Blood lead, cadmium and mercury among children from urban, industrial and rural areas of Fez Boulemane Region (Morocco): Relevant factors and early renal effects

Objectives: To describe blood lead (Pb-B), cadmium (Cd-B) and mercury (Hg-B) levels in children living in urban, industrial and rural areas in Fez city (north of Morocco) and to identify the determinants and some renal effects of exposure. Material and Methods: The study was conducted from June 2007 to January 2008 in 209 school children (113 girls, 96 boys), aged 6-12 years, from urban, industrial and rural areas in Fez city. Interview and questionnaires data were obtained. Blood and urinary samples were analyzed. Results: The mean of blood lead levels (Pb-B) in our population was 55.53 μg/l (range: 7.5-231.1 μg/l). Children from the urban area had higher blood lead levels (BLLs) mean (82.36 μg/l) than children from industrial and rural areas (48.23 and 35.99 μg/l, respectively); with no significant difference between boys and girls. BLLs were associated with traffic intensity, passive smoking and infancy in the urban area. The mean of blood cadmium levels (BCLs) was 0.22 μg/l (range: 0.06-0.68 μg/l), with no difference between various areas. Rural boys had higher BCLs mean than rural girls, but no gender influence was noticed in the other areas. BCLs were associated with the number of cigarettes smoked at children's homes. The blood mercury levels (BMLs) mean was 0.49 μg/l (range: 0.01-5.31 μg/l). The BMLs mean was higher in urban and industrial areas than in the rural area with no gender-related difference. BMLs were associated with amalgam fillings and infancy in the urban area. About 8% of the children had BLLs ≥ 100 μg/l particularly in the urban area, microalbuminuria and a decrease in height were noticed in girls from the inner city of Fez and that can be related to high BLLs (89.45 μg/l). Conclusions: There is a need to control and regulate potential sources of contamination by these trace elements in children; particularly for lead

Towards an appreciation of ethics in social enterprise business models

How can a critical analysis of entrepreneurial intention inform an appreciation of ethics in social enterprise business models? In answering this question, we consider the ethical commitments that inform entrepreneurial action (inputs) and the hybrid organisations that emerge out of these commitments and actions (outputs). Ethical theory can be a useful way to re-orient the field of social enterprise so that it is more critical of bureaucratic (charitable) and market-driven (business) enterprises connected to neo-liberal doctrine. Social enterprise hybrid business models are therefore reframed as outcomes of both ethical and entrepreneurial intentions. We challenge the dominant conceptualisation of social enterprise as a hybrid blend of mission and market (purpose-versus-resource) by reframing hybridity in terms of the moral choice of economic system (redistribution, reciprocity and market) and social value orientation (personal, mutual or public benefit). We deconstruct the political foundations of charitable trading activities (CTAs), co-operative and mutual enterprises (CMEs) and socially responsible businesses (SRBs) by examining the rationalities (formal, social and substantive) and ethical commitments (utilitarian, communitarian, pragmatic) that underpin them. Whilst conceptual modelling of social enterprise is not new, this paper contributes to knowledge by developing a theory of social enterprise ethics based on the moral/political choices that are made by entrepreneurs (knowingly and unknowingly) when choosing between systems of economic exchange and social value orientation, then expressing it through a legal form

Measuring internal market orientation

Internal marketing has been discussed in the management and academic literature for over three decades, yet it remains ill defined and poorly operationalized. This paper responds to calls for research to develop a single clear understanding of the construct, for the development of a suitable instrument to measure it, and for empirical evidence of its impact. Existing, divergent conceptualization of internal marketing are explored, and a new, multidimensional construct, describing the managerial behaviors associated with internal marketing is developed, and termed internal market orientation (IMO). IMO represents the adaptation of market orientation to the context of employer-employee exchanges in the internal market. The paper describes the development of a valid and reliable measure of IMO in a retail services context. Five dimensions of IMO are identified and confirmed. These are 1) formal written information generation, 2) formal face-to-face information generation, 3) informal information generation, 4) communication and dissemination of information, and 5) responding to this internal market information. The impact of IMO on important organizational factors is also explored. Results indicate positive consequences for customer satisfaction, relative competitive position, staff attitudes, staff retention and staff compliance

ROLE OF QUASIPROJECTILE ISOSPIN ASYMMETRY IN NUCLEAR FRAGMENTATION

Fragment yield data, selected with different values of the isospin asymmetry of the quasiprojectile from Kr-78,Kr-86 + Ni-58,Ni-64 reactions at E-lab = 35 MeV/nucleon, have been analyzed within the framework of Landau free energy approach. Fits to the free energy data indicated the system to be in the regime of a first-order phase transition. The plot of free energy versus isospin asymmetry of the fragments showed a systematic change with increasing isospin asymmetry of the fragmenting source. This observation demonstrated the role of quasiprojectile isospin asymmetry as an external field which governed the minima positions in the free energy plot. The position of the central minimum was found to be in close agreement with the average isospin asymmetry of the fragments calculated excluding neutrons and protons. Significant deviations from the free energy plot were observed for N = Z fragments, particularly for the lighter ones, which could be corrected after inclusion of odd-even effects in the analysis. Analysis of yield data of N = Z nuclei gave a reasonable estimate of temperature. Analysis of free energy data gated with excitation energy of the fragmenting source showed a dependence of fit parameters of Landau free energy equation on the excitation energy as well as isospin asymmetry of the source

Effects of Internal and External Pay Comparisons on Work Attitudes

The effects of internal and external pay comparisons on several work attitudes were assessed within an experimental design. Participants responded to hypothetical scenarios in which their pay was greater, less, or equal to an internal and external individual or group referent. As predicted, internal and external pay comparisons predicted pay satisfaction and perceived pay fairness. Also as expected, internal equity was the stronger predictor of work motivation and perceived organizational support, and external equity predicted turnover intention more strongly. Partial support was found for the hypothesis that work attitudes would be impacted more strongly when individuals made pay comparisons with a group referent than with an individual referent other. Implications for the design of compensation systems are discussed