394 research outputs found
Innovation as an outcome : business growth outside the core
No full textProject. M.B.A. American University of Beirut. Suliman S. Olayan School of Business, 2018. Pj:1947$First Reader : Dr. Marina Apaydin, Assistant Professor, Suliman S. Olayan School of Business ; Second Reader : Dr. Yassar Nasser, Senior Lecturer, MBA Director, Suliman S. Olayan School of Business.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 90-93)This project focuses on corporate level strategy and specifically on the subject of organizational innovation which is a topic of broad interest in the business world today as being one of the long-term sources of competitive advantage for organizations. The aim of this project is to identify actions and best practices that successful companies can adopt to overcome barriers impeding innovation, and to leverage, exploit and explore available opportunities for innovation and growth. This topic is of importance for companies that wish to expand their operations and improve their competitive advantage and profitability. It is of special importance in the local Lebanese and regional markets as well, especially in the current economic situation and political turmoil, whereby firms need to think about the bigger picture, despite being caught up in day-to-day operations, to come up with and explore new ideas that improve their performance and enhance their profitability in the midst of intense competition and unclear external factors and macro-environment conditions. Based on a systematic review of the literature published over the past 10 years, this project consolidates and covers publications on general innovation theory, innovation in small to medium enterprises, innovation in family firms, business model innovation, product innovation, organizational ambidexterity and organizational capabilities, as well as knowledge sourcing and creation. The project also includes an application of the topic in practice within the Lebanese market by including a teaching business case and its corresponding teaching note (only available to instructors upon the permission of the author or the copyright holder if published at any point) involving a Lebanese company and the prospects of its growth through innovation involving the introduction of a new product with a revisited business model as well as the introduction of administrative innovations encompassing organizational structure and human resources.
Determinants of Privatisation in Selected Sub-Saharan African Countries: Is Privatisation Politically Induced?
No full textWhile African governments and international donors generally support privatisation for stabilisation as an imperative of public finance problems, academicians are more inclined to discuss the efficiency gains of privatisation. Antithetically, some political economists argue that whereas African governments actually de-emphasise privatisation, donors mainly insist on privatisation to promote neoclassical views without offering an alternative to state reform. This paper realises that the main purposes of privatisation in Sub-Saharan Africa have, so far, been multidimensional. It envisages, empirically, the determinants of privatisation in Sub-Saharan Africa using a probit model over the period 1970-1994. The results are supportive of the hypothesis that privatisation in the sample countries is induced by macro-instability and political bias.
Annäherung an genaue Berechnungsmethoden von biologischen Kofaktorsystemen
No full textIn the cell, cofactor proteins take on a wide range of tasks. Photosystem II,
for example, generates oxygen during photosynthesis and channelrhodopsin from
the alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii makes the organism move in response to
light. For these proteins to function properly, the presence of their cofactor
molecules is indispensable. Theoretical attempts to studying cofactor-
containing systems like photosystem II might struggle with the lack of
reliable force field parameters. For a retinal cofactor, on the other hand,
quantum mechanical description of its electrostatic interactions is necessary
to correctly characterize its behaviour inside of the protein. Here, we used
two different theoretical approaches to study cofactors of two proteins:
classical mechanics and force field optimization to describe the iron-
containing cofactors of photosystem II, and combined quantum and classical
mechanics to analyse the environmental effects on proton transfer energetics
in channelrhodopsin. We successfully derived new CHARMM force field parameters
for the hæm and non-hæm iron complexes of photosystem II. By comparing to
quantum mechanical data and by using test simulations, we showed that these
new parameters provide a greatly improved description of intramolecular and
non-bonded interactions. The parameters presented here will facilitate
reliable all-atom simulations of proteins that contain hæm and non-hæm iron
complexes. In channelrhodopsin, deprotonation of the Schiff base only occurs
after the light-induced isomerization of the retinal. We used the Weighted
Histogram Approach Method to generate proton transfer pathways to understand
what prevents retinal deprotonation in the dark state of the protein and
identified three important determinants that ensure the chromophore’s
continued protonation. These determinants were the presence of a positively
charged lysine (K132), water molecules in the active site and the protonation
state of the Schiff base counterion glutamate-162. Ultimately, we demonstrated
that a combined quantum and classical mechanical approach can be applied to
proteins embedded in a hydrated lipid membrane, and we created a protocol that
can be transferred to other proteins to study their proton transfer pathways
and energetics while taking the protein and lipid environment into account.Kofaktorproteine übernehmen innerhalb der Zelle eine Vielfalt von Aufgaben. So
generiert Photosystem II Sauerstoff im Rahmen der Photosynthese und
Kanalrhodopsin kontrolliert phototaxische Reaktionen der Alge Chlamydomonas
reinhardtii. Um die korrekte Funktionsweise solcher Proteine zu garantieren,
ist das Vorhandensein von bestimmten Kofaktormolekülen unabdingbar. Versuche,
Kofaktorsysteme wie Photosystem II zu untersuchen, können daran scheitern,
dass keine geeigneten Kraftfeldparameter zur Verfügung stehen. Für Retinal als
Kofaktor wiederum ist eine quantenmechanische Beschreibung der
elektrostatischen Interaktionen notwendig, um zu gewährleisten, dass sein
Verhalten innerhalb des Proteins korrekt dargestellt wird. In dieser
Doktorarbeit wurden zwei verschiedene theoretische Ansätze angewandt, um
Kofaktoren zweier Proteine zu untersuchen: klassische Mechanik und
Kraftfeldoptimierung zur Beschreibung der eisenhaltigen Kofaktoren von
Photosystem II sowie kombinierte Quantenmechanik/Molekularmechanik zur Analyse
der Auswirkungen, die die Proteinumgebung auf den Protonentransfer in
Kanalrhodopsin hat. Wir konnten neue CHARMM -Kraftfeldparameter für die Häm-
und Nichthämeisenkomplexe in Photosystem II herleiten. Indem wir
quantenmechanische Daten zum Vergleich heranzogen und Testsimulation nutzten,
konnten wir zeigen, dass die neuen Parameter eine stark verbesserte
Beschreibung der intra- und intermolekularen Interaktion bieten und
zuverlässige Ganz-Atom-Simulationen von Proteinen ermöglichen, die Häm- und
Nichthämeisenkomplexe enthalten. In Kanalrhodopsin deprotoniert die Schiffsche
Base erst, nachdem die lichtinduzierte Isomerisierung des Retinals eingetreten
ist. Wir haben den gewichteten Histogramm-Ansatz (Weighted Histogram Approach
Method) genutzt, um Protonentransferpfade herzuleiten, um zu verstehen, welche
Faktoren die Deprotonierung im Grundzustand des Proteins verhindern. Wir
konnten drei wichtige Bedingungsfaktoren identifiziere: das Vorhandensein
eines positiv geladenen Lysins (K132), Wassermoleküle im aktiven Zentrum sowie
der Protonierungszustand von Glutamat-162, einem Gegenion der Schiffschen
Base. Letzten Endes konnten wir demonstrieren, dass ein kombiniert
quantenmechanisch/molekularmechanischer Ansatz zur Beschreibung von Proteinen
in einer hydratisierten Lipidmembran genutzt werden kann. Außerdem haben wir
ein Protokoll entwickelt, welches zur Untersuchung von Protonentransferpfaden
und -energien unter Berücksichtigung der Protein- und Lipidumgebung
herangezogen werden kann
Approximation of Oscillatory Bessel Integral Transforms
No full textKhan, Suliman/0000-0003-0069-4025; khan, Feroz/0000-0002-7318-4918; alhazmi, sharifah/0000-0002-7761-4196; Arshad, Muhammad/0000-0002-4283-0307; Park, Jongee/0000-0003-1415-6906The numerical treatment of oscillatory integrals is a demanding problem in applied sciences, particularly for large-scale problems. The main concern of this work is on the approximation of oscillatory integrals having Bessel-type kernels with high frequency and large interpolation points. For this purpose, a modified meshless method with compactly supported radial basis functions is implemented in the Levin formulation. The method associates a sparse system matrix even for high frequency values and large data points, and approximates the integrals accurately. The method is efficient and stable than its counterpart methods. Error bounds are derived theoretically and verified with several numerical experiments.(c) 2023 International Association for Mathematics and Computers in Simulation (IMACS). Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.Deanship of Scientific Research at Umm Al-Qura University [23UQU4282396DSR002]Acknowledgments The author Sharifah E. Alhazmi would like to thank the Deanship of Scientific Research at Umm Al-Qura University for supporting this work by Grant Code: (23UQU4282396DSR002)
Optimization and spectroscopic studies on carbon nanotubes/PVA nanocomposites
No full textAbstractNanocomposite films of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) containing constant ratio of both single and multi-wall carbon nanotubes had been obtained by dispersion techniques and were investigated by different techniques. The infrared spectrum confirmed that SWNTs and MWNTs have been covalently related OH and CC bonds within PVA. The X-ray diffraction indicated lower crystallinity after the addition of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) due to interaction between CNTs and PVA. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) illustrated that SWNTs and MWNTs have been dispersed into PVA polymeric matrix and it wrapped with PVA. The properties of PVA were enhanced by the presence of CNTs. TEM images show uniform distribution of CNTs within PVA and a few broken revealing that CNTs broke aside as opposed to being pulled out from fracture surface which suggests an interfacial bonding between CNTs and PVA. Maximum value of AC conductivity was recorded at higher frequencies. The behavior of both dielectric constant (ɛ′) and dielectric loss (ɛ″) were decreased when frequency increased related to dipole direction within PVA films to orient toward the applied field. At higher frequencies, the decreasing trend seems nearly stable as compared with lower frequencies related to difficulty of dipole rotation
Spectral study of Isolated active compound of Kawal seeds oil (Cassia Obtusifolia
No full textهذا البحث بعنوان إستخلاص الزيوت الثابتة من بذورالكول وضبط جودة الزيوت وإجراء الإختبارات الفيزيائية والكيميائية والمسح الكيميائي للبذور لتحديد المواد الموجودة فيه وإستخلاص الزيت بواسطة جهاز السوكسليت بواسطة مذيب الهكسان العضوي وفحص كروماتوغرافيا الغاز للزيت لتحديد المركبات الموجودة فيه وعزلها.
وأثبتت الخواص الفيزيائية والكيميائية استخدام الزيت في الطعام والعلاج والمستخلص خالي من السموم والمواد الصابونية ويحتوي على أحماض دهنية حرة ورطوبة وقرينة يود مواد غير متصبنة ورماد ومحتوى الزيت ضئيل في البذور واللون أخضر.
نسبة الزيت المستخلص من نبات بذور الكول حوالي (6.67%)
الخواص الكيميائية للتحليل التقريبي مثل تقدير الرماد (10) ،الدهون (3.5) ،الرطوبة (10.59) الألياف (12) ،البروتين (27) والكربوهيدريدات (45.81).
الخواص الفيزوكيميائية لزيت الكول مثل معدل الأحماض (3.51) ،البايروكسيد (4.45) ،والمواد المتصبنة (185) ،والمواد غير المتصبنة (9.68) ،والمواد الأيودية (89.321) .
المسح الكيميائي للبذور حددت المركبات الموجودة فيه وهي الفلافونويد والتانينو الإسترويد والتربينات والفينول والصابونين .
ثم تم التعرف على ثلاثة وعشرون مركباً بإستخدام كروماتوغرافيا الغاز.
أوجد الزيت المستخلص من نبات بذورالكول خواص كيميائية وفيزيائية مختلفة
The Priority of Building Ecological Transport System in Metropolises: Obstacles, Methods and Opportunities
No full textThe article shows efficient ways of cutting the negative impact of transportation on the environment in metropolises as tools of passing-over to sustainable transportation system. The author identifies key ecological problems in metropolises – consequences of using transport, in particular, CO2 transport emissions are studied in view of their volumes and changes that took place during the last 5 years. It was revealed that all over the world transport damages the environment much more seriously than other industries. The author analyzed advanced methods of passing over from traditional to sustainable transport in different aspects (technical, infrastructural and cultural) in order to protect the environment in metropolises with due regard to economic interests. A lot of obstacles were found, such as time, mode of modern life in metropolises, inter-sectoral nature of transport, etc., which hinder the process of shaping sustainable transport systems in metropolises. As a result of the research the author confirms the necessity to work out a sustainable transport system, in spite of complexity of the process. Apart from that, three variants of shaping sustainable transport system were put forward: basic, standard and advanced
THE SPREAD OF ARABIC LITERARY WORKS
No full text<p>The development and spread of Arabic literary works cannot be separated from the founder and its figures both from Arabic spoken-country and non-Arabic one. Syaikh Adam Abdullah al Ilori is one of the figures in Nigeria that has significant role in spreading Arabic literary works and at once educating the next generation as litterateur and the expert of Arabic literature in Nigeria. In line with the aim, there are five strategies developed by Syaikh Adam al Ilori; 1) memorization, b) direct teaching of Arabic literary works, c) teaching the principles of <em>aruud</em>, d) training to create the Arabic poems, and e) holding competition to encourage young poets. These five strategies are effective to be applied in Nigeria in aiming for spreading Arabic literature and creating the expert of it so that many writers were born in Nigeria such as Abu Bakar Umar, Roji Suliman, Abdul Baqi Syuaib, and many more.</p><p> </p><p>Perkembangan dan penyebaran karya sastra Arab tidak bisa dilepaskan dari para pelopor dan para tokohnya baik dari negara Arab sendiri maupun dari negara non Arab. Syaikh Adam Abdullah al Ilori adalah salah satu tokoh sastra Arab di Nigeria yang punya peran signifikan dalam penyebaran karya sastra Arab dan sekaligus mencetak generasi penerus sebagai sastrawan dan ahli di bidang sastra Arab di Nigeria. Dalam membentuk generasi sastrawan di bidang sastra Arab (syair), ada lima startegi yang dikembangkan Syaikh Adam al Ilori, yaitu a) dengan cara hafalan, b) mengajarkan karya-karya sastra Arab, c) mengajarkan kaidah-kaidah aruud, d) melatih membuat syair-syair Arab, e) mengadakan kontes-kontes pada momen-momen penting sebagai ajang kreativitas para penyair muda. Lima strategi ini sangat efektif digunakan di Nigeria dalam menyebarkan karya sastra Arab dan membentuk generasi yang ahli di bidang sastra Arab sehingga telah banyak melahirkan sastrawan-sastrawan di Nigeria yang ahli di bidang sastra Arab seperti: Abu Bakar Umar, Roji Suliman, Abdul Baqi Syuaib, dan lain sebagainya.</p></jats:p
The generation of a ZBTB16-inducible expression system in the ACHN adenocarcinoma cell line
No full textAbstractObjectivesTo establish an inducible system for controlled ZBTB16 protein expression in a renal adenocarcinoma cell line.MethodsThe Tet-On® 3G Inducible Expression System from Clontech was used to generate a tetracycline-regulated ZBTB16 expression system in the ACHN renal adenocarcinoma cell line.ResultsThe Tet-On® 3G system successfully controlled the basal level of ZBTB16 with no detectable protein expression when doxycycline was absent from the culture medium. The addition of doxycycline induced ZBTB16 protein expression with as low as 20 ng/ml of doxycycline.ConclusionThe firm regulation of transcription factor expression in cancer cell models is very important in investigating their biological roles. Many transcription factors, such as ZBTB16, will carry on their biological activities even with minimal expression levels. The Tet-On® 3G system was essential in controlling the basal expression to prevent transcription leakage and providing a tightly regulated method for expressing ZBTB16 in a manner resembling physiological conditions
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