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The research aims to empirically validate a multi-dimensional measure of total quality management(TQM) benchmarking within a humanitarian setting. This study is the first to investigate the dimensionality the TQM benchmarks as used by international non-governmental organisations (INGOs). The proposed four-dimensional construct for measuring quality lends itself to lean and practical TQM framework for INGOs, allowing them a greater awareness and an appetite for aligning their operations with TQM principles. Utilizing survey data collected from participants working for United Nations agencies in the Middle East, the methodology consisted of a set of literature-backed quantitative procedures to test the validity of the previously suggested theoretical TQM-measurement model. An alternate model emerged and revealed that the TQM-benchmarking measurement model is a four-factor variate. The implications of the proposed model for implementing lean management practices by INGOs are discussed. (6) (PDF) Validating a New TQM-Benchmarking Measurement Model in an International Humanitarian Setting. Available from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/332977319_Validating_a_New_TQM-Benchmarking_Measurement_Model_in_an_International_Humanitarian_Setting [accessed May 10 2019].

This study essentially aims to contribute to the immunohistochemical investigation of the use of pituitary tumor transforming gene (PTTG) as a marker of cell proliferation or advanced tumor grade in meningiomas of various WHO grades. In all, 51 cases were recovered in total, 21 Grade-I, 23 Grade-II and 7 Grade-III meningiomas. Mitotic index (MI), Ki-67/MiB-1 positivity percentage and PTTG expression were analyzed in correlation to each other as well as to the tumor WHO grades. All three biomarkers showed a high diagnostic significance and a strong association with WHO grades. In comparison, PTTG expression was on a par with the other two indices, and performed very well regarding identification of advanced grade tumors. PTTG may be considered an important diagnostic tool and serve in the future as a novel prognosticator of the biological behavior of all grade meningiomas as well as a useful high-risk patient selection tool.

The “smart” amine donors o‐xylylenediamine and cadaverine were employed for the rapid screening of a large ketone library and subsequent preparative‐scale synthesis of selected compounds using a commercially available amine transaminase, ATA256. The methodology enables both screening and preparative‐scale biotransformations to be performed with a single enzyme and simplifies the generation of sp3‐rich small‐molecule libraries.

The research aims to empirically validate a multi-dimensional measure of total quality management(TQM) benchmarking within a humanitarian setting. This study is the first to investigate the dimensionality the TQM benchmarks as used by international non-governmental organisations (INGOs). The proposed four-dimensional construct for measuring quality lends itself to lean and practical TQM framework for INGOs, allowing them a greater awareness and an appetite for aligning their operations with TQM principles. Utilizing survey data collected from participants working for United Nations agencies in the Middle East, the methodology consisted of a set of literature-backed quantitative procedures to test the validity of the previously suggested theoretical TQM-measurement model. An alternate model emerged and revealed that the TQM-benchmarking measurement model is a four-factor variate. The implications of the proposed model for implementing lean management practices by INGOs are discussed. (6) (PDF) Validating a New TQM-Benchmarking Measurement Model in an International Humanitarian Setting. Available from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/332977319_Validating_a_New_TQM-Benchmarking_Measurement_Model_in_an_International_Humanitarian_Setting [accessed May 10 2019].

Research summary: When faced with a new technological paradigm, incumbent firms can opt for internal development and/or external sourcing to obtain the necessary new knowledge. We explain how the effectiveness of external knowledge sourcing depends on the properties of internal knowledge production. We apply a social network lens to delineate interpersonal, intra-firm knowledge networks and capture the emergence of two important firm-level properties: the incumbent's internal potential for knowledge recombination and the level of knowledge coordination costs. We rely on firm-level internal knowledge networks to dynamically track the emergence of these properties across 106 global pharmaceutical companies over a 25-year time period. We find that a firm's success in developing knowledge in a new technological paradigm using external knowledge sourcing is contingent on these internal knowledge properties. Managerial summary: Incumbent firms in high-tech industries often face competence-destroying technological change. In their effort to adapt and develop new knowledge in a novel paradigm, incumbent firms have several corporate strategy options available to them: internal knowledge development and a wide array of external knowledge sourcing strategies, including alliances and acquisitions. In this study, we make an effort to address a critical question: How effective is external knowledge sourcing under different internal knowledge generation regimes? We find that external sourcing strategies are less effective when firms can already internally generate new knowledge or if they have high internal coordination costs. Therefore, when considering external sourcing, managers must carefully weigh the benefits of it vis-a-vis its commensurate costs as the benefits of external sourcing may be overstated. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The 'smart' amine donors o?xylylenediamine and cadaverine were employed for the rapid screening of a large ketone library and subsequent preparative?scale synthesis of selected compounds using the commercially available amine transaminase, ATA256. The methodology enables both screening and preparative?scale biotransformations to be performed with a single enzyme and simplifies the generation of sp3?rich small molecule libraries.

This study examines and compares word of mouth (WOM) behaviour among university students in Syria. To date, little is known about this important phenomenon which is surprising given the deregulated education market in Syria that allows for private universities to compete for students alongside public universities. Using a mixed methods research design and structural equation modelling, our results show faculty individualised attention and student satisfaction were found to be positively related to university image. Further, student satisfaction and university image were found to be direct sources of students’ positive WOM behaviour. We found a moderating effect of university ownership type on university image. Interestingly, we identified six themes showing how support staff empathy could be seen as a source of low student satisfaction. These were defined as deception/credibility/soft-soapers/suspiciousness: when support staff coax something out of students; confusion/role conflict: resulting from the diverse roles played by support staff while interacting with students; unfairness: when a student notices discrimination in the level of empathy between their peers; privacy: when support staff empathy can be perceived as a kind of intrusion; self-congratulatory: when a support staff member shows off or praises their empathy; and support staff/student ratio: when this ratio is seen to be small, the empathy effect reverses.

The etiology and pathophysiology of Tourette Syndrome (TS) remain poorly understood. Multiple lines of evidence suggest that a complex genetic background and the cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical circuit are involved. The role of Lhx6 and Lhx8 in the development of the striatal interneurons, prompted us to investigate them as novel candidate genes for TS. We performed a comparative study of the expression of Lhx6 and Lhx8 and investigated genetic association with TS using two samples of trios (TSGeneSEE and German sample - 222 families). We show that Lhx6 and Lhx8 expression in the forebrain is evolutionarily conserved, underlining their possible importance in TS-related pathophysiological pathways. Our tagging-single nucleotide polymorphism (tSNP)-based association analysis was negative for association with LHX8. However, we found positive association with LHX6 in the TSGeneSEE sample (corrected P-value = 0.006 for three-site haplotype around SNP rs3808901) but no association in the sample of German families. Interestingly, the SNP allele that was identified to be significantly associated in the TSGeneSEE dataset, showed an opposite trend of transmission in the German dataset. Our analysis of the correlation of the LHX6 region with individual ancestry within Europe, revealed the fact that this particular SNP demonstrates a high degree of population differentiation and is correlated with the North to South axis of European genetic variation. Our results indicate that further study of the LHX6 gene in relation to the TS phenotype is warranted and suggest the intriguing hypothesis that different genetic factors may contribute to the etiology of TS in different populations, even within Europe.

SUMMARY Acute myocardial infarction is relatively uncommon in patients under the age of 40 years. Unlike the older patients where rupture of coronary artery atherosclerotic plaque is the main underlying pathology, the pathogenesis in younger patients can be varied and may require different diagnostic and therapeutic approaches. Hypercoagulable state associated with nephrotic syndrome and antiphospholipid syndrome can lead to the development of occlusive coronary artery thrombus in absence of atherosclerotic coronary artery disease. Acute myocardial infarction in such a setting can sometimes be the first manifestation of an underlying disease. We describe a case of myocardial infarction in a young man with both nephrotic and antiphospho-lipid syndromes and present a brief literature review.

The purpose of the study was to investigate the effects of face consciousness on happiness and the moderating role of financial situation on this relationship. We first examined our hypotheses in study 1 in a particular setting of consumption, and replicated our findings in study 2 in a more generalized setting of interpersonal situations. The two studies produced essentially consistent results. We found individuals high on face consciousness tend to be less happy, and the negative association between face consciousness and happiness is ameliorated by their financial situation. These results revealed the importance of face consciousness as an individual difference in predicting happiness. The implications of these findings for future research are discussed.

Virtual reality is used in fields of cognitive sciences to study the participants' behavior. In such cases, existence of other digital humanoid representations in the virtual environment is a crucial factor. Conformity—the act of matching attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors to fit with the majority—is one of the most powerful aspects of social influence. In this study, we investigated conformity to virtual humans in an immersive virtual environment, using two experiments. In the first experiment, we investigated whether agents have social influence on the participants by conducting the 1951 Asch conformity experiment. Findings demonstrate that the participants' response times were affected by the judgments of the agents in the virtual environment. In the second experiment, we used a similar method to study how the factors “agency” and “behavioral real ism” affect social conformity. “Agency” is the extent of a user's belief that other humanoid representations represent real people. “Behavioral realism” is the degree to which humanoid representations behave as they would do in the real world. The results of the experiment showed that conformity can be caused by virtual humans in immersive virtual environments. However, there are no significant results regarding the influence of “agency” and “behavioral realism” on conformity.

This research work discusses technology integration in education by applying the major concepts and principles that underlie the systems approach. Information and communications technology (ICT) provides a realistic, visually compelling and motivating interactive environment for developing students' skills and knowledge needed in today's globalized, hi-tech, multicultural environment. The paper puts the major concepts of the systems approach into practice in an attempt to instil a new learning, communication and work culture through technology integration in the educational settings. Based on the above, a roadmap is proposed for introducing and diffusing computer technology integration in the educational systems. The suggested roadmap proposes a new educational approach to technology integration, which can improve its application in schools and open various educational opportunities. It is a recommendation to stakeholders who have the power to advocate for and implement systemic change in order to redesign the educational systems in terms of technology integration. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The identification of the genetic determinants specifying neuronal networks in the mammalian brain is crucial for the understanding of the molecular and cellular mechanisms that ultimately control cognitive functions. Here we have generated a targeted allele of the LIM-homeodomain-encoding gene Lhx7 by replacing exons 3-5 with a LacZ reporter. In heterozygous animals, which are healthy, fertile and have no apparent cellular deficit in the forebrain, b-galactosidase activity reproduces the pattern of expression of the wild-type Lhx7 locus. However, homozygous mutant mice show severe deficits in forebrain cholinergic neurons (FCNs), while other classes of forebrain neurons appear unaffected. Using the LacZ reporter as a marker, we show that in LHX7-deficient mice FCN progenitors survive but fail to generate cholinergic interneurons in the striatum and cholinergic projection neurons in the basal forebrain. Analysis of behaviour in a series of spatial and non-spatial learning and memory tasks revealed that FCN ablation in Lhx7 mutants is associated with severe deficits in spatial but only mild impairment of non-spatial learning and memory. In addition, we found no deficit in long-term potentiation in mutant animals, suggesting that FCNs modulate hippocampal function independently of its capacity to store information. Overall our experiments demonstrate that Lhx7 expression is required for the specification or differentiation of cholinergic forebrain neurons involved in the processing of spatial information.