Impact of Maternal Deprivation on Perceived Loneliness and Self-Confidence. And-Role of Perceived Loneliness in Leaving the Child at the Threshold of Low Self-Confidence

In the present investigation an attempt have been made to study and compare the level of perceived Loneliness and Self-Confidence among children suffering from maternal deprivation either partially or completely and to find out  relationship between Perceived Loneliness and Self-confidence. Sample size for the study consisted of  100 students which included 50 maternally deprived orphans and 50 Children of working mothers in the age group (14-16) years selected purposively from various government and private (high and higher secondary) schools of district Srinagar. Perceived Loneliness scale by Dr.Praveen kumar jha and Self-Confidence Inventory by Dr. Rekha Gupta Agnihotri were employed as tools for data collection and t-test and correlation was used for data analysis. Bar diagram were used to make the results clear. The results revealed that Children of both the categories suffers from high Perceived  Loneliness and possess average Self-Confidence, however on comparison no significant difference was found between the two category of children on Perceived loneliness and self-confidence, both categories display almost similar feeling of Perceived Loneliness and possess similar level of self-confidence. Also a strong correlation has been found between Perceived Loneliness and self-confidence. Keywords: Maternally deprived orphans, Children of working mothers, Perceived Loneliness and Self-confidence

Corporate social responsibility of private game reserves in the Eastern Cape Province

The primary aim of this research study was to determine the current state of practice of corporate social responsibility (CSR) within the ecotourism based private game reserve (PGR) industry in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. According to Carroll (1991) four kind of responsibilities constitute total CSR, namely economic, legal, ethical and philanthropic responsibilities. Given the context of this research a fifth responsibility concerning environmental responsibilities was added to Carroll 's (1991) pyramid ofCSR. A descriptive and illustrative case study approach, within the phenomenological research paradigm, was used for the purpose of this research. The unit of analysis is the Indalo group, the Association of Eastern Cape Private Game Reserves, made up of 12 ecotourism based PORs. As the current research focused on eight of the twelve PGRs a mUltiple case study was employed. To give effect to the aim a number of research objectives were identified. Firstly to desclibe and assess the current practice in implementing CSR within the ecotourism based PGR industry in the Eastern Cape Province. Secondly, to assess and evaluate the involvement of ecotourism based PGRs in the Eastern Cape Province in each of the five responsibilities comprising CSR. Thirdly, to identify the challenges faced by ecotourism based PGRs in the Eastern Cape Province with regard to the implementation of CSR initiatives. Lastly to provide pertinent conclusions and recommendations with regard to CSR strategies within the ecotourism based PGR industry in the Eastern Cape Province. Data were collected by means of in-depth interviews with the managers of each reserve. In addition the researcher conducted focus interviews with administrative employees at each of the member reserves of the Indalo group. Additionally the managers of each reserve were requested to respond to a structured five point Likert scale questionnaire based on the research by Aupperle, Carroll and Hatfield (1985). This research study found that the current practice at the Indalo group is towards a strategic, long term approach to CSR that aids in the development of a 'sustainable organisation.' The aspect of ' empowerment' emerged as the essence of the current practice ofCSR of the Indalo group. Based on the current practice it was concluded that the Indalo group is actively involved in the specific components of CSR namely, environmental, economic, legal, ethical and philanthropic responsibilities. With regard to the environmental responsibilities it was concluded that the environment is the foundation upon which all other components of CSR rest. In addition it was concluded that the economic responsibilities, if managed well, are key to unlocking the CSR potential of a reserve as well as ensuring widespread economic development. In terms of the legal and ethical responsibilities it was concluded that tourism policies both at the national and international level have not aided in the development of a CSR agenda of the Indalo group. Furthermore managers of the reserves have been instrumental in cultivating their own legal culture of CSR based on their experience in the tourism industry and their ethical stances. In terms of the philanthropic responsibilities it can be concluded that charitable activities that are long term and strategic in nature allow for direct and indirect benefits to all parties involved. Overall, it can further be concluded that despite Hudson and Miller's (2005:5) view that the "tourism industry is well hehind other industries in terms of CSR" the Indalo group is moving forward in terms of rooting CSR into their everyday operations

Corporate social responsibility of private game reserves in the Eastern Cape Province

The primary aim of this research study was to determine the current state of practice of corporate social responsibility (CSR) within the ecotourism based private game reserve (PGR) industry in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. According to Carroll (1991) four kind of responsibilities constitute total CSR, namely economic, legal, ethical and philanthropic responsibilities. Given the context of this research a fifth responsibility concerning environmental responsibilities was added to Carroll 's (1991) pyramid ofCSR. A descriptive and illustrative case study approach, within the phenomenological research paradigm, was used for the purpose of this research. The unit of analysis is the Indalo group, the Association of Eastern Cape Private Game Reserves, made up of 12 ecotourism based PORs. As the current research focused on eight of the twelve PGRs a mUltiple case study was employed. To give effect to the aim a number of research objectives were identified. Firstly to desclibe and assess the current practice in implementing CSR within the ecotourism based PGR industry in the Eastern Cape Province. Secondly, to assess and evaluate the involvement of ecotourism based PGRs in the Eastern Cape Province in each of the five responsibilities comprising CSR. Thirdly, to identify the challenges faced by ecotourism based PGRs in the Eastern Cape Province with regard to the implementation of CSR initiatives. Lastly to provide pertinent conclusions and recommendations with regard to CSR strategies within the ecotourism based PGR industry in the Eastern Cape Province. Data were collected by means of in-depth interviews with the managers of each reserve. In addition the researcher conducted focus interviews with administrative employees at each of the member reserves of the Indalo group. Additionally the managers of each reserve were requested to respond to a structured five point Likert scale questionnaire based on the research by Aupperle, Carroll and Hatfield (1985). This research study found that the current practice at the Indalo group is towards a strategic, long term approach to CSR that aids in the development of a 'sustainable organisation.' The aspect of ' empowerment' emerged as the essence of the current practice ofCSR of the Indalo group. Based on the current practice it was concluded that the Indalo group is actively involved in the specific components of CSR namely, environmental, economic, legal, ethical and philanthropic responsibilities. With regard to the environmental responsibilities it was concluded that the environment is the foundation upon which all other components of CSR rest. In addition it was concluded that the economic responsibilities, if managed well, are key to unlocking the CSR potential of a reserve as well as ensuring widespread economic development. In terms of the legal and ethical responsibilities it was concluded that tourism policies both at the national and international level have not aided in the development of a CSR agenda of the Indalo group. Furthermore managers of the reserves have been instrumental in cultivating their own legal culture of CSR based on their experience in the tourism industry and their ethical stances. In terms of the philanthropic responsibilities it can be concluded that charitable activities that are long term and strategic in nature allow for direct and indirect benefits to all parties involved. Overall, it can further be concluded that despite Hudson and Miller's (2005:5) view that the "tourism industry is well hehind other industries in terms of CSR" the Indalo group is moving forward in terms of rooting CSR into their everyday operations

Printing of cotton fabrics using microwave irradiation

Irradiation Microwave was used in fixation of pigment prints on cotton fabrics with a colour strength parameters comparable with the previous research obtained in case of thermo-fixation procedures. However printing pastes was introduced to the fabric via screen printing methods. The printed fabrics was subjected to irradiation microwave for different periods of time at microwave power. Results of both covered and uncovered ranges from 3.8 to 10.70 and 1.66 to 8.20.Also the effect of irradiation microwave on printed cotton fabrics with yellow pigment for 6 min, for both covered and uncovered ranges from 3.50 to 15.52 and 5.20 to 16.80, likewise fastness properties of the cotton fabrics printed with yellow pigment fixed either by optimum conditions for irradiation microwave for both washing and rubbing which ranges from 4/5 for colour change(cc) and for colour staining(cs) which is 4. In order to compare the initial result, another samples of cotton fabrics were printed with the same paste, dried and subjected to fixation procedure. The colour strength of the printed cotton fabrics fixed through irradiation microwave was found to be time and microwave power dependent. Results of this investigation clarified also that, regardless of the time of microwave, covering the pigment printed cotton fabric samples with covered and uncovered sample. Furthermore, the influence of reduction of the particle size of pigment yellow colour to the nano-scale on the colour strength and overall fastness properties of cotton fabrics printed and fixed using irradiation microwave was determined

Restructuring for relevance: a paradigm shift for academic libraries

The primary purpose of this paper is to report on the development of a flexible and robust academic library structure that meets the demands of an ever changing user community and remains relevant and fit for purpose in a technology-driven age. The new structure makes provision for the delivery of new and innovative services responding to the need for a paradigm shift in 21st century academic librarianship. The move away from subject librarianship, which has been the bastion of South African academic librarianship, is significant. This paper used the exploratory method to gain new insights into library structures that have restructured for the 21st century. The exploratory study was used to gain new insights into functional librarianship. Despite the short comings of the exploratory method, the method was deemed most appropriate as UCT Libraries was not seeking definitive answers but a process that would provide opportunities to explore possibilities for subsequent processes. The move from subject librarianship to functional librarianship has given the library the opportunity to restructure. The restructured library can now offer new and/or radically expanded services to meet the demands of a 21st century academic library. The development of new and future roles and responsibilities commensurate with a robust and ‘future-driven’ structure, will consolidate the library’s role as a collaborator in the teaching and learning, and research agendas of a higher education institution. This paper will be of interest and value to library managers and staff wanting to develop a library structure that responds positively to the redefinition of the professional roles and functions of the library and to strategically position the academic library for the future. It will also be of interest to library and information science academics who may want to re-examine their curricula for the incorporation of new trends

Development and validation of scale for self evaluation of soft skills in postgraduate dental students

Objective: To develop and validate a soft skills questionnaire, and to use it for self-evaluation by postgraduate dentistry students.Methods: The cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted at University College of Dentistry, , University of Lahore, Lahore, Pakistan, from February 2020 to April 2020 and comprised of residents from first to final year of training for either Masters in Dental Surgery or Fellowship of the College of Physicians and Surgeons Pakistan programmes. A soft skills questionnaire was generated and was validated through exploratory factor analysis of the elements and items of the questionnaire using SPSS 23.Results: Of the 60 subjects, 37(61.7%) were MDS residents and 23(38.3%) were Fellowship residents. The mean age of the sample was 29.650±2.815 years, and 26(43.3%) subjects were males. The questionnaire was validated (p\u3c0.001). Three domains measured the attitude of dentists, with 7 scenarios having 5 items per scenario. Both categories of trainees had high agreement in understanding and application of non-technical skills, with the exception of leadership skills. However, the difference between the groups was non-significant (p\u3e0.05).Conclusions: A self-generated questionnaire was successfully validated

Biotechnology: a powerful tool for the removal of cadmium from aquatic systems

The prime objective of the present research work was to evaluate the efficiency of bio-machine for the removal of Cadmium (Cd) from aquatic systems. Aspergillus niger fungus was used as bio-machine to remove Cd from aquatic systems. Twenty three different strains (IIB-1 to IIB-23) were isolated from industrial effluents and the Langmuir and Freundlich models were applied to the best Cadmium removal strain IIB-23 in order to obtain the adsorption parameters. Different parameters such as pH, temperatur e, contact time, initial metal concentratio, and biomass dosage on the biosorption of Cd were studied. The percent removal of Cd initially increased with an increase in pH ranging from 5.5-6.5 and then decreased by increasing pH from 7.0-7.5. An optimized pH used for Cd removal from aquatic systems was found to be 6.5. Additionally, an optimum amount of biomass was 1.33 g for the maximum removal of Cd from the aqueous solutions with initial metal concentration of 75 mg/L. The results obtained thus indicated that Langmuir model is the best suited for the removal of Cd from aquatic systems

Physics Potential of the ICAL detector at the India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO)

The upcoming 50 kt magnetized iron calorimeter (ICAL) detector at the India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO) is designed to study the atmospheric neutrinos and antineutrinos separately over a wide range of energies and path lengths. The primary focus of this experiment is to explore the Earth matter effects by observing the energy and zenith angle dependence of the atmospheric neutrinos in the multi-GeV range. This study will be crucial to address some of the outstanding issues in neutrino oscillation physics, including the fundamental issue of neutrino mass hierarchy. In this document, we present the physics potential of the detector as obtained from realistic detector simulations. We describe the simulation framework, the neutrino interactions in the detector, and the expected response of the detector to particles traversing it. The ICAL detector can determine the energy and direction of the muons to a high precision, and in addition, its sensitivity to multi-GeV hadrons increases its physics reach substantially. Its charge identification capability, and hence its ability to distinguish neutrinos from antineutrinos, makes it an efficient detector for determining the neutrino mass hierarchy. In this report, we outline the analyses carried out for the determination of neutrino mass hierarchy and precision measurements of atmospheric neutrino mixing parameters at ICAL, and give the expected physics reach of the detector with 10 years of runtime. We also explore the potential of ICAL for probing new physics scenarios like CPT violation and the presence of magnetic monopoles.Comment: 139 pages, Physics White Paper of the ICAL (INO) Collaboration, Contents identical with the version published in Pramana - J. Physic

Global Retinoblastoma Presentation and Analysis by National Income Level.

Importance: Early diagnosis of retinoblastoma, the most common intraocular cancer, can save both a child's life and vision. However, anecdotal evidence suggests that many children across the world are diagnosed late. To our knowledge, the clinical presentation of retinoblastoma has never been assessed on a global scale. Objectives: To report the retinoblastoma stage at diagnosis in patients across the world during a single year, to investigate associations between clinical variables and national income level, and to investigate risk factors for advanced disease at diagnosis. Design, Setting, and Participants: A total of 278 retinoblastoma treatment centers were recruited from June 2017 through December 2018 to participate in a cross-sectional analysis of treatment-naive patients with retinoblastoma who were diagnosed in 2017. Main Outcomes and Measures: Age at presentation, proportion of familial history of retinoblastoma, and tumor stage and metastasis. Results: The cohort included 4351 new patients from 153 countries; the median age at diagnosis was 30.5 (interquartile range, 18.3-45.9) months, and 1976 patients (45.4%) were female. Most patients (n = 3685 [84.7%]) were from low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Globally, the most common indication for referral was leukocoria (n = 2638 [62.8%]), followed by strabismus (n = 429 [10.2%]) and proptosis (n = 309 [7.4%]). Patients from high-income countries (HICs) were diagnosed at a median age of 14.1 months, with 656 of 666 (98.5%) patients having intraocular retinoblastoma and 2 (0.3%) having metastasis. Patients from low-income countries were diagnosed at a median age of 30.5 months, with 256 of 521 (49.1%) having extraocular retinoblastoma and 94 of 498 (18.9%) having metastasis. Lower national income level was associated with older presentation age, higher proportion of locally advanced disease and distant metastasis, and smaller proportion of familial history of retinoblastoma. Advanced disease at diagnosis was more common in LMICs even after adjusting for age (odds ratio for low-income countries vs upper-middle-income countries and HICs, 17.92 [95% CI, 12.94-24.80], and for lower-middle-income countries vs upper-middle-income countries and HICs, 5.74 [95% CI, 4.30-7.68]). Conclusions and Relevance: This study is estimated to have included more than half of all new retinoblastoma cases worldwide in 2017. Children from LMICs, where the main global retinoblastoma burden lies, presented at an older age with more advanced disease and demonstrated a smaller proportion of familial history of retinoblastoma, likely because many do not reach a childbearing age. Given that retinoblastoma is curable, these data are concerning and mandate intervention at national and international levels. Further studies are needed to investigate factors, other than age at presentation, that may be associated with advanced disease in LMICs

Effects of antibiotic resistance, drug target attainment, bacterial pathogenicity and virulence, and antibiotic access and affordability on outcomes in neonatal sepsis: an international microbiology and drug evaluation prospective substudy (BARNARDS)

Background Sepsis is a major contributor to neonatal mortality, particularly in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). WHO advocates ampicillin–gentamicin as first-line therapy for the management of neonatal sepsis. In the BARNARDS observational cohort study of neonatal sepsis and antimicrobial resistance in LMICs, common sepsis pathogens were characterised via whole genome sequencing (WGS) and antimicrobial resistance profiles. In this substudy of BARNARDS, we aimed to assess the use and efficacy of empirical antibiotic therapies commonly used in LMICs for neonatal sepsis. Methods In BARNARDS, consenting mother–neonates aged 0–60 days dyads were enrolled on delivery or neonatal presentation with suspected sepsis at 12 BARNARDS clinical sites in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, India, Pakistan, Nigeria, Rwanda, and South Africa. Stillborn babies were excluded from the study. Blood samples were collected from neonates presenting with clinical signs of sepsis, and WGS and minimum inhibitory concentrations for antibiotic treatment were determined for bacterial isolates from culture-confirmed sepsis. Neonatal outcome data were collected following enrolment until 60 days of life. Antibiotic usage and neonatal outcome data were assessed. Survival analyses were adjusted to take into account potential clinical confounding variables related to the birth and pathogen. Additionally, resistance profiles, pharmacokinetic–pharmacodynamic probability of target attainment, and frequency of resistance (ie, resistance defined by in-vitro growth of isolates when challenged by antibiotics) were assessed. Questionnaires on health structures and antibiotic costs evaluated accessibility and affordability. Findings Between Nov 12, 2015, and Feb 1, 2018, 36 285 neonates were enrolled into the main BARNARDS study, of whom 9874 had clinically diagnosed sepsis and 5749 had available antibiotic data. The four most commonly prescribed antibiotic combinations given to 4451 neonates (77·42%) of 5749 were ampicillin–gentamicin, ceftazidime–amikacin, piperacillin–tazobactam–amikacin, and amoxicillin clavulanate–amikacin. This dataset assessed 476 prescriptions for 442 neonates treated with one of these antibiotic combinations with WGS data (all BARNARDS countries were represented in this subset except India). Multiple pathogens were isolated, totalling 457 isolates. Reported mortality was lower for neonates treated with ceftazidime–amikacin than for neonates treated with ampicillin–gentamicin (hazard ratio [adjusted for clinical variables considered potential confounders to outcomes] 0·32, 95% CI 0·14–0·72; p=0·0060). Of 390 Gram-negative isolates, 379 (97·2%) were resistant to ampicillin and 274 (70·3%) were resistant to gentamicin. Susceptibility of Gram-negative isolates to at least one antibiotic in a treatment combination was noted in 111 (28·5%) to ampicillin–gentamicin; 286 (73·3%) to amoxicillin clavulanate–amikacin; 301 (77·2%) to ceftazidime–amikacin; and 312 (80·0%) to piperacillin–tazobactam–amikacin. A probability of target attainment of 80% or more was noted in 26 neonates (33·7% [SD 0·59]) of 78 with ampicillin–gentamicin; 15 (68·0% [3·84]) of 27 with amoxicillin clavulanate–amikacin; 93 (92·7% [0·24]) of 109 with ceftazidime–amikacin; and 70 (85·3% [0·47]) of 76 with piperacillin–tazobactam–amikacin. However, antibiotic and country effects could not be distinguished. Frequency of resistance was recorded most frequently with fosfomycin (in 78 isolates [68·4%] of 114), followed by colistin (55 isolates [57·3%] of 96), and gentamicin (62 isolates [53·0%] of 117). Sites in six of the seven countries (excluding South Africa) stated that the cost of antibiotics would influence treatment of neonatal sepsis