Fostering ICT Competencies in Blended Learning : Role of Curriculum Content, Material, and Teaching Strategies

The study examined the direct and indirect influence of information communication technology (ICT)-integrated curriculum content, material, and teaching strategies on ICT competencies of students in blended learning. The ICT-integrated teaching strategies were used as a mediator in between the relationships of curriculum content, material, and ICT competencies. We used a survey questionnaire containing 26 items on the variables of research in this study. The data were collected from six universities in the Hunan Province of China. The target population consisted of undergraduate students of blended learning. In total, 486 participants participated in the study. Partial least squares-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was applied to measure the relationships among variables. The results revealed that there were significant and positive relationships among ICT-integrated curriculum content, material, teaching strategies, and ICT competencies of students. Furthermore, it was also revealed that ICT-integrated teaching strategies in blended learning mediated the relationships in between ICT integrated curriculum content, material, and ICT competencies. It was concluded that the effective curriculum content, curriculum material, and teaching strategies are the critical predictors of ICT competencies. Moreover, teaching strategies worked as an intervening factor between the curriculum content, curriculum material, and ICT competencies. The practical implications and directions for future research are also presented in this study.Peer reviewe

Quantitative Estimation of Biocapped Surface Chemistry Driven Interparticle Interactions and Growth Kinetics of Gold Nanoparticles

In phytosynthesis of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), biomolecules play a vital role in biocapping the surface of particles and generating the electrostatic repulsive forces to inhibit their growth kinetics. However, estimation of bioactive compounds influencing their surface characteristics through formation of electric repulsive forces (Velec\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{wasysym} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{upgreek} \setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \begin{document}$$V_{elec}$$\end{document}), Van der Waals attraction forces (Vvdw\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{wasysym} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{upgreek} \setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \begin{document}$$V_{vdw}$$\end{document}) and ultimately hindering their growth is still in the phase of obscurity. Current study, based on surface chemistry approach has been performed for identification of bioactive compounds in Elaeis guineensis leaves (EGL/OPL), acting as biocapping agents and directing the growth of AuNPs over a period of time. The quantitative estimation of interparticle interactions and modification in Ostwald ripening (MOR) model were also done to correlate the growth kinetic of AuNPs. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) showed the major contribution of oxygen, carbon and nitrogen elements, corresponding to polyphenolic, carboxylic and amides, in biocapping the surface of AuNPs and directing their interparticle interactions associated with growth kinetics. The Velec\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{wasysym} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{upgreek} \setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \begin{document}$$V_{elec}$$\end{document} forces were reduced with an enhancement in the Vvdw\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{wasysym} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{upgreek} \setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \begin{document}$$V_{vdw}$$\end{document} forces, depicting their major role in impeding growth of AuNPs. The MOR model exhibited an excellent agreement of predicted growth with experimental size enlargements of AuNPs, having 4.8% average absolute relative percentage error

Effect of gold and iron nanoparticles on photocatalytic behaviour of titanium dioxide towards 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ionic liquid

© 2019 Elsevier B.V. The high water solubility, chemical stability and low volatility of ionic liquids (ILs) have made them potentially persistent than conventional pollutants and toxic to the aquatic organisms. Therefore, extensive research efforts are being directed with an aim to develop cheap and efficient protocols to reduce the uncontrolled release of ILs in the environment. In the same line of action, titanium dioxide (TiO2) loaded with gold and iron nanoparticles were trialled for the photocatalytic degradation of highly concentrated 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride [BmimCl] ionic liquid. Furthermore, results pertaining to the degradation of the [BmimCl] using TiO2 loaded with gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) were compared with results obtained by using TiO2 loaded with Fe (NO3)3.9H2O and pristine TiO2 under same set of conditions. It was found that TiO2 decorated AuNPs demonstrated 7 times higher photocatalytic degradation for highly concentrated [BmimCl] in 60 min of reaction time in comparison to the pristine TiO2. Congruently, investigations also revealed that TiO2 loaded AuNPs expressed 3.3 times higher photocatalytic degradation of [BmimCl] in comparison to conventional photocatalyst TiO2@Fe under same reaction conditions. The higher photocatalytic performance associated with TiO2 loaded AuNPs was due to the enhanced Schottky barrier, which could have minimized the photocharge carrier resistance separation and migration. The mechanism for photocatalytic degradation of [BmimCl] using TiO2 loaded AuNPs has been also been described

Employee voice and intent to leave: an empirical evidence of Pakistani banking sector

Organizations want to retain their employees in order to benefit from their talent and skills. While working in an organization, employees come across some problems both inside and outside the organization. This study investigates the relationship between field employees’ voice (effectiveness of voice mechanism) and employees’ intent to leave the organization. Further, this study explores the difference between male and female field employees perception regarding their intention to leave the organization. The sample of the study consisted of 250 field employees working in different banks of Rawalpindi and Islamabad through questionnaire; only 188 were returned and processed. The SPSS technique was used for data analysis and findings. The study concludes that employee voice mechanism has a positive and significant impact on employee intention to leave. This study finds that male are comparatively more intended to leave the organization with less effective voice mechanism and higher qualified employees are more conscious about voice mechanism in the banking sector

Employee voice and intent to leave: an empirical evidence of Pakistani banking sector

Organizations want to retain their employees in order to benefit from their talent and skills. While working in an organization, employees come across some problems both inside and outside the organization. This study investigates the relationship between field employees’ voice (effectiveness of voice mechanism) and employees’ intent to leave the organization. Further, this study explores the difference between male and female field employees perception regarding their intention to leave the organization. The sample of the study consisted of 250 field employees working in different banks of Rawalpindi and Islamabad through questionnaire; only 188 were returned and processed. The SPSS technique was used for data analysis and findings. The study concludes that employee voice mechanism has a positive and significant impact on employee intention to leave. This study finds that male are comparatively more intended to leave the organization with less effective voice mechanism and higher qualified employees are more conscious about voice mechanism in the banking sector

Performance evaluation of phosphonium based deep eutectic solvents coated cerium oxide nanoparticles for CO2 capture

The critical challenge being faced by our current modern society on a global scale is to reduce the surging effects of climate change and global warming, being caused by anthropogenic emissions of CO2 in the environment. Present study reports the surface driven adsorption potential of deep eutectic solvents (DESs) surface functionalized cerium oxide nanoparticles (CeNPs) for low pressure CO2 separation. The phosphonium based DESs were prepared using tetra butyl phosphoniumbromide as hydrogen bond acceptor (HBA) and 6 acids as hydrogen bond donors (HBDs). The as-developed DESs were characterized and employed for the surface functionalization of CeNPs with their subsequent utilization in adsorption-based CO2 adsorption. The synthesis of as-prepared DESs was confirmed through FTIR measurements and absence of precipitates, revealed through visual observations. It was found that DES6 surface functionalized CeNPs demonstrated 27% higher adsorption performance for CO2 capturing. On the contrary, DES3 coated CeNPs exhibited the least adsorption progress for CO2 separation. The higher adsorption performance associated with DES6 coated CeNPs was due to enhanced surface affinity with CO2 molecules that must have facilitated the mass transport characteristics and resulted an enhancement in CO2 adsorption performance. Carboxylic groups could have generated an electric field inside the pores to attract more polarizable adsorbates including CO2, are responsible for the relatively high values of CO2 adsorption. The quadruple movement of the CO2 molecules with the electron-deficient and pluralizable nature led to the enhancement of the interactive forces between the CO2 molecules and the CeNPs decorated with the carboxylic group hydrogen bond donor rich DES. The current findings may disclose the new research horizons and theoretical guidance for reduction in the environmental effects associated with uncontrolled CO2 emission via employing DES surface coated potential CeNPs

Validated RP-HPLC method for the simultaneous determination of glucosamine sulphate and curcumin in cream formulation: A novel stability-indicating study

Purpose: To develop and validate a stability-indicating reverse phase-high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) method for the simultaneous determination of glucosamine sulphate (GS) and curcumin (Cur) in drug solution and formulation.Methods: The optimized chromatographic conditions were achieved by passing various compositions of mobile phases over  different reverse phase chromatographic columns. Various validation parameters, including linearity, range, limit of detection (LOD), limit of quantification (LOQ), accuracy, precision, specificity and system suitability were performed and evaluated. Stability studies under stressed conditions were done to evaluate the effects of acid, alkali, oxidation, heat and degradation by UV light.Results: The validated method was linear over the concentration range of 0.094 to 1.5 mg/mL for GS and 0.125 to 1.5 mg/mL for Cur, with a correlation coefficient > 0.999. The Intra and inter-day precision were 1.9 % for GS and 0.5 % for Cur, while accuracy was 96 and 102 % for GS and Cur, respectively. Stability studies showed that GS was highly sensitive to acid, alkali and oxidation and less sensitive to heat and UV. Cur was stable against acid, heat and oxidation but sensitive to alkali and UV.Conclusion: The developed and validated method was precise and accurate for both GS and Cur and can potentially be utilized for their identification and quantification at industrial, research and quality control laboratories

Cyclodextrins: An Overview of Fundamentals, Types, and Applications

Cyclodextrins are one of the most interesting pharmaceutical excipients with substantial theoretical and applied impacts in pharmaceutical industry. Even though the chemical foundation of these macrocyclic molecules was laid more than 100 years ago by Villiers and Schardinger, it was not until recently that cyclodextrins have been regarded as a subject of numerous potential pharmaceutical applications including inclusion complexation. This particular chapter discusses the fundamental concepts of cyclodextrin chemistry, structure, properties, and host-guest interaction with a special focus on molecular dynamics. Further in this regard, applications of cyclodextrins and numerous drug delivery approaches including novel lipid-based nanosystems are also highlighted

Metaplastic breast carcinoma: Clinicopathological parameters and prognostic profile

Introduction: Metaplastic breast carcinoma (MBC) is defined as breast cancer with a heterologous non-glandular component. MBC is considered a special type of breast cancer with a prognosis that is worse than invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC) of the breast. MBC is the most common breast cancer with a triple-negative profile. Therefore, in this study, we evaluated the clinicopathological parameters, recurrence and survival of MBC in our population.Methods: We conducted a retrospective observational study in the Department of Histopathology at Prince Faisal Oncology Centre, Buraidah, Saudi Arabia, over a period of five years. All cases diagnosed as MBC were included in the study. Estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2/neu) immunohistochemistry (IHC) was performed on representative tissue blocks.Results: Total 183 cases of MBCs were included in the study, out of which 120 cases were excision specimens. The mean age of the patients was 48.84±12.99 years, and the most common age group was between 36 and 50 years of age. Most of the cases were tumor (T) stage T3 (50%), and nodal metastasis was present in 40% of cases. Most cases were grade III (78.7%). ER, PR and HER2/neu positivity was noted in 15.8%, 13.1%, and 9.8% cases, respectively. Follow-up data were available for 70 cases, with a median follow-up period of 4 (1-7) years. Tumor recurrence was noted in 31.4% cases, with a survival rate of 71.4%. Squamous, chondroid, spindle cell differentiation, and matrix production were noted in 70.5%, 7.1%, 13.7%, and 2.2% cases, respectively. A significant association of squamous differentiation was noted with HER2/neu positivity. An inverse association of spindle cell differentiation was seen with axillary metastasis. Survival analysis by Kaplan-Meier revealed a significant association of survival with tumor recurrence.Conclusion: MBC is an important subtype of breast cancer, histopathological identification of which is challenging, owing to varied histological differentiation. We found squamous differentiation to be the most common in MBC, which was associated with HER2/neu positivity. A high recurrence rate of MBC was also observed in our study that was significantly associated with survival