Fundamental Quality Research Articles

On the Threshold: The Story of School Security Guards in Israel

The global spread of neoliberalism has brought with it an increase in practices of outsourcing and subcontracting, and, consequently, the flourishing of private security services which rely on them. In Israel, these trends, combined with the unique security climate, have encouraged the development of a distinct sub-sector of private security in the form of school security. The rise of private security services has generated research interest. Most studies, however, focus on socio-economical aspects rather than on security guards' personal perspectives. This tendency is even more pronounced regarding school security guards and, to date, no studies have been carried out in Israel examining their viewpoint. This study aimed to address this lacuna by bringing in school security guards’ voice in order to learn from and about them. The study’s approach was qualitative, and the main tool was semi-structured interviews, accompanied by observations and document analysis. The study's findings reveal that the world of Israeli school security guards is informed by one fundamental quality. This quality is liminality, and it colors their experiences, perceptions, and professional relations. Israeli school security guards are always on the threshold: between belonging and not-belonging to their workplace; between commitment to and alienation from their work; between being needed yet disrespected. The paper suggests that this liminality is connected to the global socio-economical changes, and furthermore, it expresses a central aspect of Israeli society, which swings between two incompatible ethe: the security ethos and the neoliberal ethos.
 
 Received: 18 October 2020 / Accepted: 5 December 2020 / Published: 17 January 2021

New Normal Role in PM2.5 Reduction in Bangkok

The world has been exposed to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) since late 2019. A global pandemic has shifted health concerns from air pollution effects to novel coronavirus disease, similarly to those in Bangkok. Although Bangkokians have experienced severe PM2.5 conditions since the last quarter of 2017, the related agencies have failed to elucidate the crisis. This has been because the fundamental air quality management is focused on controlling emissions. The Thai government has sluggishly determined the situations that lead to the inability to clean up its air. How are air pollution and disease linked? This article points to the importance of source management. The lockdown measures revealed reduced traffic rate and PM2.5 concentrations. Such a close relationship has shed insights of the consequences of working from home (WFH). The link between disease and air pollution includes (i) WFH regulation is one specific way to prevent the transmission of disease, (ii) this guideline decreases traffic congestion in an urban city which is one path of diminished pollution discharge and (iii) then noticeably followed by PM2.5 reductions. Again, the magnitude of source control is crucial. Reducing pollutions from traffic by means of WFH has illustrated this accomplishment. In the midst of this crisis, moving to a new normal role supports remaining protected from both air pollution and the pandemic. Nevertheless, the sustainability of transportation control in an overcrowded city like Bangkok should be considered as a vital pathway to tackle air pollution.

Isolation of mesophyll protoplasts from tea (<i>Camellia sinensis</i>) and localization analysis of enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of specialized metabolites

Specialized metabolites in tea (<i>Camellia sinensis</i>) are fundamental quality factors. It is important to characterize gene function <i>in vivo</i> to identify key enzymes and reactions involved in the biosynthesis of such metabolites. Here we report a transient expression method to analyze gene function in isolated tea mesophyll protoplasts. This method is an alternative approach to traditional genetic transformation for studies on gene function <i>in vivo</i>. We screened several tea cultivars and different digestion conditions to optimize protoplast isolation. Digestion of newly emerged leaves of <i>C. sinensis</i> ‘Zhongbai 4’ with 3% cellulase R-10 and 0.3% macerozyme R-10 for about 12 h yielded approximately 10⁷ mesophyll protoplasts. Genes encoding enzymes involved in secondary metabolite synthesis were transiently expressed in the protoplasts, and their subcellular locations were determined. With further improvements in the transfection efficiency, this transient expression system will contribute greatly to the analyses of <i>in vivo</i> gene function in tea.

Efficiency of enterprise management in the context of corporate culture formation

The article is devoted to the study of the effectiveness of management of an organization or institution in the context of the formation of corporate culture. The urgency of typical situations that form the key problems of collective ethics is considered, its direct impact on the efficiency of modern enterprise is determined. It is worth discussing the issue of raising the efficiency of work, improving communication relations in the team and the effectiveness of management. It is determined that a key role in the formation of culture should be played by a new type of leaders who are able to transform a high corporate culture into a fundamental quality of their organization.

Measuring the Value Relevance of Financial Information for Strategic Decision-Making and Performance of Nigerian Listed Firms

Purpose of the article: Management has traditionally used financial information for strategic decision-making. This study investigates the value relevance of financial information contained in earnings per share and operating cash flow per share for strategic decision-making and hence performance. It utilized secondary data extracted from annual reports and accounts of fortythree (43) listed firms on the Nigerian Stock Exchange over the period of 2006–2017. Methodology/methods: The collected data were subjected to analysis using the non-linear symmetric Generalized Autoregressive Conditional Heteroscedasticity (GARCH (1 1)) model, which is capable of handling time varying properties of financial time series to measure the statistical significance of the association between the variables of interest. Scientific aim: The paper is aimed at empirically investigating the value relevance of financial information to ascertain its potency for handling strategic decisions of listed firms in Nigeria. This is to digress from the contextual factors in the decision-making process and construct an integrated link between value relevance research and strategic management. Findings: The study found that earnings per share and operating cash flow per share are individually and jointly value relevant in strategic decisions and performance. Conclusion: It is necessary to pay attention to the financial information system of an organization to enhance the quality of services it can provide to strategic management. It is necessary to pursue the fundamental quality of relevance that guarantees predictive, materiality and confirmatory values and enhancing quality that measures usefulness by both management and regulators.

STUDIES ON THE QUALITY AND AUTHENTICITY OF WHITE WINES FROM OLTENIA

For white wines, in addition to the level of the main chemical constituents defined for each category and type, the properties of fruitiness, aroma and expressiveness, typical of varieties and areas of origin, are fundamental quality criteria. In addition, these products must be offered to consumers in a perfect state of clarity and with lasting stability over time. The capitalization of the viticultural potential that Romania has, in order to obtain sustainable competitive advantages on foreign markets, requires the creation and promotion of an identity of Romanian wine, based on analytical investigations to certify the quality and natural chemical composition of wines. Determining the quality and authentication of wines involves several aspects, such as geographical origin, year of production, variety, producer and quality. It is important that the proof of the authenticity of the wine is based on those chemical parameters that do not change during vinification process or that are difficult to falsify

Application of mixed-culture with Lactobacillus brevis and Saccharomyces cerevisiae to Chinese yellow rice wine brewing for ethyl carbamate regulation

Co-culturing two or more species has recently been used in fermenting foods for product flavor or safety control. Ethyl carbamate (EC) is a potential carcinogenic compound presented in Chinese yellow rice wine which can be reduced by fermentation starters modification. In this work, the effect of Lactobacillus brevis (L. brevis) on EC in yellow rice wine fermentation with Saccharomyces cerevisiae (S. cerevisiae) was studied and an optimal mixed-culture fermentation method was constructed according to comparative analyses of EC concentration and fundamental quality. EC concentration could be further reduced by 68.4% at most through adding 108 cfu/L L. brevis during S. cerevisiae fermentation. L. brevis also had beneficial influence on hedonic quality of yellow rice wine. Meanwhile, the effect of gallic acid on EC formation in this mixed-culture fermentation system was elucidated. Unfortunately, the coexistence of gallic acid and L. brevis attenuated their inhibitory effect on EC formation.

A Fast and Non-destructive Terahertz Dissolution Assay for Immediate Release Tablets.

There is a clear need for a robust process analytical technology tool that can be used for on-line/in-line prediction of dissolution and disintegration characteristics of pharmaceutical tablets during manufacture. Tablet porosity is a reliable and fundamental critical quality attribute which controls key mass transport mechanisms that govern disintegration and dissolution behavior. A measurement protocol was developed to measure the total porosity of a large number of tablets in transmission without the need for any sample preparation. By using this fast and non-destructive terahertz spectroscopy method it is possible to predict the disintegration and dissolution of drug from a tablet in less than a second per sample without the need of a chemometric model. The validity of the terahertz porosity method was established across a range of immediate release (IR) formulations of ibuprofen and indomethacin tablets of varying geometries as well as with and without debossing. Excellent correlation was observed between the measured terahertz porosity, dissolution characteristics (time to release 50% drug content) and disintegration time for all samples. These promising results and considering the robustness of the terahertz method pave the way for a fully automated at-line/on-line porosity sensor for real time release testing of IR tablets dissolution.

Production of Concrete Using Diverted Rainwater First Flush

Rainwater harvesting is a primordial practice gaining acceptance for its fundamental quality. The most stimulating aspect of rainwater harvesting is the methods of capture, storage, and use of this natural resource. Pollutants are accumulated on the roof during dry weather and then washed off at the beginning of a rain event. This contaminated volume of water at the initial stage of a rainfall is known as “first flush”. This study involves the applied use of this foul water as an alternative to potable water in concrete making and compared its performance with the conventional potable water. Water quality tests of diverted rainwater to find out its impact on the prepared concrete and on the usual mix design procedure for preparing concrete are also shown here. After analysing the result, it is established that concrete production can be done in a more environmentally sound way regarding the use of water resources. Construction sector consumes a high volume of water resources. If we can divert the initial dirty water of rainfall events, collect and store it properly, it can be an alternative to the potable water that is being used to produce concrete, maintaining the quality of the concrete.

Criteria for the development of social responsibility in future officers of the national guard of the Russian Federation

This article examines the key problem of the modern educational paradigm the problem of personal development. The author highlights several contradictions in this problem, one of which is the definition of development criteria. According to the author, the fundamental quality of a person is its social responsibility. The problem of social responsibility in society is now recognized by many as a potential danger to humanity, which is confirmed by the activity in the framework of research in this area. Therefore, the concept of social responsibility of the individual as a phenomenon in science has developed quite steadily. A serious problem of social responsibility is in the sphere of professional activity. You can often hear the following concepts: social responsibility of a doctor, social responsibility of a teacher, social responsibility of a scientist, social responsibility of a business, etc. However, the current socio-political situation forces us to talk about the social responsibility of the military. The analysis of scientific research shows that social responsibility is poorly developed among military personnel. The specifics of military professional activity of a serviceman require the development of their own criteria for evaluating its development. The analysis of the military professional activity of the future officer indicates the need to consider social responsibility in this category of persons from the position of its three criteria: attitude to activity, attitude to other people, attitude to oneself. This hypothesis was tested and proved as a result of the research. The study was conducted in three stages. At the first stage, a number of personal characteristics were identified that relate to the social responsibility of the individual. At the second stage, an expert survey was conducted to determine the level of manifestation of signs of social responsibility in a group of cadets with a high level of social responsibility. The final step was the factor analysis procedure, the results of which established that a high level of social responsibility of personality of future officer equally determine all three of its criteria: attitude to activity, attitude to other people, attitude to oneself.

Methodical and practical aspects of estimation and improving of emotional intelligence of manager

Emotional intelligence is the sum of a person's skills and abilities to recognize emotions, to understand the intentions, motivations and desires of other people and their own, as well as the ability to manage their emotions and the emotions of other people in order to solve practical problems. The purpose of the study is to develop and test a methodology for the development of emotional intelligence as a fundamental quality of leadership formation in conjunction with managerial competencies. The study involved 576 students. The following complex of methods was used in the work: theoretical analysis and generalization of scientific and special literature data; conceptual-terminological and systemic-structural analysis; testing: a questionnaire of general empathic tendencies; communicative tolerance; tolerance test; test for assertion; diagnostics of self-esteem and level of aspirations; factorial personality questionnaire by R. Cattell; diagnostics of emotional intelligence N. Hall; pedagogical experiment; analysis and generalization of the results of experimental studies; methods of mathematical statistics. Summing up the results of our research, it should be noted that all thirteen studied parameters showed positive dynamics of their development. Eight of them have significant differences in the results before and after the experiment according to the Student's t-criterion (P ? 0.01): empathy, tolerance, tact, the significance of empathy, the significance of tolerance, the significance of tact, the level of self-esteem and aspirations. It is important to note that for three of them: the significance of empathy, the level of self-esteem and aspirations - the reliability according to the Student's t-criterion is P ? 0.05. Upon completion, N. Hall's emotional intelligence was diagnosed. Of the 70.14% of students with a low level of development of emotional intelligence, at the end of the formative experiment, only 5.90% remained in this group. The proposed methodology includes structural diagnostics of the level of development of emotional intelligence, generalization of the results in order to identify problem areas and the development of recommendations that contribute to the development of emotional intelligence.

Application of low-field and medium-resolution 1H NMR spectroscopy combined with chemometric methods for automotive gasoline quality control

This work describes the application of low-field and medium-resolution 1H NMR (LF-1H NMR) combined with PLS and SVM multivariate regression techniques for fast prediction of five fundamental quality parameters of commercial Brazilian gasoline (specific gravity, distillation temperatures of 50 and 90 percent of recovered and olefinic and aromatic content). All these five parameters are of paramount importance to predict the fuel quality and the application of the developed PLS and SVM models showed prediction errors compared to the reference methodologies applied for these essays. Nevertheless, it is important to highlight that in a different way of the reference methodologies, such as distillation or chromatographic methods, the application of LF-1H NMR combined with PLS or SVM models enables the fast determination of those five parameters directly from a single LF-1H NMR spectrum, which is acquired without any sample pre-treatment nor dilution in deuterated solvents, and this whole process takes no more than 15 s.

Comparative evaluation of quality of hard and special paving grade bitumen’s

The application of hard paving grade bitumen or polymer modified bitumen is one of the solutions to prevent a creep of road pavement. The implementation of special hard bitumen and multigrade bitumen starts at 80-th of the last century in a purpose to construct high module asphalt pavement. The results of comparative evaluation of conventional and fundamental (cohesion, adhesion, viscosity) quality indicators for hard paving grade bitumen and multigrade bitumen are given in the article. Low value of temperature susceptibility and a wide plasticity interval are obtained as characteristics of multigrade bitumen. The same is inherent to the air-blown bitumen, with a “gel” type structure. Low ductility and a significant change in softening point temperature after hardening can be considered as disadvantages of multigrade bitumen.

Analysis of methodological approaches to the evaluation of ecosystem sustainability

Stability is a fundamental quality of natural ecosystems. Ecosystem stability is one of the most significant indicators of the state of the environment. It represents the ability of the ecosystem in general and its components to successfully withstand negative externalities while maintaining not only its structure but also its functions. It can be considered as the invariance of a particular state of the ecosystem, as well as the ability to transition to any other state at present (static stability) and continuity of ecosystem development (dynamic stability). The notion of s stability is closely related to the ability of an ecosystem to return to equilibrium after the termination of external influences that have brought it out of equilibrium and to the notion of stability. Stability does not always mean the ability to maintain an equilibrium ecosystem, although initially the phenomenon of stability was treated as such. It is well known that biological systems are characterized by a homeostasis and their stability is to maintain certain state parameters within a certain constant level. The principle in the transition from consideration of the technical system to the consideration of the ecosystem is that in the last deviation of the real development trajectories from the trajectory of the purpose occur by chance, and it is impossible to obtain accurate information about these deviations. And if the stability of a technical system can be asserted clearly by analyzing the differential equations that characterize the behavior of the system, then, for the most part, it is impossible to make the differential equations of ecosystem functioning. Therefore, conclusions about the stability or instability of an ecosystem can only be made with some probability. The article discusses methodological approaches to the determination of ecosystem stability. It is determined that today there is no agreed terminological unity on this issue. It is emphasized that the stability of ecosystems is largely determined by the level of development balance of its components – ecological subsystems. It has been found that in order to assess the status of ecosystems, it is necessary to select a stability indicator for evaluating.

The explanatory power of R&D for the stock returns in the Chinese equity market

There is a vast literature documenting the evidence that the firms with higher research and development (R&D) intensity experience higher stock returns in both US and international market. This study seeks to examine whether the effect of R&D intensity can significantly predict the subsequent stock returns in the Chinese equity market. We construct three different measurements of R&D intensity factors using the firm's R&D expenditure scaled by market capitalization, book equity and net sales. Our test results show that all three R&D intensity factors can effectively predict subsequent stock returns, with low correlation to the other fundamental value, growth, and quality factors. Furthermore, our results indicate that the R&D effect is not only driven by big or small firms. The R&D signals, in particular those constructed using R&D expenditure deflated by market capitalization and book equity, are very effective across different index groups, including CSI 300, CSI 500 and CSI 1000.

Hand hygiene in surgery in Benin: opportunities and challenges

BackgroundHand Hygiene (HH) has been described as the cornerstone and starting point in all infection control. Compliance to HH is a fundamental quality indicator. The aim of this study was to investigate the HH compliance among Health-care Workers (HCWs) in Benin surgical care units.MethodsA multicenter prospective observational study was conducted for two months. The World Health Organization (WHO) Hand Hygiene Observation Tool was used in obstetric and gastrointestinal surgery through six public hospitals in Benin. HH compliance was calculated by dividing the number of times HH was performed by the total number of opportunities. HH technique and duration were also observed.ResultsA total of 1315 HH opportunities were identified during observation period. Overall, the compliance rate was 33.3% (438/1315), without significant difference between professional categories (nurses =34.2%; auxiliaries =32.7%; and physicians =32.4%; p = 0.705). However, compliance rates differed (p < 0.001) between obstetric (49.4%) and gastrointestinal surgery (24.3%). Generally, HCWs were more compliant after body fluid exposure (54.5%) and after touching patient (37.5%), but less before patient contact (25.9%) and after touching patient surroundings (29.1%).HCWs were more likely to use soap and water (72.1%) compared to the alcohol based hand rub solution (27.9%). For all of the WHO five moments, hand washing was the most preferred action. For instance, hand rub only was observed 3.9% after body fluid exposure and 16.3% before aseptic action compared to hand washing at 50.6 and 16.7% respectively. Duration of HH performance was not correctly adhered to 94% of alcohol hand rub cases (mean duration 9 ± 6 s instead of 20 to 30 s) and 99.5% of hand washing cases (10 ± 7 s instead of the recommended 40 to 60 s). Of the 432 HCWs observed, 77.3% followed HH prerequisites (i.e. no artificial fingernails, no jewellery). We also noted a lack of permanent hand hygiene infrastructures such as sink, soap, towels and clean water.ConclusionCompliance in surgery was found to be low in Benin hospitals. They missed two opportunities out of three to apply HH and when HH was applied, technique and duration were not appropriate. HH practices should be a priority to improve patient safety in Benin.

Darker shades of “fairness” in India: Male attractiveness and colorism in commercials

AbstractThe skin-lightening products for men in India and their mode of advertising have been shaping the concept of attractiveness for Indian men by portraying lighter skin tone as the most fundamental quality of being attractive, always desirable, and successful. Although women’s skin-lightening products in India have received attention by a few scholars lately, men’s products are still underresearched. Hence, this study aims to investigate the issue of colorism augmented by television commercials for men’s “fairness” (light skin tone) products in India. The primary data for this study are six Hindi television commercials for men’s skin-lightening products which were broadcast from 2005 to 2015 and were available on YouTube during data collection. The commercials are by one popular brand, Emami Fair and Handsome. The target commercials are significant for their categorical distinction in directness as well as for their nature of storytelling that helps facilitate the discourse of colorism itself. The methodology is a combination of multimodal analysis, critical discourse analysis, and advertisement analysis. The overall goal of this study is to bring visibility to this subtle and multilayered problem of colorism in Indian society which is being reinforced by the skin-lightening products for men.

Comprehensive fundamental somatic variant calling and quality management strategies for human cancer genomes.

Next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology has revolutionised human cancer research, particularly via detection of genomic variants with its ultra-high-throughput sequencing and increasing affordability. However, the inundation of rich cancer genomics data has resulted in significant challenges in its exploration and translation into biological insights. One of the difficulties in cancer genome sequencing is software selection. Currently, multiple tools are widely used to process NGS data in four stages: raw sequence data pre-processing and quality control (QC), sequence alignment, variant calling and annotation and visualisation. However, the differences between these NGS tools, including their installation, merits, drawbacks and application, have not been fully appreciated. Therefore, a systematic review of the functionality and performance of NGS tools is required to provide cancer researchers with guidance on software and strategy selection. Another challenge is the multidimensional QC of sequencing data because QC can not only report varied sequence data characteristics but also reveal deviations in diverse features and is essential for a meaningful and successful study. However, monitoring of QC metrics in specific steps including alignment and variant calling is neglected in certain pipelines such as the 'Best Practices Workflows' in GATK. In this review, we investigated the most widely used software for the fundamental analysis and QC of cancer genome sequencing data and provided instructions for selecting the most appropriate software and pipelines to ensure precise and efficient conclusions. We further discussed the prospects and new research directions for cancer genomics.

Financial reporting quality and share price movement-evidence from listed companies in Bangladesh

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the effect of financial reporting quality (FRQ) on share price movement (SPM) of listed companies in an emerging and developing economy – Bangladesh.Design/methodology/approachThe study analyzed 296 annual reports for the year 2015 and 2016 in examining the effect of FRQ on SPM. Ordinary least squares (OLS) regression model is used to examine the hypothesized relationship among the variables. A modified version of Lang et al. (2003) has been adopted in measuring the SPM. FRQ is measured using the qualitative characteristics approach as defined by the International Financial Reporting Standard Framework and used by Beest et al. (2009) and Braam and Beest (2013).FindingsThe study finds a positive association (though not significant statistically) between the FRQ and SPM in the country’s leading stock exchange (Dhaka stock exchange). Furthermore, the effect of enhancing quality on SPM is found to be stronger as compared to fundamental quality. Majority of the FRQ constructs demonstrate an improvement in the quality score in the year 2016 as compared to 2015 except for relevance.Research limitations/implicationsThe key limitation of the study is that it focuses only on two years (2015 and 2016) annual reports data in measuring FRQ and its effect on SPM.Originality/valueThe study uses qualitative characteristics approach in measuring the FRQ and to examine its effect on SPM using the context of an emerging and developing economy – the case of Bangladesh.

Impact of impurities in bromocresol green indicator dye on spectrophotometric total alkalinity measurements

Abstract. Due to its accurate and precise character, spectrophotometric pH detection is a common technique applied in measurement methods for carbonate system parameters. However, impurities in the used pH indicator dyes can influence the measurements quality. During our work described here, we focused on impacts of impurities in the pH indicator dye bromocresol green (BCG) on spectrophotometric seawater total alkalinity (AT) measurements. In order to evaluate the extent of such influences, purified BCG served as a reference. First, a high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) purification method for BCG was developed as such a method did not exist at the time of this study. An analysis of BCG dye from four different vendors with this method revealed different types and quantities of impurities. After successful purification, AT measurements with purified and unpurified BCG were carried out using the novel autonomous analyzer CONTROS HydroFIA® TA. Long-term measurements in the laboratory revealed a direct influence of impurity types and quantities on the drift behavior of the analyzer. The purer the BCG, the smaller was the AT increase per measurement. The observed drift is generally caused by deposits in the optical pathway mainly generated by the impurities. However, the analyzers drift behavior could not be fully overcome. Furthermore, we could show that a certain impurity type in some indicator dyes changed the drift pattern from linear to nonlinear, which can impair long-term deployments of the system. Consequently, such indicators are impractical for these applications. Laboratory performance characterization experiments revealed no improvement of the measurement quality (precision and bias) by using purified BCG as long as the impurities of the unpurified dye do not exceed a quantity of 2 % (relationship of peak areas in the chromatogram). However, BCG with impurity quantities higher than 6 % provided AT values which failed fundamental quality requirements. In conclusion, to gain optimal AT measurements especially during long-term deployments, an indicator purification is not necessarily required as long as the purchased dye has a purity level of at least 98 % and is free of the named impurity type. Consequently, high-quality AT measurements do not require pure but the purest BCG that is purchasable.