Sustainable development report

Altres títols : Corporate social responsibility repor

The structure of the hexameric atrazine chlorohydrolase AtzA

Atrazine chlorohydrolase (AtzA) was discovered and purified in the early 1990s from soil that had been exposed to the widely used herbicide atrazine. It was subsequently found that this enzyme catalyzes the first and necessary step in the breakdown of atrazine by the soil organism Pseudomonas sp. strain ADP. Although it has taken 20 years, a crystal structure of the full hexameric form of AtzA has now been obtained. AtzA is less well adapted to its physiological role (i.e. atrazine dechlorination) than the alternative metal-dependent atrazine chlorohydrolase (TrzN), with a substrate-binding pocket that is under considerable strain and for which the substrate is a poor fit

Modelling Employee Commitment in the Nigerian Manufacturing Sector

The study modeled employee commitment in the Nigerian manufacturing sector using Guinness Nigeria Plc as case study. The study ascertained the impact of reward systems, supervisor-subordinate relationship and opportunities for career development on employee commitment in the Nigerian manufacturing sector. The population of the study consists of all employees of Guinness Nigeria Plc, Benin City. A sample of one hundred (100) employees was randomly taken. A structured questionnaire was used to elicit data from respondents for the study. Out of the 100, eighty eight (88) were validly filled and returned. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used for data analyses. The findings revealed that reward system, supervisor-subordinate relationship and opportunity for career development positively and significantly impact employee commitment in Guinness Nigeria Plc. The study recommends that Guinness Nigeria Plc should sustain and improve on current strategy on reward system to enhance commitment among employees in the workplace. Also, cordial relationship between employees (subordinate) and supervisor should be sustained in the operations of organisations to promote trust and commitment in the workplace. Keywords: Career development, employee commitment, manufacturing, reward system, workplace. DOI: 10.7176/EJBM/11-15-16 Publication date:May 31st 201

Impact of RF mismatches on the performance of massive MIMO systems with ZF precoding

Thanks to the channel reciprocity, the time division duplex (TDD) operation is more preferred in massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems. Avoiding the heavy feedback of downlink channel state information (CSI) from the user equipment (UE) to the base station (BS), the uplink CSI can be exploited for the downlink precoding. However, due to the mismatches of the radio frequency (RF) circuits at both sides of the link, the whole communication channels are usually not symmetric in practical systems. This paper is focused on the RF mismatches at the UEs and the BS for the multi-user massive MIMO systems with zero forcing (ZF) precoding. The closed-form expressions of the ergodic sum-rates are derived for evaluating the impact of RF mismatches on the system performance. Theoretical analysis and simulation results show that the RF mismatches at the UEs only lead to a negligible performance loss. However, it is imperative to perform reciprocity calibration at the BS, because the RF mismatches at the BS contribute to the inter-user interference (IUI) and result in a severe system performance degradation

Hydrophobic and ionic-interactions in bulk and confined water with implications for collapse and folding of proteins

Water and water-mediated interactions determine thermodynamic and kinetics of protein folding, protein aggregation and self-assembly in confined spaces. To obtain insights into the role of water in the context of folding problems, we describe computer simulations of a few related model systems. The dynamics of collapse of eicosane shows that upon expulsion of water the linear hydrocarbon chain adopts an ordered helical hairpin structure with 1.5 turns. The structure of dimer of eicosane molecules has two well ordered helical hairpins that are stacked perpendicular to each other. As a prelude to studying folding in confined spaces we used simulations to understand changes in hydrophobic and ionic interactions in nano droplets. Solvation of hydrophobic and charged species change drastically in nano water droplets. Hydrophobic species are localized at the boundary. The tendency of ions to be at the boundary where water density is low increases as the charge density decreases. Interaction between hydrophobic, polar, and charged residue are also profoundly altered in confined spaces. Using the results of computer simulations and accounting for loss of chain entropy upon confinement we argue and then demonstrate, using simulations in explicit water, that ordered states of generic amphiphilic peptide sequences should be stabilized in cylindrical nanopores

Simulating Partial Mesh of Multipoint-to-Multipoint (MP2MP) Provider Tunnels with Ingress Replication

Abstract RFC 6513 ("Multicast in MPLS/BGP IP VPNs") describes a method to support bidirectional customer multicast flows using a partial mesh of Multipoint-to-Multipoint (MP2MP) tunnels. This document specifies how a partial mesh of MP2MP tunnels can be simulated using Ingress Replication. This solution enables a service provider to use Ingress Replication to offer transparent bidirectional multicast service to its VPN customers

Assessing the Effect of Foreign Direct Investments on the Performance of Manufacturing Subsector in Nigeria

This paper has been on assessing the effect of foreign direct investment on the performance of manufacturing subsector in Nigeria.  Ex-post facto research design was utilized and foreign direct investment, average manufacturing capacity utilization and oil and refining, cement and other manufacturing subsector performance measures were obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Statistical Bulletin and World Bank Development Indicators during the period 1981 to 2016.  The data were analysed using stationarity and unit root test, co-integration, parsimonious error correction model, and granger causality tests.  The result indicates that foreign direct investment and average manufacturing capacity utilization were not statistically significant in explaining the changes in oil and refining firms contribution to the sector.  Contrarily, it was established that foreign direct investment was statistically significant in explaining other manufacturing firms’ contribution to the sector.  The result overall indicates that policies to attract foreign direct investment if well managed could improve the manufacturing subsector performance in Nigeria.  On the basis of this, it was recommended among other that the government should deepen their efforts to open up the manufacturing subsector to foreign direct investments.  This will reduce the dominance of a particular company in the sector and further improve the output of the manufacturing subsector. Keywords: Foreign direct investment; manufacturing performance; economic growth DOI: 10.7176/EJBM/11-35-02 Publication date: December 31st 201

A Structured Method for Compilation of QAOA Circuits in Quantum Computing

Quantum Approximation Optimization Algorithm (QAOA) is a highly advocated variational algorithm for solving the combinatorial optimization problem. One critical feature in the quantum circuit of QAOA algorithm is that it consists of two-qubit operators that commute. The flexibility in reordering the two-qubit gates allows compiler optimizations to generate circuits with better depths, gate count, and fidelity. However, it also imposes significant challenges due to additional freedom exposed in the compilation. Prior studies lack the following: (1) Performance guarantee, (2) Scalability, and (3) Awareness of regularity in scalable hardware. We propose a structured method that ensures linear depth for any compiled QAOA circuit on multi-dimensional quantum architectures. We also demonstrate how our method runs on Google Sycamore and IBM Non-linear architectures in a scalable manner and in linear time. Overall, we can compile a circuit with up to 1024 qubits in 10 seconds with a 3.8X speedup in depth, 17% reduction in gate count, and 18X improvement for circuit ESP.Comment: 11 pages, 22 figure

Outcomes of Patients With Early and Locally Advanced Lung Cancer: Protocol for the Italian Lung Cancer Observational Study (LUCENT)

Background: Lung cancer, predominantly non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), remains a formidable challenge, necessitating an in-depth understanding of evolving treatment paradigms. The Italian Lung Cancer Observational Study (LUCENT) addresses this need by investigating the outcomes of patients with early and locally advanced lung cancer in Italy. Objective: With a focus on real-world data and patient registries, this study aims to provide comprehensive insights into clinical, psychosocial, and economic impacts, contributing to informed decision-making in health care. Methods: LUCENT is a prospective observational multicenter cohort study enrolling patients eligible for minimally invasive manual, robot-assisted, or traditional open surgery. The study will develop a web-based registry to collect longitudinal surgical, oncological, and socioeconomic outcome data. The primary objectives include performance assessment through the establishment of national benchmarks based on risk-adjusted outcomes and processes of care indicators. The secondary objectives encompass economic and psychosocial impact assessments of innovative technologies and treatment pathways. The multicenter design ensures a diverse and representative study population. Results: The evolving landscape of NSCLC treatment necessitates a nuanced approach with consideration of the dynamic shifts in therapeutic strategies. LUCENT strives to fill existing knowledge gaps by providing a platform for collecting and analyzing real-world data, emphasizing the importance of patient-reported outcomes in enhancing the understanding of the disease. By developing a web-based registry, the study not only facilitates efficient data collection but also addresses the limitations of traditional methods, such as suboptimal response rates and costs associated with paper-and-pencil questionnaires. Recruitment will be conducted from January 01, 2024, to December 31, 2026. Follow-up will be performed for a minimum of 2 years. The study will be completed in the year 2028. Conclusions: LUCENT’s potential implications are substantial. Establishing national benchmarks will enable a thorough evaluation of outcomes and care processes, guiding clinicians and policymakers in optimizing patient management. Furthermore, the study’s secondary objectives, focusing on economic and psychosocial impacts, align with the contemporary emphasis on holistic cancer care. Insights gained from this study may influence treatment strategies, resource utilization, and patient well-being, thereby contributing to the ongoing refinement of lung cancer management