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  1. Fulltext Radiogenic heat production estimation towards sustainable energy drive in northeastern Nigeria
    Yusuf AB, Lim HS, Ahmad Abir I
    Heliyon, 2023 Jun;9(6):e16310.
    PMID: 37274670 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e16310
    An estimate of the radiogenic heat production (RHP) across the different petrologic units of northeastern, Nigeria was previously not performed. Hence, their geothermal potentials are not widely known. However, an airborne radiometric data of equivalent uranium, (eU), equivalent thorium (eTh,) and percentage potassium (% K) acquired by Nigerian geological survey agency (NGSA) in the year 2009 was deployed in the evaluation of the RHP across the major petrologic outcrops of northeastern, Nigeria. The objective of this study is to estimate the quantity of RHP across the 13 petrologic units of the northeastern Nigerian terrain via the use of an empirical equation (RHP=ρ(0.0952Cu+0.0256CTh+0.0348Ck)). The petrologic units studied are; medium-coarse grained biotite-hornblende granites (OGe), porphyritic biotite-hornblende granites (OGp), banded gneiss (bG), charnokytes (Ch), ignimbrites (JYG), migmatites-gneiss (MG), basalts (bb), Gombe sandstones (GS), Pindiga Formation (PS), Yolde Formation (YL), Bima sandstones (BS), Keri-Keri Formation (KK), and alluvium (AL). Basic/preliminary processing such as; signal integration, signal validation, and examination of spurious data were applied prior to the RHP computation. The results of the heat production analysis performed show the range of RHP to be from 1.11μW/m3 to 3.35μW/m3 Hence, the maximum heat production value of 3.35μW/m3 was recorded along porphyritic biotite-hornblende granites (OGp) rock block, while the least value of 1.11μW/m3 was recorded over alluvium (AL) rock outcrops. Furthermore, the spatial distribution of the RHP values over the study location shows a gradual increase from the middle, low heat production (sedimentary zones) to the high heat producing areas (granitic and metamorphic zones) around eastern and western parts. The petrologic units arranged in order of decreasing magnitude of radiogenic heat generation are; OGp > MG > OGe/bG > bb > GS > Ch > JYG > BS > PS/YL > KK > AL. On a general note, the petrologic units studied were classified as low in terms of geothermal character based on comparison with other previous global RHP studies.
  2. Fulltext Effects of acceptance and commitment therapy on cognitive function: A systematic review
    Liu H, Liu N, Chong ST, Boon Yau EK, Ahmad Badayai AR
    Heliyon, 2023 Mar;9(3):e14057.
    PMID: 36938399 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e14057
    Cognitive function is essential for daily activities. Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) may improve cognitive function by enhancing psychological flexibility, but the underlying mechanism is unknown. This systematic review evaluated the effectiveness of ACT on cognitive function. Seven research databases (PubMed, ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, Web of Science, EBSCOhost, CNKI, Scopus, Wanfang) were searched to collect articles with trials published in English and Chinese. After applying inclusion and exclusion criteria, we identified 12 studies published between 1994 and 2022 that included a combined total of 904 participants. Among the included studies were within-group (N = 3) and randomized controlled trial (RCT, N = 9) study designs. Outcome measures included cognitive scales and behavioral measurements. Of the 12 articles, 10 studies showed improvements in certain domains of cognitive function due indirectly to ACT intervention. We found that the ability of ACT intervention to promote psychological flexibility is due to its transdiagnostic nature. Also, the effects of the ACT intervention were observed in multiple cognitive domains: attention, subjective cognitive function, executive function, and memory. In conclusion, cognitive trainers could consider practicing ACT as part of their strategy to enhance an individual's psychological flexibility and cognitive function.
  3. Corrigendum to "Effects of acceptance and commitment therapy on cognitive function: A systematic review" [Heliyon 9(3) (March 2023) e14057]
    Liu H, Liu N, Chong ST, Yau EKB, Ahmad Badayai AR
    Heliyon, 2023 May;9(5):e16023.
    PMID: 37305493 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e16023
    [This corrects the article DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e14057.].
  4. Fulltext Molecular investigation of antimicrobial peptides against Helicobacter pylori proteins using a peptide-protein docking approach
    Hanafiah A, Abd Aziz SNA, Md Nesran ZN, Wezen XC, Ahmad MF
    Heliyon, 2024 Mar 30;10(6):e28128.
    PMID: 38533069 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e28128
    The impact of H. pylori resistance on patient's treatment failure is a major concern. Therefore, the development of novel or alternative therapies for H. pylori is urgently needed. The purpose of this study was to investigate the molecular interactions of various antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) to H. pylori proteins. We performed the peptide-protein molecular docking using HADDOCK 2.4 webserver. Fourteen AMPs were tested for their binding efficacy against four H. pylori proteins. Simulation of the peptide-protein complex was performed using molecular dynamic software package AMBER20. From molecular docking analysis, five peptides (LL-37, Tilapia piscidin 4, napin, snakin-1 and EcAMP1) showed strong binding interactions against H. pylori proteins. The strongest binding affinity was observed in the interactions between Snakin-1 and PBP2, TP4 and type I HopQ and EcAMP1 and type I HopQ with -11.1, -13.6 and -13.8 kcal/mol, respectively. The dynamic simulation was performed for two complexes (snakin1-PBP2 and EcAMP1-HopQ). Results of the dynamics simulation showed that EcAMP1 had stable interaction and binding to type I HopQ protein without significant structural changes. In conclusion, both results of docking and simulation showed that EcAMP1 might be useful as a potential therapeutic agent for H. pylori treatment. This molecular approach provides deep understanding of the interaction insights between AMPs and H. pylori proteins. It paves the way for the development of novel anti-H. pylori using antimicrobial peptides.
  5. Fulltext Holistic approach to microwave-reflux extraction and thermo-analytical fingerprints of under-utilized Artocarpus heterophyllus seed wastes
    Olalere OA, Gan CY, Abdurahman HN, Adeyi O, Ahmad MM
    Heliyon, 2020 Aug;6(8):e04770.
    PMID: 32923719 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e04770
    The increase in wastes generated from jackfruit seeds has been largely under-utilized in Malaysia. Due to the high nutritional and medicinal content embedded in the cellulosic structure of jackfruit wastes, a need then arises for their physicochemical elucidations. In this study, the extraction of Artocarpus heterophyllus seed was carefully investigated using Taguchi orthogonal optimization design. Complete functional group characteristics and chemical profile of the A. heterophyllus seed extracts were obtained using different physicochemical characterization. The optimal conditions of the microwave extraction parameters were determined at 5 min of irradiation time, 450 W of power and 50 °C of temperature. Under this condition, the optimal yield of 17.34 (mg/g) % was achieved at an SNR ratio of 24.78. The mass spectrometry analysis tentatively identified a total of 90 and 148 secondary metabolites at positive and negative ESI modes, respectively. The chemical profile obtained provided a baseline reference for further investigation on the food and medicinal bioactive from Artocarpus heterophyllus seed oleoresins. The FT-infrared emission spectrum shows the presence of some specific carbohydrates and amide protein functional groups directly linked to C-O (1008 cm-1) the carbonyl (C=O) groups, respectively. Moreover, the morphological characteristics of the jackfruit raw and crude extracts conspicuously revealed large-sized globules which suggest the carbohydrates and protein contents. The result of this study indicates that the use of microwave extraction technology produced high-quality extracts with lower degradation of the thermal labile constituents. This will assist in determining the suitable conditions necessary for the total recovery of medicinal and nutritional constituents and conversion of agricultural waste products into useful products.
  6. Fulltext The properties and mechanism of action of plant immunomodulators in regulation of immune response - A narrative review focusing on Curcuma longa L., Panax ginseng C. A. Meyer and Moringa oleifera Lam
    Balasubramaniam M, Sapuan S, Hashim IF, Ismail NI, Yaakop AS, Kamaruzaman NA, et al.
    Heliyon, 2024 Apr 15;10(7):e28261.
    PMID: 38586374 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e28261
    Herbal treatments have been utilized for millennia to cure a variety of ailments. There are over 20, 000 herbal remedies available to treat cancer and other disease in humans. In Ayurveda, traditional plants having revitalizing and nourishing characteristics are known as "Rasayanas." They have anti-inflammatory, anticancer, anti-microbicidal, antiviral, and immunomodulatory effects on the immune system. Immunomodulation is a mechanism through which the body stimulates, suppresses, or boosts the immune system to maintain homeostasis. Plant-derived immunomodulators are typically phytocompounds, including carbohydrates, phenolics, lipids, alkaloids, terpenoids, organosulfur, and nitrogen-containing chemicals. Immunomodulation activity of phytocompounds from traditional plants is primarily mediated through macrophage activation, phagocytosis stimulation, peritoneal macrophage stimulation, lymphoid cell stimulation, and suppression or enhancement of specific and non-specific cellular immune systems via numerous signalling pathways. Despite extensive research, the precise mechanism of immunomodulation of most traditional plants has not yet been fully elucidated, justifying the need for further experimentation. Therefore, this review describes the immunomodulatory agents from traditional plants such as Curcuma longa L., Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer, and Moringa oleifera Lam, further highlighting the common molecular targets and immunomodulatory mechanism involved in eradicating diseases.
  7. Fulltext Numerically stable locality-preserving partial least squares discriminant analysis for efficient dimensionality reduction and classification of high-dimensional data
    Ahmad NA
    Heliyon, 2024 Feb 29;10(4):e26157.
    PMID: 38404905 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e26157
    Dimensionality reduction plays a pivotal role in preparing high-dimensional data for classification and discrimination tasks by eliminating redundant features and enhancing the efficiency of classifiers. The effectiveness of a dimensionality reduction algorithm hinges on its numerical stability. When data projections are numerically stable, they lead to enhanced class separability in the lower-dimensional embedding, consequently yielding higher classification accuracy. This paper investigates the numerical attributes of dimensionality reduction and discriminant subspace learning, with a specific focus on Locality-Preserving Partial Least Squares Discriminant Analysis (LPPLS-DA). High-dimensional data frequently introduce singularity in the scatter matrices, posing a significant challenge. To tackle this issue, the paper explores two robust implementations of LPPLS-DA. These approaches not only optimize data projections but also capture more discriminative features, resulting in a marked improvement in classification accuracy. Empirical evidence supports these findings through numerical experiments conducted on synthetic and spectral datasets. The results demonstrate the superior performance of the proposed methods when compared to several state-of-the-art dimensionality reduction techniques in terms of both classification accuracy and dimension reduction.
  8. Fulltext Antibacterial potential of silver nanoparticles (SP-AgNPs) synthesized from Syzygium polyanthum (Wight) Walp. against selected foodborne pathogens
    Khan S, Rukayadi Y, Jaafar AH, Ahmad NH
    Heliyon, 2023 Dec;9(12):e22771.
    PMID: 38125456 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e22771
    Foodborne diseases continue to pose a significant global health concern, causing a considerable number of deaths worldwide. In response to concerns surrounding bacterial resistance and the limitations of traditional antibiotics, there is a growing interest in exploring natural antibacterial agents as potential alternatives for addressing foodborne pathogens. Nowadays efforts are being made on exploring the potential of natural antibacterial agents against foodborne pathogens. In this study, the antibacterial efficacy of silver nanoparticles synthesized using S. polyanthum leaves extract (SP-AgNPs) against selected Gram-negative and Gram-positive foodborne pathogens was investigated by using multiple assays, including the well diffusion assay (WDA), minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC), and time-kill assay. The well diffusion assay demonstrated the inhibitory potential of SP-AgNPs against all tested foodborne pathogens, with inhibition zones ranging from 10.16 + 1.25 to 13.16 + 1.52 mm. Furthermore, the MIC values ranged from 0.008 to 0.125 mg/mL, indicating the potent antibacterial activity of SP-AgNPs across a broad spectrum of foodborne pathogens. The MBC values, ranging from 0.008 to 0.250 mg/mL, further confirming the bactericidal ability of SP-AgNPs against these pathogens. In the time-kill experiment, most foodborne pathogens were entirely killed after 4 h of incubation at 4 × MIC concentration. However, only E. coli, K. pneumoniae, and S. Typhimurium showed a reduction in population to 3 Log10 CFU/mL, indicating a strong bactericidal effect of SP-AgNPs on most tested pathogens. In conclusion, this study provides compelling evidence that SP-AgNPs exhibit potent antibacterial activity against selected foodborne pathogens. The findings suggest that SP-AgNPs synthesized using S. polyanthum leaves extract hold great promise as a novel antibacterial agent for effectively controlling foodborne pathogens. These findings contribute to continuing efforts in developing alternative strategies to prevent foodborne diseases and enhance food safety.
  9. Fulltext Method development for simultaneous estimation of Amlodipine Besylate and Perindopril Tertbutyl amine in fixed-dose
    Khan MFS, Tahir L, Zhou X, Bary G, Sajid M, Shahzad AK, et al.
    Heliyon, 2023 Mar;9(3):e14209.
    PMID: 36923897 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e14209
    The fixed-dose combination of Amlodipine Besylate (ADB) with Perindopril Tertbutylamine (PTBA) drug is used to treat patients with mild-to-moderate hypertension. In recent times researchers are interested to find the efficient analytical method development and validation for the simultaneous determination of ADB and PTBA in a fixed-dose, film-coated tablet. Therefore, the current study was performed with a reverse-phase liquid chromatography method developed to simultaneously analyze ADB and PTBA in film-coated tablets as fixed-dose combinations. The linearity of the proposed method was calculated by preparing six different mixtures of both ADB and PTBA in the mobile phase. The concentration of both the analytes was analyzed at 56mg/100 mL to 84mg/100 mL and 32mg/100 mL to 48mg/100 mL, respectively. The ratio of acetonitrile and phosphate buffer was 35:65. The flow rate was adjusted to 1.5 ml per minute to reduce the retention time. The validation study was performed for the parameters specificity, linearity, precision, range, limit of detection, limit of quantification, accuracy/biasness, and robustness. The relative percentage standard deviation for Perindopril Tertbutyl amine was 0.148%, and for Amlodipine is 0.312%. These results show that the advanced analysis method for simultaneous analysis of fixed-dose is precise. The theoretical IR spectra were also calculated by Gaussian 9.2 by employing the B3LYP functional at density functional theory (DFT) level study. All these parameters studied in this work authenticate the effectiveness of the developed validation method and ensure its repeatability/reproducibility accordingly. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time to develop a new fast, and easy method for simultaneous identification and quantification of ADB and PTBA by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with a time-efficient and cost-effective approach.
  10. Fulltext Do economic freedom, innovation, and technology enhance Chinese FDI? A cross-country panel data analysis
    Martins JM, Gul A, Mata MN, Haider SA, Ahmad S
    Heliyon, 2023 Jun;9(6):e16668.
    PMID: 37292261 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e16668
    This study evaluates the determinants of Economic freedom, innovation and technology concerning Chinese foreign direct investment. The aim of the study is to explore, that how these determinants influence Outward Foreign Direct Investment (OFDI) from China toward different regional economies. The study will enrich the existing literature by providing useful policies to the concerned economies to influence more Chinese FDI to host economies. The panel data set includes 27 (African, European, and Asian) Countries data over the period of 2003 to 2018. Moreover, the study employed panel data analysis and the result reveals that property rights, patents residents (pantentAR), Research & Development (R&D), Inflation, official exchange rate (OER), and Tax Burden (TaxB) have a strong positive and significant impact on Chinese OFDI in the selected sample countries, While Government Expenditures (GovE) has positive, but insignificant impact on Chinese OFDI. On the other hand, Chinese OFDI is negatively and statistically significant association with Business Freedom (BusF). This study will put forth considerable policies to the concerned to induce further inflows of Chinese FDI into the host countries. The policymakers should build policies that provide a comfortable environment for business activities and mostly focus on value-added production i.e., expenditures on R&D to enhance high-technology exports because they efficiently attract FDI into host countries. Another key factor is Tax Burden (TaxB), which significantly influences Chinese FDI along with other factors.
  11. Fulltext Assessment of the chemical hazard awareness of petrol tanker driver: A case study
    Syimir Fizal AN, Sohrab Hossain M, Alkarkhi AFM, Oyekanmi AA, Hashim SRM, Khalil NA, et al.
    Heliyon, 2019 Aug;5(8):e02368.
    PMID: 31485542 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2019.e02368
    Understanding the tanker driver hazard awareness on chemical exposure is important to ensure that they are fortified with the appropriate information regarding the risk of their occupation. This present study was conducted to determine the awareness of the petrol tanker driver on the chemical exposure during transportation petroleum product. The assessment on hazardous awareness of the petrol tank driver was conducted through questionnaire survey. Wherein, the questionnaire was designed with considering the variables of age of the driver, working experience, working hours in a day and knowledge on chemical hazard presence in the petroleum oil. A reliability test of Cronbach's Alpha was performed to validate the questionnaire and the Chi-Square test was conducted to determine the correlation among the studied variables. The findings of the present study revealed that the drivers who are frequently come into direct contact with petrol cannot identify the spillage had occurred during working. The study identified that there is an urgency to conduct training on safe handling of petroleum oil in order to eliminate the risk of chemical hazards exposure to the tanker driver.
  12. Fulltext Development and validation of a performance measurement system based on Islamic principles
    Leena Haniffah N, Sharaf Shaiban M, Ahmed P
    Heliyon, 2023 May;9(5):e16095.
    PMID: 37215915 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e16095
    The infamous malfeasance of corporate giants and the collapse of a financial system with global reverberations have further pressured the need for greater ethical discipline and consideration in business and finance. This study explored the motivations within firms as driven by their performance measurement systems (P.M.). Then, the study developed a newly proposed P.M.S. with greater ethical emphasis based on Islamic principles to be a foundation for augmented Sharia-compliant screening criteria for Islamic equities. Discourse analysis of the Islamic religious texts was used, followed by validation through interviews with scholars and practitioners. Results indicate that improving the current Sharia screening criteria is possible by expanding the qualitative and quantitative assessments to include indicators that consider shareholders, the board of directors and top management, business dealings and products, employee relations, community issues and environmental protection. This study has implications for regulators such as Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI), Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) and Sharia-compliant screening criteria users such as the Dow Jones Islamic Market (DJIM), Financial Times Stock Exchange (FTSE) and Standard and Poor's (S&P) that may consider expanding their current equity screening criteria which mainly depends on the issuer's business activity and narrow quantitative measures. This version: June 28, 2022.
  13. Fulltext Snapshot of antimicrobial stewardship programs in the hospitals of Pakistan: findings and implications
    Saleem Z, Hassali MA, Hashmi FK, Godman B, Ahmed Z
    Heliyon, 2019 Jul;5(7):e02159.
    PMID: 31384689 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2019.e02159
    Objective: We are unaware of the extent of antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) among hospitals in Pakistan, which is a concern given the population size, high use of antibiotics across sectors and increasing antimicrobial resistance (AMR) rates. Consequently, we sought to address this by undertaking a comprehensive survey.

    Method: In this cross-sectional observational study in Punjab, an instrument of the measure was developed based on health care facility characteristics and ASPs after an extensive literature review. The questionnaire was circulated by mail or through drop off surveys to medical superintendents or directors/heads of pharmacy departments of hospitals.

    Results: Out of 254, a total of 137 hospitals fully completed the questionnaire - 11 primary, 65 secondary, 46 tertiary and 15 specialized hospitals. The use of antimicrobial prescribing guidelines (68.7%), provision of infectious diseases consultation services (66.4%), clinical pharmacy service (65.7%), use of drug and therapeutics committees to approve antimicrobial prescribing (65.5%), regular audit by doctors on antimicrobial prescribing (54.1%) and use of a restricted formulary for antimicrobial (50.4%) were the most common ASPs. However, most of these activities were only somewhat or moderately successful. Whereas, electronic antimicrobial prescribing approval systems (15.3%), using a sticker to notify prescribers regarding the need to obtain approval for the antimicrobial prescribed (16.1%) and participation in the national antimicrobial utilization surveillance program (19.7%) were only seen in a few hospitals.

    Conclusion: Study inferred that there are inadequate ASPs in the hospitals of Pakistan. A multidisciplinary approach, clinical leadership and availability of motivated and trained individuals are essential elements for the success of future ASPs.

  14. Fulltext A new innovative breakthrough in the production of salt from bittern using a spray dryer
    Ansar A, Ahmad Yahaya AN, Kamil AA, Sabani R, Murad M, Aisyah S
    Heliyon, 2022 Oct;8(10):e11060.
    PMID: 36281398 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e11060
    Spray dryer had long been used to dry liquid materials and produce dry crystalline products. However, the drying of the bittern to produce quality salt crystals has not been widely published. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the effect of drying conditions of the bittern using a spray dryer to produce salt with a high natrium chloride (NaCl) content. Drying was carried out in the hot air temperature (105-125 °C), drying air flow rate (25-45 ml/min), feed flow rate (20-30 ml/min), and concentration of maltodextrin (10-30%). The parameters were observed water content, NaCl content, yield, and mean particle diameter size (MPDS). The results showed that the inlet air temperature of 125 °C can significantly reduce the water content faster and produce higher NaCl levels than the inlet air temperature of 105 °C. The salt crystals produced at higher maltodextrin concentrations have lower water content and high NaCl content. The best-operating conditions are at a hot air temperature of 125 °C, a drying airflow rate of 45 m/s, and a maltodextrin concentration of 25% because it produces salt crystals with high NaCl content. Overall, these results indicate that the bittern can be dried using a spray dryer with potential NaCl content as a raw material for the pharmaceutical industry.
  15. Fulltext Corrigendum to "A new innovative breakthrough in the production of salt from bittern using a spray dryer" [Heliyon 8 (10) (2022) e11060]
    Ansar, Ahmad Yahaya AN, Kamil AA, Sabani R, Murad, Aisyah S
    Heliyon, 2022 Dec;8(12):e12455.
    PMID: 36619405 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e12455
    [This corrects the article DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e11060.].
  16. Fulltext Unravelling trends, patterns and intellectual structure of research on bankruptcy in SMEs: A bibliometric assessment and visualisation
    Rashid U, Abdullah M, Khatib SFA, Khan FM, Akhter J
    Heliyon, 2024 Jan 30;10(2):e24254.
    PMID: 38293348 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e24254
    Despite the burgeoning interest among academics in investigating the factors contributing to the high business failure rate among SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises), the systematic synthesis of the literature on bankruptcy in SMEs is restricted. This article aims to significantly advance the understanding of the causes and repercussions of bankruptcy in SMEs and the preventative actions that may be taken to avoid it. This review assesses 282 articles from 175 outlets employing quantitative and statistics-based bibliometric tools. This bibliometric assessment helped delineate the citation and publication trends and the top contributors to the domain. The underlying thematic clusters of research on bankruptcy in SMEs were also identified, deciphered and elaborated, along with charting the future research vistas through the lens of theory, context, and methods framework. The authors believe this bibliometric variant of systematic literature review makes a significant contribution to bankruptcy and SME research by highlighting the development of the literature and some of the most active research fronts in the domain by offering insights that were not clasped thoroughly or assessed by prior literature assessments.
  17. Fulltext Negative psychological and educational impacts of Corona Virus Anxiety on Chinese university students: Exploring university students' perceptions
    Zhao S, Akhter S
    Heliyon, 2023 Oct;9(10):e20373.
    PMID: 37780746 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e20373
    COVID-19 has greatly affected various aspects of societies worldwide, including the mental health and quality of education for students. Different studies investigated the consequences of the pandemic, but only a few studies have addressed the negative psychological and educational impacts of Corona Virus Anxiety (CVA). This study addresses the effects of CVA on Chinese students and explores university perceptions of its consequences. A mixed-methods research design was used, with 440 university students selected through convenience sampling. The researchers used the CVA scale, generalized anxiety scale, mental health questionnaire, and a self-report scale to assess the students' educational attainment. In addition, 14 students were interviewed for the qualitative phase of the study. Data from the quantitative phase were analyzed using Pearson correlation and descriptive statistics, while content analysis techniques were employed for analyzing the qualitative data. Results showed that CVA is negatively associated with students' anxiety, stress, and depression. Furthermore, stress, anxiety, depression, and CVA were found to be negatively associated with students' GPAs. Qualitative findings revealed that CVA negatively affected students' GPAs, research projects, classroom engagement, and graduations. The findings are theoretically and practically important to universities, schools, and educational centers to avoid the effects of the CVA on students' educational attainment and mental health through appropriate planning and providing facilities to the students during the lockdown.
  18. Investigating research students' perceptions about statistics and its impact on their choice of research approach
    Dani A, Al Quraan E
    Heliyon, 2023 Oct;9(10):e20423.
    PMID: 37822608 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e20423
    In the information society, there is a vast amount of data that needs to be analyzed quantitatively. The ability to perform quantitative analysis based on statistical thinking and data mining, is becoming extremely important. It is important that research students develop positive attitude towards both qualitative and quantitative research approaches. But many research students try to avoid applying quantitative methods in their research and prefer to rely on qualitative research approach due to lack of interest and confidence in statistical skills. This research aims to explore if research students' choice of research approach is affected by their attitude towards Statistics. 81 research students from three different universities participated in a survey in which there was one open ended question. Quantitative data from the survey was analyzed by using cluster analysis and independent sample t-test was applied to examine differences in the attitudes of masters and doctoral research students. Other data analysis methods, such as cross-tabular analysis, chi-square and ANOVA tests were also applied. Responses to open ended question were analyzed qualitatively by detecting the themes, such as, focus on technique, data or meaning. This study found that students pursuing postgraduate degrees in social science streams are not very keen on using a quantitative research approach. Masters students' attitudes towards statistics are different than the doctoral students. Findings of our research indicate that the majority of students who think that statistics is only about numeric methods, prefer to go away from it and choose a qualitative approach. Based on the findings, recommendations for changes in curriculum are presented.
  19. Fulltext Jordanian English language educators' perceived readiness for virtual learning environment
    Madanat H, Ab Rashid R, Hashmi UM, Alqaryouti MH, Mohamed M, Al Smadi OA
    Heliyon, 2024 Feb 29;10(4):e25766.
    PMID: 38370217 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e25766
    Online engagement has assumed a pivotal role within educational pedagogy, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study delves into the perceptions of Jordanian English language educators regarding their preparedness for online teaching in the post-pandemic landscape. In this quantitative study, a group of 101 English language educators from Jordanian universities participated, and their responses were subjected to analysis through descriptive statistics. The findings of this analysis indicate that the respondents exhibited a moderate level of familiarity with technology and e-learning platforms, alongside a similarly moderate level of competence in managing their online courses. Furthermore, the study underscores a noteworthy gap in their exposure to online education, despite their considerable tenure in teaching English. Consequently, the study underscores the necessity for tailored training programs designed to comprehensively enhance the online teaching proficiency of English language educators, thereby facilitating a more effective virtual learning environment.
  20. Fulltext Risk assessment of driver performance in the oil and gas transportation industry: Analyzing the relationship between driver vigilance, attention, reaction time, and safe driving practices
    Al-Mekhlafi AA, Isha ASN, Chileshe N, Kineber AF, Ajmal M, Baarimah AO, et al.
    Heliyon, 2024 Mar 30;10(6):e27668.
    PMID: 38515678 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e27668
    The increasing use of road traffic for land transportation has resulted in numerous road accidents and casualties, including those involving oil and gas tanker vehicles. Despite this, little empirical research has been conducted on the factors influencing tanker drivers' performance. This study aims to address this knowledge gap, particularly in the energy transportation industry, by examining the driving performance factors that affect tanker drivers and incorporating risk assessment measures. The model variables were identified from the literature and used to develop a survey questionnaire for the study. A total of 307 surveys were collected from Malaysian oil and gas tanker drivers, and the driving performance factors were contextually adjusted using the Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) approach. The driving performance model was developed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). The EFA results categorized driving performance into two constructs: 1) drivers' reaction time with β = 0.320 and 2) attention and vigilance with β value = 0.749. The proposed model provided full insight into how drivers' reaction time, attention, and vigilance impact drivers' performance in this sector, which can help identify potential risks and prevent accidents. The findings are significant in understanding the factors that affect oil and gas drivers' performance and can aid in enhancing oil and gas transportation management by including effective risk assessment measures to prevent fatal crashes.
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