The role of work stress in the development of metabolic syndrome among Jordanians

THE ROLE OF WORK STRESS IN THE DEVLOPMENT OF METABOLIC SYNDROME AMONG JORDANIANS This thesis reports on a novel, cross-sectional field study of middle-aged Jordanian workers. It examines the relationship between work-related stress measured by the Effort-Reward imbalance (ERI), cortisol, and C-reactive protein (CRP) in predicting metabolic syndrome (MtS). ERI, anthropometric data, serum CRP, and saliva cortisol were collected from male workers. In addition, the thesis describes the translation and validation studies of an Arabic Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-14), Effort-Reward Imbalance questionnaire (ERI), and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) questionnaire. The translation process of the PSS-14, ERI and PSQI employed a forward-backward translation process. The internal consistency, test-retest reliability and factor structure of the Arabic versions of the three questionnaires were satisfactory. A significant correlation between ERI and CRP and between waist circumferences with CRP was found. After controlling for the study covariate, ERI was not a significant predictor of CRP. However, when only the centrally obese group was considered, ERI accounted significantly for 5.0% of the variability in the CRP. ERI and cortisol were significantly associated with the presence of MtS. CRP was significantly associated with MtS. The odds of MtS were significantly higher in centrally obese men with both high ERI and CRP level. In conclusion, we consider the Arabic PSS-14, ERI and PSQI suitable instrument to assess perceived stress, work related stress and sleep quality, respectively, for Arabic speakers. The thesis findings suggest that ERI predicts a small inflammatory response in a sample of centrally obese Jordanian workers. ERI and its resultant hypercortisolemia and augmented CRP synergistically contribute to the development of MtS in middle-aged Jordanian workers. High ERI in the presence of central obesity predisposes Jordanian workers to increased risk of MtS

IMPACT OF JAPANESE LESSON STUDY IN TEACHERS’ CONTENT KNOWLEDGE AS A NEW MODEL FOR TEACHERS’ DEVELOPMENT IN SAUDI ARABIA

School-based professional development is an appropriate way of tailoring professional development both to the needs of the individual teacher and of the school. Lesson Study (LS) is one of the models of school-based professional development. It is a professional learning method that is based on collaboration amongst teachers, in order to improve their professional development and students’ outcomes. The Saudi Ministry of Education, since 2015, started a pilot project that utilized the LS in certain Saudi schools in different regions to meet professional learning needs. The purpose of this study is to understand the impact of LS as a model adopted for the professional development of teachers by Primary Schools in Riyadh region in Saudi Arabia. The study utilised a quantitative research method based on an online survey to collect data from four selected elementary schools in the Riyadh region. SPSS software was used to analyse the questionnaire responses. Overall, the results for this study identified that LS serves as an effective tool for teachers’ professional development and that most of the teachers have positive perception towards using the LS model as a tool for improving teachers’ content knowledge

Simple network management protocol co- existence with hydrocarbon process automation communication real-time network

Hydrocarbon Process Automation Applications (HPAA) utilizes Real-time network connecting process instrumentations, controllers, and real-time logic control applications. Conventional practice is to dedicate a real-time network for process automation applications and prevent other applications from utilizing the same infrastructure. An important application that can help optimize, improve network performance, and provide rapid response time in network diagnostics and mitigation is Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP). This paper addresses the co-existence of SNMP traffic with real-time applications. The impacts of activating this protocol with the real-time HPAA utilizing high speed Ethernet network design will be examined. Empirical data for an implemented Hydrocarbon process automation system will be used to illustrate the interdependency of application performance, traffic mix, and potential areas of improvements. The outcomes of this effort demonstrate the co-existence of SNMP with HPPA, given special considerations (i.e., bandwidth, number of applications, etc.)

Theoretical Corpus for an Empirical Subject: The Identification of Problems and Gaps in Pygmalion Effect Research = Elméleti korpuszt egy empirikus alanynak: Problémák és rések azonosítása a Pygmalion-hatás kutatásában

Theoretical corpus or body refers to the theory gathered on an issue, topic or subject. Despite having generalisable findings on the theoretical corpus and the scientific work with it daily in all disciplines, there is a lack of guidance on how to build it up. Therefore, the research objective was to provide a methodological perspective on its construction through an empirical subject with the aim of identifying the problems and gaps within the corpus. As case study, the Pygmalion effect at work was chosen, since it was a complex phenomenon with a long, extensive and intensive research history. Five steps were implemented to follow: text database, literature review technique(s), corpus overview, theoretical corpus, research problems and gaps. For the chosen subject, the methodological review technique was applied, that helped to identify six research problems and gaps (i.e. availability, trust, harm, research objects, settings, naturalness) on the angles of phenomenon limitations and ethical questions. As a response to these, it presented the author’s own arguments and claims that led the trajectory of the paper. Parallel to the case study, the research in experimental psychology was also introduced for better understanding. Finally, the paper gave methodological suggestions on how to construct a theoretical corpus in general. = Az elméleti korpusz vagy test egy adott ügyben, témában vagy tárgyban összegyűlt elméletanyagra utal. Bár az elméleti korpuszról és a hozzá kapcsolódó, napi szintű, valamennyi tudományterületen zajló munkáról általánosítható megállapítások tehetők, mégis hiányzik az útmutatás a szakszerű felépítéséhez. Ekképpen a kutatás célja az volt, hogy egyfajta módszertani nézőpontot nyújtson az elméleti korpusz felépítéséhez, egy empirikus kutatási alanyon keresztül, és azért, hogy azonosítsa a korpuszban megtalálható kutatási problémákat és réseket. Esettanulmányként a munkahelyi Pygmalion-hatásra esett a választás, amely egy komplex jelenség, hosszúra nyúló, extenzív és intenzív kutatási előzményekkel. A cél érdekében öt módszertani lépést vezettem be: szövegadatbázis elkészítése, szakirodalmi áttekintő technika kiválasztása és alkalmazása, korpusz áttekintése, elméleti korpusz kidolgozása, kutatási problémák és rések azonosítása. A választott alanyhoz módszertani áttekintő technikát alkalmaztam, amely elősegítette a hat kutatási probléma és rés (úgymint elérhetőség, bizalom, sérelem, kutatási tárgy, helyzet, természetesség) azonosítását a jelenség korlátai és etikai kérdései mentén. Ezekre válaszul vagy megoldási javaslatként jelentek meg a szerző saját érveit és állításai, amelyek egyben a cikk ívét is vezették. Az esettanulmánnyal párhuzamosan a kísérleti pszichológiában végzett kutatások alapjai is bemutatásra kerültek az alany jobb megértése érdekében. Végül pedig, a cikk módszertani javaslatokat fogalmazott meg az elméleti korpusz általános felépítésére vonatkozóan

EFFECTIVENESS OF JAPANESE LESSON STUDY IN BUILDING A COLLABORATIVE LEARNING COMMUNITY IN THE SCHOOL AS A MODERN STRATEGY FOR TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN SAUDI ARABIA

School-based professional development is an appropriate way of tailoring professional development both to the needs of the individual teacher and of the school. Lesson Study (LS) is one of the models of school-based professional development. It is a professional learning method that is based on collaboration amongst teachers, in order to improve their professional development and students’ outcomes. The Saudi Ministry of Education, since 2015, started a pilot project that utilized LS in certain Saudi schools in different regions to meet professional learning needs. The purpose of this study is to understand the impact of LS as a model adopted for the professional development of Primary Schools teachers in four selected elementary schools in the Riyadh region in Saudi Arabia. The study is based on a quantitative research method using an online survey and are analysed using SPSS. Article visualizations

Basic Methodological Considerations on the Digitalisation as Research Topic Choice and Justification on the Research Topic and Rule of Thumbs for a Scientific Title, Keywords and Abstract-Writing, Supported by a Collection of Student Materials

There can be research themes that may seem to be odd or alien for the first sight, hence they can discourage potential authors from further work. For many of our students in 2018, in the Institute of World Economy, that was digitalisation. However, as a research topic it appears at three levels: micro, mezzo and macro, and tends to become a grand theory by being a current transformational process that has expanded on all levels and dimensions that construct our reality; so it cannot be disregarded. Therefore, the aim of the study was to conceptualise a 4+1- step technique that help to make a choice on the research topic under or not a given theme and to justify that choice with the attributes of a good topic; then to explain the rule of thumbs for giving a scientific title and keywords, and writing an abstract. Finally, as examples it presented a collection of student materials from the Research Methods course of the Institute

Converged IP-over-standard ethernet progress control networks for hydrocarbon process automation applications controllers

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.The maturity level of Internet Protocol (IP) and the emergence of standard Ethernet interfaces of Hydrocarbon Process Automation Application (HPAA) present a real opportunity to combine independent industrial applications onto an integrated IP based network platform. Quality of Service (QoS) for IP over Ethernet has the strength to regulate traffic mix and support timely delivery. The combinations of these technologies lend themselves to provide a platform to support HPAA applications across Local Area Network (LAN) and Wide Area Network (WAN) networks. HPAA systems are composed of sensors, actuators, and logic solvers networked together to form independent control system network platforms. They support hydrocarbon plants operating under critical conditions that — if not controlled — could become dangerous to people, assets and the environment. This demands high speed networking which is triggered by the need to capture data with higher frequency rate at a finer granularity. Nevertheless, existing HPAA network infrastructure is based on unique autonomous systems, which has resulted in multiple, parallel and separate networks with limited interconnectivity supporting different functions. This created increased complexity in integrating various applications and resulted higher costs in the technology life cycle total ownership. To date, the concept of consolidating HPAA into a converged IP network over standard Ethernet has not yet been explored. This research aims to explore and develop the HPAA Process Control Systems (PCS) in a Converged Internet Protocol (CIP) using experimental and simulated networks case studies. Results from experimental and simulation work showed encouraging outcomes and provided a good argument for supporting the co-existence of HPAA and non-HPAA applications taking into consideration timeliness and reliability requirements. This was achieved by invoking priority based scheduling with the highest priority being awarded to PCS among other supported services such as voice, multimedia streams and other applications. HPAA can benefit from utilizing CIP over Ethernet by reducing the number of interdependent HPAA PCS networks to a single uniform and standard network. In addition, this integrated infrastructure offers a platform for additional support services such as multimedia streaming, voice, and data. This network‐based model manifests itself to be integrated with remote control system platform capabilities at the end user's desktop independent of space and time resulting in the concept of plant virtualization

The Causes of University Violence at Al-Bayt University and the Proposed Solutions to Reduce Them from the Perspective of the Students Themselves

This study aimed to uncover the causes of university violence related to the administration and policy of the university, faculty members, and the personality of the student at Al-Bayt University from the perspective of the students themselves and their degree of appreciation for the importance of the causes of violence and the proposed solutions of reducing them in the areas related to the administration and policy of the university , And the student's personality attributed to variables (school year, place of residence, type of admission). Also, what are the proposed methods to reduce the phenomenon of university violence at Al-Bayt University from the students' perspective .The study sample consisted of (300) students from Al Al-Bayt University randomly selected. To answer the study questions, the frequency and percentages of the personal variables of the study sample, the Means and the standard deviations were used for the responses of the study sample members for all fields of study. MANOVA to detect the differences between the mathematical averages of the fields of study according to the personal variables, in addition to the use of ANOVA to detect the differences between the mathematical averages of the study instrument according to the personal variables. The study showed that there is a high degree in the fields of (politics and management of the university, personal and academic) in Al-Bayt University from the perspective of students while there is a middle degree in the proposed methods to reduce the phenomenon of student violence in Al-Bayt University from the students' There were statistically significant differences in the proposed methods of addressing university violence from the perspective of the students themselves according to the variable (school year). There were no statistically significant differences at the level of significance (α≤0.05) in all fields of study and tool as a whole. University page for parents The students' affairs to follow up their academic and behavioral achievement. Keywords: university violence, students, universit

INCOME INEQUALITY IN TODAY’S CUBA - FIELD RESEARCH ON THE CUBAN PEOPLE’S QUALITY OF LIFE AND INCOME STRUCTURE

Cuba has been a significant player in international and regional politics for a long while, particularly compared to its size. However, reliable data on the standard of living of its society is scarce. The literature review reflects how the Cuban state manipulated certain data forwarded to international organisations. Our objective was to implement field research and gain primary data on Cubans’ quality of life and income structure that could help to identify the extent of income inequality among the different demographic clusters in the country. We used individual questionnaires, as well as descriptive, frequency and inferential statistics. The results show varying income inequalities among the different demographic clusters and a “perverse effect” in income distribution, leading to the formation of a “parasite” stratum in Cuban society

Investigating mechanical properties of ordinary portland cement. Investigating improvements to the mechanical properties of Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) bodies by utilizing the phase transformation properties of a ceramic (Zirconia).

The effects of metastable tetragonal zirconia on the properties of Ordinary Portland Cement were observed during which the effect of crystallite size pH on the preparation solution, precursor salt, and the presence of co-precipitates, Fe(OH)3, SnO2 and SiO2 on the crystallization temperature, enthalpy and crystal structure, immediately following the crystallization exothermic burst phenomenon in ZrO2 were measured. Thermal analysis and x-ray methods were used to determine crystallite sizes and structures immediately following the exothermic burst. Comparisons were made for zirconias prepared from oxychloride, chloride and nitrate solutions. The existence of tetrameric hydroxidecontaining ions in oxychloride precursor is used to rationalise low values of crystallization enthalpy. The position of the crystallization temperature, Tmax was not dependent on crystallite size alone but also on the pH at which the gel was made, the surface pH after washing, and the presence of diluent oxides. Enthalpy v r1/2 and Tmax v (diluent vol)1/3 relationships indicate that surface coverage effects dominate a surface nucleated phenomenon. The data established for ZrO2 systems was used to develop tetragonal-ZrO2-SnO2 powders capable of improving the mechanical properties of Ordinary Portland Cement discs. The ZrO2-OPC discs were prepared by powder mixing, water hydration and uniaxial pressing. Vicat needle tests showed that tetragonal-ZrO2 increases the initial setting rate. Microscopy indicated that porosity distribution changes near to ZrO2 particles. Zirconia has also been introduced into OPC discs by vacuum infiltration methods developed for solutions and colloidal suspensions. Comparisons between OPC discs and the OPCtetragonal ZrO2 composites have been made on the basis of diametral compression strength, Young’s modulus, hardness and toughness (K1c), as estimated by the cracked indentation method. Bell-shaped curves are found for the way the mechanical properties are changed as a function of Zirconia content