Search results for ""nova""

In the opening chapter the authors investigate and present the concept of internal quality assurance system implementation maturity, aiming to analyse the existing theoretical underpinnings on how maturity can be understood and approached in terms of an internal quality assurance system. Some pathways available to the higher education institutions towards the assessment of needs and the improvement of course planning, curriculum design and student guidance systems are discussed. An empirical study is presented seeking to validate the structure of total quality management construct with an objective of identifying the current total quality management practices employed as perceived by the staff of Islamic University in Uganda. The penultimate chapter focuses on a deeper understanding of the efficiency measurement and its determinants of the higher education institutions of Spain. The aim of the closing chapter is to explore the influence of a university environment on entrepreneurial activities of students and alumni in the post-Soviet context.

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This book is under the impression that the general cultivation of practical taste, and an acquaintance with the principles of the Fine Arts, are not only desirable in the light of acquirement, but must eventually prove highly beneficial to the useful arts of the country.

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The opening chapter of Bullying in Schools: Prevention, Gender Differences and Perspectives presents an investigation which may help to further cross-national bullying studies by providing clear recommendations that will help researchers to take account of culturally appropriate comparisons. Chapter two explores literature on contexts within which bullying has been documented, interrogates whether bullying is influenced by any gender dynamics, and crucially reflects on the reaction of key stakeholders within the education system, towards eliminating it. Following this, a study is presented with the objectives to identify and analyse the prevalence of poly-victims, as well as determine how the levels of moral disengagement and the various defence mechanisms that victims use to explain abusive behaviour might function as predictors of poly-bullying. Theory and evidence of how parenting influences children's involvement in bullying at school, and considers whether child gender influences this relationship are reviewed. Additionally, the relationship between bullying and suicide with special attention to specific types of bullying and gender differences are examined. The study presented in the penultimate chapter examines the theoretical justification and experimental verification various methods to ensure effective prevention and psycho-pedagogical correction of bullying in school. The final chapter outlines an exploratory study of the extent of gender based bullying occurring in an inclusive elementary school, Sekolahku-MySchool, in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. In this qualitative study, two major issues facing education in Indonesia today, discrimination and bullying towards women, are addressed.

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This book is a comprehensive compilation of all reports, testimony, correspondence and other publications issued by the GAO (Government Accountability Office) during the month of February on national defense.

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The nation's air, land, and marine transportation systems are designed for accessibility and efficiency, two characteristics that make them vulnerable to attack. The focus of chapter 1 is how best to implement and finance a system of deterrence, protection, and response that effectively reduces the possibility and consequences of terrorist attacks without unduly interfering with travel, commerce, and civil liberties. Almost every conversation about surface transportation finance begins with a two-part question: What are the "needs" of the national transportation system, and how does the nation pay for them? Chapter 2 is aimed almost entirely at discussing the "how to pay for them" question. On 4 December 2015, President Barack Obama signed the Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act; P.L. 114-94). As reported in chapter 3, the act authorised spending on federal highway and public transportation programs, surface transportation safety and research activities, and rail programs for five years to 30 September 2020. Despite significant investments in public transportation at the federal, state, and local levels, transit ridership has fallen in many of the top 50 transit markets. If strong gains in the New York area are excluded, ridership nationally declined by 7% over the past decade. Chapter 4 examines the implications for federal transit policy of the current weakness and possible future changes in transit ridership. Congress created the Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing (RRIF) program to offer long-term, low-cost loans to railroad operators, with particular attention to small freight railroads, to help them finance improvements to infrastructure and investments in equipment. This program is discussed in chapter 5. The Department of Transportation's (DOT) Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) carry out different approaches to rail safety oversight. FRA has a more centralised safety oversight program for railroads, while FTA's program for oversight of rail transit safety largely relies on state safety agencies to monitor and enforce rail transit safety, as established in federal statute. Chapter 6 examines (1) key characteristics of FRA's and FTA's rail safety oversight programs and (2) strengths and limitations of FRA's and FTA's rail safety oversight programs. Research sponsored by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has identified driver behaviour as the main cause of highway-rail grade crossing crashes and that factors such as train and traffic volume can contribute to the risk of a crash. Chapter 7 examines: (1) the focus of FRA's grade-crossing-safety research, (2) how states select and implement grade-crossing projects and what data are available from FRA to inform their decisions, and (3) the challenges states reported in implementing and assessing projects and the extent to which FHWA assesses the program's effectiveness.

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This book opens with a review of urban poverty in Bangladesh, analysing socioeconomic aspects of the marginal poor under three headings: migration and the urban poor, household characteristics, and neighbourhood characteristics. Next, the authors investigate the extent of poverty in rural and urban Nigeria between 2004 and 2010. They examines the contributions of growth and redistribution factors to changes in poverty within the two sectors. The analysis was based on the National Living Standard Survey data of 2004 and 2009/2010 sourced from the National Bureau of Statistics and analysed using Shapley decomposition approach. This collection also examines how the socio-economic characteristics of households influence rural poverty. The data for the study was extracted from the revised Nigerian General Household Survey data from 2010-2011, and a logistic regression technique was used to analyse said data. The authors argue that the improvement of rural access in developing countries is essential for the success of sustainable development goals, since poor access is one of the major causes of rural poverty and hampers rural development. The concluding chapter describes the experiences from a research project on modern logistic chains in the Mount Kenya region, demonstrating how small scale farmers organised, how important infrastructures such as rural roads, grading sheds and cooling devices were, as well as intermediate means of transport in combination with modern cooling logistics and communication technologies.

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Surgical site infection (SSI) is one of the most frequent complications after abdominal surgery as abdominal procedures are often clean-contaminated, contaminated or even dirty procedures, so long the gastrointestinal tract, plenty of microorganisms, is entered. SSI is associated with morbidity and mortality, and reduces the patients' quality of life after surgery. Moreover, it prolongs hospital stay and requires increased instrumentation, medication and complementary tests, altogether representing an economic burden for the Health Services. This has led to the development of several Guidelines and Consensus documents, including prophylactic measures to prevent SSI. Different scientific societies, including the World Health Organization (WHO), the Center for Disease Control (CDC), the American College of Surgeons (ACS) and the Surgical Infection Society (SIS), have published recommendations for the prevention of SSI in the last years. All the documents agree with most of the recommendations. However, the evidence grade of these recommendations is often low to moderate and with the aim to generalise these measures to all the surgical procedures, the extrapolations lead to a lowered evidence power. Thus, in some cases the force of the recommendations is based on the opinion of experts in the field. The aim of this book is to revise the actual evidence about these prophylactic measures in abdominal surgery.

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This book is a comprehensive compilation of all reports, testimony, correspondence and other publications issued by the GAO (Government Accountability Office) during the month of December, grouped according to the topics Information Security and Technology.

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Desertification is one of the most important issues facing our societies because of its serious consequences for human health, landscape and the environment. Nonetheless, the issue has been in the eyes of media, decision makers and public opinion and it should be noted that this interest tends to be cyclical, corresponding to peaks that reflect the outbreak of emergency situations related to prolonged episodes of drought and water scarcity, in turn associated with climate changes. This volatile interest has focused on the relationship between desertification and climate change (and more generally on the biophysical factors underlying desertification), neglecting the important role played by social, economic, cultural, political and institutional factors. This role -- brought to the fore by the most recent socioeconomic dynamics at various spatial scales -- requires dedicated approaches from the scientific point of view and a less sensationalistic dissemination of research evidence. The book proposes a trans-disciplinary vision on issues of desertification and land degradation, focusing on long-term socio-ecological dynamics as an interpretative key to local systems' complexity.

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Psychology of religion, violence, and conflict resolution highlights the causes of intrareligious and interreligious violence, and proposes dual models for understanding the latter, for facilitating moral regeneration, universal peaceful coexistence, and holistic individual and collective flourishing. Religious violence, especially and paradoxically perpetrated by persons identifying with specific religious movements, has made religion an enigma, with a progressively controversial status. In other words, intrareligious and interreligious violence is associated with some of the bloodiest episodes of humankind's tragic history, and it is on this basis that understanding the fundamental causes of religious strife becomes a vital preoccupation of researchers, decision makers and the general public, beyond and above religious obeisance, or total absence of any. Furthermore, and more preoccupying, there is no space, time, or people of the world today, that are free of the modern day scourge of religious violence. Humankind all over the earth finds itself having to confront this modern day gorgon, which is faceless, non-discriminatory, and brutally ruthless, a far cry from the myth and deontology of religion as the "link between humankind and a higher source of being and goodwill." Psychology of religion, violence, and conflict resolution unveils the psychological mind-set lurking in the bloody shadows of intrareligious and interreligious violence, activated through the prisms of exclusivism, sectarianism, fundamentalism, intolerance, extremism, hate speech, virulent condemnation of heresy, all culminating in self-righteous "murders in God's Name." The work is not fatalistic and pessimistic though because it highlights the possibility of individual and collective moral regeneration via the Greater and Lesser Jihad, or self-sacrifice and selfless service, grounded in the realization of the inalienable unity of being, for the preservation and unlimited flourishing of all creation. The climax of the work is the projection of a non-mythical but highly probable and limitlessly sustainable "golden age," to be actualized when the preconditions of goodwill, peaceful coexistence, mental illumination, and selfless service become cornerstones of a holistic, universalistic, communalistic, and humanistic ethic of being, knowing, and doing. The book represents a unique and most timely contribution to research and literature on religion, violence, and conflict resolution, and is intended to become a vital resource and reference material for students, researchers, professionals, national and international decision makers, non-governmental organizations, religious and non-denominational bodies, which advocate for intrareligious and interreligious dialogue, reconciliation, peaceful coexistence, and individual and collective flourishing.

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This book is a partial review of the shift in American politics to a more radical, ultraconservative, far-right posture, among both the people and Republican congressional leadership during the Trump era. There is also a corresponding shift to the left among Democrats, and a dramatic rise, as high as 40% among Independent voters. My theme is simple. The Trump presidency and the 115th Congress was an updated Confederate government enabled by Russia. Trump and ultraconservatives allowed themselves to be sponsored and endorsed by an autocratic dictator, Putin, because Putin and his obedient oligarchs gave Trump money and power to flourish and demolish at least two pillars of democracy-the role of government and the idea of an inclusive society, while also perverting our global alliances. Additionally, and apart from Russia, the ultraconservative and Libertarian aim has always been to reduce any new legislation sponsoring social services and to attempt to disassemble existing social legislation. Other major goals are anti-government regulations and the lessening of taxes. I will describe this tension throughout this book, demonstrate some of this history, and show how it is the central element in our political dysfunction. This book is also partially a chronicle exposing Trump and the Republication-controlled Congress for willful damage to the democracy, and, in the second part, a recipe for restoring lost or mislaid values and ethics to government and its citizen constituents following the exit of Trump.

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This book is a compilation of significant reports and testimonies issued in January 2019.

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This is a book that has been divided into 9 chapters, including information on the recovery of highly valuable compounds for microalgae. The authors of this volume discuss seaweed as a renewable and globally available feedstock with potential applications in the food and feed industries, as well as the agricultural, chemical, or pharmaceutical fields. The chapters include discussions on a wide range of topics including an overview of seaweed by-products, Algae and microalgae biorefineries, the potential use of seaweed by-products in various products and materials, colour stability, and pigment contents of powdered laver (Pyropia yezoensis). The text also includes the interactions of the algae Sargassum muticum with metals as a starting point for the valorisation of invasive seaweed species, as well as new insights into the nutrition and functionality of seaweed. Microalgae biomass as an ingredient to design added value in food products, as well as seaweed biomass for bioremediation or Ethanol creation are additional topics.

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Dormancy is a mechanism found in several plant species developed through evolution, which allows plants to survive in adverse conditions and ensure their perpetuation. This mechanism, however, can represent a barrier that can compromise the development of the species of interest, and therefore, the success of its cultivation. It is important to understand the causes, effects, and mechanisms, as well as the technologies for overcoming dormancy of buds, seeds, and plant propagules. In this context, this publication has as a main objective of offering an in-depth view of the dormancy process in cultivated plants, based on a survey of more recent international research on the subject. Written by several researchers from different institutions of education and research, this book presents information on the most diverse species of plants of agronomic and forestry interest. In addition to the physiological, biochemical, and genetic aspects, the chapters also address the possible causes of dormancy, as well as technological issues that are essential for the successful cultivation of several economically important species. The focus of this publication is on temperate fruit species. Classical examples of temperate plants that present dormancy are fruit trees such as apple, pear, quince, apricot, and cherry. These pome and stone fruits are typical representatives of a deciduous temperate climate, wherein trees drop their leaves at the end of the reproductive cycle, consequently entering dormancy. Dormancy has its control effected by factors of a hormonal nature, where the hormone promoters and growth inhibitors are balanced. Edaphoclimatic conditions also affect plant dormancy periods, for the most part through temperature changes. Other chapters in this book are dedicated especially to potatoes, vegetables, as well as forest and forage species, which makes this text a complete and comprehensive work on the subject.

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The world of business education is large and profitable - with over 150,000 students enrolled in graduate business education programs alone each year. This book traces the historical roots of business education, covering seven important time periods which have each contributed key insights into business effectiveness. Despite the apparent tremendous successes suggested by the substantial growth in educating business students, a strong case could be made for the need to make important changes in the curriculum of business programs and the process by which business education is delivered. This book identifies opportunities for business faculties, administrators, deans, and department chairs to reassess their roles in delivering a better product to the students that they teach. We suggest that in today's "transformative era," business education must materially change to increase the quality of teaching for tomorrow's business students. Throughout the world business leaders have been called into account for their ineffectiveness in earning and retaining the trust of employees and customers. Unfortunately, business schools are often out of focus in their emphasis on achieving bottom line corporate profits without acknowledging the accompanying responsibility of companies to become full partners in serving society and in resolving the long-term issues for which business must become increasingly committed. The world of tomorrow desperately needs business leaders who combine character and competence as they guide their employees in the pursuit of excellence. Business education and those who provide it to those employees who will work for major corporations and small businesses can contribute substantially to the credibility of the business community and in the development of solutions that will fully serve future generations. The current path of business education can benefit mightily from a thoughtful reanalysis of today's business education model. The challenge to those who work in business education is to carefully assess how they can make the delivery of their product, its accompanying values, and its commitment to tomorrow's quality of life more meaningful and effective.

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In the opening chapter, authors discuss the current literature that describes the application of Palliative Medicine services in advanced cancer, models of Palliative Care delivery by site and mode of practice, cost-effectiveness of early Palliative Medicine referral patterns and national and international Palliative Medicine practice and referral guidelines. The chapter will also discuss the outcomes of Palliative Medicine in Oncology focusing on the improvements in patient clinical and quality of life outcomes. Next, a systematic chapter aims to better explain the mechanisms that underlie electrolyte disturbances in cancer patients, to stress on the serious prognostic implications involved and to provide practical and useful indications for the prompt diagnosis, management and therapy of electrolyte disorders. The authors discuss over thirty Pt{Î2-P(X)nP}Cl2 (n = 5,6,7,8) derivatives in which organodiphosphines create wide varieties of the metallocyclic rings: eight-membered (PC5P, PC2OC2P, PC2NC2P), nine-membered (PC6P, POC4OP), ten-membered (POC5OP, PC2OCOC2P, PC3OC3P), and eleven-membered (PC8P, PNC6NP, POC6OP). Another included study covers eighty five Pt(II) complexes with an inner coordination sphere of cis- PtP2Cl2. The P- donor ligands are organodiphosphines which create four- and five-membered metallocyclic rings with the PCP, PNP, PC-CP, PC=CP, PN2P and PCOP types. In the penultimate chapter, the authors examine over forty cis-Pt(Î2-PXXXP)Cl2 derivatives in which organodiphosphines create six-membered metallocyclic rings, and the concluding chapter examines over thirty cis-Pt(Î2-PXXXXP)Cl2 derivatives in which organodihosphines create seven-membered metallocyclic rings.

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An In Depth Look at Hungary opens with a chapter suggesting that socio-economic inequalities are one of the most relevant barriers to healthcare access in Hungary. Some mechanisms for decision-making are studied using content-analysis according to the Hungarian health policy strategies and concepts. Next, this collection provides an overview of the Hungarian teacher education system, describing social and cultural features of the country as well the main parameters of the Hungarian education system. The authors investigate the development of irregular armed forces comprised of local citizens which were deployed in border protection. Border protection has received increased attention in modern times, particularly regarding the mountain ranges which serve as a natural defensive zone when entering the country. The concluding chapter demonstrates those instruments by which an excessively polarized society could be prevented in the near future.

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Chapter one investigates how the local network media helps the key stakeholders to participate in the policy debate regarding a local low-income housing policy in Madison, Wisconsin, U.S.A., drawing mainly on JÃ"rgen Habermas's theory of public sphere. The second chapter discusses how coffee-houses and public reading houses are places today where political communication is often established, and the neighborhood effect is most often felt. It can be described not only as tea-coffee drinking places where free time is passed, but also as places where voter behavior begins to form and democracy is created. The authors go on to focus on the past use of racialized language as one mechanism for evaluating political communication in the 21st century. Lastly, the phenomenon of politicians employing prayer in the church as a potent political tool to subtly campaign for election and reelection in Nigeria is explored.

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Different applications and uses of light energy have emerged over the last few years in many different fields such as in medicine, material science, energy and biochemistry. New and exciting applications of light-controlled processes have become practical in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases, the preparation and use of functional materials, the storage of solar energy and the control of biological properties. Many of these applications are based on a very simple chemical step: a photoisomerization. The isomerization of a chemical double bond allows for the control with extreme spatial and temporal resolution of complex systems. Nature offers different examples of very complex functions that are initiated by this type of simple chemical. Upon photon absorption, the light energy can be used to induce a chemical (geometrical) change that influences the protein environment that triggers a specific signal or function. Inspired by these amazing and extremely efficient processes, many efforts have been devoted to the modification of natural systems and to the design of new applications, using simple and tunable photoisomerizations. Accordingly, the preparation of photoactive molecular devices based on photoisomerizations and the use of these species in different applications is now a very active scientific field, with profound implications in our everyday lives. In this book, the fundamental aspects of the photoisomerization of many different chemical structures containing C=C, N=N and C=N double bonds is covered. Different experimental and computational tools used to study these processes are discussed and some specific applications of different compounds are presented.

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