The inescapable prisoner\u27s dilemma.

PhilosophyDoctor of Philosophy (PhD

SERVQUAL DIMENSION ANALYSIS AT HBKU STUDENTS HOUSING FACILITIES

In this competitive era, the improvement of any organization robustly relies on increasing their customer satisfaction about the provided services. It is more important to provide the customers with what they want especially in a case of students housing facilities at universities. For that, organizations need to start paying close attention to their customer voice and constantly work to meet their needs. The aim of this project is to assess the current level of the actual services delivered by HBKU students housing facilities against the level of importance of these services to the students. It also presents a review of current literature on SERVQUAL and how it is applicable to measure quality in the provision of services quality on housing and residential services. The purpose of this project is to determine the gap between the expectation and perception of student housing services provided by HBKU. It utilizes an instrument based on the SERVQUAL model. SERVQUAL is based on the premise that service quality can be measured between the gap that exists between what the customer expects and what they have perceived they have received. To collect primary research data, the questionnaire has been prepared based on the original SERVQUAL framework of 22 questions adapted with minor modifications to be more applicable to HBKU’s students housing facilities case. The survey has been completed by approximately 194 out of 622 iv the total number of students currently utilizing the student housing facility at HBKU. It is important for educational institutions to have deep insight into their students’ experiences. In addition, of contributing to current literature on the topic, the outcome of the project provides information and suggestions to HBKU HRL team so that it can improve its future services offering to students to enable it to bridge the gap between its students’ expectations and perceptions

Laterally-Coupled Dual-Grating Distributed Feedback Lasers for Generating Mode-Beat Terahertz Signals

We present a laterally-coupled AlGaInAs/InP DFB laser emitting two longitudinal modes simultaneously within the same cavity and integrated with EAM. A stable 0.82 THz beating signal was observed over a wide range of bias parameters

Comparison of three methods for detection of Plasmodium oocysts in wild-caught mosquitoes

One hundred forty-nine Anopheles gambicie s.l. and 260 A. funestus were collected from the field in Namawala, Tanzania in June 1994. The mosquitoes were dissected and examined for plasmodium oocysts using two microscopic techniques and the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method. The oldest and simplest technique, the saline test, detected oocysts in 94 out of the 97 mosquitoes found to have oocysts by the more sensitive merbromin stain and PCR techniques. The saline test was found to be a sensitive and reliable field technique for detection of large Plasmodium oocysts in mosquitoes. The merbromin staining technique was as sensitive as PCR, detecting even small oocyst

Quantitative determination of aflatoxin by high performance liquid chromatography in wheat silos in Golestan province, north of Iran

Background: Aflatoxins are the most common mycotoxins that contaminate crops. They are produced by fungi such as Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus. Wheat (Tricitumaestivum) is one of the most important staple foods used in Iran, and the environmental conditions in the north of Iran are favorable to fungal growth. This study was designed in order to determine the aflatoxin concentration in wheat samples from silos in Golestan Province north of Iran. Methods: Samples were collected from three silos of Golestan province. First, aflatoxins were isolated using immu-noaffinity chromatography. Then the aflatoxin concentrations were determined by High performance liquid chroma-tography (HPLC) method and fluorescence detector. Results: Ten out of 34 samples (29.4 of samples) were contaminated by aflatoxins.No concentration was found above permitted aflatoxin levels in Iran (15 ng/g). In one sample (2.9), aflatoxin B1 was seen over the permissible limits in Iran. The highest level found in samples for total aflatoxin, aflatoxin B1, aflatoxin B2, aflatoxin G1 and aflatox-in G2 were 7.08 ng/g, 6.91 ng/g, 0.29 ng/g, 1.37 ng/g and 0.23 ng/g, respectively. No correlation was found between humidity levels in wheat samples contained aflatoxin and wheat samples without aflatoxin. Conclusion: Despite the total aflatoxins determined in samples were below the permissible limits in Iran, the 29 aflatoxin contamination rate can negatively affect health factors and it should not be neglected. So, it is predictable that if the storage duration of samples increases, the aflatoxin contamination levels will increase. © 2015, Iranian Journal of Public Health. All rights reserved

Prevalence and knowledge, attitude and practices related to schistosomiasis among primary school children in Chaani village, North “A” District, Zanzibar

Background: Schistosomiasis is a chronic, parasitic disease caused by blood flukes (Schistosoma species). It has been for along time a neglected tropical disease in most of the sub-Saharan countries.Methods: A cross sectional descriptive study was conducted between June 2015 to July 2015 at Chaani village in North “A” District. The school children were interviewed to identify activities which expose them frequently to water contact. Study subjects were selected by using stratified random sampling technique. The selected school children were asked to collect urine sample in well-labeled container. The samples were processed in the laboratory by using standard microbiological techniques (syringe filtration then examined by microscopy) and results were recorded, the data was analyzed.Results: Out of 170 School children 62 were infected with Schistosoma haematobium which is the predominant Schistosoma species found in that area. Among the 62, 45 (57.6%) were male and 17 (42.4%) were female. The level of knowledge of respondents on Schistosomiasis transmission is that 70% of school children have high knowledge, 18% have moderate knowledge and 12% have low knowledge. Other parameters were also assessed like bathing habits and knowledge and functions of Schistosomiasis control drug.Conclusions: Males were significantly more affected by the disease than females. Provision of safe water coupled with education of the communities regarding the modes of transmission of the disease and the way to prevent oneself, as well as provision of sanitary facilities, such as latrines may decrease the disease burden. 

The relative contributions of cereal production, imports, and aid to somali food security

Somalia is among the poorest countries on the planet. Since the fall of Siad Barre’s regime in 1991, the country has been in a near-constant state of food insecurity and suffered two officially declared famines. In order to address the issue of food insecurity in Somalia, a greater understanding of each of the components that contribute to the Somali food supply is merited. Cereal crops make up a third to half of the Somali diet by calories and are among the most important food crops produced by the country. This study investigated the historic trends in domestic cereal production, cereal imports, and food aid (reported in cereal equivalents) in Somalia by exploring secondary data publicly available from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, and the World Food Programme. These data were related to World Bank population data in Microsoft Excel and average per capita production, import, and aid figures were calculated. Median changes over time and their associated interquartile ranges were reported. The data demonstrated that Somali cereal production levels have not improved since the 1960’s, and since that time, they have been characterized by an extreme amount of year-to-year volatility. Moreover, maize and sorghum are the only meaningful fractions of Somalia’s domestic cereal production, and recent total production of each crop is well below the levels observed in the 1980’s. When combined, per capita production of maize and sorghum has decreased precipitously over time (falling from a high of 91 kg per capita in 1972 to just 30 kg per capita in 2012). This is likely due to a combination of stagnant production and rapidly increasing Somali population (up over 350% since 1961). This has increased the importance of cereal imports and aid to Somalia and has made the country vulnerable to disruptions in international cereal markets and foreign government policies. Improving domestic cereal production in Somalia should be part of any future food security strategy for the country. Recent agricultural research in Somalia suggests that the implementation of simple agricultural best management practices can increase cereal production in the country.Keywords: Somalia, Population Growth, Cereal Production, Cereal Imports, Food AidAfr. J. Food Agric. Nutr. Dev. 2019; 19(3): 14587-1460

Penilaian Penawaran Terendah Yang Responsif Pada Pengadaan Barang Dan Jasa Pemerintah Berbasis Teknologi Komputasi

Salah satu tahapan yang paling penting dalam proses pemilihan penyedia barang/jasa pemerintah adalah penetapan calon pemenang lelang. Perpres Nomor 54 Tahun 2010 (dan Perubahannya) menyatakan bahwa ULP mengusulkan penawar terendah yang responsif sebagai calon pemenang. Tidak ada definisi dan rumusan yang jelas tentang “penawaran terendah yang responsif”, sehingga ketentuan tersebut memiliki peluang untuk diinterpretasikan secara berbeda menurut kepentingan pihak pengguna dan penyedia barang/jasa. Akibatnya, penetapan calon pemenang lelang cenderung bersifat subjektif, tidak baku, berlarut-larut, rentan terhadap praktik KKN, berpotensi menimbulkan kebocoran keuangan negara, dan berdampak buruk terhadap kinerja proyek-proyek pemerintah. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk memformulasikan dan mendesain suatu metode dan sistem yang dapat digunakan untuk menilai dan menetapkan harga penawaran terendah yang responsif secara ilmiah, mudah dioperasikan, memberikan hasil akurat dan seketika, sehingga dapat membantu Kelompok Kerja ULP pada seluruh Kementerian, Lembaga, SKPD, dan institusi lainnya di seluruh Indonesia dalam mengatasi berbagai persoalan empirik sehubungan dengan subjektifitas dan ketidakpastian dalam penetapan pemenang lelang. Rasio antara penawaran harga kontraktor dan pemenang lelang terhadap HPS diklasifikasi menurut interval kelas tertentu. Hasil penelitian ini menemukan bahwa penawaran harga pemenang lelang berada pada interval nilai 73% s/d 98% terhadap nilai HPS dan menghasilkan koefisien responsif c = 0,01161. Nilai ini menunjukkan bahwa keputusan penetapan pemenang lelang dilakukan secara subjektif, tidak memiliki kepastian, tidak baku, dan tidak konsisten. Harga penawaran yang responsif diformulasikan dengan . Pemenang lelang ditetapkan yang memenuhi nilai terendah (Ci,min) pada kelas responsi

Mode-locking and frequency mixing at THz pulse repetition rates in a sampled-grating DBR mode-locked laser

We report a sampled grating distributed Bragg reflector (SGDBR) laser with two different gratings which mode-lock independently at respective pulse repetition frequencies of 640 and 700 GHz. The device operates in distinct regimes depending on the bias conditions, with stable pulse trains observed at 640 GHz, 700 GHz, the mean repetition frequency of 666 GHz, and the sum frequency of 1.34 THz (due to nonlinear mixing). Performance is consistent and highly reproducible with exceptional stability observed over wide ranges of drive bias conditions. Furthermore, a monolithically integrated semiconductor optical amplifier is used to amplify the pulse trains, providing an average output power of 46 mW at 666 GHz