The Impact of Women Empowerment on Their Lives: Bangladesh Context

Women empowerment is the most common phenomena not only Bangladesh but also across the whole world. Women are encouraged to see and bring forth the beauty and strength within themselves, to be inspired to be the best they can be and let their spirit shine through. Most of the researches have been done about women empowerment. But this research paper is trying to find out the present scenario of women empowerment in Bangladesh. This study also focuses on those problems which are associated with women empowerment. The study conducted 10 sample units (of Dhaka City) to find out the problems. This study concludes that, Bangladesh has a huge success in women empowerment but there also be some problems associated with it. This study suggested that, some problems can be solved from government level; some are solved by our business organization. And some problems will be solved in case of changing the general values and perceptions about women. Keywords: Empowerment, Women Empowerment

Which Side Are You on? : Prosthetic Vaginas, Cross-dressing Madonnas, and Queer Theology in Virgin of the Flames and Narcopolis

Chris Abani describes a scene where his main character Black and Sweet Girl, a transsexual dancer, have intercourse for the first time. Black hesitates as he begins to penetrate her anally because, “he couldn’t become her this way. He knew this thing, this intimacy he craved wasn’t about love, or even sex, but about filling himself.” (275). Black does not want sex, he wants, as Sweet Girl does, to transcend boundaries of gender and the physical dimensions of sex. Similarly Thayil’s narrator Dimple, a castrated biological male prostitute living as a woman, expounds on the nature of sex after a customer asks, “What I want to know, do you feel pleasure or not?” (124). Dimple responds, “Not like you do and not the way a woman does […] I feel pleasure but not, what’s the word? relief?” (124). The lack of sexual fulfillment for both characters functions as a metaphor for widespread economic, racial and sexual disempowerment within the narratives. This paper will perform a comparative analysis of two novels: Chris Abani’s Virgin of the Flames and Narcopolis by Jeet Thayil. In particular, it will deal with two principal characters: Black in Virgin of the Flames and Dimple in Narcopolis. Both these characters straddle various divides: cultural, racial, sexual and spiritual.This paper will examine the ways both characters inhabit migratory spaces between polarities and fluidly move between them, as well as seek to contextualize questions about how queer theology in tandem with the material study of othered bodies can inform a post-colonial understanding of power structures in the contemporary age. I intend to ground the critical analysis of the project in the theory of Argentinian theologian, Marcella Althaus-Reid. Althaus-Reid’s work The Queer God addresses the way that, “[b]odies in love add many theological insights to the quest for God and truth, but doing theology from other contexts needs to consider the experiences and reflection of Others too” (2). This queer theology also seeks to dismantle heterosexual readings of the Scriptures through rejecting normative presentations of human bodies and heterosexuality. I will begin my project with a materialist analysis of the transgendered bodies of both Dimple and Black to question how their sexual hermeneutics informs their spiritual ones. In so doing, I hope to reach an understanding of how the deviant theology of these characters challenges what Althaus-Reid terms T-theology, a methodology which is, “still colonially based, its covenants are still similar to the covenants of colonial industrial landscapes” (31). In this context the physical spaces within and without Dimple and Black’s bodies, as well as their deviant gender performances become sites of post-colonial resistance

THE ANALYSIS OF THE PERCEPTION OF ORGANIZATIONAL POLITICS AMONG UNIVERSITY FACULTY

The purpose of this research is to empirically test the perceptionof organizational politics among university faculty in the context ofPakistan. The plan of the study involved collection of data about theperception of organizational politics among the university faculty inKarachi. The sample size of 110 faculty members from various highereducation institutions was collected. The instrument used for thisstudy was the 15-item Perception of Organizational Politics Scale(POPS) developed by Kacmar and Carlson (1997). The scale includesthree section such as People in this organization attempt to buildthemselves up by tearing others down; Agreeing with powerful othersis the best alternative in this organization and When it comes to payraise and promotion decisions, policies are irrelevant. The resultsupports the hypothesis that there is an association between powerfulpolitical groups and employees’ survival in higher educationinstitutions

Workplace Stress and Employee Wellbeing: Case of Health Care Staff in UAE

Workplace stress is a world-wide concern and has been a subject of researchers, academicians, authorities and decision makers’ interest. It has evidently been considered to be causing poor performance, reduced employee morale, lack of autonomy, job insecurity and to greater extent the employee's wellbeing. Employees in healthcare and hospitality sector work in 24*7 work schedule due to the demanding nature of the industry. Empirical evidences have indicated that employee experience high stress on account of work overload and long working hours taking a toll on their mental and physical well-being. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of workplace stress on employee well-being among staff employees in the health care sector and hospitals in UAE. A total of 150 employees working at staff level in health care centers and hospitals in UAE were surveyed. The results showed that workplace has negative impact on employee well-being and the impact was found to be weak. The findings of the study suggest that an increase in workplace stresses will reduce wellbeing of employees. The researchers recommend that in order to reduce the impact of stress on employee well-being organizational support, family support and social support is essential

Medicare Part D and its Effect on the Use of Prescription Drugs, Use of Other Health Care Services and Health of the Elderly

We examine the effect of gaining prescription drug insurance as a result of Medicare Part D on use of prescription drugs, use of other medical services, and health for a nationally representative sample of Medicare beneficiaries. Given the heightened importance of prescription drugs for those with chronic illness, we provide separate estimates for those in poorer health. We find that gaining prescription drug insurance through Medicare Part D was associated with a 70% increase in the number of annual prescriptions, but that obtaining prescription drug insurance is not significantly related to use of other health care services or health, as measured by functional status and self-reported health. Among those in poorer health, we find that gaining prescription drug insurance was associated with a 60% increase in the number of annual prescriptions, and is not significantly related to use of other services or health.

Mycotoxic effect of Medicinal Plants Against Helminthosporium sativum and Aspergillus niger

hirty-nine extracts from 10 medicinal plants were tested against Helminthosporium sativum and Aspergillus niger for their fungitoxicity in vitro. Methanol leaves extracts of Lawsonia inermis, Withania somnifera, Datura metel, Datura stramonium and stem bark extract of Bauhinia racemosa significantly inhibited mycelia growth of both target fungi. Some extracts exhibited greater fungitoxicity than that of synthetic fungicide Dithane M-45

An observational study of pediatric healthcare burden in Angelman syndrome: results from a real-world study.

BACKGROUND:The objective of this study is to describe variations in the healthcare resource utilization (HRU) among individuals with Angelman syndrome (AS) over the first 12 years of life. Data for this study were drawn from the AS Natural History study (ASNHS), which is an observational study on the developmental progress, behavior, and medical morbidity of individuals with AS conducted over eight years. Caregiver-reported information on hospitalization, surgery, and medication utilization was used to assess HRU. Repeated measures mixed effect models were used to assess the relationship between age and probability of hospitalization, surgery, and prescription medication utilization. RESULTS:Mean age at study enrollment was 6 years of age and both sexes were equally represented. The mean number of visits per participant was three. Results from this study suggest that individuals with AS have a high HRU burden. Hospitalization and surgery burden were highest in the first year of life. Use of medications for seizures and sleep disturbance increased over time. CONCLUSIONS:The study highlights the significant healthcare burden among individuals with AS. Future studies that estimate cost and caregiver burden associated with AS are needed to assess the lifelong economic impact of AS on families and healthcare system

An investigation of the bacterial profile recovered from the oral cavity of sharks, on the coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

Master of Science in Environmental Science. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 2016.Shark attacks are a rare occurrence globally; however quick treatment of a contaminated wound is imperative. Failure to treat infections in a timely manner may result in fatalities as marine bacteria have opportunistic qualities. In addition, limited knowledge is available on antibiotic resistance of bacteria associated with marine top-predators. A cross-sectional study was, therefore, performed to investigate the bacterial profile of a shark’s oral cavity. During 2012 to 2013, oral swabs were taken from sharks caught in protective gill-nets along the KwaZulu-Natal coastline in South Africa. Isolates were characterised by Gram-stain morphology and identified using biochemical tests and MALDI-ToF MS (Matrix assisted laser desorption/ionisation time-of-flight mass spectrometer). MICs (minimal inhibitory concentration) were performed using agar dilution against clinically important antibiotics. Data presented includes 205 isolates from 34 sharks. A total of ten species of sharks were caught. Ragged-tooth Carcharias taurus was the most frequently caught at 24% (8/34), the least frequent was smooth hammerhead Sphyrna lewini and copper Carcharhinus brachyurus at 3% (1/34). The highest prevalence of bacterial isolates were found in great white, Carcharodon carcharias (20%), scalloped hammerhead Spyrna lewini (16%) and mako Isurus oxyrhincus (14%) sharks. A Pearson correlation was used to calculate the similarities between sharks based on bacterial assemblages and shark-phylogeny. A trend was seen, however, no statistical significance was found. A plausible connection could be established with a higher sample number. In this study Micrococcus, Staphylococcus, Vibrio and Pseudomonas species rank among the four most frequently found bacteria in sharks. MICs revealed bacterial resistance of 50% to cefuroxime, 38% to ampicillin, 18% to nalidixic acid, 14% to tetracycline, 11% to erythromycin, 10% to ceftriaxone and lowest is 2% to ciprofloxacin. No resistance to gentamicin was found, highlighting its value in wound management. This primary data suggests the presence of clinically important bacteria in sharks transferable to humans, requiring specific treatments regimes

Increasing Sustainability of the Papermaking Process via Formulation of Cellulose Nanofibers and Polyelectrolyte Complexes

The sustainability of paper-making is multifaceted. The paper industry is centered around the use of a renewable and biodegradable material: cellulose. However, the sustainability of paper is not only reliant on the material itself, but on the process used to produce paper. A trade-off when processing cellulose into paper, compared to production of materials from fossil fuel-based polymers, is the inherent hydrophilicity of cellulose and consequently the requirement of large amounts of energy to dry the water during production. More recent advancements introduce cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) as additives in papermaking to improve properties and potentially replace plastics for multi-layer packaging applications. The trade-off, however, is that their micron and nanosized features require even greater amounts of energy to produce and to dry compared to typical cellulose fiber pulps. Therefore, to achieve greater sustainability of CNFs and products made from them, methods to reduce energy needed to dry are necessary and one strategy is to design the chemicals in the cellulose slurry to improve drainage prior to evaporative drying. This thesis explores formulation decisions to make paper manufacturing more sustainable through increasing percent solids with the use of CNFs and polyelectrolyte complexes (PECs). By increasing the percent solids of the wet paper web that enters the evaporative dryer, the sustainability and energy efficiency of the paper-making process can be improved. Going through the thesis we explore formulation decisions from small to larger scales, starting from studying molecular interactions between cellulose and polyelectrolytes and ending with consumer decisions and policy implications. At the molecular scale, this thesis aims to determine how electrostatic interactions and the selection of solid-like precipitate or liquid-like coacervate forming polyelectrolyte complexes (PECs) enhances the interactions of the PECs to cellulose fibers and how this improves water retention and increases percent solids. This work specifically studies the effects of mixing order and the selection of polyamine polycations of differing hydrophobicity on the rate of assembly, flocculation and morphology in suspension, and phase-dependent interactions of PEC and CNFs and how these affect the water retention values when they are added to CNF slurries. The findings are then applied to the formation of handsheets at a larger bench scale and realistic CNF and PEC loadings that are typically used in paper formulation with the overall aim to improve standard pulp and paper properties including: percent solids, tensile strength and opacity. Finally, the role of manufacturing decisions and consumer behavior on increasing sustainability through increasing the flow of CNF and CNF and polyelectrolyte packaging is explored. Because sustainability is becoming an increasingly important issue to consumers, who want to know that their actions, particularly through their purchasing decisions and disposition behaviors, are not negatively affecting the environment. Increasing solids in this case means achieving the highest useable post-consumer material through a circular economy with manufacturing and consumer behavior. The results of this thesis show how appropriate polyelectrolyte selection and experimental parameters give insights into molecular interactions and can be scaled up to useful properties and outcomes for the sustainability of papermaking.Ph.D

Survey on the use of synthetic Food Colors in Food Samples procured from different educational institutes of Karachi city

The present study was carried out to find the type of food colors added to various food products especially those vended at or near different educational institutes of Karachi city. Different types of food items were analysed for isolation and identification of the added synthetic food colors. The majority of branded food items contained permitted colors however some foods manufactured locally, contained non-permitted colors. About 11% branded and 44% unbranded food items, respectively, were found with not permitted colors for human consumption. Similarly, 4% branded and 30% unbranded beverages were found unfit due to the presence of prohibited colors. Incidences of the use of non-permitted food colors were higher in case of unorganized food makers. Constant vigilance is needed to ensure that the local manufacturers comply with the regulations of food colors not only in terms of non-permitted food colors but also about the control and limits of permitted food colors. Moreover, consumption of colored food items should also be controlled by making the society aware of the hazardous effects of food colors