EXPORT SPECIALIZATION OF BANGLADESH'S READYMADE GARMENTS INDUSTRY IN THE NORTH AMERICAN MARKET

This paper attempts to investigate the export specialization of Bangladesh readymade garments industry among leading readymade garments exporting nations in the North American market. An export specialization (ES) index is employed to evaluate the export competitiveness of the top 5 competitors in the North American market during the 2012-2016 period. Export specialization was calculated for 34 product categories of four digits level Harmonized System (HS) product group 61 and 62. The mean and standard deviation were also calculated to examine the degree of change in the readymade garments export specialization of Bangladesh in the North American market for the study period. The analyzed results demonstrate the status of export specialization of selected competitors where Bangladesh exposed the highest export specialization over their competitors in the North American market for 27 product groups out of 34. However, ES of Bangladesh is not steady, in fact, unsteady ES was observed for 10 product groups, and in addition to that ES of the 8 product groups’ shows downtrend. Established trade theories regarding export specialization remain a useful but limited guide to understand the dynamic of export specialization for the given market. Policy recommendation in the context of the changing global business environment and geopolitical transformation were discussed and future implications of the research direction were recommended.JEL: L60, L69, L11 Article visualizations

Factors Affecting the Effectiveness of Social Media for Recruitment: An Exploratory Factor Analysis Approach on Private Universities in Bangladesh

Social media are crucial weapons which are used as online recruitment tool at present time.  The study is designed to explore the most crucial factors which affect the effectiveness of social media for recruitment. This paper is basically prepared based on 50 respondents from 10 private universities of Bangladesh to understand the cost and time effectiveness of social media for recruitment. Data used for this study have been collected by using a structured questionnaire of 5 point Likert scale which consists of 15 specific questions. The study is conducted by factor analysis and attained 4 factors including Information Quality, Privacy & Security, Cost & Time and User Friendly that influence the effectiveness of social media for recruitment.  Another statistical tool t-test has been also used to prove the hypothesis. The study also reveals that these four factors are in satisfactory level. From the study concerned people in this arena can get a specific view about the factors that directly influence the effectiveness of social media for recruitment and take corrective actions to improve the present situation. Keywords: Social Media, Social Media Recruitment, Benefits of Social Media Recruitment, Factor Analysis and T-test

COMPETITION AND EXPORT GROWTH OF READYMADE GARMENTS OF BANGLADESH IN THE UNITED STATES MARKET: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS

This paper attempts to investigate the export growth and competition of Bangladesh readymade garments in the United States market compared with other top competitors during the 2013-2017 period. From the analysis, the export growth indices exposed that out of 17 product categories of HS61, Bangladesh stated a positive export growth in 12 product categories and rest of the 5 product categories revealed a negative export growth in the United States market. On the other hand, out of 17 product categories of HS62, Bangladesh revealed a positive export growth in 9 product categories, while rest of the 8 product categories stated a negative export growth in the United States market. Furthermore, Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient (rs) test for the mentioned top competitors in the United States market exposed that the 17 product categories of HS61 Bangladesh exhibited higher competition with Sri Lanka, India, Mexico, and Indonesia; modest competition Vietnam; lower competition with China, and Cambodia; trade complementariness with Italy, and Pakistan. Moreover, the 17 product categories of HS62 exhibited modest competition with Mexico, Pakistan, and Cambodia; low competition with China, Vietnam, and Italy; trade complementariness with India, Indonesia, and Sri Lanka. In addition, it is observed that all the countries for product group HS61 & HS62 face pretty high Equivalent Ad Valorem Tariff in the United States except Mexico. Furthermore, the findings are expected to contribute further development and policy-making in the readymade garments industry of the concern countries as well as for the concerned stakeholders of this industry. JEL: B17, F14, F17, F18, P45  Article visualizations

THE IMPACT OF SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS ON SELECTING POST-SECONDARY INSTITUTIONS: THE CASE OF PRIVATE UNIVERSITIES IN BANGLADESH

With the advent of globalization, postsecondary education is considered a very significant part for any country's socio-economic development. Higher education in Bangladesh is in a state of flux while responding to the challenges of globalization and the privatization policies of the government in line with the neo-liberal economy have resulted in progressive growth of private universities in Bangladesh. The purpose of this study is to explore the impact of socioeconomic status on selecting postsecondary institution in Bangladesh. Survey method with a semi-structured questionnaire is used to explore the consequences and the result reveals that socioeconomic status of the students has been playing an important role on selecting post-secondary institutions in Bangladesh. Consequently, competent recommendations are proposed to improve the situation in institutional and policy levels.  Article visualizations

Effect of variety and nutrient sources on growth and yield of broccoli in southern belt of Bangladesh

Ongoing use of synthetic fertilizers affects soil structure. Organic manures can serve as an alternative to synthetic fertilizers. The study evaluated performance of five different types of nutrient sources (T0 =control, T1 = Urea @ 250 kg/ha, TSP @ 150 kg/ha, MoP @ 200 kg/ha, T2 = Cowdung @ 25 t/ha, T3 = Vermi compost @ 5 t/ha, T4 = fermented plant juice @ 500 ml/ha and T5 =Liquid fertilizer (Flora: consists of 20% nitrobenzene) @ 200 ml/ha) on growth and yield of broccoli, cvs. “V1=Known You” and “V2=Early Green”. Yield and yield contributing parameters such as plant height, number of leaves per plant, leaves fresh weight, length of stem, stem diameter, stem fresh weight, days taken for primary curd initiation, curd diameter, fresh weight of primary curd, no. of secondary curd per plant, fresh weight of secondary curd and yield per plot as well as hectare were measured in this experiment. In case of variety, the highest yield/plot 5.83kg and yield/ha 20.23 tons were recorded from “Early green”. Considering the nutrient factor, the highest curd weight (290.4g) per plant and yield/plot (5.01kg) were found in fermented plant juice nutrient sources. The highest benefit cost ratio BCR (3.21:1) was found in V2T4, among all other treatment combinations in respect of net return (Tk. 228934.97/ha) through the use of  fermented plant juice. Therefore, it can be concluded that fermented plant juice @ 500 ml/hacan be used to improve vegetative growth, and yield quality and quantity, and the broccoli cv. “Early Green” appears to be the best of the cultivars tested

Nitrogen-enriched activated carbon derived from plant biomasses: a review on reaction mechanism and applications in wastewater treatment

As a key kind of evolving carbonaceous adsorbent, nitrogen-enriched activated carbon has drawn a lot of focus due to its better physiochemical ability to eliminate an extensive range of wastewaters contaminants under severe conditions. Its environment-friendly character is one more reason behind this focus. Nitrogen also has immense effect on activated carbon structures’ pollutants adsorption capability; therefore, it is an area of interest. Reports concerning the reaction pathway of C-N (carbon-nitrogen) bond creation on AC surface are limited. Determining such mechanisms is challenging but critical to understand bond characteristics after carbonization. Moreover, it is vital to ascertain real-time kinetics concerning adsorption phenomena in liquid phase. Such a latest trend indicates that regulated nitrogen uses for carbonaceous substances having a biomass-based origin can provide the desired morphological characteristics produced through interconnections, production of enclosed holes, enhanced surface area, better adsorption ability, and many other benefits in contrast to conventional carbon-based substances. This review points out the developments in the main processes to introduce nitrogen atoms into the carbon matrix by utilizing different N-comprising chemical compounds. The nitrogen enrichment processes, reaction mechanisms and effects of nitrogen incorporation on the plant biomass-derived activated carbons (NEACs) are presented in brief. On the basis of their established physicochemical attributes, the adsorption performances of different biomass-derived NEACs have also been dealt with. More significantly, the review covers the technical issues in the present phase, topical trends, research gaps, economic viability along with a technical alignment recommendation to address the prevailing disadvantages

Role of Internet of Things (IoT) in Retail Business and Enabling Smart Retailing Experiences

Internet of Things (IoT) is anticipated to be one of the primary megatrends up in innovation. Integrated with the current and upcoming mobility of digital gadgets, it offers ground to applications in numerous domains, including retail. The capability of sensors for setting applicable, customized, real-time, and intuitive communication with buyers and customers is considered to be a driving force of traffic and exchange, a facilitator of development along the way to elevate their purchasing experience. Simultaneously, IoT can serve to further develop relationships and foundations for more viable retail business and digital store management. Currently, digitally savvy customers expect an Omnichannel experience at each touchpoint. They need to track down the ideal data at the perfect time at the right location. Location-based innovation in a retail setting identifies the way that users take to arrive at specific areas of a retail store and helps upgrade the shopping experience. This is the reason the Internet of Things (IoT) is beginning to take the online business to a higher level, and will probably disrupt the conventional retail processes on a significant scale in the coming time. This paper surveys and arranges the most common applications of IoT and solutions for successful marketing at retail from the point of retailers and customers as well as from the point of manufacturers confronting framework or communication-related issues. We propose a model that demonstrates the potential that IoT has as compared to standard industry practices of retail to drive business results and gain an upper hand. In this paper, we’ve likewise talked about the new developments and new techniques for the organizations to accomplish competitive advantage brought about by the uses cases of IoT, particularly in the field of mobile sensors. Such developments are likely the most prominent factor in the coming years to make progress in the advanced economy

Insulin Can Improve the Normal Function of the Brain by Preventing the Loss of the Neurons

Background: Insulin promotes the expression of genes related to brain function, thus preventing the neurodegeneration process. The present study was designed to find the neuroprotective effect of insulin by reducing neuron loss in the brain. Materials and Methods: In this study, 20 adult male NMRI mice were divided into two groups: control and insulin. The control group was intact, and the insulin group received 100 µL of insulin at a 72-hour interval by intraperitoneal (I.P.) injection for 30 days. At the end of the study, the brain was removed. The volume of the brain and the total number of neurons and glia were estimated by stereological techniques, and also the gene expression of NSR, PI3K, AKT, IGF-1, and FOXO-1 was measured using real-time PCR. Results: The results showed that the total number of neurons decreased in the control group compared to the experimental group. Furthermore, the expression of NSR, PI3K, AKT, IGF-1, and FOXO-1 genes was lower in the control group than in the insulin group. Conclusion: The results showed that treating mice with insulin prevented reducing the number of neurons and gene expression related to normal brain function. So, insulin could have neuroprotective effects against neuron loss. Insulin may be beneficial as a new approach to avoiding neuron loss in regenerative medicine