Search results for: performance improvement

Authors: Hafsat Mustapha Hanga

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The purpose of the this study was to investigate the effect of broken home on students' academic performance. Therefore, it focused on academic performance and Parental care of the student from and intact home from a cognitive motivational perceptive. The broken and intact home and also to find out if they differ in parental care this is done by using 376 subjects out of the population of 21,378. The sample was obtained using stratified random sampling techniques as the population contained sub-groups the study design was ex-post facto. The data was collected using 3 kind of instruments. To test the first and second hypotheses. Junior secondary school placement examination result was obtained to test the academic performance of the boys fron broken home and boys from and boys from intact home and then girl from broken home and girls from intact home.T-Test was used in the analysis of first and second hypotheses. For the third hypotheses two different kind of questionnaires were developed, the first was used to identify student that are from broken home while the second was for testing parental care between the subject. Chi-square was used to analyze the third hypotheses. Alkh the three 3 hypotheses were tested and rejected and were all in favor of student from intact home. The study found that there was a significant difference in the academic performance of the boys from brokeb and boys from intact home. When boys from intact home better then those boys from broken home. It also reveals that a student from a intact from intact home receives good parental care, love and concern than those from broken home.on the strength of these findings the need to establish an institution which will help those parent who have parenting problems was stressed and also the need to foster. Home school partnership was also stressed and advocate.

Keywords: broken homes, academic performance, parental care, foster

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Authors: Rahmat Irawan, Mundhir Hanifsyam Harahap, Andar Ristabet Hesda

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As a public sector organization in Indonesia, Directorate General of State Asset Management (DGSAM) which is a unit under the Ministry of Finance of The Republic of Indonesia, has many constraints in managing its employees. While private organizations are able to conduct a human resource management as the best practice, DGSAM is limited by many regulations, especially about punishment and lay off policy for under-performance employees. Therefore, since 2015, DGSAM tries to implement a new and uncommon approach considering employees’ preference to encourage the motivation and performance of employees. DGSAM’s employees may propose the job places, and DGSAM considers them in deciding employees deployment. This study tries to determine the impact of preference-based approach toward employees’ satisfaction and organizational performance. This study uses quantitative approaches by regression analysis to measure the impact of deployment toward satisfaction of deployed employees and performance change of related units in DGSAM. The result of this study shows that preference-based approach significantly improves employees’ satisfaction and performance of related units as well. Based on the results of this study, it can be suggested that the approach is able to be implemented in the wider scope of the Ministry of Finance of The Republic of Indonesia and whole public sector organization in Indonesia. However, this study only focuses on short term measurement, so it is suggested to do further study to analyze the long-term impact.

Keywords: employee deployment, employee satisfaction, human resource management, organizational performance, preference-based approach

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Authors: Inkyu Kim, SangMan Moon

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This IEEE 802.11b protocol provides up to 11Mbps data rate, whereas aerospace industry wants to seek higher data rate COTS data link system in the UAV. The Total Maximum Throughput (TMT) and delay time are studied on many researchers in the past years This paper provides theoretical data throughput performance of UAV formation flight data link using the existing 802.11b performance theory. We operate the UAV formation flight with more than 30 quad copters with 802.11b protocol. We may be predicting that UAV formation flight numbers have to bound data link protocol performance limitations.

Keywords: UAV datalink, UAV formation flight datalink, UAV WLAN datalink application, UAV IEEE 802.11b datalink application

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Authors: May A. Massoud, R. Harissi

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The fundamental principle and overall goal of an Environmental Management System is the concept of continual improvement. The implementation of such a system reveals a commitment to compliance and sustainable development. This research project aims at identifying and evaluating the prospects and challenges facing the adoption of ISO 14001 standard in the higher education system of Lebanon. It examines the corresponding barriers, drivers and incentives associated with the implementation of the standard. For this purpose, primary data were collected using quantitative method. The results revealed a significant lack of knowledge and sense of responsibility towards ISO 14001 standard and environmental accountability. Improving educational and social responsibility, improving environmental performance and enhancing institution image are the most noticeable drivers to adopt ISO 14001. The main perceived barriers for acquiring the standard are unclear benefits of ISO 14001, the lack of government support and the fact that the standard is not seen as a priority by top management. Lebanese Higher Education institutions are far likely to consider ISO 14001 before having proper accreditation programs or until ISO 14001 become widely-known in the Lebanese economic sectors.

Keywords: ISO 14001, higher education institution, environmental management, system

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Authors: Peerawat Chailom, Pimgarn Suwan-Natada

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The objective of this study is to examine the effects of e-commerce integrated for export marketing strategy on export advantage and firm performance. This study indicates that e-commerce infrastructure, organizational learning for e-commerce, and internet dissemination were antecedent of e-commerce integrated for export marketing strategy. In additional, export expertise is moderating variable of the research. In this study, 151 export businesses in Thailand are the sample of study. The results of study indicate that e-commerce integrated for export marketing strategy has significant positive influences on export advantage and export performance. Moreover, e-commerce infrastructure, organizational learning for e-commerce, and internet dissemination are have positive effects on e-commerce integrated for export marketing strategy. For moderating effect, export expertise significant influences on the relationships between e-commerce integrated for export marketing strategy and export advantage, and significant influences on the relationships between e-commerce integrated for export marketing strategy and export performance. Theoretical and practical implications are presented. Conclusion and suggestions for future research are also discussed.

Keywords: e-commerce integrated for export marketing, e-commerce infrastructure, organizational learning for e-commerce, export performance

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Authors: Chander Kant, Arun Kumar

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Biometric systems automatically recognize an individual based on his/her physiological and behavioral characteristics. There are also some traits like weight, age, height etc. that may not provide reliable user recognition because of there common and temporary nature. These traits are called soft bio metric traits. Although soft bio metric traits are lack of permanence to uniquely and reliably identify an individual, yet they provide some beneficial evidence about the user identity and may improve the system performance. Here in this paper, we have proposed an approach for integrating the soft bio metrics with fingerprint and face to improve the performance of personal authentication system. In our approach we have proposed a combined architecture of three different sensors to elevate the system performance. The approach includes, soft bio metrics, fingerprint and face traits. We have also proven the efficiency of proposed system regarding FAR (False Acceptance Ratio) and total response time, with the help of MUBI (Multimodal Bio metrics Integration) software.

Keywords: FAR, minutiae point, multimodal bio metrics, primary bio metric, soft bio metric

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Authors: Denila Jinny Arulraj, Thillai Rajan Annamalai

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This paper aims to study the relationship between funding sources and firm performance of Indian private limited SMEs using cross-sectional data obtained from a nation-wide census. A unique feature of the study is that it analyses firms that use only one form of external funding. Employing Propensity Score Matching, we find that obtaining any form of external finance has a negative influence on equivalents of profit margin and return on assets and a negative influence on asset turnover of small firms. But, the impact of institutional sources of funding on small enterprises is found to be lesser than that of non-institutional sources of funding. External/institutional sources of funding have a less negative impact on the profit margin for medium enterprises and have no significant influence on other measures of performance. The contribution of this research is the discovery of institutional sources wielding a lesser influence on performance measures considered. It is also found that institutional sources can benefit small enterprises more than medium enterprises.

Keywords: external finance, institutional finance, non-institutional finance, performance, India, SME

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Authors: Ayman Haddad, Wafaa Sbeiti, Amr Qasem

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The main aim of this paper is to provide an overview of the most influential economic changes and accounting legislation affecting financial reporting and disclosure practices in Jordan. It also provides an overview of disclosure studies conducted in Jordan covering the year(s) between 1986 and 2014. The economic changes in Jordan required conducting economic reform and revising/issuing new regulations and financial market reforms that led to an improvement in disclosure practices. The issuance of Temporary Securities Law and its Directives of Disclosure in 1997, which came into effect in 1998, is considered as the turning point in the improvement of disclosure practice in Jordan. Based on a review of prior disclosure studies, we conclude that disclosure practices have improved overtime. We also observe that that firm size as a factor has always affected the level of disclosure in Jordan and followed by external auditing while liquidity was found to have the least effect. The paper also addresses the disclosure items required in Corporate Governance Codes that exist for listed shareholding companies, banks, and insurance companies. Finally, the paper discusses the quality of accounting education in Jordan since prior studies noted its impact on accounting practice.

Keywords: accounting legislation, corporate governance, disclosure practice, Jordan

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Authors: Keivan Seyyedi, Leila Esmaeilpour, Seyed Jamal Sadeghi

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Investigating the effectiveness of explicit focus on form on the written performance of the EFL learners was the aim of this study. To provide empirical support for this study, sixty male English learners were selected and randomly assigned into two groups of explicit focus on form and meaning focused. Narrative writing was employed for data collection. To measure writing performance, participants were required to narrate a story. They were given 20 minutes to finish the task and were asked to write at least 150 words. The participants’ output was coded then analyzed utilizing Independent t-test for grammatical accuracy and fluency of learners’ performance. Results indicated that learners in explicit focus on form group appear to benefit from error correction and rule explanation as two pedagogical techniques of explicit focus on form with respect to accuracy, but regarding fluency they did not yield any significant differences compared to the participants of meaning-focused group.

Keywords: explicit focus on form, rule explanation, accuracy, fluency

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Authors: Xue Ma, Yang Fu, Dangyuan Lei

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Passive daytime radiative cooling is an emerging technology which has attracted worldwide attention in recent years due to its huge potential in cooling buildings without the use of electricity. Various coating materials with different optical properties have been developed to improve the daytime radiative cooling performance. However, commercial cooling coatings comprising functional fillers with optical bandgaps within the solar spectral range suffers from severe intrinsic absorption, limiting their cooling performance. Fortunately, it has recently been demonstrated that introducing fluorescent materials into polymeric coatings can covert the absorbed sunlight to fluorescent emissions and hence increase the effective solar reflectance and cooling performance. In this paper, we experimentally investigate the key factors for fluorescence-assisted radiative cooling with TiO2-based white coatings. The surrounding TiO2 nanoparticles, which enable spatial and temporal light confinement through multiple Mie scattering, lead to Purcell enhancement of phosphors in the coating. Photoluminescence lifetimes of two phosphors (BaMgAl10O17:Eu2+ and (Sr, Ba)SiO4:Eu2+) exhibit significant reduction of ~61% and ~23%, indicating Purcell factors of 2.6 and 1.3, respectively. Moreover, smaller Stokes shifts of the phosphors are preferred to further diminish solar absorption. Field test of fluorescent cooling coatings demonstrate an improvement of ~4% solar reflectance for the BaMgAl10O17:Eu2+-based fluorescent cooling coating. However, to maximize solar reflectance, a white appearance is introduced based on multiple Mie scattering by the broad size distribution of fillers, which is visually pressurized and aesthetically bored. Besides, most colored pigments absorb visible light significantly and convert it to non-radiative thermal energy, offsetting the cooling effect. Therefore, current colored cooling coatings are facing the compromise between color saturation and cooling effect. To solve this problem, we introduced colored fluorescent materials into white coating based on SiO2 microspheres as a top layer, covering a white cooling coating based on TiO2. Compared with the colored pigments, fluorescent materials could re-emit the absorbed light, reducing the solar absorption introduced by coloration. Our work investigated the scattering properties of SiO2 dielectric spheres with different diameters and detailly discussed their impact on the PL properties of phosphors, paving the way for colored fluorescent-assisted cooling coting to application and industrialization.

Keywords: solar reflection, infrared emissivity, mie scattering, photoluminescent emission, radiative cooling

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Authors: Rabbya Ashrafi, Mohammad Tarikul Islam , Al-Amin Bhuiyan, Aminur Rahman

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Injury is the leading killer of children in Bangladesh. Anchal (community crèche) is an effective intervention to prevent injuries among children under 5. Through the SoLiD project, 1,600 Anchals are in place in three sub-districts in Bangladesh. The objectives of the Anchal are to provide supervision and early childhood development stimulations (ECD) to the children. A locally trained caregiver supervises 20-25 children, 9 to 59 months old, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., six days a week. Although it was found effective, during its implementation phase several challenges were noticed. To identify challenges and means to overcome those to improve the Anchal activities. In-depth interviews were conducted with Anchal caregivers, their supervisors, and trainers. Focus group discussions were conducted with the mothers of the Anchal children. The study was conducted in the Manohardi sub-district in November 2015. Decay of knowledge and skills after 2-3 months of training, lack of formal certification and inappropriate selection of women as Anchal caregivers, and enrollment of small children (less than 12 months) were the important challenges. The reluctance of parents to send children to the Anchal at the proper time, failure to engage children in various ECD activities, ineffective conduction of parents and community leaders meeting by the Anchal caregivers, insufficient accommodation, and poor supply of logistics for children were also the important challenges. The suggestion for improvement was to recruit caregivers as per standard criteria, provide them refreshers training at three months intervals, train them on effective conduction of parents and community leaders meetings, provide a formal certificate, and ensure regular supply of logistics. The identified challenges are needed to be addressed by utilizing the suggestions obtained from the IDIs and FGDs to make the Anchal intervention more effective in preventing childhood injuries.

Keywords: comunity crech, earlychildhood development, measures for improvement, childhood injury

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Authors: M. Mortada, A. Seleem, M. El-Morsi, M. Younan

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The present study introduces the folding technology to be utilized for the first time in vertical diffusion stills. This work represents a model of the distillation process by utilizing chevron pattern of folded structure. An experimental setup has been constructed, to investigate the performance of the folded sheets in the vertical effect diffusion still for a specific range of operating conditions. An experimental comparison between the folded type and the flat type sheets has been carried out. The folded pattern showed a higher performance and there is an increase in the condensate to feed ratio that ranges from 20-30 % through the operating hot plate temperature that ranges through 60-90°C. In addition, a parametric analysis of the system using Design of Experiments statistical technique, has been developed using the experimental results to determine the effect of operating conditions on the system's performance and the best operating conditions of the system has been evaluated.

Keywords: chevron pattern, fold structure, solar distillation, vertical diffusion still

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Authors: Alia Aldarmaki, Ahmad Elshennawy

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There is a global shift in healthcare systems’ emphasizing engaging different stakeholders in selecting quality improvement initiatives and incorporating their preferences to improve the healthcare efficiency and outcomes. Although experts bring scientific knowledge based on the scientific model and their personal experience, other stakeholders can bring new insights and information into the decision-making process. This study attempts to explore the impact of incorporating different stakeholders’ preference in identifying the most significant criteria that should be considered in healthcare for electing the improvement projects. A Framework based on a modified Fuzzy Delphi Method (FDM) was built. In addition to, the subject matter experts, doctors/physicians, nurses, administrators, and managers groups contribute to the selection process. The research identifies potential criteria for evaluating projects in healthcare, then utilizes FDM to capture expertise knowledge. The first round in FDM is intended to validate the identified list of criteria from experts; which includes collecting additional criteria from experts that the literature might have overlooked. When an acceptable level of consensus has been reached, a second round is conducted to obtain experts’ and other related stakeholders’ opinions on the appropriate weight of each criterion’s importance using linguistic variables. FDM analyses eliminate or retain the criteria to produce a final list of the critical criteria to select improvement projects in healthcare. Finally, reliability and validity were investigated using Cronbach’s alpha and factor analysis, respectively. Two case studies were carried out in a public hospital in the United Arab Emirates to test the framework. Both cases demonstrate that even though there were common criteria between the experts and the stakeholders, still stakeholders’ perceptions bring additional critical criteria into the evaluation process, which can impact the outcomes. Experts selected criteria related to strategical and managerial aspects, while the other participants preferred criteria related to social aspects such as health and safety and patients’ satisfaction. The health and safety criterion had the highest important weight in both cases. The analysis showed that Cronbach’s alpha value is 0.977 and all criteria have factor loading greater than 0.3. In conclusion, the inclusion of stakeholders’ perspectives is intended to enhance stakeholders’ engagement, improve transparency throughout the decision process, and take robust decisions.

Keywords: Fuzzy Delphi Method, fuzzy number, healthcare, stakeholders

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Authors: Samir Srairi

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This paper investigates the impact of the internal corporate governance on bank performance by constructing a corporate governance index (CGI) for 27 Islamic banks operating in five Arab Gulf countries. Using content analysis on the banks’ annual reports for 3 years (2011-2013), the index construction uses information on six important corporate governance mechanisms, namely board structure, risk management, transparency and disclosure, audit committee, Sharia supervisory board and investment account holders. The results demonstrate that Islamic banks adhere to 54% of the attributes addressed in the CGI. The most frequently reported and disclosed elements are Sharia supervisory board followed by board structure and risk management. The findings related to countries revealed that only two countries, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, possess a higher level of CGI. Our regression results provide evidence that Islamic banks with higher levels of corporate governance report high operating performance measured by return on assets and net interest margin. Finally, as of the effect of internal and external factors, we identified four variables that were associated with bank performance, namely size, equity, risk and concentration.

Keywords: governance mechanisms, corporate governance index, bank performance, Islamic banks, GCC countries

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Authors: Nora Gavira Duron, Cinthya Moreda Gonzalez-Ortega, Reyna Susana Garcia Ruiz

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This paper objective is to analyze the mathematics performance in the Learning Evaluation National Plan (PLANEA for its Spanish initials: Plan Nacional para la Evaluación de los Aprendizajes), applied to Mexican students who are enrolled in the last elementary-school year over the 2017-2018 academic year. Such test was conducted nationwide in 3,573 schools, using a sample of 108,083 students, whose average in mathematics, on a scale of 0 to 100, was 45.6 points. 75% of the sample analyzed did not reach the sufficiency level (60 points). It should be noted that only 2% got a 90 or higher score result. The performance is analyzed while considering whether there are differences in gender, marginalization level, public or private school enrollment, parents’ academic background, and living-with-parents situation. Likewise, this variable impact (among other variables) on school performance by gender is evaluated, considering multivariate logistic (Logit) regression analysis. The results show there are no significant differences in mathematics performance regarding gender in elementary school; nevertheless, the impact exerted by mothers who studied at least high school is of great relevance for students, particularly for girls. Other determining variables are students’ resilience, their parents’ economic status, and the fact they attend private schools, strengthened by the mother's education.

Keywords: multivariate regression analysis, academic performance, learning evaluation, mathematics result per gender

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Authors: Daniel Fulus Fom, Gau Patrick Damulak

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In this study, the Autoregressive Fractional Integrated Moving Average (ARFIMA) and Jordan Recurrent Neural Network (JRNN) models were employed to model the forecasting performance of the daily turbidity flow of White Clay Creek (WCC). The two methods were applied to the log difference series of the daily turbidity flow series of WCC. The measurements of error employed to investigate the forecasting performance of the ARFIMA and JRNN models are the Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) and the Mean Absolute Error (MAE). The outcome of the investigation revealed that the forecasting performance of the JRNN technique is better than the forecasting performance of the ARFIMA technique in the mean square error sense. The results of the ARFIMA and JRNN models were obtained by the simulation of the models using MATLAB version 8.03. The significance of using the log difference series rather than the difference series is that the log difference series stabilizes the turbidity flow series than the difference series on the ARFIMA and JRNN.

Keywords: auto regressive, mean absolute error, neural network, root square mean error

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Authors: Surapong Vongvatcharanon, Fardeela Binalee, Wandee Udomuksorn, Ekkasit Kumarnsit, Uraporn Vongvatcharanon

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Hypogonadism is characterized by a decline in sex hormone levels, especially testosterone. It has been shown to be an important contributor to the decrease in muscle mass, muscle strength and performance, a condition known as sarcopenia. Preparations from Butea superba Roxb. (red Kwao Krua) have been reported to have androgenic properties. The active compounds are proposed to be flavonoids and flavonoid glycosides. Treatment with B. superba has been shown to improve erectile dysfunction in males. Parvalbumin (PV) is a relaxing factor and identified in fast twitch fibers. Alterations of the PV levels affects skeletal muscle functions. This study aimed to investigate the effects of orhchidectomy, testosterone replacement and different doses of Butea superba Roxb. on the structure, performance, levels of parvalbumin, parvalbumin and androgen receptor immunoreactivities in the extensor digitorum longus (EDL) and gastrocnemius muscles of orchidectomized rats. Twelve-week old male Wistar rats were randomly divided into 6 groups; sham-operated (SHAM), orchidectomized (BS-0), orchidectomized group that was treated with testosterone replacement of 6 µg/kg (TP) or an orchidectomized group that was treated with various doses of an extract from Butea superba Roxb.; 5 mg/kg (BS-5), 50 mg/kg (BS-50) and 500 mg/kg (BS-500) all for 90 days. The testosterone level, epididymis, seminal vesicle, prostate gland, vas deference weight, muscle fiber size, strength and endurance in both the EDL and gastrocnemius muscle were decreased in the BS-0 group but increased in the testosterone replacement group. Treatment with the B. superba Roxb. extract replacement group improved muscle fiber size, strength and endurance, but not total testosterone levels, or the epididymis, seminal vesicle, prostate gland, vas deference weight. Furthermore, the parvalbumin level, parvalbumin and androgen receptor immunoreactivities were reduced in the BS-0 group but increased in the testosterone replacement group and the B. superba Roxb. extract groups for both the EDL and gastrocnemius muscle. This study indicated that the reduction of testosterone level led to a decrease of the androgen receptor density resulting in a decline in the muscle mass and parvalbumin levels. The decrease of parvalbumin levels affected muscle performance. Testosterone replacement increased the androgen receptor density and led to an increase of muscle mass and parvalbumin levels. The increase in the parvalbumin levels may result in an improvement of muscle performance. This may explain one mechanism of testosterone on muscle mass and strength in the testosterone dependent sarcopenia. The B. superba Roxb. extract groups also had improved muscle mass, strength and endurance, parvalbumin level, parvalbumin and androgen immunoreactivities compared to the BS-O group . Butea superba Roxb. Extracts contains a flavonoid (3, 7, 3'-Trihydroxy-4'-methoxyflavone), flavonoiglycoside (3, 3'-dihydroxy-4'-methoxyflavone-7-O-β-D-glucopyranoside) and isoflavanolignans (butesuperins A and butesuperins B) all known to inhibit the cAMP phosphodiesterase enzyme. Therefore, cAMP signaling may have adaptive effects on skeletal muscle by increasing muscle mass, strength and endurance.

Keywords: Butea superba, parvalbumin, skeletal muscle, orchidectomy

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Authors: Ebrahim Sabermaash Eshghi, Donna Sandsmark

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Nowadays, successful companies try to create a reliable and unique competitive position in the market. It is important to consider that only choosing and codifying a competitive strategy appropriate with the market conditions does not have any influence on the final performance of the company by itself, but it is the connection and interaction between upstream level strategies and functional level strategies which leads to development of company performance in its operating environment. Given the importance of the subject, this study tries to investigate effective factors on product performance and prioritize them. This study was done with quantitative-qualitative approach (interview and questionnaire). In sum, 103 informed managers and experts of Pars-Khazar Company were investigated in a census. Validity of measure tools was approved through experts’ judgments. Reliability of the tools was also gained through Cronbach's Alpha Coefficient as 0.930 and in sum, validity and reliability of the tools was approved generally. Analysis of collected data was done through Spearman Correlation Test and Friedman Test using SPSS software. The results showed that management of distribution and demand process (0.675), management of Product Pre-test (0.636) and Manufacturing and inventory management(0.628) had the highest correlation with product performance. Prioritization of factors of structure of launching new products based on the average showed that management of volume of launched products and Manufacturing and inventory management had the most importance.

Keywords: product performance, home appliances, market, case study

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Authors: Erkam Arslantas

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Heat pipes one of the thermal control elements are used in communication satellites. A selection of the heat pipes of satellite thermal design will be emphasized how important and effective it is. In this article, manufacturing and performance control tests of heat pipes are reviewed from the current literature. The heat pipe is expected to function efficiently during all missions of the spacecraft from Beginning of Life (BOL) to End of Life (EOL). There are many parameters that are evaluated in manufacturing and performance control tests of the heat pipes which are used in satellites. These parameters are pressure design, leakage, noncondensable gas level (N.C.G), sine vibration, shock and static load capabilities, aging, bending, proof, final test etc. These parameters will be explained separately for the heat pipes in this review article and young researches working on the thermal control system of Geosynchronous Satellites systems can find easily related information in this article.

Keywords: communication satellite, heat pipe, performance test, thermal control

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Authors: Pooree Sakot, Marndarath Suksanga

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Organizations are under increasing pressure to improve performance and maximize the contribution of every employee. Employee engagement has become an attractive business proposition. The triple bottom line consists of three Ps: profit, people and planet. It aims to measure the financial, social and environmental performance of the corporation over a period of time. People are the most important asset of every organization. Most of the studies suggest that employee engagement improves the bottom line in almost every instance and it is well worth all organizational efforts to actively engage employees. Engaged employees have an impact on productivity and financial performance. Efficient leadership and effective management can take place if emerging paradigm like employee engagement is appropriately understood and put into practice. Employee engagement starts at the first step i.e. recruitment of an employee to the last step i.e. retirement .The HR Practices of an organization play the most major role in helping the employees walk the extra mile. Effective employee engagement is the key component for improved organizational performance.

Keywords: employee engagement, higher education, tool, success

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Authors: Stephanie Giordano, Rosa Plasencia

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In the USA, in 2013, public service systems such as Medicaid, aging, and disability systems undertook an effort to measure the quality of service delivery by examining the experiences and outcomes of those receiving public services. The goal of this effort was to develop a survey to measure the experiences and outcomes of those receiving public services, with the goal of measuring system performance for quality improvement. The performance indicators were developed through with input from directors of state aging and disability service systems, along with experts and stakeholders in the field across the United States. This effort, National Core Indicators –Aging and Disabilities (NCI-AD), grew out of National Core Indicators –Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, an effort to measure developmental disability (DD) systems across the States. The survey tool and administration protocol underwent multiple rounds of testing and revision between 2013 and 2015. The measures in the final tool – called the Adult Consumer Survey (ACS) – emphasize not just important indicators of healthcare access and personal safety but also includes indicators of system quality based on person-centered outcomes. These measures indicate whether service systems support older adults and people with disabilities to live where they want, maintain relationships and engage in their communities and have choice and control in their everyday lives. Launched in 2015, the NCI-AD Adult Consumer Survey is now used in 23 states in the US. Surveys are conducted by NCI-AD trained surveyors via direct conversation with a person receiving public long-term services and supports (LTSS). Until 2020, surveys were only conducted in person. However, after a pilot to test the reliability of videoconference and telephone survey modes, these modes were adopted as an acceptable practice. The nature of the survey is that of a “guided conversation” survey administration allows for surveyor to use wording and terminology that is best understand by the person surveyed. The survey includes a subset of questions that may be answered by a proxy respondent who knows the person well if the person is receiving services in unable to provide valid responses on their own. Surveyors undergo a standardized training on survey administration to ensure the fidelity of survey administration. In addition to the main survey section, a Background Information section collects data on personal and service-related characteristics of the person receiving services; these data are typically collected through state administrative record. This information is helps provide greater context around the characteristics of people receiving services. It has also been used in conjunction with outcomes measures to look at disparity (including by race and ethnicity, gender, disability, and living arrangements). These measures of quality are critical for public service delivery systems to understand the unique needs of the population of older adults and improving the lives of older adults as well as people with disabilities. Participating states may use these data to identify areas for quality improvement within their service delivery systems, to advocate for specific policy change, and to better understand the experiences of specific populations of people served.

Keywords: quality of life, long term services and supports, person-centered practices, aging and disability research, survey methodology

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Authors: Melissa Ramirez, Mohammad Awal

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The Inflow Performance Relationship (IPR) of a well is a relation between the oil production rate and flowing bottom-hole pressure. This relationship is an important tool for petroleum engineers to understand and predict the well performance. In the petroleum industry, IPR correlations are used to design and evaluate well completion, optimizing well production, and designing artificial lift. The most commonly used IPR correlations models are Vogel and Wiggins, these models are applicable to homogeneous and isotropic reservoir data. In this work, a new IPR model is developed to determine inflow performance relationship of oil wells in a naturally fracture reservoir. A 3D black-oil reservoir simulator is used to develop the oil mobility function for the studied reservoir. Based on simulation runs, four flow rates are run to record the oil saturation and calculate the relative permeability for a naturally fractured reservoir. The new method uses the result of a well test analysis along with permeability and pressure-volume-temperature data in the fluid flow equations to obtain the oil mobility function. Comparisons between the new method and two popular correlations for non-fractured reservoirs indicate the necessity for developing and using an IPR correlation specifically developed for a fractured reservoir.

Keywords: inflow performance relationship, mobility function, naturally fractured reservoir, well test analysis

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Authors: Afroza Akhter Tina

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This paper reports on an investigation into the use of specific types of oral communication strategies, namely ‘topic avoidance’, ‘message abandonment’, ‘code-switching’, ‘paraphrasing’, ‘restructuring’, and ‘stalling’ by Bangladeshi EFL learners at the graduate level. It chiefly considers the frequency of using these strategies as well as the students and teachers attitudes toward such uses. The participants of this study are 66 EFL students and 12 EFL teachers of Jahangirnagar University. Data was collected through questionnaire, oral interview, and classroom observation form. The findings reveal that the EFL students tried to employ all the strategies to various extents due to the language difficulties they encountered in their oral English performance. Among them, the mostly used strategy was ‘stalling’ or the use of fillers, followed by ‘code-switching’. The least used strategies were ‘topic avoidance’, ‘restructuring’, and ‘paraphrasing’. The findings indicate that the use of such strategies was related to the contexts of situation and data-elicitation tasks. It also reveals that the students were not formally trained to use the strategies though the majority of the teachers and students acknowledge them as helpful in communication. Finally the study suggests that an awareness of the nature and functions of these strategies can contribute to the overall improvement of the learners’ communicative competence in spoken English.

Keywords: communicative strategies, competency, attitude, frequency

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Authors: Emmanuel Iyamuremye, Jean François Maniriho, Irenee Ndayambaje

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Mathematics is the foundational enabling discipline that underpins science, technology, and engineering disciplines. Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subjects are foreseen as the engine for socio-economic transformation. Rwanda has done reforms in education aiming at empowering and preparing students for the real world job by providing career pathways in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics related fields. While that considered so, the performance in mathematics has remained deplorable in both formative and national examinations. Therefore, this paper aims at exploring the extent to which the engage, explore, explain, elaborate and evaluate (5Es) instructional model contributing towards students’ achievement in mathematics. The present study adopted the pre-test, post-test non-equivalent control group quasi-experimental design. The 5Es instructional model was applied to the experimental group while the control group received instruction with the conventional teaching method for eight weeks. One research-made instrument, mathematics achievement test (MAT), was used for data collection. A pre-test was given to students before the intervention to make sure that both groups have equivalent characteristics. At the end of the experimental period, the two groups have undergone a post-test to ascertain the contribution of the 5Es instructional model. Descriptive statistics and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) were used for the analysis of the study. For determining the improvement in mathematics, Hakes methods of calculating gain were used to analyze the pre-test and post-test scores. Results showed that students exposed to 5Es instructional model achieved significantly better performance in mathematics than students instructed using the conventional teaching method. It was also found that 5Es instructional model made lessons more interesting, easy and created friendship among students. Thus, 5Es instructional model was recommended to be adopted as a close substitute to the conventional teaching method in teaching mathematics in lower secondary schools in Rwanda.

Keywords: 5Es instructional model, achievement, conventional teaching method, mathematics

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Authors: Majid Ali, Xinfang Jin, Victor Eniola, Henning Hoene

Abstract:

The performance of proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells is sensitive to several factors, including power fluctuations, hydrogen utilization, and the quality orientation of the fuel cell stack. In this study, we investigate the impact of these factors on the performance of a PEM fuel cell. We start by analyzing the power fluctuations that are typical in renewable energy systems and their effects on the 50 Watt fuel cell's performance. Next, we examine the hydrogen utilization rate (0-1000 mL/min) and its impact on the cell's efficiency and durability. Finally, we investigate the quality orientation (three different positions) of the fuel cell stack, which can significantly affect the cell's lifetime and overall performance. The basis of our analysis is the utilization of experimental results, which have been further validated by comparing them with simulations and manufacturer results. Our results indicate that power fluctuations can cause significant variations in the fuel cell's voltage and current, leading to a reduction in its performance. Moreover, we show that increasing the hydrogen utilization rate beyond a certain threshold can lead to a decrease in the fuel cell's efficiency. Finally, our analysis demonstrates that the orientation of the fuel cell stack can affect its performance and lifetime due to non-uniform distribution of reactants and products. In summary, our study highlights the importance of considering power fluctuations, hydrogen utilization, and quality orientation in designing and optimizing PEM fuel cell systems. The findings of this study can be useful for researchers and engineers working on the development of fuel cell systems for various applications, including transportation, stationary power generation, and portable devices.

Keywords: fuel cell, proton exchange membrane, renewable energy, power fluctuation, experimental

Procedia PDF Downloads 133

Authors: Ranjit Singh

Abstract:

Body fat % lean body mass and body type play vital role in sports performance. A sports person who is having optional body composition can show its performance flawlessly whereas other who is not physical fit may be more prone to injury. Competitive swimming is an association of plethora of aspects like morphological, physiological, biochemical, biomechanical and psychological. The primary key of the present research is to examine the correlation among selected morphological dimensions such as height, weight, body fat%, lean body mass, somatotype and swimming performance. The present study also focused to investigate by potential deficiencies if any and to find out remedial measures to curb the training stresses. Thirty (age group 10-14 years) swimmers undergoing training under skilled and professional coaches were selected in the present study. The morphological variables and performance criterion like 50 meter swimming time and speed were calculated by using standard training methodology. Correlation coefficient among body composition, somatotype and performance variables were assessed by using standard statistical package SPSS. Mean height, weight, fat% and lean body mass of the present group is 150.97±8.68 cm, 44.0±9.34 kg., 15.97±4.42 % and 37.10±8.77 kg respectively. Somatotype of the young swimmers of this research is revealed ectomorphic mesomorph. The analysis of the results Illustrated that swimming performance is significantly correlated (p<0.05) with height, body weight, mesomorphoic component and lean body mass. Body fat is significantly and negatively correlated (p<0.05) with mesomorphic component, lean body mass and swimming speed. From this present study, it can be concluded that along with techniques and tactics other the physical attributes also play significant role in swimming performance which can help the swimmers to excel in higher level of competition and swimmers having improved morphological qualities can ultimately perform well.

Keywords: body fat, mass, mesomorphic component, somatotype

Procedia PDF Downloads 233

Authors: A. R. Mirzaee, M. Khajehpour

Abstract:

Due to Simple Design, reasonable cost and easy implementation most people are reluctant to build buildings with masonry construction. Masonry Structures performance at earthquake are so limited. Of most earthquakes occurred in Iran and other countries, we can easily see that most of the damages are for masonry constructions and this is the evidence that we lack proper understanding of the performance of masonry buildings in earthquake. In this paper, according to field studies, conducted in past earthquakes. To evaluate the strengths and weaknesses points of the masonry constructions and also provide a solution to prevent such damage should be presented, and also program Examples of the correct bearing wall and tie-column design with the valid regulations (MSJC-08 (ASD)) will be explained.

Keywords: Masonry constructions, performance at earthquake, MSJC-08 (ASD), bearing wall, tie-column

Procedia PDF Downloads 430

Authors: Santimoy Khilari, Debabrata Pradhan

Abstract:

Ever−increasing energy demand and growing energy crisis along with environmental issues emphasize the research on sustainable energy conversion and storage systems. Recently, supercapacitors or electrochemical capacitors emerge as a promising energy storage technology for future generation. The activity of supercapacitors generally depends on the efficiency of its electrode materials. So, the development of cost−effective efficient electrode materials for supercapacitors is one of the challenges to the scientific community. Transition metal oxides with spinel crystal structure receive much attention for different electrochemical applications in energy storage/conversion devices because of their improved performance as compared to simple oxides. In the present study, we have synthesized polypyrrole (PPy) supported manganese cobaltite nanorods (MnCo2O4 NRs) hybrid electrode material for supercapacitor application. The MnCo2O4 NRs were synthesized by a simple hydrothermal and calcination approach. The MnCo2O4 NRs/PPy hybrid was prepared by in situ impregnation of MnCo2O4 NRs during polymerization of pyrrole. The surface morphology and microstructure of as−synthesized samples was characterized by scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy, respectively. The crystallographic phase of MnCo2O4 NRs, PPy and hybrid was determined by X-ray diffraction. Electrochemical charge storage activity of MnCo2O4 NRs, PPy and MnCo2O4 NRs/PPy hybrid was evaluated from cyclic voltammetry, chronopotentiometry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Significant improvement of specific capacitance was achieved in MnCo2O4 NRs/PPy hybrid as compared to the individual components. Furthermore, the mechanically mixed MnCo2O4 NRs, and PPy shows lower specific capacitance as compared to MnCo2O4 NRs/PPy hybrid suggesting the importance of in situ hybrid preparation. The stability of as prepared electrode materials was tested by cyclic charge-discharge measurement for 1000 cycles. Maximum 94% capacitance was retained with MnCo2O4 NRs/PPy hybrid electrode. This study suggests that MnCo2O4 NRs/PPy hybrid can be used as a low cost electrode material for charge storage in supercapacitors.

Keywords: supercapacitors, nanorods, spinel, MnCo2O4, polypyrrole

Procedia PDF Downloads 338

Authors: Hrishit Mitra, Saptarshi Mandal

Abstract:

The study of aerodynamics for Formula 1 cars is very crucial in determining their performance. In the current F1 industry, when each engine manufacturer exhibits a torque and peak speed that differ by less than 5%, the emphasis on maximizing performance is dependent heavily on the utilization of aerodynamics. This work examines the aerodynamic characteristics of an F1 car by utilizing computational fluid dynamics in order to substantiate the hypothesis that an F1 car can go upside down in a tunnel without any external assistance, only due to the downforce it produces. In addition to this, this study also suggests the implementation of a 'flexi-wing' front in F1 cars to optimize downforce and reduce drag. Furthermore, this paper provides a concise overview of the historical development of aerodynamics in F1, with a specific emphasis on the progression of aerodynamics and the impact of downforce on the dynamics of vehicles. Next, an examination of wings has been provided, comparing the performance of the suggested wing at high speeds and low speeds. Three simulations have been conducted: one to test the complete aerodynamics and validate the hypothesis discussed above, and two specifically focused on the flexi wing, one at high speed and one at low speed. The collected results have been examined to analyze the performance of the front flexi wing. Performance analysis was conducted from the measurement of downforce and drag coefficient, as well as the pressure and velocity distributions.

Keywords: high speed flexi wing, low speed flexi wing, F1 car aerodynamics, F1 car drag reduction

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Authors: Michel Wakim, Rodrigo Rivera Tinoco

Abstract:

Supersonic ejector is an economical device that use high pressure vapor to compress a low pressure vapor without any rotating parts or external power sources. Entrainment ratio is a major characteristic of the ejector performance, so the ejector performance is highly dependent on its geometry. The aim of this paper is to design ejector geometry, based on pre-specified operating conditions, and to study the flow behavior inside the ejector by using computational fluid dynamics ‘CFD’ by using ‘ANSYS FLUENT 15.0’ software. In the first section; 1-D mathematical model is carried out to predict the ejector geometry. The second part describes the flow behavior inside the designed model. CFD is the most reliable tool to reveal the mixing process at different parts of the supersonic turbulent flow and to study the effect of the geometry on the effective ejector area. Finally, the results show the effect of the geometry on the entrainment ratio.

Keywords: computational fluids dynamics, ejector, entrainment ratio, geometry optimization, performance

Procedia PDF Downloads 272