The Impact of Internal Environmental Management on Environmental Performance: Assessing the Mediating Role of Open Innovation and Moderating Role of Absorptive Capacity

Companies are forced to adopt green supply chain management (GSCM) practices around the globe to satisfy their customers and other stakeholders. As it requires a lot of time and resources to change the existing processes many companies especially small and medium enterprizes (SME's) in the developing countries facing the challenge of their existence. The current study is an attempt to find out a starting point for implementation of GSCM practices to improve environmental performance. To speed up this process a mediating role of inbound open innovation was tested. Similarly to make it sure a moderating role of absorptive capacity was also checked. A survey yielded 98 responses from SME's of Pakistan. A partial least square (PLS), structural equation modeling (SEM) technique is used to confirm reliability, the validity of the proposed constructs first and then test the hypotheses. Results confirm the presence of a full mediation of inbound open innovation between internal environmental management (IEM) practices and environmental performance. Results also yielded a significant negative moderating effect of absorptive capacity on the relationship of inbound open innovation and environmental performance for SME's of Pakistan. Keywords: Green supply chain management Practices, Internal Environmental Management Practices, Environmental Performance, Open Innovation; Absorptive Capacit

An Object-Based Approach to Modelling and Analysis of Failure Properties

In protection systems, when traditional technology is replaced by software, the functionality and complexity of the system is likely to increase. The quantitative evidence normally provided for safety certification of traditional systems cannot be relied upon in software-based systems. Instead there is a need to provide qualitative evidence. As a basis for the required qualitative evidence, we propose an object-based approach that allows modelling of both the application and software domains. From the object class model of a system and a formal specification of the failure properties of its components, we generate a graph of failure propagation over object classes, which is then used to generate a graph in terms of object instances in order to conduct fault tree analysis. The model is validated by comparing the resulting minimal cut sets with those obtained from the fault tree analysis of the original system. The approach is illustrated on a case study based on a protection system from..

The Germination Ecology and Composition of the Indigenous Seeds of Cyprus conglomeratus: A Sand Dune Binder

Cyperus conglomeratus is among few species that tolerate the instability of sand dunes and its low nutrients. This species tolerates grazing animals and sand burial. It is considered as a good fodder for both domestic and wildlife animals. It has the potential to fix sand dunes. In addition, a preliminary observation indicated the presence of high contents of oil in the seeds. Despite the ecological importance of C. conglomeratus, little information is available about germination behaviour and seed composition. The present study assessed the dormancy, germination requirement, tolerance to salinity and drought during germination stage, the impact of dormancy regulation chemicals on innate dormancy and salinity-induced germination inhibition and seed composition of the glycophytic desert sedge C. conglomeratus seeds. Fresh seeds of C. conglomeratus have little innate dormancy; 84% of the seeds germinated in distilled water. In addition, none of studied dormancy regulating substances improved seed germination. The effects of maternal habitat, time of seed maturation and seed storage, and their interaction were assessed on light and temperature requirements during seed incubation on final germination percentage and germination rate of C. conglomeratus. The results showed significant effects for maternal habitat, time of seed collection, seed storage and both light and temperature of seed incubation and their interaction on both germination percentage and rate. Seeds of C. conglomeratus produced on dry sand dunes (AI Wathbah, Al Khattem and Dubai) produced higher germination percentages whereas those produced in the two sites of Al-Ain (Manaseer and Industrial area) produced significantly lower germination. The lowest germination was recorded for seeds of Liwa population and this was attributed to the extremely water stress in that area which would lead to improper seed filling and high rate of seed abortion. Both light and temperature of incubation significantly affected the final germination percentage and germination speed of C. conglomeratus. Germination in light was significantly greater than it in dark, especially at higher temperature. Germination at higher temperatures was significantly greater than that at lower temperatures. The light requirement for germination of C. conglomerates seeds at higher ensures that they will germinate successfully on or near the soil surface when other conditions are suitable for seedling emergence. Such result might explain the high seedling emergence observed in disturbed sand dunes, especially after effective rainfall at the end of the rainy season. The effect of salinity, light and temperature of incubation and their interaction had significant effects on final germination percentage of C. conglomeratus. The germination was greatly reduced in 25 mM NaCl and completely inhibited in 50 mM NaCl. Salinity tolerance was greatest in darkness at higher temperatures. For all salinities, no seeds were recovered at the lower temperatures and recovery germination percentage was significantly greater at 30/40 °C than 25/35 °C. Fusicoccin, GA3 and kinetin, completely alleviated salinity induced dormancy in all salinity levels. Nitrate and thiourea completely alleviated the germination inhibition in lower salinities, but partially alleviated it in 100 mM NaCl. The effect of Polyethylene osmotic pressure on the germination of C. conglomeratus seeds was significant. The final germination was 90% in -0.1 MPa then decreased to 67%, 57% and 44% in -0.2, -0.3 and -0.4 MPa, respectively, and completely inhibited in -0.5 MPa This result indicates that the germination inhibition in saline solutions is more likely due to osmotic effect, rather than ion toxicity. Final germination of fresh seeds of C. conglomeratus was significantly greater, compared to it for seeds stored for 15 months. This result indicates that storage either induced a secondary dormancy or resulted in viability loss of the seeds. There was no compositional analysis data available for the seeds of this plant. Seeds collected from the plants in the sand dunes of Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Al-Ain were found to contain moisture- 2.51%, ash- 7.74%, fat- 29.5% and protein- 13 .5%. The seeds of this plant are rich in oil and the fatty acid profile of the soxhlet extracted fat was determined by capillary gas chromatography and found to be: C10:0- 0.10, C12:0- 0.10, C14:0 - 0.16, C16:0 -7.47, C16:1 - 0.12, C18:0 - 3.52, C18:1 -73.8, C18:2- 13.14, C18:3 - 0.56, C20:0 - 0.12, C20:1 - 0.27, C22:0 - 0.39, C22:1 - 0.17. Lipids were also extracted using supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) and SFE conditions of 50 °C and 400 bar gave maximum yield of 28.6%. The fatty acid profile of SFE oil was similar to that of the soxhlet extracted oil. The mineral composition (mg/kg) was found to be as: Na: 297, K: 3029, Ca: 896, Mg: 2303, Fe: 191, P: 3491, Cu: 9.57 and Zn: 53.3. Heavy metal contaminants (mg/kg)- Pb: 0.23, Cd: 0.14 were found to be within acceptable limits. The study indicates that the seeds are highly nutritious and the seed oil is rich in unsaturated fatty acids. The seeds could serve as a highly nutritious feed for animals and poultry

A framework for the requirements analysis of safety-critical computing systems

PhD ThesisDigital computers are increasingly being used in safety-critical applications (e.g., avionics, chemical plant and railway systems). The main motivations for introducing computers into such environments are to increase performance, flexibility and efficiency. However, the cost to safety in achieving these benefits using computing systems is unclear. The general class of systems considered in this thesis are process control systems. More specifically the thesis examines the class of safety-critical computing systems which are a component of a process control system that could cause or allow the overall system to enter into a hazardous state. This thesis investigates the role oiformal methods in safety-critical computing systems. The phase of system development considered is requirements analysis. Experience in safety-critical systems has shown that errors in the identified requirements are one of the major causes of mishap. It is argued that to gain a complete understanding of such computing systems, the requirements of the overall system and the properties of the environment must be analyzed in a common formal framework. A system development model based on the separation of safety and mission issues is discussed, which highlights the essential specifications that must be produced during requirements analysis. A formal model for the representation of these essential specifications is presented. The semantics of this formal model are based on the notion of a system history. To structure the specifications expressed by this formal model the concept of a mode is introduced. This thesis suggests that for a formal model to be useful during requirements analysis a related systematic methodology, which provides comprehensive guidelines for the analysts who use the model must be made available. An appropriate methodology, based upon the system development model, which incorporates some traditional system safety techniques is described. Overall, the thesis presents a framework for requirements analysis by providing a system development model, formal model and related development methodology. An example of how this framework can support requirements analysis is presented in the appendices Band C.UK Science and Engineering Research Council: Alvey Software Reliability Project Grant

Modelling and Simulation of a Stand-Alone Solar System with A Capacity of 380V, 39A Based on Ferrite Transformers and Half Cut Cell PV Modules

The easy installation of the solar energy system, no need for fuel, low maintenance and operation requirements, makes it the preferred choice to solve the problem of power outage especially in the day of the summer season. The downside of the solar energy systems is decreasing the generated energy with the rising in temperatures, perfect and simple design of the solar energy system makes it durable over a wide range of temperature increases. This research presents the design of 3-ph (380V, 39A) stand –alone solar system at latitude 32.5 with a high quality voltage and current even when the temperature reaches to maximum levels. The power system of the project contains: 60 PV modules of a half cut cell to reduce the losses in connection lines, and two Mn-Zn toroid core ferrite transformers to transition the solar energy to the inverter with appropriate voltage efficiently. Control system is implemented based on PI controllers for switching function at a certain values of a modulation index parameter (m). The system is modeled and simulated in MATLAM/Simulink, simulation results demonstrate that the rated voltage and current have been obtained with minimum values of Total Harmonics Distortion (THD) and modulation index parameter less than 1. &nbsp

Significance of Hepatitis B Virus Diagnosis by Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction over Serological Markers in Hepatitis B Virus Patients

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is the leading cause of viral hepatitis, as currently over 2 billion people have HBV infection worldwide. Nucleic acid assay and quantitative hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) have been developed for diagnostic and therapeutic monitoring of patients with HBV infection. These tests might also show correlation between HBV DNA and HBs serostatus. The study aimed to find and analyze the frequency and impact of HBsAg seropositivity among patients revealed HBV DNA negative level through quantitative estimation of both seromarkers. Real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and Elecsys assays were used for quantitative estimation of HBV DNA and HBs antigen, respectively. A total of 256 blood samples were used from patients referred for either diagnostic purpose and/or HBV viral load monitoring after antiviral therapy. Blood profile analysis showed 12.26% HBs antigen seropositivity among patients revealed negative for nucleic acid assay for HBV DNA. Positive HBs antigen titers ranged from 1000–50,000 COI, with seronegative anti-HBs antibody test for all samples tested positive for HBs antigen. This study delineated that negative or undetectable quantitation of HBV DNA level does not exclude HBV infection; as the level might fluctuate in different phases of HBV replication. This gives an impression and raising a question about significance of replacing test for HBsAg with quantitation of HBV DNA PCR assay. Thus, the study refers to a special HBV profile outside the classical pattern

Screw nail medialization of arytenoid in unilateral adductor vocal cord paralysis: A new office procedure

AbstractObjectivesThe aim of this study is to describe and evaluate new technique for treatment of unilateral vocal cord paralysis giving the same results of the standard procedure but minimizing the surgical trauma.Patients and methodsA prospective study was carried out between November 2009 and November 2011 in the Otorhinolaryngology Department, Zagazig University Hospitals, Egypt. It included 12 patients with unilateral idiopathic vocal cord paralysis who were managed by this new technique. Preoperative and postoperative video-laryngoscopy was done, maximal phonation time was calculated and ratings grade of dysphonia was compared.ResultsPostoperative video-laryngoscopy relieved complete glottic gap closure in 83.3% of cases and partial glottic gap in the remaining 16.7% of cases. The mean preoperative maximal phonation time was 9.42s and the postoperative value was 21.5s with a mean difference of 11.6s. The rating of the grade of dysphonia showed great improvement in the patient’s voice quality from severe dysphonia preoperatively to normal or near-normal voice postoperatively. All patients were satisfied with the results of the procedure except one patient (8.3%).ConclusionThe screw nail medialization technique gives a good reliable and easy procedure under local anesthesia for managing unilateral vocal cord paralysis and avoids the disadvantages of infection laryngoplasty and medialization thyroplasty using implants

The Role of Streptococcus mutans and Pathogenesis in the Oral cavity

        The oral cavity is a complex environment system where certain bacteria coexist with human chemical compounds. However, changes in the natural structure of the bacteria may lead to the onset of oral disease, such as periodontitis and tooth decay. A number of different environments exist in the human oral cavity, colonized by more than 600 types of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria, including the teeth, gingival sulcus, hard and soft palates, and tonsils, but only a limited number of these types can cause tooth infection .    The purpose from this study  is an attempt to establish which characteristics associated with biofilm formation—virulence determinants of S. mutans—are responsible for the development of dental caries    The review concluded the bacterial components that contribute to each of the major virulence properties and these are work together in the development of dental caries

Mode NASA blade used to calculate the power generator for (VAWT) by drag and lift coefficients

One of the confrontations with increasing demand on power in the entire world the methodologies of provided power divided into traditional methods against renewable methods. This article presents a simulation model to estimate the integrated power from vertical access wind turbine (VAWT) stages of development of a simulation model of local power supply system (LPSS) with (VAWT). However, wind power is one of the quickest developing advances for the sustainable power age. Disturbingly, in the ongoing years a few instances of corruption on telecommunication systems frameworks have emerged because of the presence of wind ranches, and costly and in fact complex restorative estimations needed. The grade of variation of power verified according to the grid size. The parameters were taken in the study through the preparation of the model are (efficiency, cost, and system response) compared to the benefits against disadvantages when combining the two systems to achieve a high performance of the power stability

WARFARIN USE AND THE RISKS OF STROKE AND BLEEDING IN HEMODIALYSIS PATIENTS WITH ATRIAL FIBRILLATION: A META-ANALYSIS STUDY

Background: risk and benefits of warfarin therapy in hemodialysis (HD) patients with fibrillation (AF) remains controversial. The aim of meta-analysis to evaluate risks of stroke and bleeding of warfarin treatment in these populations. Methods and results: Relevant literatures were searched using the following electronic databases without any language restrictions: the Cochrane Library Database, PubMed, ISI, Ovid, and Chinese Biomedical Database from the building of the database to 2018. The studies were included if (a) studies described the risk of stroke or bleeding with or without warfarin in dialysis patients with AF, (b) studies provided information about hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) of stroke or bleeding, and (c) the study design should be a clinical cohort. Sensitivity analyses and publication bias were also performed. We identified 6 eligible studies with a total of 9816 patients. Combined HRs showed that warfarin cannot provide a prevention for strokes in HD patients with AF [HR = 1.23, 95% CI 0.80 - 1.87; P = 0.347], but associated with a higher risk of bleeding (HR = 1.20, 95% CI 1.03 - 1.39; P = 0.019). Conclusion: This meta-analysis suggested that warfarin should not be recommended for the routine treatment of HD patients with AF. Keywords: Hemodialysis, Atrial fibrillation, Warfarin, Stroke, Bleeding