The Emergence of New Islamic Economic and Business Moralities

This article aims to explore the sources of the observed transformation in the embeddedness of economic, business, and financial practices of Muslim individuals in comparison to premodern period Muslims. It argues that the predomination of instrumental reasoning in modern times, as opposed to substantive morality in everyday practice, is one of the main reasons behind the transformation of embeddedness of Muslim individuals. Instrumental reasoning, being the dominant methodology, leads to diminished submergence in social relations; that is not limited to interpersonal relationships, but further extended to the core religious acts. How such an emergent economic and business morality is reconciled with the Islamic substantive morality is examined. It is argued that “transformation of exception into norm” is the main method used to reconcile instrumental reasoning with Islamic law in fulfilling religious obligations, at least in terms of fulfilling the form and in complying with the necessities of modern life. This has led to the emergence of new economic and business moralities

Proceedings of the Salford Postgraduate Annual Research Conference (SPARC) 2011

These proceedings bring together a selection of papers from the 2011 Salford Postgraduate Annual Research Conference(SPARC). It includes papers from PhD students in the arts and social sciences, business, computing, science and engineering, education, environment, built environment and health sciences. Contributions from Salford researchers are published here alongside papers from students at the Universities of Anglia Ruskin, Birmingham City, Chester,De Montfort, Exeter, Leeds, Liverpool, Liverpool John Moores and Manchester

Theodicy and End-of-Life Care

Acknowledgments The section on Islamic perspective is contributed by information provided by Imranali Panjwani, Tutor in Theology & Religious Studies, King's College London.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Medicinal plants used by women in Mecca: urban, Muslim and gendered knowledge

Background: This study explores medicinal plant knowledge and use among Muslim women in the city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Ethnobotanical research in the region has focused on rural populations and male herbal healers in cities, and based on these few studies, it is suggested that medicinal plant knowledge may be eroding. Here, we document lay, female knowledge of medicinal plants in an urban centre, interpreting findings in the light of the growing field of urban ethnobotany and gendered knowledge and in an Islamic context. Methods: Free-listing, structured and semi-structured interviews were used to document the extent of medicinal plant knowledge among 32 Meccan women. Vernacular names, modes of preparation and application, intended therapeutic use and emic toxicological remarks were recorded. Women were asked where they learnt about medicinal plants and if and when they preferred using medicinal plants over biomedical resources. Prior informed consent was always obtained. We compared the list of medicinal plants used by these Meccan women with medicinal plants previously documented in published literature. Results: One hundred eighteen vernacular names were collected, corresponding to approximately 110 plants, including one algae. Of these, 95 were identified at the species level and 39 (41%) had not been previously cited in Saudi Arabian medicinal plant literature. Almost one half of the plants cited are food and flavouring plants. Meccan women interviewed learn about medicinal plants from their social network, mass media and written sources, and combine biomedical and medicinal plant health care. However, younger women more often prefer biomedical resources and learn from written sources and mass media. Conclusions: The fairly small number of interviews conducted in this study was sufficient to reveal the singular body of medicinal plant knowledge held by women in Mecca and applied to treat common ailments. Plant availability in local shops and markets and inclusion in religious texts seem to shape the botanical diversity used by the Meccan women interviewed, and the use of foods and spices medicinally could be a global feature of urban ethnobotany. Ethnobotanical knowledge among women in Islamic communities may be changing due to access to mass media and biomedicine. We recognise the lack of documentation of the diversity of medicinal plant knowledge in the Arabian Peninsula and an opportunity to better understand gendered urban and rural knowledge

The mechanical performance of sugar palm fibres (Ijuk) reinforced phenolic composites

Sugar palm fibres are one of the natural fibres which have many features and need further study to understand their properties. The aim of this work is to investigate the flexural, compressive and impact properties of sugar palm fibres reinforced phenolic composites. Sugar palm fibres were used as a filler (particle size 150 μm) and with loading of 0, 10, 20, 30, and 40 vol.%. The fibres were treated by sea water and then fabricated into composites by hot press technique. Flexural, compressive, and impact tests were carried out as per ASTM D790, ASTM D695-08a, and ASTM D256 standards, respectively. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to investigate the morphology and the interfacial bonding of the fibres-matrix in composites. The results show that the mechanical properties of the composites improve with the incorporation of fibres. The composite of 30 vol.% particle loading exhibit optimum values which are 32.23 MPa, 61.66 MPa, and 4.12 kJ/m2 for flexural, compressive, and impact strength, respectively. This was because good compatibility of fibre-matrix bonding. Consequently, sugar palm fibre is one of the prospective fibres and could be used as a potential resource to reinforcement polymer composite

Dynamical drivers of free-tropospheric ozone increases over equatorial Southeast Asia

Positive trends in tropical free-tropospheric (FT) ozone are frequently ascribed to emissions growth, but less is known about the effects of changing dynamics. Extending a prior study (Thompson et al., 2021; https://doi.org/10.1029/2021JD034691; “T21”), we re-examine Southern Hemisphere Additional Ozonesondes (SHADOZ) ozone trends over equatorial Southeast Asia (ESEA), one of Earth's most convectively active regions, using 25 years (1998–2022) of ozone soundings. T21 posited that early-year positive FT ozone trends at equatorial SHADOZ stations are related to decreasing convection. The 25-year analysis of Kuala Lumpur and Watukosek SHADOZ records finds that FT ozone trends of +5 % to +15 % (+2 to +6 nmol mol−1) per decade from ∼ February–April coincide with large increases in satellite infrared brightness temperatures and outgoing longwave radiation, indicators of declining convective activity. MERRA-2 reanalyses exhibit increases in upper-tropospheric velocity potential and decreases in precipitable water, also indicating diminished convection. In contrast, trends in ozone and convective indicators are weak the rest of the year. These results suggest that decreases in convective intensity and frequency are primary drivers of FT ozone build-up over ESEA early in the year; i.e., waning convection suppresses lofting and dilution of ozone. Decreasing convection promotes accumulation of biomass burning emissions typical of boreal spring even though satellite FT carbon monoxide trends (2002–2022) over ESEA follow a global decrease pattern. Finally, our results demonstrate the advantages of monthly or seasonally resolved analyses over annual means for robust attribution of observed ozone trends, challenging models to reproduce these detailed features in simulations of the past 25 years.</p

Understanding new religion-compliant product adoption (NRCPA) in Islamic markets

This study examines the relationships between religious beliefs, brand personality, and new religion-compliant product adoption (NRCPA) in Islamic markets. Findings confirm that religious consumers tend to behave in accordance with a society or group that follows the same beliefs, and that these consumers’ behavior and lifestyle are influenced by similar religious groups and social relationships. In addition, the more religious the consumer, the more likely they will adopt or favour/disfavour a new product in accordance with his/her religious beliefs. Finally, the three constructs–relative advantages, compatibility and complexity–are found to partially mediate the influential relationship between religious beliefs and new religion-compliant product adoption. International firms that target Muslim markets, with an aim to profit and fit in these markets, must take into account the Islamic values, standards and guidelines

Soy protein–gum karaya conjugate: emulsifying activity and rheological behavior in aqueous system and oil in water emulsion

The main objective of this study is to investigate the effects of mixing and conjugation of soy protein isolate (SPI) with gum karaya on the characteristics of the hybrid polymer (protein–gum) in both aqueous systems and oil-in-water (O/W) emulsions. It was hypothesized that the covalent linkage of gum karaya with SPI would improve the emulsifying activity and rheological properties of both polymers. Conjugation occurred under controlled conditions (i.e., 60 °C and 75 % relative humidity, 3 days). The conjugated hybrid polymer produced smaller droplet with better uniformity, higher viscosity and stronger emulsifying activity than native gum karaya, suggesting the conjugated polymer provided a bulkier secondary layer with more efficient coverage around oil droplets, thereby inducing stronger resistance against droplet aggregation and flocculation. Emulsions containing the native gum karaya produced the largest droplet size among all prepared emulsions (D 3,2 = 8.6 μm; D 4,3 = 22.4 μm); while the emulsion containing protein–gum conjugate (1:1 g/g) had the smallest droplet size (D 3,2 = 0.2 μm; D 4,3 = 0.7 μm) with lower polydispersity. The protein–gum conjugate (1:1 g/g) also showed the highest elastic and viscous modulus, the lowest polydispersity (span) and the highest emulsifying activity among all native, mixed and conjugated polymers. Therefore, the percentage of gum karaya used for production of O/W emulsion can be decreased by partially replacing it with the conjugated gum

Elective Cancer Surgery in COVID-19-Free Surgical Pathways During the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic: An International, Multicenter, Comparative Cohort Study.

PURPOSE: As cancer surgery restarts after the first COVID-19 wave, health care providers urgently require data to determine where elective surgery is best performed. This study aimed to determine whether COVID-19-free surgical pathways were associated with lower postoperative pulmonary complication rates compared with hospitals with no defined pathway. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This international, multicenter cohort study included patients who underwent elective surgery for 10 solid cancer types without preoperative suspicion of SARS-CoV-2. Participating hospitals included patients from local emergence of SARS-CoV-2 until April 19, 2020. At the time of surgery, hospitals were defined as having a COVID-19-free surgical pathway (complete segregation of the operating theater, critical care, and inpatient ward areas) or no defined pathway (incomplete or no segregation, areas shared with patients with COVID-19). The primary outcome was 30-day postoperative pulmonary complications (pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome, unexpected ventilation). RESULTS: Of 9,171 patients from 447 hospitals in 55 countries, 2,481 were operated on in COVID-19-free surgical pathways. Patients who underwent surgery within COVID-19-free surgical pathways were younger with fewer comorbidities than those in hospitals with no defined pathway but with similar proportions of major surgery. After adjustment, pulmonary complication rates were lower with COVID-19-free surgical pathways (2.2% v 4.9%; adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 0.62; 95% CI, 0.44 to 0.86). This was consistent in sensitivity analyses for low-risk patients (American Society of Anesthesiologists grade 1/2), propensity score-matched models, and patients with negative SARS-CoV-2 preoperative tests. The postoperative SARS-CoV-2 infection rate was also lower in COVID-19-free surgical pathways (2.1% v 3.6%; aOR, 0.53; 95% CI, 0.36 to 0.76). CONCLUSION: Within available resources, dedicated COVID-19-free surgical pathways should be established to provide safe elective cancer surgery during current and before future SARS-CoV-2 outbreaks