What Forms University? An Integrated Model from Syria

This study aims at developing and empirically testing an integrated model incorporating the factors that form university image in Syria. The study used a quantitative survey of students at Syrian universities. A pre-test of the questionnaire was undertaken using a convenient sample of 40 students. Thereafter, a sample of 259 students was used to test the model using structural equation modeling. The findings suggest word of mouth and faculty-individualized attention, one of service quality dimensions, as the antecedents of university image. Moreover, the findings reveal a positive effect of faculty-individualized attention and support staff helpfulness, as service quality dimensions, on student satisfaction. It is also found that student satisfaction positively affect word of mouth. This study is expected to help Syrian universities understand the key factors contributing to university image formation, and, therefore, strengthen their positions in the market. This study comes to be one of the first studies that attempt to understand how university image is formed

The role of European Union policies to counter illegal immigration in North Africa

The issue of illegal immigration from North Africa to Europe is one of the most prominent phenomena that have preoccupied analysts, researchers, and decision-makers, considering that it affects the security of countries and societies alike in North Africa, especially after the wave of protests in 2011. The proposed study focuses on two main questions: What are the repercussions of illegal immigration on the European Union? What are the most important European Union policies to address illegal immigration from North Africa? The methodology of the study employs the qualitative method since it helps provide a substantial and rich description of this complex phenomenon, tracking unique or unexpected events by analyzing the following policies: the Barcelona Process, the Schengen Agreement, the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership, the 5+5 Dialogue, the European Neighbourhood Policy, and the Union for the Mediterranean. This article presents an analytical study of European policies to confront illegal immigration from North African countries. Finally, it is concluded the need to adopt a preventive strategy to confront illegal immigration in the Mediterranean region by addressing its causes, especially in the southern Mediterranean countries, which are considered source countries, for improving economic and social conditions

The Egyptian Civil Society Organisations Role in Public Policy-making Process: Lessons from the Brazilian Experience

This paper looks at civil society organizations (CSOs) as an important tool to enable community participation needed for the public policy process. In addition to its importance as a means of developing both democratic practices and public policies, especially social policies, as well as its role in shaping the relationship between state and society, Utilizing qualitative methods, the paper focuses on the role of informal actors, and in particular civil society organizations, in the processes of public policy making in Egypt and Brazil, and especially in the formulation of policy. The authors also examined the nature of the relationship between the state and CSOs, and explored the question of whether or not there is a space for Egyptian and Brazilian CSOs to play an active role in the public policy making process, or whether they are primarily tools that government used to achieve its goals. This research observed the performance of CSOs in Egypt and Brazil in recent years and findings showed that, in comparison to Brazil, there are many obstacles that undermine the effective contribution of civil society organisations in the different stages of the process of policy-making which hinder its ability to influence public policies in Egypt. Keywords:Civil Society – public Policy Making in Egypt and Brazil – Central State – Civil Institutions

Performance of Stone Columns in Cohesive Soil

Stone columns are widely used and generally considered to be one of the most cost-effective and environmental-friendly soil improvement technique for highways and embankments. They are also used as drainage to reduce the consolidation period, which accordingly increases the bearing capacity, reduces settlement, and reduces the liquefaction potential. Current design theories used to estimate the bearing capacity of a group of stone columns are based on the unit cell or homogenized material concepts, which neglect the effect of the column interactions and installation technique. This thesis therefore presents an experimental investigation, together with numerical modelling, to examine the performance of a single stone column and group of stone columns subjected to vertical loading. An analytical model is developed to capture the effect of an arrangement of stone columns and the mode of failure within a column and the surrounding soft clay material. A single stone column and a group of stone columns were investigated in a large-scale experimental set-up. The testing program was divided into four steps: (a) filling the testing tank with the clay, (b) installing the stone columns in the clay bed, (c) extracting samples of the reinforced soil (a block of stone columns surrounded by the soft clay loading), and (d) testing the samples in a triaxial apparatus. The results showed that the mode of failure of the reinforced soil depends on the column spacing and the strength of the column materials and the surrounding soil. Numerically, a 3-D finite element model was developed to examine the influence of the governing parameters on the bearing capacity of the group. The model was validated against experimental results from this study and results available in the literature. The numerical model was used to simulate the actual driving process during installation of the columns. The model was then used to predict the actual failure plane under a rigid footing reinforced by stone columns for a given geometry/soil condition. An analytical model was developed utilizing the actual failure plane deduced from the numerical model to develop a theory to predict the bearing capacity of the reinforced soil. The theory developed was validated against the results obtained from the numerical model and results reported in the literature

LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND POLICY NETWORKS IN THE UK: AN ANALYTICAL STUDY

In the United Kingdom, local government includes authorities and subordinate agencies that are established according to the law, under the direction of a locally elected council to provide services for their local neighborhoods and represent their concerns and interests. The United Kingdom does not have a federal government, like the United States; there is no division of powers between the central government and local units. The central government has all governmental powers and is dominantly responsible for public policy making. The research will clarify the function of local government and identify the relationship between the central government and local authorities. It will also analyze modern models of policy networks in the UK and demonstrate their difference from the federal system

Perceptual model-based information hiding in audio signals

Audio data hiding is the process of embedding information into an audio signal so that the embedded information is inseparable from it and imperceptible to the listener. Information hiding is a multi- disciplinary area that combines signal processing with cryptography, communication theory, coding theory, information theory and the theory of human auditory and visual systems where information is hided within a host signal. A data hiding system should be robust, meaning that the embedded data could be decoded from the combined signal, even if it is distorted or attacked. This paper examines information hiding in speech signals. A perceptual modelbased information hiding in speech signal is developed

René Char en arabe

Introduction Imaginons que quelqu’un veuille traduire le poème de René Char en arabe. Dans cette langue, il n’aura même pas la ressource de traduire une ambiguïté du texte français par une ambiguïté équivalente en arabe : celle-ci est grammaticalement impossible… (Mounin, 1981, p. 120) Certes, mais traduire l’herbe, l’orage, l’insecte, le serpent, le requin et la mouette en arabe est-il tout autant admissible sur le plan poétique ? Le fait que Mounin ait jugé « impossible », il y a plus de 30..

Slotted Reinforced Concrete Beam-Column Connection: State-of-the-Art Review

Research on reinforced concrete (RC) beam-column connections has significantly increased during the past few decades. Interest in this topic is related to the importance of beam-column connections in maintaining the integrity of the whole structure. The slotted RC beam-column connection was investigated as promising low damage beam-column connection replacement for conventional design. A slotted RC beam consists of a conventional RC beam, modified with a narrow vertical slot adjacent to the face of the column that runs approximately three-quarters of the beam depth. This study reviews the literature on the mechanics and design of slotted beams, illustrating the works of various researchers on developing and modifying this innovative system. Then, the research progress in the behavior of slotted RC beams is briefly described, in chronological order, to place each contribution in a wider context. Extremely promising structural performance was observed due to minimum beam elongation, non-tearing action, minimum cracks, high energy dissipation, and stable hysteresis response. At the end of the study, a list of the main gaps that need further investigation and recommendations to fill out these gaps are provided

Expression, purification, and characterization of putative choline kinases from microorganisms

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has been a menace to communities worldwide. AMR is estimated to cause ten million deaths a year by 2050. In bacteria, choline kinase (ChoK) is responsible for the synthesis of phosphorylcholine, which is a precursor for lipoteichoic acid and cell wall teichoic acid in Gram-positive bacteria. In Gram-negative bacteria, phosphorylcholine is incorporated into membrane lipopolysaccharides that modulate pathogen-host cell interactions. Choline kinase inhibitors (ChoKIs) that deteriorate the bacterial cell wall, have already been tested on Streptococcus pneumoniae with great results. ChoKIs activity can be also be enhanced by nanoparticles that act as a drug delivery system. The generation of the drug targets (bacterial ChoKs) in the form of recombinant proteins, is vital for testing the efficacy of ChoKIs. This study will attempt to address the issue of AMR by searching for the best conditions for the productions of recombinant ChoKs from Staphylococcus aureus (SaChoK), Neisseria meningitidis (NmChoK) and Haemophilus influezae (HiChoK) followed by in silico evaluation of these ChoKs as potential targets for ChoKIs by structural modeling and molecular docking approach. All three bacterial ChoKs were originally cloned in the pET14b vector for overexpression as His-tagged proteins. However, bioinformatic protein solubility prediction revealed that the solubility propensity of the His-tagged ChoKs tends to be less than the average soluble E. coli proteins. The protein overexpression in the periplasm using pGEX plasmid has been shown to increase protein solubility. Therefore, the SaChoK gene was subcloned from pET14b-SaChoK into a pGEX vector. Based on in silico prediction, the GST-tagged SaChoK, NmChoK, and HiChoK would be more soluble and produced at higher yields compared to His-tagged proteins produced from the pET14b vector. Molecular docking of SaChoK, NmChoK, and HiChoK model structures with Hemicholinium-3 (HC-3), an established small-molecule ChoKI, exhibited a fit binding mode inside the choline-binding pocket, indicating promising competitive inhibition by HC-3. Superimpositions of the three bacterial ChoK model structures with human ChoK revealed an ample homology, further supporting the use of ChoKIs previously used to inhibit human ChoK on AMR bacteria. The production of pGEX-SaChoK and the bioinformatic predictions have laid the groundwork for optimal overexpression of SaChoK, NmChoK, and HiChoK in E. coli system. The molecular docking results demonstrate the promising application of ChoKIs to combat AMR. Therefore, this study has paved the way towards successful overexpression of soluble recombinant bacterial ChoKs to be tested with currently available ChoKIs and reveal the potential of these compounds as antimicrobial agents