SELF-TALK STRATEGIES FOR CULTURAL COMPETENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION LEADERS

The objective of this research was to explore self-talk strategies for international school leaders and cultural competency. A mixed methods approach explored the concept of self-talk of leaders and cultural competency with International Schools Association of Thailand (ISAT) leaders to understand their experiences and cultural competency. The research sought to determine current self-talk of school leaders in ISAT schools in Thailand, to determine their experiences of self-talk and cultural competency, to explore the effects of self-talk on cultural competency, and to develop self-talk strategies for cultural competency. Qualitative theme analysis found that leaders are using self-talk strategies mostly unconsciously. Findings indicated that judgements, confusion, and frustration around the functions and systems in the new culture occurred in participants and negative experiences were noted. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was used to study the variance of self-talk: constructive, instructive, destructive and the cultural competency level of participants. Findings revealed significant associations between the scale scores for inverse relationships between constructive and instructive self-talk and cultural destructiveness, cultural incapacity, and cultural blindness. Destructive self-talk was significant at F=.856 p=.039 indicating that destructive self-talk may impact cultural competency levels. Cultural destructiveness and cultural incapacity had a significant relationship with destructive self-talk and while cultural competency and cultural proficiency only had a significant relationship with instructive self-talk indicating that the type of self-talk and cultural competency levels do have an effect upon each other. Based on these findings self-talk strategies were developed to enhance cultural competency for international education leaders

Increase of energy recovery from sewage sludge

The use of the pyrolysis process to obtain valuable products from biomass is amongst the technologies being investigated as a source for renewable energy. The pyrolysis process yields products such as biochar, bio-oil and non condensable gases. The main objective of this project is to increase energy recovery from sewage sludge by utilising the intermediate pyrolysis process. The intermediate pyrolysis has a residence time ranging from 5 to 10 minutes. The main product yields from sewage sludge pyrolysis are 50 wt% biochar, 40 wt% bio-oil and 10 wt% non condensable gases. The project was carried out on a pilot plant scale reactor with a load capacity of 20 kg/h. This enabled a high yield of biochar and bio-oil. The characterisation of the products indicated that the organic phase of the bio-oil had good fuel properties such as having high energy content of 39 MJ/kg, low acid number of 21.5, high flash point of 150 and viscosity of 35 cSt. An increase in pyrolysis experiments enabled large quantities of pyrolysis oil production. Co-pyrolysis of sewage sludge was carried out on laboratory scale with mixed wood, rapeseed and straw. It found that there was an increase in bio-oil quantity with rapeseed while co-pyrolysis with wood helped to mask the smell of the sludge pyrolysis oil. Engine test were successfully carried out in an old Lister engine with pyrolysis oil fractions of 30% and 50% blended with biodiesel. This indicates that these pyrolysis oil fractions can be used in similar engine types without any problems however long term effects in ordinary engines are unknown. An economic evaluation was carried out about the implementation of the intermediate pyrolysis process for electricity production in a CHP using the pyrolysis oil. The prices of electricity per kWh were found to be very high

Bottle gourd (Lagenaria siceraria L.) crop response to different planting densities under both drip and widespaced furrow irrigation methods

Saabunud / Received 25.02.2021 ; Aktsepteeritud / Accepted 02.06.2021 ; Avaldatud veebis / Published online 02.06.2021 ; Vastutav autor / Corresponding author: Ibrahim Mubarak [email protected] bottle gourd (Lagenaria siceraria L.) is an important vegetable crop in rural communities in the arid Mediterranean region, still no sufficient information regarding its cultivation practices is available. A two-year field experiment (2019 and 2020) was carried out to assess the effects of planting density and irrigation method on bottle gourd yield, following a split-plot experimental design with two planting densities of about 11 111 and 5555 plant ha–1 , and two irrigation methods (drip irrigation and wide-spaced furrows as surface irrigation), with three replicates. Significant effects of both factors on bottle gourd fruit characteristics, dry matter, fresh marketable yield, water productivity (WP), and irrigation water use efficiency (IWUE) were found. Seasonal evapotranspiration and irrigation water amounts were considerably reduced by about 20% under drip irrigation as compared with surface irrigation. Moreover, dry matter, fresh marketable yield, WP, and IWUE were doubled. Combining drip irrigation with the lower planting density was the most favourable practice for the bottle gourd crop productivity under the studied context. These findings of high fresh marketable yield and water productivity suggest that bottle gourd crop could be considered as an alternative crop for food security and economic prosperity of rural communities. Adopting drip irrigation can effectively address the water shortage issue and sustain crop production in the arid Mediterranean area

Fractional robust control of ligthly damped systems

The article proposes a method to design a robust controller ensuring the damping ratio of a closed-loop control. The method uses a contour para-meterized by the damping ratio in the Nichols plane and the complex non-integer (or fractional)differentiation to compute a transfer function whose open-loop Nichols locus tangents this contour, thus ensuring dynamic performance. The proposed method is applied to a flexible structure (a clamped-free beam with piezoelectric ceramics). The aims of the control loop are to decrease the vibrations and to ensure the damping ratio of the controlled system

Fractional robust control with iso-damping property

This article deals with the problem of the reduction of structural vibrations with isodamping property. The proposed methodology is based on: - a contour defined in the Nichols plane and significant of the damping ratio of the closed-loop response - a robust control method that uses fractional order integration. The methodology is applied to an aircraft wing model made with a beam and a tank whose different levels of fillings are considered as uncertainties

Characterization of tribological behavior of high performance rail steel

The tribological characterisation of rail steels has been carried out using rolling-sliding testing device with cylindrical samples with functional geometries. The test can be considered in accordance with the similar one prescribed by the GOST normative. Two steel grade, R260 and K76 Φ have been used for the laboratory characterisation. Wear curves have been carried out and elaborated depending on the in service conditions and wear amounts of the rail. The test is suitable for the comparative wear analysis of rail steels. The experimental results were compared with the curves from scientific and technological literature and with values measured from in service rails to be validated

Contextualisation of the complexity in the selection of developing country outsourcees by developed country outsourcers

© 2018 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. Outsourcing research has recognised that selecting the right offshore supplier (outsourcee) in low-cost distant developing countries is complex, but central to outsourcing success. More specifically, the combination of outsourcee contextual internal factors (e.g. capabilities) with outsourced-to country contextual external factors (e.g. political, legal, economic, socio-cultural) as two fundamental and interconnected decisions firms make when outsourcing remains an underexplored research gap. Therefore, through a rigorous three-tier qualitative approach we, firstly, develop a contextual Environmental Separation Index (ESI) decision tool to help outsourcing firms in making more informed decisions when selecting outsourcees and outsourcing locations. Secondly, we operationalise the ESI as intuitive and easy to use decision tool, yet with a provision to deliver a truly context proof outsourcee selection decision. Thirdly, we adopt a complexity theory lens to explain that narrowing the contextual outsourcer–outsourcee gap facilitates a mind-set shift in outsourcing relationships from hierarchies to networks and from controlling to empowering developing country outsourcees. We show from a complexity theory perspective how contextual separation gaps between developed country outsourcers and developing country outsourcees can be an effective way to grasp the evolutionary path of outsourcing relationships

The interaction of the freight car and way taking into account deformation of assembled rails and sleepers

The settlement scheme is made and analytical researches of fluctuations of crew under the influence unevenness of the way in the horizontal and vertical planes taking into account impact of the railroad car on the way are executed

STUDY OF CRUDE EXTRACTS FROM CASSIA SIEBERIANA ROOT BARK AND KHAYA GRANDIFOLIOLA TRUNK BARK: PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING, QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS AND RADICAL SCAVENGING ACTIVITY

Objective: Cassia sieberiana and Khaya grandifoliola are two plants commonly used in traditional medicine in Côte d’Ivoire. Photochemical screening of crud extract obtained from C. sieberiana root bark and K. grandifoliola trunk bark revealed the presence of alkaloids, sterols, terpenes, polyphenols, flavonoids, coumarins, tannins, reducing sugars, glycosides, carbohydrates, cardiac glycosides and saponins. Methods: Quantitative analysis was screened in C. sieberiana root bark and K. grandifoliola trunk bark. Results: The results respectively showed high concentrations of total phenols (225.57±7.57 and 186.75±12.76 μgGAE/mg), total flavonoids (64.70±5.25 and 117.88±8, 68 μgQE/mg) and total tannins (170.60±5.85 and 39.96±1, 58 μgTAE/mg). The antioxidant activity of the glycosides extracts CS1, KG1 and their corresponding aglycones CS2, KG2 of these plants has been studied by scavenging free radicals by DPPH and that, compared with L-ascorbic acid (vitamin C, IC50 = 0.07 µg/ml). IC50 values of CS1 (2.69 µg/ml), KG1 (3.16 µg/ml) and CS2 (1.30 µg/ml), KG2 (0.726 µg/ml) showed that the aglycones are clearly more effective than the glycosides. Conclusion: Qualitative analysis of Cassia sieberiana root bark and Khaya grandifoliola trunk bark showed a presence of a variety of secondary metabolites in these plants, when the quantitative analysis concludes that they contain phenolic compounds, flavonoids and tannins to varied contents