The role of internal audit function in the public sector context in Saudi Arabia

This paper contributes to the debate on the role of internal auditing in the public sector by focusing on the nature and practice of internal auditing in organisations that are subject to audit by the General Audit Bureau. Archival and documentary analysis, supported by 29 semi-structured interviews revealed that the underpinnings of the Saudi Internal Audit Regulation did not tie in directly with perceived international best practice - the International Standards for the Professional Practice of Internal Auditing. Institutional factors are also likely to play a part in terms of the existence of the state-required ‘Follow-up department’ in all organizations, tasked with performing investigation and inspection, the ‘auditing department’ (which monitors the propriety of transactions and accounting), and the work of the mandatory ‘Financial Representative (Controller)’

HUBUNGAN KEAKTIFAN SENAM DENGAN KUALITAS HIDUP LANSIA HIPERTENSI DI PUSKESMAS KASIHAN II KABUPATEN BANTUL YOGYAKARTA

Latar Belakang: Masalah kesehatan yang dihadapi lansia berhubungan dengan kemampuan gerak tubuh, degenerasi organ tubuh dan penurunan daya tahan tubuh lansia. Salah satu dampak dari penurunan fungsi organ tubuh diantaranya terjadinya labilitas tekanan darah. Dimana sekitar 60% lansia setelah berusia 65 tahun akan mengalami peningkatan tekananan darah atau hipertensi. kualitas hiup individu yang menderita hipertensi lebih buruk jika dibandingkan dengan dengan individu yang memiliki tekanan darah normal. Tujuan Penelitian: Mengetahui hubungan keaktifan senam dan kualitas hidup lansia hipertensi di Puskesmas Kasihan II Kabupaten Bantul Yogyakarta Metode Penelitian: Jenis penelitian ini adalah penelitian non-eksperimental yang bersifat kuantitatif dengan menggunakan rancangan cross sectional. Pengambilan sampel menggunakan teknik total sampling yang berjumlah 88 lansia. data diambil dengan menggunakan kuesioner kemudian dianalisis menggunakan uji Chi Square. Hasil Penelitian: Sebagian besar responden berjenis kelamin perempuan 30 responden (60,0%) , sebagian besar berumur 60-70 tahun (72,0%), frekuensi keaktifan senam dalam kategori aktif 26 responden (52,0%) dan kualitas hidup lansia hipertensi dalam kategori baik 32 responden (64,0%,) nilai p=0,000 (p>0,05). Kesimpulan: Terdapat hubungan yang signifikan antara keaktifan senam dengan kualitas hidup lansia hipertensi di Puskesmas Kasihan II Kabupaten Bantul Yogyakarta. Kata Kunci: Lansia, Hipertensi, Kualitas Hidu

Implementing Pursuit of Prey Strategies in Autonomous Robots: A Systematic Reconstruction of Behavior as Found in Tiger Beetles

Vision is a key factor in detecting and pursuing prey in many animals, yet it can be constrained both by intrinsic limitations and the complexity of the visual environment. For example, tiger beetles are visual predators that frequently stop during prey pursuits, possibly because the limitations of their visual systems cause them to lose sight of their target when advancing towards it at high speeds. This problem may be compounded as the visual environment becomes more complex. To test these hypotheses, we used simulations with a video system to model pursuit strategies used by the beetle. We matched the properties of the robot video system to those of the tiger beetle visual system, and challenged it to pursue visual targets in a behavioral arena. Simulated robots successfully chased prey, producing pursuit trajectories different to those made by the beetles. In addition to furthering our understanding of biological vision, these experiments may suggest design principles for autonomous robots that may be required to navigate through unknown environments

Nature Relation Between Climatic Variables and Cotton Production

This study investigated the effect of climatic variables on flower and boll production and retention in cotton (Gossypium barbadense). Also, this study investigated the relationship between climatic factors and production of flowers and bolls obtained during the development periods of the flowering and boll stage, and to determine the most representative period corresponding to the overall crop pattern. Evaporation, sunshine duration, relative humidity, surface soil temperature at 1800 h, and maximum air temperature, are the important climatic factors that significantly affect flower and boll production. The least important variables were found to be surface soil temperature at 0600 h and minimum temperature. There was a negative correlation between flower and boll production and either evaporation or sunshine duration, while that correlation with minimum relative humidity was positive. Higher minimum relative humidity, short period of sunshine duration, and low temperatures enhanced flower and boll formation

An Approach for Dealing with Statuses of Non-Statistically Significant Interactions between Treatments

A field experiment on cotton yield resulted in a non-statistically significant interaction. An approach for follow-up examination between treatments based on least significant difference values was suggested to identify the effect regardless of insignificance. It was found that the classical formula used in calculating the significance of interactions suffers a possible shortage that can be eliminated by applying a suggested revision

Recovering Marx’s Theory of Alienation: Theoretical Considerations from a Case Study with Community Activists in Scarborough, Ontario

The expansive literature on alienation demonstrates how various treatments emphasize different parts of human estrangement. This recovery focuses on demonstrating how Marx’s theory of alienation can prove fruitful in understanding social movement activity and promoting social justice. At the centre of collective action is a hope and vision for an alternative future, an imagination of communities based on mutual reliance and a strategy for de-alienation. In this paper, I begin with a review of Marx’s theory with an emphasis on a philosophy of internal relations, followed by an application to a recently completed case study with housing activists in Scarborough, Ontario. By posing questions for further development, I conclude that social alienation and responses to it can be developed further when seen as a learning process; that is, to understand the learning processes of one’s own estrangement as central to taking positive steps to overcome alienation

The iTunes of Downloadable Guns: Firearms as a First Amendment Right

As society becomes more technology driven, legal issues continue to arise around the world. From privacy to national security, technology develops at a rate the law simply cannot keep up with. In the United States, one of the biggest legal issues is how the new risks technology brings will interfere with our individual liberties. Technologies like three-dimensional (“3D”) printing have transformed everything from lifesaving surgeries to gun manufacturing. This technology has led to a whole new way of communicating via computer coding, with the online open source movement leading innovation by allowing for the sharing and editing of files freely. The 3D movement has continued to grow, becoming more accessible to people everywhere. When this movement was used to create 3D printing files that could be used to print three-dimensional functioning firearms, fear quickly spread and many called for government action. Laws restricting the sharing of 3D printing files in the name of national security and public safety have become more common and widely supported. Since 2013, the executive branch, Defense Distributed, and multiple states have been involved in a legal battle banning the free sharing of such files on the internet. These restrictions infringe on the First Amendment right of Freedom of Speech. Regardless of the content of a 3D printing file, attempts to protect the nation’s public safety and national security should also protect the Constitution by fostering the freedom to freely share information and innovation