The Effects Of Human Resource Management Practices (Hrm) On Service Innovation In Malaysian Islamic Banks

Objektif kajian ini adalah untuk mengkaji kesan amalan sumber manusia pada inovasi perkhidmatan dalam konteks bank-bank Islam dan secara praktik kajian ini meneliti tiga dimensi amalan HRM: pampasan, prestasi penilaian dan penyertaan. The objective of this study is to examine the effect of human resource practices on service innovation in the context of Islamic banks. This study examines three dimensions of HRM practices: compensation, performance appraisal and participation

ESTIMATION OF THE REMOVAL OF CHIRAL PHARMACEUTICAL DRUGS FROM DOMESTIC WASTEWATER USING UPLC-MS/MS

This thesis is concerned with the estimation of the removal of chiral pharmaceutical compounds (PCs) from domestic wastewater in Al Ain using UPLC-MS/MS. PCs are classified into many classes such as hormones, antibiotics, analgesics, cosmetic products, ꞵ blockers, and anti-inflammatory drugs. PCs do not have a guideline to describe their concentrations in treated domestic wastewater. Additionally, there is a very high demand for using PCs around the world, which results in their discharge to wastewater at relatively high masses, which could be harmful to the environment. Furthermore, very limited work has been done to estimate the removal of chiral PCs. Moreover, there is a need to study the removal mechanism of every chiral PC enantiomer alone at wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). This study is aimed to develop a method for chiral separation and identification of 16 chiral PCs in wastewater; in addition to studying their levels and removal selectivity at different locations at Al Saad WWTP in Al-Ain city using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS). Four batches of wastewater and sludge samples have been grabbed from different locations at Al Saad WWTP, followed by solid-phase extraction (SPE). 15 out of 16 chiral PCs were successfully chirally separated except for tramadol. Calibration curves, instrument limit of detection, instrument limit of quantification, and method limit of detection were successfully identified and prepared. Results show tramadol, atenolol, and o- desmethylvenlafaxine occur at relatively high concentrations compared to others (\u3e2 μg/L). In general, the removal efficiency exceeded 90% for most of the tested PCs with exception of metoprolol, terbutaline, and fluoxetine (between 30% and 70%), while a low removal was indicated for atenolol (25.9%). Moreover, the treatment process was more selective for the removal of the second enantiomer (E2) of bupivacaine and fluoxetine. In general, results indicate that filtration and disinfection play the main role in the removal of the target PCs. Changes in the PC\u27s behavior at the Return Activated Sludge (RAS), Anaerobic Digester (AD), and Filter Press (FP) units were indicated. Propranolol is preferably sorbed to RAS more than the tested PCs, while citalopram and tolperisone are preferably sorbed to the AD sludge surface more than other operational units. In addition, E2 of propranolol and mianserin was at a higher concentration on the sludge than their antipode in the RAS. While RAS was enriched with the first enantiomer of bupivacaine, terbutaline, citalopram, and fluoxetine

Fragmenting markets and quality change in New Zealand foods: empirical analysis with a Rotterdam model

Very little is known about changes in the demand characteristics of food in New Zealand. As far as we can determine, there has never been a complete disaggregated food demand model estimated for New Zealand. The object of this paper is to update these estimates using more recent data to see whether there are grounds for believing that the structural changes that occurred primarily during the last two decades are having effects on the magnitude of food demand elasticities in New Zealand. To this end, a Rotterdam food demand system is estimated using time series data. The results indicate that over the last 20 years, household consumption has increased for fruit and vegetables, poultry, food eaten away from home, and sweet products, drinks and other foods. Fish, poultry, meat, farm products, cereals and meals away from home are all more price elastic than earlier estimates.consumer behaviour, food demand, agricultural and food policy, Rotterdam model, food quality, New Zealand, Agricultural and Food Policy, Consumer/Household Economics, Demand and Price Analysis,

A Study of Middle Class Proportion in Saudi Arabia using Engel's Coefficient

Based on Engel coefficient, this paper makes a descriptive statistical analysis of the current situation of the middle class in Saudi Arabia. The proportion of the middle class is measured by Engel’s coefficient. The research aims to identify the changing trend and development rules of the middle class. This is of great significance for achieving Saudi 2030 and building a moderately prosperous society in all aspects. Keywords: middle class, Saudi Arabia, Engel coefficient, kernel density estimate, functional data DOI: 10.7176/JRDM/55-06 Publication date:May 31st 201

Development of an automated plasmapheresis system for the treatment of sepsis

This thesis was previously held under moratorium from 10/02/2020 to 10/02/2022Background: Sepsis is one of the leading cause of death in ICU. The causes of sepsis could be viral, bacterial, fungal infection, also, and in some instances trauma. When a local response to the infection becomes a systemic response, the immune system becomes chaotic. Cytokines are produced in an uncontrolled way, resulting in a cytokines storm. The immune system enters a hyperactivation status that leads to multiple organ failures. Despite advances in the medical treatment and clinical experience, there is currently no single medication approved for treating sepsis. Thus, removal of the plasma that contains the inflammatory mediators is a potential solution to reduce their effect in the body. Objectives: The aim of this project is to develop a device that is able to separate plasma from whole blood. The device should be able to generate secondary flow to enhance the performance by reducing the formation of cake layer. In addition, the device should be fully automated in order to simplify the technology for the end user. Approach: Design using computer aided design employing different methods for producing secondary flow, investigate the impact of these techniques on formed blood element, by assessment of shear stress. The design was 3D printed to investigate the performance in term of plasma filtration using different membranes with different effective pore area. The next step was to increase the dimension of the rig and test the increase in surface area on flux rate. In addition, an automation system was designed and assembled in order to control the transmembrane pressure, blood pump and plasma replacement pump through feedback from sensors read by a microcontroller. Results: The device was able to separate the plasma from the blood. The polyethersulfone membrane that has higher effective pore size had higher filtration rate. By increasing the size of the rig, the filtration volume increased. Also, the methods used to increase the flux were able to improve the flux rate. The automation system was tested and functioned well. Different flow rates were tested to investigate the performance of the system, and the results demonstrated the relationship between the flow rate and flux rate. In the TMP range 40-50 mmHg, at 260 ml/min flow rate, was the optimum flux rate. The device had the ability to run for 12 hours with a constant flux rate. The device achieved this with little haemolysis (pfHb <4 mg/L).Background: Sepsis is one of the leading cause of death in ICU. The causes of sepsis could be viral, bacterial, fungal infection, also, and in some instances trauma. When a local response to the infection becomes a systemic response, the immune system becomes chaotic. Cytokines are produced in an uncontrolled way, resulting in a cytokines storm. The immune system enters a hyperactivation status that leads to multiple organ failures. Despite advances in the medical treatment and clinical experience, there is currently no single medication approved for treating sepsis. Thus, removal of the plasma that contains the inflammatory mediators is a potential solution to reduce their effect in the body. Objectives: The aim of this project is to develop a device that is able to separate plasma from whole blood. The device should be able to generate secondary flow to enhance the performance by reducing the formation of cake layer. In addition, the device should be fully automated in order to simplify the technology for the end user. Approach: Design using computer aided design employing different methods for producing secondary flow, investigate the impact of these techniques on formed blood element, by assessment of shear stress. The design was 3D printed to investigate the performance in term of plasma filtration using different membranes with different effective pore area. The next step was to increase the dimension of the rig and test the increase in surface area on flux rate. In addition, an automation system was designed and assembled in order to control the transmembrane pressure, blood pump and plasma replacement pump through feedback from sensors read by a microcontroller. Results: The device was able to separate the plasma from the blood. The polyethersulfone membrane that has higher effective pore size had higher filtration rate. By increasing the size of the rig, the filtration volume increased. Also, the methods used to increase the flux were able to improve the flux rate. The automation system was tested and functioned well. Different flow rates were tested to investigate the performance of the system, and the results demonstrated the relationship between the flow rate and flux rate. In the TMP range 40-50 mmHg, at 260 ml/min flow rate, was the optimum flux rate. The device had the ability to run for 12 hours with a constant flux rate. The device achieved this with little haemolysis (pfHb <4 mg/L)

The effects of word frequency, text case, and contextual predictability on binocular fixation during reading

A thesis submitted to the University of Bedfordshire in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of ScienceProperties of text which affect binocular coordination during reading have received little attention compared to other areas of eye movement research. The evidence, to date, has been equivocal, with some suggesting that the visual system tolerates less binocular fixation disparity (BFD) under conditions which make reading difficult and others reporting no such effect. Two eye movement experiments were conducted to investigate this issue further. In Experiment 1, participants read sentences containing high and low frequency words. Half of sentences were presented in normal case and half in alternating case (e.g., aLtErNaTiNg cAsE), replicating Juhasz, Liversedge, White & Rayner (2006). Results showed that neither frequency nor case affected the magnitude of disparity. In Experiment 2, BFD was investigated in a more linguistically rich reading context by manipulating predictability (high vs. low) in addition to frequency and case. Results showed that BFD was significantly smaller for low frequency target words in contexts which made reading difficult. It is concluded that the linguistic and orthographic properties of the text do, in fact, influence binocular coordination. Implications of these results are discussed in relation to models of reading