-Met software. The present study provides an overview of outdoor playgrounds finishing materials and its relations with kid’s thermal comfort. Research findings define the performance level of each playground finishing material in chinaberry shading during summer. Results demonstrate that natural surfaces such as sand, grass and stone enhance kids’ thermal comfort more than artificial ones like concrete during summer days
CYCLING SAFETY PROBLEMS IN URBAN CONTEXT
Get PDFCycling as an urban peculiarity has been well-informed as far as quantifiable area plan characteristics like road lattices, cycle paths, misfortunes; in any case, there is less exploration that objectives the security issues in metropolitan climate. This review portrays the consequences of subjective examination led with bikers and other street users. This phase of exploration has been dominatingly \u27descriptive\u27, determined to give a guide of the scope of security related inspirations, perspectives, insights, and conduct among cyclists and other street users. Cycling meets with a scope of strategy issues, going from street wellbeing to difficulties and failures. The outcomes in this report will be valuable to a wide scope of crowds; in any case, our essential concentration all through the exploration\u27s plan, execution, and announcing has been on worries of security issues influencing the quantity of bike users in urban communities. Every one of the distinctions made would profit from quantitative approval and scaling through reviews since they depend on subjective review utilizing perception and meetings
COVID-19 IN LEBANON: DEMOGRAPHICS AND DISTRIBUTION
Get PDFCOVID-19 pandemic has emerged over more than 200 countries leading to more than 117 million infection cases and more than 2.6 million deaths. Lebanon is one of the countries affected by this disease especially in the second half of 2020 reaching its peak early this year. In this study, we studied the impact of multiple factors on this surge and analyzed the positive tests among different age groups over a period of one year (from March 2020 to February 2021). Data was collected from one medical center in Beirut where more than 20,000 PCR tests were done using RT-PCR method between March 2020 and February 2021 and analyzed the pattern of increase of the rate of positivity over this period. The SARS-CoV-2 positivity rate was 13% over a period of one year. The highest number of positive PCR tests was in patients aged between 20 and 39 years. Furthermore, the number of positive tests was low in the first 4 months, which was followed by a dramatic increase in July 2020 reaching a peak in January 2021. Lebanon is among the countries affected lately by the COVID-19 pandemic with most cases arising after August 2020 affected by the blast of Beirut and emergence of new variants resulting in higher positivity rate. Moreover, our data shows a distribution of age similar to other countries and suggest its role in the rapid increase of positivity rate
HEALTHCARE WORKERS PERCEPTIONS REGARDING ANTIBIOTIC USE DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC IN LEBANON: A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY
Get PDFSince the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, empirical antibiotics prescription has increased globally in patients with COVID-19 for suspected or confirmed bacterial infection. Hence, concerns have been raised about potential rise in antibiotic resistance that will create further challenges for antimicrobial stewardship. This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted to assess healthcare workers attitudes and practices regarding antibiotics prescription during the COVID-19 pandemic in Lebanon. The survey was distributed online using GOOGLE forms and included questions addressing socio-demographic characteristics, trainings in antibiotics use and healthcare workers attitudes and practices regarding antibiotics prescription during the pandemic. In total, 399 healthcare workers responded to the survey. Less than half of them had already participated in antibiotic prescription trainings before or during the pandemic. However, only 11% participated, mostly nurses, in antibiotic stewardship program. Azithromycin was the most prescribed antibiotic with Vitamin C and Zinc used as second line treatments in COVID-19 patients. In addition, nearly two-third of the participants reported an increase in antibiotic use during the early phase of the pandemic and considered that COVID-19 patients are receiving unnecessary antibiotics. This study showed excessive antibiotics prescription during the COVID-19 pandemic in Lebanon that needs to be tackled by raising awareness of antimicrobial stewardship and control measures
LOCALIZED SURFACE PLASMON RESONANCE OF COPPER NANOPARTICLES USING FINITE ELEMENT METHOD
Get PDFThe aim of this paper is to study the interaction of the electromagnetic wave with plasmonic nanoparticles. Localized Surface Plasmon resonance (LSPR) characteristics are governed by the intrinsic properties of the nanoparticle (size, shape and dielectric environment). The extinction cross-section spectra of Cu nanoparticles are calculated using finite element method (FEM). By increasing both the size of the nanoparticle and the dielectric environment, the simulations show a red-shifting and broadening on the LSPR spectrum with enhancement of the spectral amplitude. The extinction cross section spectra are calculated using polarized light for non-spherical or assembled nanoparticles. We investigated the LSPR of Cu nanospheres of different arrangements, showing that the optical response depends on the order of nanospheres and the light polarization
ESTOPPEL
Get PDFThe theory of Estoppel, originating in common law, also draws its sources from the continental law system since the Digest of Justinian and the Majala of the Ottoman Era. There was already the rule “ venire contra factum proprium nulli conceditur” and the prohibition against going against one’s own act. The entrenchment of estoppel in English and American Law covers the absence of a general principle of good faith in contractual matters. It has an exclusive defensive function, however in American and Australian laws it is possible to use the mechanism of estoppel in an offensive way, which is based on an idea that a party must not allow damage to increase if he could reasonably attenuated it
JUDICIAL ADMINISTRATOR AND RESTRUCTURING BUSINESSES IN FINANCIAL DIFFICULTIES: (TUNISIAN LAW & ARAB LEGISLATIONS)
Get PDFThe research contains a comparative study between the Tunisian law and some Arab legislations concerning the role of “ judicial administrator” , to assist financially distressed business in re-construction operation, in order to avoid being subject to declaration of bankruptcy. The research analyze the development of Arab legislations from the traditional vision of bankruptcy and its restrictive rules, to the most recent vison, and its collaborative rules aiming to rescue financially distressed business. The comparative study analyses legal rules concerning the authority and requirements of appointing the judicial administrator
POST-WAR CULTURE AND RECONCILIATION: FROM OPTIMISM TO RESILIENCE
Get PDFCulture and Post-War Reconciliation: from Optimism to Resilience. At the end of the civil war, Lebanon tried to rebuild itself but fairly quickly wars, assassinations, repeated political crises and an influx of refugees weakened it. From 2019, it is downright descent into hell with an aborted popular revolt and a whole series of financial, economic and health disasters culminating in the explosion of August 4, 2020, which transformed it into a true martyr nation. Once again, the Land of the Cedars falls back into the cycle of the absurd, even into the circularity of the myth of Sisyphus, going so far as to relive scenes of violence reminiscent of the civil war as if we were returning to the “Zero Hour”. These recent events show that the structural causes that led to the conflict among Lebanese have not yet been resolved. Today the majority of them are lost, living day to day without hope or perspective. Faced with this fatality, should we question the impact of artistic projects aiming at social reconciliation following a conflict? Can culture in general and theater in particular still be vectors for promoting peace? In which category of the process of social transformation can we place these artistic practices today? Do the practitioners of this approach always do sustainable reconciliation work or rather attempt at societal resilience? Does this resilience still have a therapeutic role that heals wounds and trauma? Or does it risk contributing to pushing the Lebanese into denial by adapting them to their new reality
STUDYING CHANGES AND ADDRESSING THE EFFECTS OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON RESTAURANTS
Get PDFSeveral everyday activities were majorly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, adapting these activities to become safe for people to perform and become covid-friendly required many studies. Dining out in restaurants was one of the major activities that were affected by this pandemic. Permanently or partially closed, restaurants adapted quickly to sidewalk pickups, and excessive delivery demand, and accordingly, their menus and even the staffing were shortened. Several months later, the foodservice industry was one of the first to move a step forward against coronavirus and positively adapt by coming up with creative and innovative ways to be able to re-open their doors and serve customers once again. Therefore, this research aims to study some new rules controlling restaurant settings. Additionally, it studies the different design strategies that are followed to come up with an optimum design proposal to overcome this pandemic, while suggesting and experimenting with some innovative ideas and technological value to create a sustainable futuristic design where safety measures and unique experiences are present. This would be achieved through a contextually based strategy by overviewing the problem and its related intellectual theories and studying similar emerging case studies. This strategy will help lead to the introduction of a new adaptable sustainable restaurant setting where employees\u27 and customers’ safety is the main derivative
PSYCHOMETRIC EVALUATION OF THE ADHERENCE TO REFILLS AND MEDICATIONS SCALE (ARMS) AMONG ADULTS PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC DISEASE: THE LEBANESE VERSION
Get PDFBackground: Non-adherence to medications can lead to several consequences that range from waste of drugs to death. Consequently, a tool to assess the adherence to chronic medication is a necessity. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to conduct the translation and cross-cultural adaptation process of ARMS into the Lebanese Arabic version (ARMS-A) and to examine its psychometric properties (validity and reliability assessment). Design: The original English version of ARMS was translated into Arabic based on the established guidelines. Eight expert panels were involved in content validation, while face validation was conducted on twenty participants during pilot testing. A cross-sectional survey was used to evaluate the psychometric properties of ARMS-A on 135 participants. Participants: Adults patients on chronic medications were invited to be part of the study. Main outcome measures: Overall content and universal face validity indexes were determined in addition to the exploratory factors and Cronbach’s alpha. Key Results: The overall content validity index was 0.91, and the universal face validity index was also 0.91. For the exploratory factor analysis, two factors were extracted. The first one consisted of 6 items and explained 43.9% of the variance. The second one also comprised of 6 items with a variance of 9.59%. For internal consistency and reliability, the Cronbach’s alpha was 0.877. Conclusion: ARMS-A appears to be a valid and reliable medication adherence tool to assess the adherence of chronic medications among native Arabic speaking patient with chronic diseases