Subcontracting dynamics and economic development: A study on textile and engineering industries

Recent studies on small and medium sized establishments emphasize the importance of networking and regional clusters for industrial development. This study is focused on an important form of cooperation between firms: subcontracting relationship. Our aim is to estimate the determinants of subcontracting in Turkish textile and engineering industries, and to derive policy implications of our estimates. We estimate subcontract offering and subcontract receiving models for both industries by using panel data on all establishments employing 25 or more workers in the period 1988-97. Our findings show that short-term/unequal relationship exists between parent firms and subcontractors in the textile industry whereas subcontracting relationships in the engineering industry are established between "similar", relatively advanced firms that have complementary assets and technologies.Subcontracting, firm cooperation, vertical integration

Ottoman intervention in Tripoli (1835) and the question of Ottoman imperialism in the 19th century

This thesis is a study of the relationship between the Ottoman central administration and North African periphery, and more specifically, Tripoli in the first half of the 19th century. The region was ruled by a local dynasty of Anatolian origin, Karamanlıs, virtually independent from the Sublime Porte for more than a century. After the outbreak of the unremedied internal upheavals in the 1830s, Ottoman center took the initiative to eliminate the ruling dynasty, thus stabilizing the region in 1835. The stability of the region was a top priority because of the Ottomans’ increased suspicion of further European encroachment after the French aggression in Algeria. Nonetheless, there were also other competitors preying on the Tripolitan territory, thus Ottoman action could be best understood as active participation in an inter-imperial competition. The process, however, shows us that the establishment of the central authority was the last resort. Before coming to that point, Ottomans worked hard to ensure a noise-free continuation of the Karamanlı Dynasty. The last part of the study attempts to make sense of Ottoman presence in the Tripoli after the intervention. It demonstrates that some elements of the so-called Ottoman orientalist attitude that came about in the late 19th century were taking root earlier. Nonetheless, it finds the use the terms such as colonialism and even orientalism problematic because the Ottoman imperial presence in Tripoli had never been officially defined as colonialism. Alternatively, the term “imperial repertoires of power” is utilized in accounting for the center-periphery relations in the period in questio

Productivity: the impact of privatisation and liberalisation in public services.

This paper analyses the evolution of labour productivity and its sources in Electricity and Gas, Post and Telecommunication, Inland Transport and Health and Social Work sectors of Austria, Belgium, Germany, Poland, Sweden and the UK in the presence of privatisation and liberalisation process from 1970 to 2004. The results showed that although some degree of labour productivity growth achieved in all sectors and countries, there has also been significant employment decreases except for Health and Social Work sector. Productivity increase/employment decrease trend is even stronger in the privatisation and liberalisation era for most countries. Decomposition of labour productivity shows that higher productivity, to some extent, was gained at the expense of employment decrease. Although there have been productivity increases in both pre- and post-privatisation periods, the contribution of employment decrease to productivity growth turned out to be quite significant in the post-privatisation period. This brings about the necessity to question the presumption that privatisation brings about higher productivity

Tunicamycin induced inhibition of calpain 1 and 2 enzyme activity in ovarian cancer cells

Background: Tunicamycin (TN) is an antitumor agent and induced intracellular calcium levels in many cells, however its molecular mechanism is still needed to be explored. Calpeptin (Calp) is an inhibitor of both calpain 1 and 2 (CAPN-1/2) enzymes, and plays a fundamental role in tumor mechanism. In this study, the effects of TN and Calp were investigated on CAPN-1/2 enzyme activity in normal and ovarian cancer cells adhered to fibronectin. Methods: 24uM TN, 50uM Calp, and combined TN and Calp (TN+Calp) were applied for 1 and 12 hours to FN-bound (FN+) and non-FN-bound (FN-) normal human ovarian epithelial (IHOSE) and ovarian cancer (SKOV-3) cells. The activation of CAPN-1/2 was measured by the luminescent method and the significance of the results was analyzed with the t-test. Results: CAPN-1/2 enzyme activity (at 12 hour) was present in both cell lines, but the level of enzyme is higher in IHOSE cells compared to SKOV-3 cells. The results showed that 1 hour TN and TN+Calp applications stimulated CAPN-1/2 enzyme activity in IHOSE cells but did not show any stimulating effect in SKOV-3 cells. After 12-hour of treatment, the cells with TN, Calp or TN+Calp showed an inhibitory effect on CAPN-1/2 enzyme in both FN+IHOSE and SKOV-3 cells. At 12-hour TN+Calp administration was determined to be the most effective inhibitor in FN+ SKOV-3 since it inhibited CAPN1/2 activity statistically significantly more than both Calp and TN administrations. Conclusions: The effects of TN, Calp and TN+Calp applications on the CAPN-1/2 enzyme varied according to the cell type, normal or cancer cells, and whether the cell was bound to FN and the incubation period. 12 h administrations of TN, Calp or TN+Calp inhibited the CAPN-1/2 enzyme in both FN+ IHOSE and SKOV-3 cells

The assessment of cardiac autonomic functions in adolescents with a family history of premature atherosclerosis

OBJECTIVES: Subclinical atherosclerosis has been recently detected in adolescents with a family history of premature atherosclerosis. However, no studies in the literature have assessed the cardiac autonomic functions of these adolescents. The aim of this study was to evaluate the cardiac autonomic functions of adolescents with a family history of premature atherosclerosis compared with those of age- and gender-matched adolescents without a family history of atherosclerosis. METHOD: We evaluated the cardiac autonomic functions of 36 adolescents with a family history of premature atherosclerosis (Group 1) and compared them with those of 31 age- and gender-matched adolescents whose parents did not have premature atherosclerosis (Group 2). Twenty-four-hour time domain (standard deviation of all normal sinus RR intervals [SDNN], standard deviation of the mean of normal RR intervals in each 5-minute segment [SDANN], root-mean-square differences in successive RR intervals) and frequency domain (very low frequency, low frequency, high frequency, low frequency/high frequency) parameters of heart rate variability were used for the evaluation of cardiac autonomic functions. RESULTS: There were no differences in the time and frequency domain parameters of heart rate variability between the two groups. Heart rate was negatively correlated with SDNN (r = -0.278, p = 0.035), while age was significantly correlated with root-mean-square differences in successive RR intervals, high frequency, low frequency and low frequency/high frequency (r = -0.264, -0.370, 0.265 and 0.374, respectively;

Dépôt de revêtements durs résistants à l'érosion sur la surface interne de cathodes creuses pour des applications en aérospatiale

Le domaine de l'aérospatiale montre une évolution spectaculaire depuis le siècle dernier, grâce aux développements de la science et notamment à celle des matériaux. En effet, si au début le défi était d'être capable d'envoyer des hommes dans les airs, il est maintenant de les y maintenir. Certaines conditions environnementales engendrent une dégradation prématurée des appareils volants. C'est notamment le cas des particules abrasives et érosives présentes dans l'air au-dessus de la surface de la Terre, qui occasionnent une dégradation de certaines parties du moteur de ces appareils par impacts. L'accumulation des dommages baisse les performances de ces derniers et peut mener, dans certains cas, à leur arrêt prématuré ce qui, en plus des frais de fonctionnement additionnel, menace la sécurité des occupants de l'appareil. La domination des airs n'est pas sans danger puisque certaines catastrophes ont entrainé la perte de plusieurs centaines de vies par le passé. C'est ce qui motive les acteurs du domaine à se pencher sur des solutions pour pallier ce type de problèmes afin de répondre à la demande sans cesse croissante, tout en assurant un niveau de sécurité optimal. Même si plusieurs composantes du moteur d'avion sont conçues pour être soumises à des conditions extrêmes, il n'en reste pas moins que certaines peuvent entraîner l'arrêt brusque de l'équipement après leur défaillance. C'est le cas notamment du diffuseur qui assure la circulation de l'air entre les différentes parties du moteur. Celui-ci est très sensible à l'usure due à l'érosion par impacts de particules solides (EIPS). Il existe quelques solutions pour éviter l'accumulation de particules dans le moteur comme l'utilisation de filtres à particules, mais elles ne sont pas très attrayantes. Les avancées du domaine de l'ingénierie de surface permettent d'offrir des revêtements protecteurs - à l'érosion notamment - de plus en plus performants et pour une vaste gamme de surfaces. Par exemple, l'utilisation de revêtements durs de nitrure de titane (TiN) sur les rotors d'un moteur à turbine à combustion peut, en milieu désertique, augmenter sa durée de service jusqu'à vingt fois. Par contre, des pièces à la géométrie complexe présentent des zones à l'accès direct limité, dites hors ligne de visée (HLDV), telles les entrées d'air du diffuseur qui restreignent les possibilités en matière de dépôt d'un revêtement. Dans ce cadre, nous nous sommes tournés vers la technique du dépôt en phase vapeur chimique assisté par plasma (PECVD) pour ses capacités de dépôt HLDV tout en offrant des revêtements durs performant pour la protection contre l'EIPS.----------AbstractThe field of aerospace has undergone a spectacular evolution since the beginning of the last century, mostly thanks to the evolution of materials science and engineering. In the beginning of aerospace, the focus was on sending men up in the air, but, now, the challenge is to ensure their safety. Many environmental conditions generate early degradation of the aircraft workpieces, for example, abrasive particles present in the air which cause damage to the engine parts upon impacts. The accumulation of damages not only lowers the device performances and generates additional repair costs, but can also cause early machine failure putting aircraft passengers at risk. The aerospace industry is looking for scientific and technological solutions to keep the safety of flying passenger lives at high standards without hindering the rapid market growth. Since many of the engine parts are subject to extreme conditions, some parts can cause an abrupt stopping of the equipment. This is the case of the diffuser, which conducts the air compression to the combustion chamber and which is very sensitive to erosion wear caused by solid particle erosion (SPE). There exist few solutions to prevent the accumulation of particles inside the engine, such as particle filters, but they are not a very attractive solution since they increase the aircraft weight as well as gas consumption. Advances in surface engineering can offer SPE protective coatings, which are increasingly effective and can be applied to a variety of surfaces. For example, the use of titanium nitride (TiN) hard coatings on the rotors of a combustion turbine engine can increase the service lifetime period up to 20 times in a desert environment. However, complex shaped parts of the engine with limited direct access, labeled non-line of sight (NLOS) such as the diffuser entry, limit the possibility in terms of coating deposition. In this context, we consider the plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) for its NLOS capabilities to counteract the wear by SPE. Moreover, the choice of TiN as model protective material has been motivated by its well-established anti SPE properties as well as its accepted use by the aerospace authorities. Finally, we have used hollow cathode cylinders made of the same material as the diffuser to simulate the diffuser gas inlets. Thus, the main objective of this work is to develop a NLOS deposition process to deposit SPE resistant coatings on the inner parts of complex shaped substrates regarding the industrial application. Because of the tube shape, multiple experimental setups had to be adapted and some created

Contextualizing Kurdish gender studies decolonial feminist knowledge production and the genesis of the Kurdish Gender Studies Network

Established in 2020, the Kurdish Gender Studies Network (KGSN) is an online epistemic community that brings together activists and scholars dedicated to advancing knowledge in Kurdish gender and sexuality studies. This paper aims to introduce the network to a larger public while situating the formation of the KGSN in relation to the growth of Kurdish gender studies (KGS), and the increasing influence of women and queer scholars in Kurdish studies (KS) since 2010. It highlights that both KGSN and KS have been greatly influenced by the conditions shaped by the colonial legacy surrounding Kurdistan and the Kurdish issue while discussing the ways in which Kurdish women’s and gender studies were often marginalized in KS. As Kurdish women scholars and members of the network’s steering committee, we position the trajectory of the network and the evolution of KGS within the broader framework of knowledge production in colonial contexts and address the ongoing struggle to decolonize feminist knowledge production, which, historically, has been dominated by Western-centric epistemologies and methodologies