Leadership and decision-making practices in public versus private universities in Pakistan

The goal of this study is to examine differences in leadership and decision-making practices in public and private universities in Pakistan, with a focus on transformational leadership (TL) and participative decision-making (PDM). We conducted semi-structured interviews with 46 deans and heads of department from two public and two private universities in Pakistan. Our findings indicate that leadership and decision-making practices are different in public and private universities. While differences were observed in all six types of TL-behaviour, the following three approaches emerged to be crucial in both public and private universities: (1) articulating a vision, (2) fostering the acceptance of group goals, and (3) high-performance expectations. In terms of PDM, deans and heads of department in public and private universities adopt a collaborative approach. However, on a practical level this approach is limited to teacher- and student-related matters. Overall, our findings suggest that the leadership and decision-making practices in Pakistani public and private universities are transformational and participative in nature

Investigation on sources of growth for Turkey

This paper evaluates the correlations between growth and selected macroeconomic indicators in, Turkey under the dynamic macroeconomic adjustments as a globalizing developing economy during 1968-1998. In this context, a sensitivity analysis for basic growth variables, including fiscal, trade, and monetary indicators, is carried out by using a variant of the extreme bounds analysis (EBA). By controlling the various fiscal, trade, and monetary variables, I reveal that, with the exception of human capital, none of the variables, which are always included in the growth regressions, are robust. Thus, the paper confirms the crucial role of human capital in the growth literature

SOME NEW GENERALIZATIONS OF HADAMARD–TYPE MIDPOINT INEQUALITIES INVOLVING FRACTIONAL INTEGRALS

In this study, we formulate the identity and obtain some generalized inequalities of the Hermite–Hadamard type by using fractional Riemann–Liouville integrals for functions whose absolute values of the second derivatives are convex. The results are obtained by uniformly dividing a segment [a,b] into n equal sub-intervals. Using this approach, the absolute error of a Midpoint inequality is shown to decrease approximately n^2 times. A dependency between accuracy of the absolute error (ε) of the upper limit of the Hadamard inequality and the number (n) of lower intervals is obtained

Investigation of the relationship of apelin hormone response with some physiological parameters in Maedi-Visna infected sheep

ΔΕΝ ΔΙΑΤΙΘΕΤΑΙ ΠΕΡΙΛΗΨΗIn this study, the objective was to assess the serological characteristics of sheep, during lactation and pregnancy periods, and rams belonging to the Red Karaman and White Karaman–Kangal race infected with maedi-visna infection and body condition score (BCS) of ≤2, 3- 3.5 and ≥4 (high) and to analyse the relationship between the level of apelin and its secretion. Apelin level in the blood serum samples obtained from the jugular veinof the sheeps was determined using ELISA method. As a result of the analyses, it was determined that the level of apelin was statistically different between the races; between lactating sheep and pregnant sheep; and sheep and rams. There was no difference between the BCS groups (p > 0.05). Race and sex interaction as well as race, sex and BCS triple interaction effects were found significant (p < 0.05). It was observed that the sheep belonging to the White Karaman–Kangal race were 18 times more likely to be infected with the virus. A decrease in apelin level was observed in the sheep with infection, and it was found that the risk of infection was 0.37 times higher in rams than in lactating sheep (p < 0.05)

Metabolic determinants of cancer cell sensitivity to glucose limitation and biguanides

As the concentrations of highly consumed nutrients, particularly glucose, are generally lower in tumours than in normal tissues1,2, cancer cells must adapt their metabolism to the tumour microenvironment. A better understanding of these adaptations might reveal cancer cell liabilities that can be exploited for therapeutic benefit. Here, we developed a continuous flow culture apparatus (Nutrostat) for maintaining proliferating cells in low nutrient media for long periods of time and used it to undertake competitive proliferation assays on a pooled collection of barcoded cancer cell lines cultured in low glucose conditions. Sensitivity to low glucose varies amongst cell lines, and an RNAi screen pinpointed mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) as the major pathway required for optimal proliferation in low glucose. We found that cell lines most sensitive to low glucose are defective in the upregulation of OXPHOS normally caused by glucose limitation as a result of either mtDNA mutations in Complex I genes or impaired glucose utilization. These defects predict sensitivity to biguanides, anti-diabetic drugs that inhibit OXPHOS3,4, when cancer cells are grown in low glucose or as tumour xenografts. Remarkably, the biguanide sensitivity of cancer cells with mtDNA mutations was reversed by ectopic expression of yeast NDI1, a ubiquinone oxidoreductase that allows bypass of Complex I function5. Thus, we conclude that mtDNA mutations and impaired glucose utilization are potential biomarkers for identifying tumours with increased sensitivity to OXPHOS inhibitors

Physical education undergraduate students’ perceptions of their learning using the jigsaw learning method

Recognising the limited research around the use of cooperative learning in higher education, this case study sought to explore physical education students’ perceptions of learning using the jigsaw learning method. It examined the impact of two different aesthetic activities and two different groupings on students’ perceptions of their learning. A purposive sample of 36 third-year undergraduates was selected for the study. Data were collected using focus group interviews and reflective journals. Inductive analysis illustrated students’ perceptions of their own and others’ abilities, students’ empathy towards their peers, and how their perceptions of gymnastics and dance impacted on their perceptions of learning. Students felt that heterogeneous and friendship groupings have the potential to encourage high-order social and cognitive learning. However, those students with limited psychomotor abilities appear to be better served in friendship groupings to facilitate such learning. Students also favoured the ‘structured’ nature of gymnastics in comparison to dance for their own teaching and learning purposes. Irrespective of aesthetic activity or grouping utilised, students felt their psychomotor learning was limited. It is recommended that university staff consider using a mixture of groupings with a single cohort dependent on the practical ability of students and the use of more ‘structured’ activities. In doing so, students’ perceptions of their social, cognitive and psychomotor learning may improve and thereby encourage greater and more effective use of this innovative method in schools

A coupled modelling and simulation approach to electromagnetic sheet metal forming

This study presents a coupled numerical and experimental investigation of electromagnetic forming (EMF) for aluminium sheets. A custom simulation framework is developed in ABAQUS/Standard using user-defined material (UMAT) and load (DLOAD) subroutines. The magnetic pressure exerted on the workpiece is computed through a finite difference-based solution of Maxwell’s equations and applied to the mechanical solver. The mechanical response of the material is modelled using a strain-rate-sensitive plasticity law calibrated for aluminium 7075-O. Experimental forming trials are performed using a custom-built EMF setup, and the results are compared with numerical predictions to validate the model. The comparison shows strong agreement in deformation profiles, confirming the predictive capability of the proposed simulation strategy. This work offers a reliable computational tool for optimising EMF processes and provides insights into material behaviour under high strain rate electromagnetic loading

The degree of segmental aneuploidy measured by total copy number abnormalities predicts survival and recurrence in superficial gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma

Background: Prognostic biomarkers are needed for superficial gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) to predict clinical outcomes and select therapy. Although recurrent mutations have been characterized in EAC, little is known about their clinical and prognostic significance. Aneuploidy is predictive of clinical outcome in many malignancies but has not been evaluated in superficial EAC. Methods: We quantified copy number changes in 41 superficial EAC using Affymetrix SNP 6.0 arrays. We identified recurrent chromosomal gains and losses and calculated the total copy number abnormality (CNA) count for each tumor as a measure of aneuploidy. We correlated CNA count with overall survival and time to first recurrence in univariate and multivariate analyses. Results: Recurrent segmental gains and losses involved multiple genes, including: HER2, EGFR, MET, CDK6, KRAS (recurrent gains); and FHIT, WWOX, CDKN2A/B, SMAD4, RUNX1 (recurrent losses). There was a 40-fold variation in CNA count across all cases. Tumors with the lowest and highest quartile CNA count had significantly better overall survival (p = 0.032) and time to first recurrence (p = 0.010) compared to those with intermediate CNA counts. These associations persisted when controlling for other prognostic variables. Significance: SNP arrays facilitate the assessment of recurrent chromosomal gain and loss and allow high resolution, quantitative assessment of segmental aneuploidy (total CNA count). The non-monotonic association of segmental aneuploidy with survival has been described in other tumors. The degree of aneuploidy is a promising prognostic biomarker in a potentially curable form of EAC. © 2014 Davison et al