The roles of supervisory support and involvement in influencing scientists’ job satisfaction to ensure the achievement of SDGs in academic organizations

Job satisfaction is the focus of this study, given its strategic importance, both to generate differentiation and competitive advantages, and to promote better and more sustainable results in organizations. Guided by the Affective Events Theory (AET), the interest is in analyzing the direct and indirect effects of supervisory support and involvement on job satisfaction and highlighting the implications of the academics’ emotions for sustainability-related policies and practices in academic environments. The context selected is the higher education (HE) sector in Malaysia for science disciplines, due to its socio- economic relevance and its direct link to the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR4), as well as to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). A sample of 579 scientists were selected randomly and the analysis was carried out based on partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) methodology. Our results supported the hypotheses postulated in the study and especially highlighted the effects of supervisory support and positive affect on job satisfaction, as well as the effect of interpersonal conflict on negative affect. In terms of implications, policy makers at ministry level are advised to consider introducing directives which promote a climate of emotional safety and trust in academic institutions, to achieve the SDGs more effectively and efficiently. At the university level, and given the relevance of the observed effects, academic leaders are recommended to contemplate improving university environments in some way that reduces levels of negative work events (interpersonal conflict in our case). This is crucial as the negative work events can trigger negative emotions, which in turn cause scientists’ job dissatisfaction.Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia FRGS/1/2019/SS05/USM/02/

Effect of massage therapy on children with asthma

Objective: Asthma is the most common chronic illness in childhood and despite significant improvements for disease control and development of many different drugs, its prevalence is increasing worldwide. Recently, the use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) in treatment of many diseases is increasing. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of massage therapy on children with asthma. Material & Methods: In this work, 44 asthmatic children aged 5 to 14 years were studied in the allergy and asthma clinic. The samples were chosen randomly divided into two groups. The first group received massage therapy the second group received routine therapy and care (control group). Parents in the massage group were instructed and asked to conduct a 20 minutes child massage every night at bedtime for one month. The massage involved stroking and kneading motions in face, head, neck, shoulders, arms, hands, legs, feet and back. Data was collected through interview and spirometry measurements. The control group received only standard asthma therapy for one month. A spirometry along with exercise was done in both groups at baseline. A one month ambulatory observation followed. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the findings. Findings. There was a statistically significant difference in mean spirometric indexes in massage group at baseline and after one month follow up forced vital capacity (FVC) with (P=0.05) Forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) with (P=0.02) and FEV1 after exercise with (P= 0.0005). Indeed; there is significant difference between mean changes of FVC (2-1) with (P=0.05) and FEV1 (2-1) in two groups with (P=0.04). Conclusion: According to the obtained results, daily massage can improve airway tonicity, decrease airway sensitivity, and better control of asthma. Applying this method can decline the use of non reasonable drugs and can be considered as a complementary method to pharmaceutical methods

Change, leadership and change-oriented leadership theories in higher education: A review

Universities in 21st century are playing an important role in fostering the next generations of leaders who would be capable of dealing with significant economic, social, cultural and environmental challenges. However, higher education institutions need to be sustainably developed in order to have the potentials to contribute to the development of the societies as well. This shows that major changes must be planned, implemented and maintained in the context of higher education to transform the universities to the entities which can operate in the turbulent environment effectively and efficiently. Thus, the practical application of relevant theories of change and leadership in higher education institutions is pivotal to achieve this objective. Based on this view, the current paper aims to review a few theories of leadership and change which are pertinent to the context of higher education, and to discuss the characteristics of change-oriented leadership as well as to posit that change-oriented leadership may be the best suited leadership style which can be applied in higher education institutions in the turbulent environment of 21st century

Theories of educational management and leadership: A review

Education is the main change agent in developing and developed societies. As a result, the management of educational organizations is regarded as one of the most important management perspectives. Basically, educational management is a discipline with respect to the management of educational organizations and since this field of study has been developed on the premises of other resolutely established disciplines, there is not a unique statement to set out this subject of study. Although the process of determining organizational goals is fundamental to educational management, linking between goals and aims of education and actions of educational management may be considered as vital. The other issue of importance is the closely interlocked relation between educational management and educational leadership and a true combination of them to reach educational excellence. This paper aims to review the models of educational management and their links with the leadership styles based on the discussions as well as the typology of educational management and leadership models provided in the 4th edition of the book “Theories of Educational Management & Leadership” (Bush, 2011)

Engineering the pH-Sensitivity of the Graphene and Carbon Nanotube Based Nanomedicines in Smart Cancer Therapy by Grafting Trimetyl Chitosan

Purpose The aim of this study was to introduce a smart and responsive drug carrier for Doxorubicin (DOX) and Paclitaxel (PAX) for desirable therapeutic application. Method Loading and releasing of DOX and PAX from smart and pH-sensitive functionalized single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNTs) and graphene carriers have been simulated by molecular dynamics. The influences of chitosan polymer on proposed carriers have been studied, and both carriers were functionalized with carboxyl groups to improve the loading and releasing properties of the drugs. Results The results showed that DOX could be well adsorbed on both functionalized SWCNTs and graphene. In contrast, there was a weak electrostatic and Van der Waals interaction between both these drugs and carriers at cancerous tissues, which is highly favorable for cancer therapy. Adding trimethyl chitosan (TMC) polymer to carriers facilitated DOX release at acidic tissues. Furthermore, at blood pH, the PAX loaded on the functionalized SWCNTs carrier represented the highest dispersion of the drug while the DOX-graphene showed the highest concentration of the drug at a point. In addition, the mean-square displacement (MSD) results of PAX-graphene indicated that the PAX could be adsorbed quickly and be released slowly. Finally, functionalized graphene-TMC-PAX is a smart drug system with responsive behavior and controllable drug release, which are essential in cancer therapy. Conclusion Simultaneous application of the carboxyl group and TMC can optimize the pH sensitivity of the SWCNTs and graphene to prepare a novel and smart drug carrier for cancer therapy.Peer reviewe

Fabric procurement planning and evaluating in apparel global supply chain: An Integrated modified VIKOR with fuzzy-random data and nonlinear programming

This paper presents a global supplier selection model for the textile and clothing industry using a fuzzy multi-criteria group decision making approach. Then, the order quantity of each supplier is determined by a mathematical programming model. In the first step, a group fuzzy analysis hierarchical process approach is used to obtain the overall weight of the criteria and sub-criteria and then modified VIKOR is developed in order to calculate the vendor rating. In doing so, a modified VIKOR method with fuzzy-random data is extended due to the existence of both qualitative and quantitative criteria. The qualitative criteria are considered by fuzzy linguistic modeling and quantitative criteria from random data are formulated in a stochastic environment (based on historical data of suppliers). In the second step, a nonlinear programming model is developed to to determine the purchasing quantities from suppliers with multi-sourcing strategy. Finally, using a numerical study, the deployment of the above model is done in the clothing industry and crucial parameters are discovered by sensitivity analysis. Our findings indicate the critical role of customer’s demand and assigned capacity of suppliers in procurement plan

Experimental and Computational Study on the Microfluidic Control of Micellar Nanocarrier Properties

Microfluidic-based synthesis is a powerful technique to prepare well-defined homogenous nanoparticles (NPs). However, the mechanisms defining NP properties, especially size evolution in a microchannel, are not fully understood. Herein, microfluidic and bulk syntheses of riboflavin (RF)-targeted poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid)-poly(ethylene glycol) (PLGA-PEG-RF) micelles were evaluated experimentally and computationally. Using molecular dynamics (MD), a conventional "random"model for bulk self-assembly of PLGA-PEG-RF was simulated and a conceptual "interface"mechanism was proposed for the microfluidic self-assembly at an atomic scale. The simulation results were in agreement with the observed experimental outcomes. NPs produced by microfluidics were smaller than those prepared by the bulk method. The computational approach suggested that the size-determining factor in microfluidics is the boundary of solvents in the entrance region of the microchannel, explaining the size difference between the two experimental methods. Therefore, this computational approach can be a powerful tool to gain a deeper understanding and optimize NP synthesis. © 2021 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society

RPC radiation background simulations for the high luminosity phase in the CMS experiment

The high luminosity expected from the HL-LHC will be a challenge for the CMS detector. The increased rate of particles coming from the collisions and the radioactivity induced in the detector material could cause significant damage and result in a progressive degradation of its performance. Simulation studies are very useful in these scenarios as they allow one to study the radiation environment and the impact on detector performance. Results are presented for CMS RPC stations considering the operating conditions expected at the HL-LHC

RPC upgrade project for CMS Phase II

The Muon Upgrade Phase II of the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) aims to guarantee the optimal conditions of the present system and extend the eta coverage to ensure a reliable system for the High Luminosity Large Hadron Collider (HL-LHC) period. The Resistive Plate Chambers (RPCs) system will upgrade the off-detector electronics (called link system) of the chambers currently installed chambers and place improved RPCs (iRPCs) to cover the high pseudo-rapidity region, a challenging region for muon reconstruction in terms of background and momentum resolution. In order to find the best option for the iRPCs, an R&D program for new detectors was performed and real size prototypes have been tested in the Gamma Irradiation Facility (GIF++) at CERN. The results indicated that the technology suitable for the high background conditions is based on High Pressure Laminate (HPL) double-gap RPC. The RPC Upgrade Phase II program is planned to be ready after the Long Shutdown 3 (LS3)

High voltage calibration method for the CMS RPC detector

The Resistive Plate Chambers (RPC) are used for muon triggers in the CMS experiment. To calibrate the high voltage working-points (WP) and identify degraded detectors due to radiation or chemical damage, a high voltage scan has been performed using 2017 data from pp collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. In this paper, we present the calibration method and the latest results obtained for the 2017 data. A comparison with all scans taken since 2011 is considered to investigate the stability of the detector performance in time