"A whole way of life": ontology of culture from Raymond Williams's perspective

An overall understanding of culture, both the culture of community one lives in and the culture of communities one communicates with, seems to be important for people to live their lives under the shelter of peace. This study hands over and foregrounds what people should notice when they face with their own and other nation’s culture in order to understand it better and prevent probable problems. Knowing about the essence of one's own culture, the person can protect it while it is being attacked by other cultures. It is predicted that by being aware of all the criteria just mentioned, people can both protect their own genuine culture and communicate with other communities, with different cultures, without facing with or creating crucial problems; as a result, they can live peacefully and help the matter of globalization. The main goal of this study is to present ontology of culture through which people would be able to get how to know their own and other's cultures. This knowledge helps them to communicate properly by knowing about what aspects of culture they should focus on when facing other cultures in order not to create any crucial problem

Multiple perspectives toward women in Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness: a feministic overview

Undoubtedly, in spite of all those efforts done during the years, the mentality towards the superiority of male over female is still being reflected in the works of art written by men. Joseph Conrad, the Polish author, who wrote great masterpieces in English, is not an exception. His great work of art, Heart of Darkness, reflects multiple perspectives towards women. By applying a Feminist approach towards this novel, this article tends to present an analytical overview of the mentality of men towards women in the written work of art, Heart of Darkness

William Faulkner's "That Evening Sun": multiple views of oppression

People throughout the history have been subject to discrimination from three distinct perspectives of class, race, and gender. Those who were richer used the lower class as a tool in their service to have a comfortable life. The white oppressed the black as the other who was not similar to him in the color of skin. The male dominated the female as she was different in gender lacking the Phallus. The amalgamation of these ideas towards human being has masterly been presented in the story "That Evening Sun", by William Faulkner. The present study, by applying Marxist approach on this story, tends to analyze how human being may be oppressed from different aspects

Satisfaction with performance appraisal from the employees’ perspective and its behavioral outcomes (case study of headquarters offices of Bank Refah)

The aim of conducting the present study is investigating the relationship between satisfaction with performance appraisal and some behavioral indices (work performance, affective attachment to the organization, motivation improvement and willingness to quit job) of employees in Bank Refah. This study is of applied type which has been conducted with descriptive-survey method. The data in this study have been collected from 269 employees in the headquarters offices of Bank Refah and data collection has been done using correlation and regression method and by SPSS software. The results indicate that satisfaction with performance appraisal is regarded as an important index in improving the effectiveness of this function of management and it will have outcomes such as motivation improvement, reduction in willingness to quit job, increasing affective commitment of employees and improvement in work performance. Therefore, it has been suggested that in order to increase the effectiveness of performance appraisal, in addition to fairness and transparency of assessments, it should be tired to continuously and from the perspective of employees, improve and modify this function of management

Satisfaction with performance appraisal from the employees’ perspective and its behavioral outcomes (case study of headquarters offices of Bank Refah)

The aim of conducting the present study is investigating the relationship between satisfaction with performance appraisal and some behavioral indices (work performance, affective attachment to the organization, motivation improvement and willingness to quit job) of employees in Bank Refah. This study is of applied type which has been conducted with descriptive-survey method. The data in this study have been collected from 269 employees in the headquarters offices of Bank Refah and data collection has been done using correlation and regression method and by SPSS software. The results indicate that satisfaction with performance appraisal is regarded as an important index in improving the effectiveness of this function of management and it will have outcomes such as motivation improvement, reduction in willingness to quit job, increasing affective commitment of employees and improvement in work performance. Therefore, it has been suggested that in order to increase the effectiveness of performance appraisal, in addition to fairness and transparency of assessments, it should be tired to continuously and from the perspective of employees, improve and modify this function of management

Satisfaction with performance appraisal from the employees’ perspective and its behavioral outcomes (case study of headquarters offices of Bank Refah)

The aim of conducting the present study is investigating the relationship between satisfaction with performance appraisal and some behavioral indices (work performance, affective attachment to the organization, motivation improvement and willingness to quit job) of employees in Bank Refah. This study is of applied type which has been conducted with descriptive-survey method. The data in this study have been collected from 269 employees in the headquarters offices of Bank Refah and data collection has been done using correlation and regression method and by SPSS software. The results indicate that satisfaction with performance appraisal is regarded as an important index in improving the effectiveness of this function of management and it will have outcomes such as motivation improvement, reduction in willingness to quit job, increasing affective commitment of employees and improvement in work performance. Therefore, it has been suggested that in order to increase the effectiveness of performance appraisal, in addition to fairness and transparency of assessments, it should be tired to continuously and from the perspective of employees, improve and modify this function of management

An investigation into modeling and simulation approaches for sustainable operations management

Modeling and simulation (M&S) studies have been widely used in industry to gain insights into existing or proposed systems of interest. The majority of these studies focus on productivity-related measures to evaluate systems' performance. This paradigm, however, needs to be shifted to cope with the advent of sustainability, as it is increasingly becoming an important issue in the managerial and the organizational agendas. The application of M&S to evaluate the often-competing metrics associated with sustainable operations management (SOM) is likely to be a challenge. The aim of this review is to investigate the underlying characteristics of SOM that lend towards modeling of production and service systems, and further to present an informed discussion on the suitability of specific modeling techniques in meeting the competing metrics for SOM. The triple bottom line, which is a widely used concept in sustainability and includes environmental, social, and economic aspects, is used as a benchmark for assessing this. Findings from our research suggest that a hybrid (combined) M&S approach could be an appropriate method for SOM analysis; however, it has its challenges.This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors

Performance of inclined pillars with a major discontinuity

Discontinuities are an inherent part of the rock mass and majorly affect the stability of the excavation skin and pillars. The dip of the discontinuities and their properties also have a significant effect on the strength of the pillars. Empirical approaches are commonly used to determine the pillar strength but can overestimate the strength and don't consider the inclination of the pillars and the strength reduction caused by discontinuities. Numerical modeling is a powerful tool and if calibrated can be used to evaluate the strength of the pillars with discontinuities having a range of properties. The effect of a discontinuity on inclined pillars was conducted which has been seldom considered in evaluating the pillar strength. Three-dimensional vertical pillars were simulated, and the pillar strength was calibrated to accepted theoretical results and then the discontinuities were introduced in different pillar inclinations with distinct width to height ratios to gain an insight into the effective pillar strength reduction. Based upon the results, it was found that the discontinuities have a significant effect with the increase in the inclination of the pillars even at a higher width to height ratios

Experimental Study and Modeling the Metabolism of Hydrogen Production in Algae-Bacteria Consortia

El hidrógeno molecular (H2) se considera una fuente de energía limpia y de alto contenido energético. La producción fotobiológica de H2 por algas verdes puede ser un método limpio y renovable para la generación de este gas. Chlamydomonas reinhardtii (Chlamydomonas) es una microalga verde unicelular capaz de llevar a cabo la foto-producción de H2. En este trabajo se estudia el efecto que la intensidad lumínica y diferentes fuentes de carbono y nitrógeno tienen en la producción de H2 en co-cultivos de Chlamydomonas con diferentes bacterias. El objetivo general es obtener un mejor conocimiento sobre cómo las interacciones alga-bacteria pueden mejorar la producción de H2. Primero, se estudiaron co-cultivos de Chlamydomonas con diferentes bacterias (Pseudomonas spp., Escherichia coli y Rhizobium etli) en medios ricos, con acetato como fuente de carbono y a tres intensidades de luz diferentes (12, 50 y 100 PPFD). El aumento de 0.87 a 18.2 ml de H2/L de cultivo fue la mayor mejora en la producción de H2 que se obtuvo cuando Chlamydomonas se cocultivó con Pseudomonas putida 12264 bajo 100 PPFD. Se obtuvieron mejoras en la producción de H2 en co-cultivos respecto a los monocultivos del alga. Estas mejoras estaban claramente relacionadas con la menor capacidad de los co-cultivos para consumir el ácido acético de los medios. Cuanto más tiempo permaneció el ácido acético en el medio, mayor fue la producción de H2. En el segundo estudio se observó que en co-cultivos incubados con azúcares como única fuente de carbono, la foto-producción de H2 por parte del alga es posible cuando las bacterias producían ácido acético. También observamos que el cocultivo de Chlamydomonas con Escherichia coli condujo a una producción sinérgica de H2 que produjo un 60% más de H2 en cocultivos en comparación con la suma de la producción en monocultivos de alga y bacteria. La acumulación de ácido acético es uno de los principales inconvenientes de la producción fermentativa de H2 llevada a cabo por bacterias. Sin embargo, este inconveniente puede convertirse en una ventaja cuando las bacterias productoras de H2 se cultivan conjuntamente con Chlamydomonas. En un tercer estudio, tres cepas de bacterias (Stenotrophomonas sp., Microbacterium sp. y Bacillus sp.) fueron aisladas e identificadas de una comunidad de bacterias silvestres. Se observó que Microbacterium es un socio bacteriano mutualista para Chlamydomonas en término de crecimiento. En medios de cultivo suplementados con azúcares y fuentes de nitrógeno inorgánico, Microbacterium no pudo crecer de forma aislada, sin embargo, sí lo pudo hacer cuando se co-cultivó con Chlamydomonas. Posiblemente el alga permite el crecimiento de Microbacterium al proporcionar nutrientes esenciales, probablemente fuentes de nitrógeno orgánico. Por otro lado, la producción de ácido acético por parte de Microbacterium, a partir de la fermentación de azúcares, favorece el crecimiento de Chlamydomonas y la fotoproducción de H2. Bajo esta cooperación, se produjo una cantidad considerable de H2, 313 ml/L de cultivo en cocultivos de Chlamydomonas-Microbacterium en medios ricos en azúcar. Finalmente, se logró un nivel aceptable de coordinación entre los resultados del modelado y los datos empíricos en términos de crecimiento, producción de H2 y absorción de ácido acético, tanto en co-cultivos de Chlamydomonas-Pseudomonas putida como en los monocultivos control. Este modelo de red metabólica basado en restricciones puede ser prometedor para predecir el comportamiento de organismos en sistemas de mono y co-cultivo.Hydrogen gas (H2) is considered a clean energy carrier with a very high energy content per mass. Photobiological production of H2 by green algae can potentially be a clean and renewable method for H2 generation. Chlamydomonas reinhardtii (Chlamydomonas) is a model unicelular green microalga capable of H2 photoproduction. In this work we studied the effect of light intensity and different carbon and nitrogen sources on H2 production in Chlamydomonas-bacteria co-cultures to gain a better knowledge on how alga-bacteria interactions can improve H2 production. First, we studied co-cultivation of Chlamydomonas with different bacteria, including Pseudomonas spp., Escherichia coli and Rhizobium etli cultured in acetate-containing nutrientreplete media at three different light intensities (12, 50 and 100 PPFD). Increasing from 0.87 to 18.2 ml H2/L culture, was the highest enhancement in H2 production which was obtained when Chlamydomonas was co-cultivated with Pseudomonas putida 12264 under 100 PPFD. Enhancement of H2 production in co-cultures was clearly related to the lower capacity of these co-cultures to consume the acetic acid from the media. The longer the acetic acid remained in the media, the longer the cultures were able to sustain hypoxia and support H2 production. Then, we found out that algal H2 photoproduction is possible in Chlamydomonas-bacteria co-cultures grow on sugars as the only carbon source when acetic acid is produced by the bacteria. These results suggested that acetic acid assimilation is linked to H2 production beside its ability to promote oxygen consumption. We also observed that co-culturing Chlamydomonas with Escherichia coli led to synergetic H2 production that 60% more H2 was produced in co-cultures compared with the sum of production in alga and bacterium monocultures. The accumulation of acetic acid is one of the main drawbacks of the dark fermentative H2 production. However, this drawback could be switched into an advantage when H2 producing bacteria are co-cultivated with Chlamydomonas. In the following, three bacteria strains including Stenotrophomonas sp., Microbacterium sp. and Bacillus sp. were isolated and identified from an unknown bacteria community. Microbacterium was found to be a mutualistic bacterial partner for Chlamydomonas in term of growth. In culture media supplemented with sugars and inorganic nitrogen source, Microbacterium alone was not able to grow, however it grew when co-cultivated with Chlamydomonas. It seemed that this alga allowed Microbacterium growth by providing essential key nutrients, probably organic nitrogen sources. On the other hand, Microbacterium was able to produce acetic acid through fermentation of sugars which favors Chlamydomonas growth and H2 production. Following this cooperative relationship, a considerable amount of H2, 313 ml/L culture was produced in Chlamydomonas- Microbacterium co-cultures in sugar-rich media. Finally, an acceptable level of coordination between the results of modeling and the empirical data in terms of growth, H2 production and acetic acid uptake in Chlamydomonas-Pseudomonas putida co-cultures and pure control cultures was achieved. Therefore, constraint-based metabolic network model can be a promising potential to predict and especially compare the behavior of organisms in mono- and co-culture systems

Middle East Respiratory Syndrome on Health Information Websites: How Much Credible They Are?

Background: The most recent MERS outbreak has raised questions about prevention and symptoms since there is currently no vaccine to prevent MERS. People can help protect themselves from this illness by taking everyday preventive actions. To do so, it is helpful to get medical information on the Internet about this illness. Regarding the importance of ensuring the provision of accurate online information, the aim of this study was to assess the credibility of health websites about MERS by using HONcode tool. Materials and methods: The term “MERS” was searched in Google, Yahoo, and Bing and the first three pages reported by each search engine were selected for evaluation. After excluding 26 websites, 64 unique websites were eligible for examination. Subsequently, the trustworthiness of the websites was then evaluated by using the HONcode of conducts quality rating tool. Results: Our findings indicate that most of the retrieved websites were commercial and governmental (37.5%). Furthermore, only 7 out of 64 websites were officially HONcode certified. In general, the health websites regarding MERS were of poor credibility and while searching for MERS information people will encounter websites which include more commercial content rather than educational. Conclusion: The internet is a place to educate individuals on their health condition and possible treatment options. Nevertheless, the internet cannot replace the role of health professionals in patient education. Regarding the poor credibility of MERS related websites, directing patients to reliable sources of online health information is important, mainly because search engine rank does not assure the trustworthiness of websites