Thursday, September 01, 2005

KARACHI: E-education programme to start soon at DUHS

KARACHI, Aug 31: E-Education Programme would become an integral component of Dow University of Health Sciences in the next three months along with a full-fledged digital library.

This was stated by DUHS Vice-Chancellor Prof Masood Hameed Khan while addressing the inaugural session of a seminar organized by the Health Times Academy, an NGO of Sindh-based senior medical professionals, in collaboration with DUHS at Arag Auditorium on Wednesday.

He announced that the E-Education Programme would be simultaneously complimented by the digital library project at the university enhancing direct accessibility of students and faculty members associated with the Dow Medical College, Sindh Medical College and Ojha Institute of Chest Diseases to all online journals and archives.

For the very purpose, 100 work stations are being made available at Dow Medical College, 70 at SMC besides a sizable number at Ojha Institute of Chest Diseases, he said.

Appreciative of the initiative undertaken by Health Times Academy, the vice-chancellor said that it was extremely appropriate and contributory to further strengthening the ongoing Continuing Medical Education Programme at DUHS.

Prof Masood Hameed reminded that the university fully conscious of the importance to update the knowledge of family physicians and young medical graduates had already chalked out education-cum-training programmes particularly focussed on the commonest diseases inflicting local population.

“DUHS has already chalked out a programme comprising a series of 24 lectures for local general medical practitioners and family physicians,” he said adding that Dow varsity is also in process to incorporate a mandatory education-cum-training programme in 20 diseases, most pertinent to Pakistan, for its final year students about to start with their house jobs.

Prof Abdul Ghaffar Billoo appreciated the Health Times Academy for its selection of topics ranging from diabetes to enteric fever which were registered to be fast growing in Pakistan.

Prof Ali Ansari observed that proper guidance and provision for updating knowledge among family physicians was largely lacking. He stressed that the gap between family physicians and specialists be bridged as in any society they ought to be complimentary to each other.

Health Times Academy President Prof Zaman Sheikh, in his welcome address, said that the academy functioning for the last five years had embarked upon a series of continuing medical education programme for family physicians scattered across the province.

First of the series of programmes, he said, was held in Mirpurkhas on Aug 27 and the last programme in Sukkur on Sept 3. —APP

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Copyright C. 2002 - 2004
Pakistan Science and Engineering Foundation (R)
"Kindling the Flame of Science in Pakistan (TM)"
PakSEF (TM) Daily Science News Update
www.paksef.org
=====================================================

KARACHI: Tampered lines caused contamination, says KWSB

KARACHI, Aug 31: The Managing Director of Karachi Water and Sewerage Board, Brig (retd) Iftikhar Haider, on Wednesday said that tampering with water supply lines in some kutchi abadies had resulted in contamination of water.

During his visit to Essa Nagri and Manno Goth in Gulshan-i-Iqbal, he said that some residents of kutchi abadies used to get water connection by illegally breaking water supply lines. He added that these people did not follow mechanical needs to check seepage into these lines, which result in water contamination.

On the occasion, he inspected affected water supply lines of the area. KWBS engineers told him that people used to take water connections for their homes by using PVC and plastic pipes and they did not use durable rubber washers in these connections and instead use pieces of sponge sleepers. They said that this makeshift procedure created leakage and seepage problems, ultimately contaminating the water, when suction pumps are used to get water.

KWSB chief requested the citizens not to tamper with water lines for getting illegal connections instead contact KWSB staff for obtaining legal and safe water connection.

He said that in case of any complaint regarding supply of contaminated water, citizens could contact chief engineer water supply on phone numbers 9231221 or 9231218. He said that after drive to clean manholes, the complaints of water contamination were decreasing.

Later, Brig Iftikhar went to Sakhi Hasan and inspected the 33-inch-dia water supply line that had burst. The affected pipeline was changed and water supply had been resumed. —PPI

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Copyright C. 2002 - 2004
Pakistan Science and Engineering Foundation (R)
"Kindling the Flame of Science in Pakistan (TM)"
PakSEF (TM) Daily Science News Update
www.paksef.org
=====================================================

Monday, July 04, 2005

Rs400 million allocated for research in nano medicine

Rs400 million allocated for research in nano medicine

ISLAMABAD, July 3: The government has allocated Rs400 million for two premier institutes, Comsats and the National Institute for Biomedical and Genetic Engineering (Nibge) Faisalabad, for research in nano medicine.

This was stated by Dr Raheel Qamar, who is studying the discipline at the Comsats Institute of Nano Technology, at the monthly meeting of the Scientists Club here on Saturday.

He said the first application of the nano-medicine technology in the country would be development of kits for diagnoses of different diseases. He announced that indigenous development of these kits would be started soon, saving valuable foreign exchange.

At present, these kits are imported, he said, adding that “in most cases, these kits were not suitable to our particular environment as the diseases found in foreign countries differed from those found here, so we ought to develop these kits on the basis of data obtained in the country”.

A lot of studies in this regard are being done at Nibge, Faisalabad.

Dr Qamar said huge advancement had been made worldwide in therapeutic uses of nano-medicine technology, particularly in treating cancer. The technology can also be helpful in treating coronary diseases.

“Because of their small size, nanoparticles have the advantage of easily interacting with biomolecules on the surface of cells or inside. In addition, nano medicine has the potential of reducing the morbidity and morality among patients.”

Former commandant of Armed Forces Institute of Pathology Gen (retired) I.T. Burney, who presided over the event, appreciated the efforts of nano-medicine diagnostic expert Dr Qamar for keeping his country in stride with progress in the new technology.

He said many Muslim countries were looking up to Pakistan for assimilating new developments in science and technology which would be of use to them in later years.

Gen Burney said: “We are lucky that we have made progress in related diagnostic fields. He recalled that the country received its first electronic microscope able to magnify a cell 40 times during his time.”

Later, Gen Burney said he was given funds to acquire an electronic microscope that could magnify things 100 times. “We have now acquired the capacity to actually see the structure of cells and a time would come when we could deliver therapeutic agents directly to the affected cells,” he said. — Jonaid Iqbal



======================================================
Copyright C. 2002 - 2004
Pakistan Science and Engineering Forum (R)
"Kindling the Flame of Science in Pakistan (TM)"
PakSEF (TM) Daily Science News Update
=====================================================

Sunday, July 03, 2005

Fibre-optic cable fault remains untraced

Fibre-optic cable fault remains untraced

By Bahzad Alam Khan

KARACHI, July 3: Engineers working on the snapped Internet link failed on Sunday to trace the fault in SEA-ME-WE-3, world’s longest fibre-optic cable. The engineers are aboard a ship sent by the 92-party consortium that runs the cable to the coast of Karachi.

The president of the Pakistan Telecommunication Company, Mr Junaid Khan, told Dawn that in a repair operation that involved scores of technical experts from various countries, the defective portion of the undersea SEA-ME-WE-3 had been narrowed down to around five kilometres.

“Frankly, the fault has not been traced. Previously, we had narrowed the defective portion down to 15 kilometres. At the moment engineers working aboard the ship sent in by a UAE-based company, E-Marine, were scanning five kilometres of the 39,000-kilometre-long fibre-optic link, which is believed to contain the defective portion,” he said.

Pakistan made an initial investment of $35 million in SEA-ME-WE-3. It pays around $2.5 million as maintenance cost, including repair cost, to the consortium annually.

The PTCL president said: “Apparently the undersea fibre-optic link is not damaged. If it had been damaged, it would have been easy to detect it. Besides, the rough weather has made the fault localization process, a tedious exercise in the best of times, even more cumbersome. Engineers are having a hard time differentiating between noise and signals sent back by the faulty portion of the cable in what is known as sonic testing.”



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Copyright C. 2002 - 2004
Pakistan Science and Engineering Forum (R)
"Kindling the Flame of Science in Pakistan (TM)"
PakSEF (TM) Daily Science News Update
=====================================================

Wednesday, June 08, 2005

Summer Confrence in Mathematics

LAHORE UNIVERSITY OF MANAGEMENT SCIENCES
Centre for Advanced Studies in Mathematics


SUMMER CONFERENCE
IN MATHEMATICS
(July 18-19, 2005)

1st Announcement


CASM is organizing this conference, with the view to broaden the research interests of young mathematicians by providing an opportunity to discuss recent developments in various fields and to assess future directions. The organizing committee invite all those interested, to intimate by June 15, 2005 through an e-mail to: kashifi@lums.edu.pk.

Organizing Committee:Dr. M. Aslam Butt (Convener), Dr. M. Naeem Qureshi

Venue: Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), Lahore.
For further detail please visit: http://web.lums.edu.pk/~casm/summerconference.html
======================================================
Copyright C. 2002 - 2004
Pakistan Science and Engineering Forum (R)
"Kindling the Flame of Science in Pakistan (TM)"
PakSEF (TM) Daily Science News Update
=====================================================

Sunday, March 13, 2005

Pakistan to send centrifuge parts to IAEA for testing: diplomat

VIENNA (AFP)
13 March 2005

Pakistan will send centrifuge parts to the UN nuclear watchdog to help determine whether uranium contamination found in Iran came from imported equipment, as Iran claims, a Western diplomat said here.

"The centrifuge parts will be sent to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) laboratory in Seibersdorf," near Vienna, he said.

The IAEA is investigating contamination by microscopic particles of highly enriched uranium (HEU) found at the Kalaye workshop in Tehran.
HEU can be fuel for civilian nuclear reactors but also can be used to make nuclear weapons.

The diplomat said that the centrifuge parts should come from the same set of centrifuges that were used at Kalaye, "otherwise it wouldn't serve any purpose."

IAEA technicians at Seibersfdorf will be checking for HEU contamination and to see whether the "signature" or isotope configuration of the contamination at Kahle matches that of the parts from Pakistan.

A diplomat close to the IAEA told AFP that they were looking at HEU contamination at several
sites in Iran besides Kahle.

The diplomat said he would be "happy when the parts actually arrive," adding that the investigation was a very delicate matter.

Britain, France and Germany, on behalf of the European Union, have been trying to persuade Tehran to permanently abandon its capacity to produce HEU in return for a package of incentives.

The diplomatic effort is aimed at securing "objective guarantees" that Iran will not produce nuclear weapons.

The United States charges that Iran has a clandestine nuclear weapons program and wants the IAEA to bring Tehran before the UN Security Council for possible sanctions.

But IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei says that while Iran hid sensitive nuclear activity for almost two decades, "the jury is still out" on whether Tehran is trying to develop atomic weapons.
======================================================
Copyright C. 2002 - 2004
Pakistan Science and Engineering Forum (R)
"Kindling the Flame of Science in Pakistan (TM)"
PakSEF (TM) Daily Science News Update
=====================================================

Friday, January 28, 2005

Compliments Of The Seasons From Mr Turkin & Monica






Dear Sir,
I Hope This Mail Meets You In Good Health And Spirit, I Am, TURKIN EZE,
A Sierra Leonia. Presently, I Live As A Refugee In republic of senegal
dakar , With My Younger Sister, MONICA.I Am A Victim Of War And The Son
Of Late Chief Dr.O.ONUORAH The Assassinated Former Assistant Director Of
Sierra Leone Gold And Diamond Mining Corporation.
My Father Was Killed With Other Government Officials During Official
Hours When The Rebel Troops Stormed And Raided The Mining Corporation
Office At The Heat Of The Crisis In My Country. A Few Weeks Later, The
Rebels Also Invaded Our Residential Building In Which My Mother And Two
Of Our Security Men Were Killed In The Compound While I Was Out For A
Special Research Program And My Younger Sister Was In School.
I Had A Singular Shock And Trauma, Which Compelled Us To Flee From The
Country To republic of senegal dakar By The Help Of An Army Colonel, Who
Is A Close Friend Of My Late Father,We Would Like To Further Our Education If
Not For The Death Of My Parents. I Have Never Worked To Earn My Living
Since My Late Parents Had Enough Wealth For Us.
I Am Contacting You Now Because Of The Present Difficulty I Am Facing.
Unfortunately My Father's Two Accounts In West Africa Have Recently Been
Frozen.However This Did Not Affect The Twenty Million And Six Hundred
Thousand Dollars(Us$ 20,600,000), Which He Kept In a Foreign Finance Fairm
Banking On My Name As The Next Of Kin.
For Now, I Am Having Every Information And Document Needed For The
Clearance Of The Money In The Foreign Finance Firm Banking Here With Me And
I Want You To Act As The Beneficiary Of The Fund For Easy And Smooth
Transfer To Your Account Abroad For Investment Purposes.
You Will No Doubt Be Adequately Compensated With As Well As A Percentage
Of The Profit From Investment Of The Fund. Also You Will See To It That
My Sister And I Come Over To Your Country At The Earliest Possible Time.
I Am Making This Request To You With Tears In My Eyes And I Feel That God
Almighty Will Touch You With His Spirit To Listen To My Cry For Help And
Answer Me Without Delay.
Since Our Breadwinner Is No More And This Is The Only Hope For Life.
You Positive Response Will Give Me The Greatest Joy And Relief. God Bless
You For Your Kind Assistance We Have Agreed To Offer You
35% Of The Total Sum.Seriously Waiting For Your Urgent Reply Below Email.
Email :turkineze2004@walla.com.
Best regard,
MR.TURKIN.E.ONUORAH



Compliments Of The Seasons From Mr Turkin & Monica






Dear Sir,
I Hope This Mail Meets You In Good Health And Spirit, I Am, TURKIN EZE,
A Sierra Leonia. Presently, I Live As A Refugee In republic of senegal
dakar , With My Younger Sister, MONICA.I Am A Victim Of War And The Son
Of Late Chief Dr.O.ONUORAH The Assassinated Former Assistant Director Of
Sierra Leone Gold And Diamond Mining Corporation.
My Father Was Killed With Other Government Officials During Official
Hours When The Rebel Troops Stormed And Raided The Mining Corporation
Office At The Heat Of The Crisis In My Country. A Few Weeks Later, The
Rebels Also Invaded Our Residential Building In Which My Mother And Two
Of Our Security Men Were Killed In The Compound While I Was Out For A
Special Research Program And My Younger Sister Was In School.
I Had A Singular Shock And Trauma, Which Compelled Us To Flee From The
Country To republic of senegal dakar By The Help Of An Army Colonel, Who
Is A Close Friend Of My Late Father,We Would Like To Further Our Education If
Not For The Death Of My Parents. I Have Never Worked To Earn My Living
Since My Late Parents Had Enough Wealth For Us.
I Am Contacting You Now Because Of The Present Difficulty I Am Facing.
Unfortunately My Father's Two Accounts In West Africa Have Recently Been
Frozen.However This Did Not Affect The Twenty Million And Six Hundred
Thousand Dollars(Us$ 20,600,000), Which He Kept In a Foreign Finance Fairm
Banking On My Name As The Next Of Kin.
For Now, I Am Having Every Information And Document Needed For The
Clearance Of The Money In The Foreign Finance Firm Banking Here With Me And
I Want You To Act As The Beneficiary Of The Fund For Easy And Smooth
Transfer To Your Account Abroad For Investment Purposes.
You Will No Doubt Be Adequately Compensated With As Well As A Percentage
Of The Profit From Investment Of The Fund. Also You Will See To It That
My Sister And I Come Over To Your Country At The Earliest Possible Time.
I Am Making This Request To You With Tears In My Eyes And I Feel That God
Almighty Will Touch You With His Spirit To Listen To My Cry For Help And
Answer Me Without Delay.
Since Our Breadwinner Is No More And This Is The Only Hope For Life.
You Positive Response Will Give Me The Greatest Joy And Relief. God Bless
You For Your Kind Assistance We Have Agreed To Offer You
35% Of The Total Sum.Seriously Waiting For Your Urgent Reply Below Email.
Email :turkineze2004@walla.com.
Best regard,
MR.TURKIN.E.ONUORAH



Friday, January 14, 2005

Khwarimi Science Society Workshop on Nano-Materials

KHWARZIMIC IN 2005 (The Year of Physics): Want to lead a seminar? Want to propose a speaker? Please contact us at info@khwarzimic.org.

Dear Member / SubscriberAssalam-o-alaikumThe Khwarzimic Science Society has organized a one-day workshop on:NANOMATERIALS: THE INVISIBLE MADE VISIBLEon Monday, 17 Jan 2005 at 11 am at the Centre for Solid State Physics,Quaid-e-Azam Campus, Punjab University, Lahore.

The workshop instructor is Umair Manzoor from the Nano-cermaics Lab,KAIST, Korea.The workshop will comprise four presentations of one hour each. Lunchbreak will be at 1 pm.For details, posters and abstracts, please visit http://www.khwarzimic.org.

The workshop will be oriented for beginners to the field of nanotechnologyand nanomaterials. It will focus on preparing such materials andstructures. Students and faculties are equally welcome. The workshop isfree of cost. However we encourage you to register.

Please email us atinfo@khwarzimic.org or call us at the following cell numbers:0300-4605930 (Sabieh), 0300-4154574 (Shahab)We look forward to seeing you on Monday.Dr. Sabieh AnwarJoint SecretaryKhwarzimic Science Society

======================================================
Copyright C. 2002 - 2004
Pakistan Science and Engineering Forum (R)
"Kindling the Flame of Science in Pakistan (TM)"
PakSEF (TM) Daily Science News Update
=====================================================

Sunday, January 09, 2005

‘Quake may have made Earth wobble’

The deadly Asian earthquake may have permanently accelerated the Earth’s rotation – shortening days by a fraction of a second – and caused the planet to wobble on its axis, US scientists say. Richard Gross, a geophysicist with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, theorized that a shift of mass toward the Earth’s centre during the quake on Sunday caused the planet to spin 3 microseconds, or 3 millionths of a second, faster and to tilt about an inch on its axis. When one huge tectonic plate beneath the Indian Ocean was forced below the edge of another “it had the effect of making the Earth more compact and spinning faster,” Gross said. The Earth’s poles travel a circular path that normally varies by about 33 feet, so an added wobble of an inch is unlikely to cause long-term effects, he said. reuters

[For further information visit the International Earth Rotation and Refrence System (IERS) wbsite at http://www.iers.org/ ]
======================================================
Copyright C. 2002 - 2004
Pakistan Science and Engineering Forum (R)
"Kindling the Flame of Science in Pakistan (TM)"
PakSEF (TM) Daily Science News Update
=====================================================