Couple Relationships in the Arab Region: Changes and Renegotiations

This chapter investigates the potential impact of two competing forces on the positioning and dynamics of marriage in the Arab region. It also investigates the level of satisfaction and the possible emergence of a new framework of conscious choice. The first type of forces support individual control. They foster informal unions and equitable dynamics. The expectations are that these relationships are governed by individual choices and are characterized by more closeness and romantic emotions. The second type of forces include the centrality of marriage, as well as a traditional division of gender roles. These forces sustain the institution of marriage, as well as a patriarchal separation of roles. The expectations are that these latter relationships lend themselves to pressured or even forced marriages and are characterized by uneven power relationships and less closeness and romantic ideals. This chapter demonstrates that couple relationships, particularly among the young generations, are caught between two opposing forces. Transformations are occurring, but the speed and degree of change vary widely among countries, as well as between males and females. The role of love and intimacy in shaping couple relationships is also shifting. The current evidence depicts a level of practicality in partner selection, as well as a degree of tension within marriage. It suggests that power relationships remain dominant. It also points to a transitional phase where women are more assertive in claiming their rights and exercising them in different formats

Mild and Highly Flexible Enzyme-Catalyzed Modification of Poly (ethersulfone) Membranes

Poly(ethersulfone) (PES) membranes are widely used in industry for separation and purification purposes. However, the drawback of this type of membranes is fouling by proteins. For that reason, modification of PES membranes has been studied to enhance their protein repellence. This paper presents the first example of enzyme-catalyzed modification of PES membranes. Various phenolic acids (enzyme substrates) were bound to a membrane under very mild conditions (room temperature, water, nearly neutral pH) using only laccase from Trametes versicolor as catalyst. The extent of modification, monitored, for example, by the coloration of the modified membranes, can be tuned by adjusting the reaction conditions. The most significant results were obtained with 4-hydroxybenzoic acid and gallic acid as substrates. The presence of a covalently bound layer of 4-hydroxybenzoic acid on the grafted membranes was confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (IRRAS), and NMR. In the case of gallic acid, PES membrane modification is mainly caused by adsorption of enzymatically formed homopolymer. The ionization potential of the substrates, and the electronic energies and spin densities of the radicals that are intermediates in the attachment reaction were calculated (B3LYP/6-311G(d,p)) to determine the reactive sites and the order of reactivity of radical substrates to couple with the PES membrane. The calculated order of reactivity of the substrates is in line with the experimental observations. The calculated spin densities in the phenolic radicals are highest at the oxygen atom, which is in line with the formation of ether linkages as observed by IRRAS. The liquid fluxes of the modified membranes are hardly influenced by the grafted layers, in spite of the presence of a substantial and stable new layer, which opens a range of application possibilities for these modified membrane