A Framework for Assessing Impact of Brand Personality on Customer Satisfaction: The Moderating Role of Gender and Age

This study develops an empirical examination of brand personalities in cellular phone sector of Pakistan as a predictor of customer satisfaction. The purpose of this research is to develop a framework that how brand personality of cell phone can increase the level of customer satisfaction. This study also aims to test the moderating role of demographic characteristics (Gender and Age) in the relationship between brand personalities and customer satisfaction. A sample of 300 cell phone users from 5 cities of Pakistan is selected .Based on the survey of consumers of cell phones; the authors checked the effect of brand personality on customer satisfaction. Moderation Analysis was used to check the moderation effect of demographic characteristics (Gender and Age) on the relationship between brand personality and customer satisfaction. Results indicated that due to different dimensions of brand personality of cell phones, customer observed massive satisfaction level. So, since customer faced more satisfaction, they signified more intention towards brand. Further, our research also confirmed the moderating role of Customer Age.  This study reveals that when cell phone manufacturing companies invest the human characteristics into their brand so that personality of their brand can develop, their customers can be more loyal towards organization and their level of satisfaction increased. Marketers and Brand Managers must develop marketing and advertisement activities in line with the personality of their cell phone brands. &nbsp

Human and mouse meniscus progenitor cells and their role in meniscus tissue regeneration

Osteoarthritis (OA) ist eine degenerative Erkrankung des hyalinen Knorpels. Knorpel ist ein avaskuläres Gewebe. Wenn dieser beschädigt wird, ist es schwierig, ihn zu reparieren. Der Gelenkknorpel ist verantwortlich für die glatte, reibungs- und schmerzlose Bewegung des Kniegelenks. Schwere Verluste oder die komplette Zerstörung des Gelenkknorpels führen zu hoher Reibung und Schmerzen bei der Bewegung des Kniegelenks, wie es oft in den späten Stadien der OA der Fall ist. Der komplette Gelenkersatz bleibt die ultimative Lösung. Jedoch gibt es viele andere Möglichkeitenden Knorpel über die Implantation von Stammzellen zu reparieren oder zu regenerieren, jedoch oft mit schwerwiegenden Folgen. Die Transplantation embryonaler Stammzellen kann beispielsweise zu Teratombildung führen. Die Nutzung von induzierten pluripotenten Stammzellen ermöglicht die Virusintegration in das Genom. Alternativ entstand das Konzept der Vorläufer- oder Reparaturzellen in situ. Beispielsweise fand man in späten Stadien der Osteoarthritis im menschlichen Knorpel chondrogene Vorläuferzellen mit migratorischen Fähigkeiten (CPCs). Bei Knorpelregeneration mit diesen Zellen sind bisher keine Risokofaktoren bekannt. Sie haben eine enorme Fähigkeit für die Knorpelreparatur ohne das schwerwiegende Risikofaktoren bisher bekannt waren. Allerdings bestehen noch Fragen zum Beispiel wie man CPCs in situ induziert, um das Gewebe auf physiologische Weise zu reparieren. Zweitens haben CPCs eine begrenzte Lebensdauer, zumindest in vitro. Darüber hinaus gibt es keine verfügbare optimierte Methode, um eine vollständige chondrogene Differenzierung von Stammzellen zu erreichen. Vor kurzem wurden primäre Zilien gefunden, die hilfreich für die Stammzelldifferenzierung sein könnten. Diese Zilien arbeiten als Dual-Sensor für mechanochemische Signale. Dieser Sensor wurde auch auf CPCs gefunden, bei Chondrozyten gewonnen aus Kiefergelenken (TMJ) von Discoidin-Domänen- Rezeptor-1- Knockout- Mäusen (DDR- 1 KO). OA ist nicht nur auf die großen Gelenke beschränkt, sondern wirkt sich auch auf die kleinen Gelenke wie das Kiefergelenk aus. Es ist gut bekannt, dass Chondrozyten im Gelenkknorpel keinen direkten Zell-zu-Zell-Kontakt besitzen vielmehr beruht die Kommunikation auf Zell-Matrix - Wechselwirkungen über Zellrezeptoren z.B Integrine oder DDRs. DDR -1- KO-Mäuse zeigen typische Symptome der Arthrose des Kiefergelenkknorpels. Die aus dem Kiefergelenknorpel der DDR - 1 KO Mäuse abgeleiteten Chondrozyten behielten ihre Arthroseeigenschaften. Einerseits wiesen sie eine hohe Expression von runx2 und Kollagen Typ I als typische osteogene Signaturen auf sowie andererseits eine geringe Expression von sox9, Kollagen Typ II und Aggrecan, welche relevant für die chondrogene Differenzierung sind. Die osteoarthritischen Charakteristika könnten zu einem normalen Chondrozyten- Typ umgekehrt werden über den Knockdown von runx2 oder der Exposition dieser Zellen in einer dreidimensionalen Umgebung und in Gegenwart von extrazellulärer Matrix (ECM) -Komponenten wie Laminin und Nidogen. Die Umkehr in Richtung des chondrogenen Phänotyps ist auch für die Pathogenese der Meniskusdegeneration von großer Bedeutung. Der Meniskus ist in den meisten Fällen der Ausgangspunkt für die Entwicklung von OA des Kniegelenks. Der Meniskus ist ein Bindegewebsknorpel, der als Stoßdämpfer wirkt. Hierbei verschlimmert eine Menikusschädigung die OA Pathogenese durch verstärkten Knorpelabbau. Der innere Teil des Meniskus ist avaskulärer Natur und hat eine sehr begrenzte Eigenreparaturfähigkeit. Es gibt jedoch andere Möglichkeiten, wie die teilweise Entfernung des Meniskus, die zu einer kurzfristigen Entlastung führt. Dies verhindert jedoch nicht die langfristigen Folgen, die letztlich zur Entwicklung von OA führen. Der innere Teil des menschlichen Meniskus birgt einzigartige Vorläuferzellen (MPC) und kann zur Meniskus-Regeneration über den TGFß -Signalweg aktiviert werden. Darüber hinaus wurden Maus-Meniskus-Progenitorzellen (MMPCs) in gesundem Meniskusgewebe untersucht. Diese Zellen wurden mittels immunohistochemischen Techniken ex vivo charakterisiert und behielten ihre Stammzelleigenschaften auch in vitro. Mit der Anwendung verschiedener Stammzellen zur Therapie der Knorpelregeneration sind viele kritische Konsequenzen assoziiert. Im Fokus standen deshalb gewebespezifische Zellen auch in situ Vorläuferzellen genannt, die bereits in erkranktem Knorpel vorhanden sind. Diese Zellen können sich in chondrogener Richtung entwickeln. Hierfür benötigen sie möglicherweise nur geringe Manipulationen, um daraufhin hyalinen Knorpel zu produzieren

THE IMPLEMENTATION OF CONTEXTAL TEACHING AND LEARNING IN TEACHING WRITING RECOUNT TEXT TO THE EIGHTH GRADE STUDENTS OF SMPN 2 GREGED CIREBON

MUHAMMAD TURMUDZI HAYAT: “THE IMPLEMENTATION OF CONTEXTUAL TEACHING AND LEARNING IN TEACHING WRITING RECOUNT TEXT TO THE EIGHT GRADE STUDENTS OF SMPN 2 GREGED CIREBON”. Writing is producing something in written form so that people can read, perform and used it. It means that in teaching writing the teacher reinforces students to produce something in written form so that people can read it. In producing written well, the students can not do it by themselves, but they should do through a process in teaching and learning. This research is about improving students’ recount text writing by using contextual teaching and learning (CTL) approach. In the process of writing, sometimes the students make mistakes. For example the students are difficult to get ideas in written form. So the teacher thinks to find a good technique to solve the problem. The aims of the research are to know the students ability in writing recount text, to know the aspect of writing methods in implementing contextual teaching and learning and the benefits of using contextual teaching and learning approach. This study used descriptive qualitative research method in answering the research problems. Qualitative research is descriptive in that the researcher is interested in process, meaning and understanding gained through words or utterances. The result of this study, the students showed a good progress in their writing, beside that they could increase their writing ability and they can construct a neat recount text, namely the grammatical improvement from students in writing class. There were some aspects of teaching method in implementing contextual teaching and learning which the writer used, they are: relating, experiencing, applying, cooperating and transferring. Those teaching method were beneficial in implementing contextual teaching and learning to teaching writing recount text, such as: (1) engaging students in the activity, (2) increasing students’ motivation, (3) helping students to construct their recount text writing, (4) helping students to solve their problem, (5) providing ways for students to discuss or interact with their friends, (6) and helping the students to summarize and reflect the lesson

Blocks on Bertie’s Stutter Utterances in The King’s Speech Movie

Abstrak Hambatan, yang merupakan salah satu ciri gangguan bicara khusus yang di alami oleh Bertie atau Raja George ke VI akan di teliti secara mendalam dalam penelitian ini. Penelitian dalam tulisan ini di lakukan dengan menganalisa bunyi-bunyi yang terhambat dalam ucapan-ucapan Bertie yang gagap, lalu, bunyi-bunyi tersebut akan di analisa untuk menemukan alasan mengapa bunyi-bunyi tersebut terhambat. Di samping itu, penelitian ini menggunakan metode penelitian deskriptif kualitatif untuk menganalisa dan menjabarkan data. Data tersebut di dapat dari sebuah film berjudul The King’s Speech dengan menggunakan teknik analisa dokumen. Lantas, data terssebut kemudian diteliti dengan langkah reduksi data, analisa data, dan simpulan. Setelah data tersebut di analisa, hasil dari penelitian ini pun ditemukan. Hasil dari penelitian ini adalah di temukan fakta bahwa Bertie mengalami hambatan pada dua belas bunyi-bunyian, bunyi-bunyi tersebut adalah /p/, /m/, /d/, /n/, /k/, /g/, /dʒ/, /f/, /ð/, /ʃ/, /h/, dan /w/, dan di temukan juga dua alasan mengapa bunyi-bunyi tersebut terhambat dalam ucapan-ucapan Bertie yang gagap. Alasan tersebut adalah penempatan bunyi-bunyi tersebut di dalam kata dan tempat dimana dan cara bagaimana bunyi-bunyi tersebut diucapkan. Kata kunci: ucapan, gagap, hambatan.            Abstract Block, which is one of characteristics of stuttering, that occurred on Bertie or King George VI will be analyzed deeply in this study. The analysis is done by analyzing the speech sounds that got blocked on Bertie’s stutter utterances and then, those speech sounds will be analyzed to find the reasons why those speech sounds got blocked. In addition, this study is using descriptive qualitative method to analyze and describe the data. Moreover, the data in this study is collected from the movie entitled The King’s Speech using analysis document. Then, the collected data is analyzed by data condensation, data analysis, and conclusion. After the analysis was done, the results were found. The results are this study found that Bertie experienced block on twelve speech sounds, those are /p/, /m/, /d/, /n/, /k/, /g/, /dʒ/, /f/, /ð/, /ʃ/, /h/, and /w/, and this study also found two reasons why those speech sounds got blocked on Bertie’s stutter utterances. Those reasons are the placement of those sounds in a word and the place and the way those speech sounds are produced. Keywords: utterances, stuttering, block

PROGRAM PEMBELAJARAN BIOLOGI MELALUI INKUIRI BERORIENTASI ENTREPRENEURSHIP (INKUIRI 5E+e) UNTUK MEMBEKALKAN LIFE-LONG LEARNING MAHASISWA

ABSTRAK Penelitian ini merupakan pengembangan suatu program pembelajaran Biologi melalui inkuiri berorientasi entrepreneurship (inkuiri 5E+e) untuk membekalkan life-long learning mahasiswa. Design and Development Research (DDR) yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini, terdiri dari empat langkah utama, yaitu analisis permasalahan, perencanaan, produksi dan evaluasi. Sejumlah mahasiswa Program Studi Pendidikan Biologi pada salah satu LPTK di Jawa Tengah yang mengikuti perkuliahan Keanekaragaman Tumbuhan dan Hortikultura terlibat sebagai partisipan (n=86). Pengumpulan data dilakukan dengan instrumen (kuesioner dan lembar observasi life-long learning, soal penguasaan konsep, pedoman wawancara). Kuesioner life-long learning diberikan sebelum dan setelah diterapkan program pembelajaran inkuiri 5E+e. Hasil analisis data secara kuantitatif dan deskriptif kualitatif diinterpretasikan secara komprehensif. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa: 1) struktur program yang dikembangkan dapat diterapkan dengan baik pada masing-masing mata kuliah; 2) kondisi life-long learning mahasiswa menunjukkan peningkatan selama mengikuti program inkuiri 5E+e; 3) program inkuiri 5E+e berdampak positif terhadap peningkatan penguasaan konsep mahasiswa; 4) keterampilan entrepreneurship mahasiswa menjadi faktor pendukung terhadap keberhasilan penerapan program; 5) ada beberapa hal yang masih perlu ditingkatkan, antara lain: pengetahuan prasyarat mahasiswa mengenai konsep identifikasi tumbuhan dan keterampilan dasar bercocok tanam. Secara keseluruhan, program inkuiri 5E+e dapat membekalkan life-long learning mahasiswa, yang ditunjukkan dengan meningkatnya keterampilan mahasiswa dalam berpikir kompleks, lebih analitis dalam memproses informasi, efektif dalam berkomunikasi, produktif dalam berkolaborasi bersama tim, dan selalu menggunakan habits of mind dalam kegiatan belajar. Dengan demikian program pembelajaran inkuiri 5E+e perlu dilanjutkan penerapannya dalam perkuliahan Biologi untuk membekalkan life-long learning calon guru secara lebih luas dan lebih intensif. Kata kunci: life-long learning, inkuiri, entrepreneurship, perkuliahan, Keanekaragaman Tumbuhan, Hortikultura. ABSTRACT This research is the development of a Biology learning program through entrepreneurship-oriented inquiry (5E+e inquiry) to prepare life-long learning students. This research used the Design and Development Research (DDR) method, which consists of three main steps: planning, production, and evaluation. The participants were 86 students who attend the Plant Diversity and Horticulture course in a Teachers Institution in Central Java of Indonesia. The data were obtained by disseminating the life-long learning questionnaire, questions of concept mastery, and by conducting an interview. The life-long learning questionnaire was administered before and after the implementation of the 5E+e inquiry learning program. The results of quantitative and descriptive qualitative data analysis were elucidated comprehensively. The results show that: 1) the structure of the developed program can be applied succesfully in each subject; 2) the life-long learning conditions of students show improvement during the 5E+e inquiry program; 3) the 5E+e inquiry program has a positive impact on improving students' mastery of concept; 4) student entrepreneurship skills are considered as the supporting factor for the successful implementation of the program; 5) Some points still need to be improved, such as: students’ prerequisite knowledge of the plant identification concept as well as the basic farming skill. Overall, the 5E+e inquiry learning program can equip students with life-long learning habit. It is shown by the increase of students skills that are extended to: having complex thinking, processing any information more analytically, acquiring good interpersonal and communication skills, being able to collaborate productively, and perpetually practicing the habits of mind during the learning process. Thus it is essential to continue the implementation of the 5E+e inquiry learning program in Biology courses to equip broader and more intensive life-long learning habit of prospective teachers. Keyword: life-long learning, inquiry, student entrepreneurship, course, Plant diversity, Horticulture

Who Supports the ECB? Evidence from Eurobarometer Survey Data

This paper addresses empirically the still debated issue of the legitimacy of the European Central Bank (ECB) with regard to European polities, presenting evidence on public opinion support for the ECB as elicited from responses in the recent waves of the Eurobarometer survey. We employ a rich set of potential determinants, combining macroeconomic and socio-demographic data in logistic regressions, to explain trust in the ECB. We find that people with higher level of income and education and centre to right-wing political orientation tend to support the ECB, as well as people with optimistic expectations on the economic situation. Moreover, our results indicate that socio-demographic determinants of trust in the ECB dominate macroeconomic ones, in particular inflation performance, by a considerable margin of magnitude and in a quite robust way. The policy relevance of such results is important for ECB’s communication strategy with the EU public, especially in the years ahead of likely reforms of the European Monetary Union (EMU).European Central Bank, communication, legitimacy, determinants of trust, Eurobarometer survey, logistic regression

Mitigation of environmental hazards of sulfide mineral flotation with an insight into froth stability and flotation performance

Today\u27s major challenges facing the flotation of sulfide minerals involve constant variability in the ore composition; environmental concerns; water scarcity and inefficient plant performance. The present work addresses these challenges faced by the flotation process of complex sulfide ore of Mississippi Valley type with an insight into the froth stability and the flotation performance. The first project in this study was aimed at finding the optimum conditions for the bulk flotation of galena (PbS) and chalcopyrite (CuFeS₂) through Response Surface Methodology (RSM). In the second project, an attempt was made to replace toxic sodium cyanide (NaCN) with the biodegradable chitosan polymer as pyrite depressant. To achieve an optimum flotation performance and froth stability, the third project utilized two types of nanoparticles; silica (SiO₂) and alumina (Al₂O₃) as process aids. The fourth project investigated the impact of water chemistry on the process outcomes in an attempt to replace fresh water with sea water. In the last project, five artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) models were employed to model the flotation performance of the ore which will allow the building of intelligent systems that can be used to predict the process outcomes of polymetallic sulfides. It was concluded that chitosan can be successfully used as a biodegradable depressant. Alumina nanoparticles successfully enhanced both froth stability and flotation performance while silica nanoparticles did not. Seawater had a negative effect on both the froth stability and the grade of lead (Pb) and copper (Cu) but it improved the recoveries of both Pb and Cu minerals. Hybrid Neural Fuzzy Interference System (HyFIS) ML model showed the best accuracy to be adopted for automated sulfide ore flotation process in the future --Abstract, page iii