The Dialogue between the (Self) and the (Other): Analysis of Arab-American Dialectical Relation

The 'Self' and the 'Other' are two philosophic concepts that are represented in this study to reflect upon the relations between East and West, considering in particular the dialectical relation between Arabs and Americans. Analysis of selected history events introduces such inter-relations being mainly described on the basis of colonialism, terrorism, and peace on the other hand. Arab-American relations were questioned in the Arab region, where Arabs considered the relation in terms of American polarization as dominant and supporting the Jewish presence, which is mainly the reason behind the cultural clash that ended into a clear political clash by the rejection of the Deal of the Century. The study concluding that Arabs were used to decades of rejecting and denying the (other) in different stages of history because of their cultural heritage ; and that they should rather now reconsider their standings to make it more humanitarian seeking peace rather than hatred and violence . Key words: The 'Self' and the 'Other', Arab, American, colonialism, terrorism, peace, Arab-American relations, Arab region, American polarization, Jewish presence, Deal of the Century. DOI: 10.7176/JLPG/86-18 Publication date:June 30th 201

Moral Values and Cultural Development in the Arab World: An Analytical Study on Religion and Language

The study reveals the relationship between moral values as an ethical system adopted by the Arab mind and the intellectual cultural development in the Arab world. The study also presented analytically the correlation between moral values adopted by the Arab mind and linguistics, relating it to development in the Arab world. The Arab development situation is studied from the perspective of Arab thinkers who used the linguistic analytical approach to understand the Arab mind, in an attempt to realize Arabs’ moral philosophy as compared to Western intellectual perspective. The study discussed cultural development from a three dimensional perspective (philosophic-ethical-linguistic).Arabs encountered an unprecedented state of chaos and violence, because of their thoughts and therefore moral values adopted. The study concluded that moral values as adopted by Arabs are mainly affected by their language usage, reflecting the intellectual status of the Arab mind, and therefore affecting cultural development of the Arab world. Keywords: Cultural development, moral values, linguistic analysis, Arab world, Arab thinkers, Islam, philosophy, religion, ethics. DOI: 10.7176/JLPG/85-21 Publication date:May 31st 201

Transformative leadership competencies for organizational digital transformation

Despite the flourishing literature on digital transformation (DT), there is still less research on the human side of DT—particularly on leaders’ competencies required to successfully trigger and drive organizational transformation in the context of the digital age. The human-centric approach and the leadership role are essential to understanding how organizations navigate DT by integrating digital-based knowledge. To understand the competencies necessary for a leader to drive organizational DT, this study combines and analyzes the results from a literature review on leadership styles and the findings from the semistructured interviews with 64 leaders of SMEs across a wide range of industries engaged in a DT journey. The analysis proposes the notion of transformative leadership to determine the capacity leaders must have to navigate organizational DT and identifies and describes the six competencies that distinguish a transformative leader

Origin, age and petrogenesis of Neoproterozoic composite dikes from the Arabian–Nubian

The evolution of a Pan-African (c. 900-550 Ma) suite of composite dikes, with latite margins and rhyolite interiors, from southwest Jordan is discussed. The dikes cut the Neoproterozoic calc-alkaline granitoids and high-grade metamorphic rocks (c. 800-600 Ma) of the northern Arabian-Nubian Shield in Jordan and have been dated by the Rb-Sr isochron method at 566 AE 7 Ma. The symmetrically distributed latite margins constitute less than one-quarter of the whole dike thickness. The rhyolite intruded a median fracture within the latite, while the latter was still hot but completely solidified. The dikes are alkaline and bimodal in composition with a gap in SiO 2 between 61 and 74 wt%. Both end members display similar chondrite-normalized rare earth element patterns. The rhyolites display the compositional signature of A-type granites. The (La/Lu) N values are 6.02 and 4.91 for latites and rhyolites, respectively, and the rhyolites show a pronounced negative Eu anomaly, in contrast to the slight negative Eu anomaly of the latites. The chemical variability (e.g. Zr/Y, Zr/Nb, K/Rb) within and between latites and rhyolites does not support a fractional crystallization relationship between the felsic and mafic members of the dikes. We interpret the magma genesis of the composite dikes as the result of intrusion of mantle-derived mafic magma into the lower crust in an extensional tectonic regime. The mafic magma underwent extensive fractional crystallization, which supplied the necessary heat for melting of the lower crust. The products of the initial stages of partial melting (5-10%) mixed with the fractionating mafic magma and gave rise to the latite melts. Further partial melting of the lower crust (up to 30%) produced a felsic melt, which upon 50% fractional crystallization (hornblende 15%, biotite 5%, feldspars 60%, and quartz 20%) gave rise to the rhyolitic magma

The Future of Government: Lessons Learned from around the World

The report provides a summary of the discussions that have taken place within the framework of Forum activities on how the strategies, structures and practices of governments must change in the coming years, and how new networks and technologies can be leveraged to transform government capacity. It includes a series of policy briefs, which distils some of the most current and vital information for government modernization available, and concludes with case studies from around the world

Implementation of Enhanced Recovery (ERAS) in Colorectal Surgery Has a Positive Impact on Non-ERAS Liver Surgery Patients.

BACKGROUND: Enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) reduces complications and hospital stay in colorectal surgery. Thereafter, ERAS principles were extended to liver surgery. Previous implementation of an ERAS program in colorectal surgery may influence patients undergoing liver surgery in a non-ERAS setting, on the same ward. This study aimed to test this hypothesis. METHODS: Retrospective analysis based on prospective data of the adherence to the institutional ERAS-liver protocol (compliance) in three cohorts of consecutive patients undergoing elective liver surgery, between June 2010 and July 2014: before any ERAS implementation (pre-ERAS n = 50), after implementation of ERAS in colorectal (intermediate n = 50), and after implementation of ERAS in liver surgery (ERAS-liver n = 74). Outcomes were functional recovery, postoperative complications, hospital stay, and readmissions. RESULTS: The three groups were comparable for demographics; laparoscopy was more frequent in ERAS-liver (p = 0.009). Compliance with the enhanced recovery protocol increased along the three periods (pre-ERAS, intermediate, and ERAS-liver), regardless of the perioperative phase (pre-, intra-, or postoperative). ERAS-liver group displayed the highest overall compliance rate with 73.8 %, compared to 39.9 and 57.4 % for pre-ERAS and intermediate groups (p = 0.072/0.056). Overall complications were unchanged (p = 0.185), whereas intermediate and ERAS-liver groups showed decreased major complications (p = 0.034). Consistently, hospital stay was reduced by 2 days (p = 0.005) without increased readmissions (p = 0.158). CONCLUSIONS: The previous implementation of an ERAS protocol in colorectal surgery may induce a positive impact on patients undergoing non-ERAS-liver surgery on the same ward. These results suggest that ERAS is safely applicable in liver surgery and associated with benefits

The carrying angle: racial differences and relevance to inter-epicondylar distance of the humerus

The human carrying angle (CA) is a measure of the lateral deflection of the forearm from the arm. The importance of this angle emerges from its functional and clinical relevance. Previous studies have correlated this angle with different parameters including age, gender, and handedness. However, no reports have focused on race-dependent variations in CA or its relation to various components of the elbow joint. This study aimed to investigate the variations in CA with respect to race and inter-epicondylar distance (IED) of the humerus. The study included 457 Jordanian and 345 Malaysian volunteers with an age range of 18–21 years. All participants were right-hand dominant with no previous medical history in their upper limbs. Both CA and IED were measured by well-trained medical practitioners according to a well-established protocol. Regardless of race, CA was greater on the dominant side and in females. Furthermore, CA was significantly greater in Malaysian males compared to Jordanian males, and significantly smaller in Malaysian females compared to their Jordanian counterparts. Finally, CA significantly decreased with increasing IED in both races. This study supports effects of gender and handedness on the CA independent of race. However, CA also varies with race, and this variation is independent of age, gender, and handedness. The evaluation also revealed an inverse relationship between CA and IED. These findings indicate that multiple factors including race and IED should be considered during the examination and management of elbow fractures and epicondylar diseases

Rosiglitazone synergizes anticancer activity of cisplatin and reduces its nephrotoxicity in 7, 12-dimethyl benz{a}anthracene (DMBA) induced breast cancer rats

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Antineoplastic drug cisplatin remains the drug of choice for various solid tumours including breast cancer. But dose dependent nephrotoxicity is the major drawback in majority of platinum based chemotherapy regimens. Recent reports have shown that inflammatory pathways are the main offender for cisplatin induced nephrotoxicity. The present study was undertaken to assess the effect of rosiglitazone, a PPARγ agonist and an anti-inflammatory agent, on cisplatin induced nephrotoxicity, and its anticancer activity in DMBA induced breast cancer rats.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Mammary tumours were induced in female Sprague-Dawley rats by feeding orally with dimethylbenz [a]anthracene (DMBA) (60 mg/kg). Cisplatin induced nephropathy was assessed by measurements of blood urea nitrogen, albumin and creatinine levels. Posttranslational modifications of histone H3, mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase p38 expression and PPAR-γ expression were examined by western blotting.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Our data shows involvement of TNF-α in preventing cisplatin induced nephrotoxicity by rosiglitazone. Rosiglitazone pre-treatment to cisplatin increases the expression of p38, PPAR-γ in mammary tumours and shows maximum tumour reduction. Furthermore, cisplatin induced changes in histone acetylation, phosphorylation and methylation of histone H3 in mammary tumours was ameliorated by pre-treatment of rosiglitazone. Suggesting, PPAR-γ directly or indirectly alters aberrant gene expression in mammary tumours by changing histone modifications.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>To best of our knowledge this is the first report which shows that pre-treatment of rosiglitazone synergizes the anticancer activity of cisplatin and minimizes cisplatin induced nephrotoxicity in DMBA induced breast cancer.</p