Gender and workplace learning

Purpose Firms must create optimum conditions in order for organizational learning to occur. To attain this goal it is imperative to address the social constructions of gender that can result in conditions, which can respectively serve to increase or hinder opportunities within different workplace contexts. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings Firms must create optimum conditions in order for organizational learning to occur. To attain this goal it is imperative to address the social constructions of gender that can result in conditions, which can respectively serve to increase or hinder opportunities within different workplace contexts. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

Fabrication of an Immobilized Polyelectrolite Complex (PEC) Membrane from Pectin-Chitosan and Chromoionophore ETH 5294 for pH-Based Fish Freshness Monitoring

Considering the significance of its demand around the world, the accurate determination of fish freshness with a simple and rapid procedure has become an interesting issue for the fishing industry. Hence, we aimed to fabricate a new optical pH sensor based on a polyelectrolyte (PEC) membrane of pectin–chitosan and the active material chromoionophore ETH 5294. A trial-and-error investigation of the polymer compositions revealed that the optimum ratio of pectin to chitosan was 3:7. With an optimum wavelength region (λ) at 610 nm, the constructed sensor was capable of stable responses after 5 min exposure to phosphate-buffered solution. Furthermore, the obtained sensor achieved optimum sensitivity when the PBS concentration was 0.1 M, while the relative standard deviation values ranged from 2.07 to 2.34%, suggesting good reproducibility. Further investigation revealed that the sensor experienced decreased absorbance of 16.67–18.68% after 25 days of storage. Employing the optimum conditions stated previously, the sensor was tested to monitor fish freshness in samples that were stored at 4 °C and ambient temperature. The results suggested that the newly fabricated optical sensor could measure pH changes on fish skin after 25 h storage at room temperature (pH 6.37, 8.91 and 11.02, respectively) and 4 °C (pH 6.8, 7.31 and 7.92, respectively).

Effects of an integrated harvest system on the quality of olive fruit for small producers

Small producers confront specific challenges when they opt to produce high-quality olive fruit. Limited resources for investing in harvest machinery and manpower are the main reasons for continuing a traditional harvest method that puts the final product and its economic value at risk. This paper discusses the efficiency of an integrated harvest system as a possible solution to these specific challenges. The system is formed by a newly designed manual harvesting device and the use of a cooling room near the olive grove. Both systems were evaluated to assess their feasibility for optimum conditions before processing. The combined effect of the harvesting method and cold storage on the fruit characteristics (incidence of decay, skin color, weight loss, firmness, respiration, and ethylene production) was evaluated on three different varieties (‘Arbequina’, ‘Picual’ and ‘Verdial’) and four different storage times (0, 4, 8, and 14 days). The results indicate that the proposed harvesting method in combination with an appropriate cooling system offers an affordable alternative for obtaining fruit with the best physiological characteristics.

Waste Pharmaceutical Blister Packages as a Source of Secondary Aluminum

Waste pharmaceutical blister packages (WPBs) are a source of solid waste, which are composed of plastics and aluminum, therefore acting as a potential source for secondary aluminum. The structure of WPBs makes the recycling of aluminum notably more complex than typical aluminum recycling. Currently, WBPs are disposed of as municipal solid waste; thus, aluminum is lost from the circulation during incineration. In this work, three types of WPBs were studied, each with two plastic layers and a metallic layer. Delamination of WPBs to separate aluminum and plastic(s) was investigated by using a solution of organic solvents. The effects of temperature (30–50°C), acetone to isopropanol ratio (0–100 vol.%) and different types of WPBs on delamination behavior were investigated. The results suggest that aluminum separation and recovery from WPBs is 100% at optimum conditions. Moreover, an overall indicative flowsheet for recycling and post-processing of segregated aluminum from the plastic is also suggested.

Synthesis and Performance of PAFS Coagulant Derived from Aluminium Dross

Polymerised aluminium ferric sulphate (PAFS) was prepared from aluminium dross as a coagulant in wastewater treatment. The effects of leaching time, leaching temperature, and sulfuric acid concentrations on the turbidity removal of the wastewater were investigated, and the optimum conditions were determined using response surface methodology. The results showed that the optimum PAFS preparation conditions were at a leaching time of 60 minutes, a leaching temperature of 65°C, and a sulfuric acid concentration of 1 mol/L. Furthermore, experiments were performed to investigate the effect of coagulant dosages using the PAFS prepared under the optimum leaching conditions, settling time and initial pH of the wastewater on the turbidity removal efficiency. As a result, it was found that the optimum coagulation conditions for PAFS coagulants were at a settling time of 15 minutes, coagulant dosage of 0.5g, and raw water pH 8. Under these optimum conditions, the turbidity removal efficiency of the wastewater was 91.45%. The purpose of this study was to investigate the possibility of aluminium dross utilisation as a coagulant agent for wastewater treatment. Therefore, it can be concluded that PAFS prepared by leaching metal oxides from aluminium dross is an effective wastewater coagulant.

The Shortest Innovative Process of Black And Golden Garlic For Enhancing The S-Allylcysteine Content And Antioxidant Activity

Black garlic is a type of heat-treated garlic for which the traditional process is extremely simple but it is very time-consuming, taking more than one month. The purpose of this research was to reduce the processing time of black garlic. A novel processing including soaking and freezing was applied for the pre-treatment of the garlic. The effects of two temperatures (60 and 80 °C) and two relative humidities (65 and 80% RH) were investigated to find the optimum conditions for black garlic production. The optimum conditions for black garlic production were pre-treatment using CaCl2 soaking followed by freezing before being further incubated at 80 °C and 80% RH for 1 week. This optimal condition produced black garlic with high antioxidant activity as 5,390 and 25,421 mg Trolox/100 g dry weight for DPPH and ABTS assays, respectively. However, the incubation process at 60 °C and 65% RH provided golden garlic with the highest S-allylcysteine (SAC) content by about 1,772 mg/100 g dry weight. This novel process shortened the processing time of black garlic by about four times and provided a new processed garlic product called “golden garlic”.

Characterization of Morganella sp. for its Paraquat Degradation Potential

One of the beneficial roles of the microbial population is their ability to convert toxic herbicides to lesser toxic compounds such as water and carbon (IV) oxide. Paraquat which is an acutely toxic herbicide is used on farmlands and has been found to affect human health. This study was aimed at characterizing bacteria with the potential to degrade paraquat. Previously isolated bacteria from culture collection labelled A-F were screened for their potential to degrade and utilized paraquat as the sole carbon source in Bushnell Hass agar media. Of the six isolates, isolate E (Morganella sp.) was observed to have the highest growth and tolerance to paraquat after 72 h of incubation at 37 ºC. Characterization study revealed that Morganella sp. can utilize and grow with optimum conditions of pH 6.5, the temperature of 30 ºC and can tolerate up to 400 mg/L paraquat concentration with an increase in growth as inoculum size increases. Thus, these findings showed that Morganella sp. can degrade toxic paraquat to a less toxic form and therefore can be a good isolate for the future bioremediation process of the pollutant.

Characterization of Aniline Degradation by A Previously Isolated Molybdenum-reducing Pseudomonas sp.

Microorganisms play an integral role in detoxification and removal of toxic compounds from the environment. Aniline is the simplest aromatic amine, consisting of a phenyl group attached to an amino group that is used as herbicide to control weeds. Aniline is detrimental to both environment and health. In this research, six previously isolated bacteria (isolate A-F) were screened on Bushnell Hass media for their potential to grow and utilize aniline as a sole carbon source. Isolate A (Pseudomonas sp.) was found to tolerate and grow best with aniline sole source of carbon. Optimum conditions for aniline degradation by this isolate were found to be pH 6.0, temperature between 30 and 37 °C, inoculums size of 600 μL, aniline concentration of 200 mg/L and incubation time of 96 h. The capacity of this isolate to reduce toxic aniline to less toxic form is novel and makes the bacterium important instrument for bioremediation of this pollutant.

Influence of flow parameters in the dual nozzle CO2-based vortex tube cooling system during turning of Ti-6Al-4V

Dual nozzle vortex tube cooling system (VTCS) is developed to improve the machinability of Ti-6Al-4V where cold-compressed CO2 gas is used as a coolant. The cooling effect is produced by the process of energy separation in the vortex tube and the coolant is supplied into the machining zone to remove the generated heat in machining. In this study, the responses such as cutting force (Fz), cutting temperature (Tm), and surface roughness (Ra) are analyzed by considering coolant inlet pressure, cold fraction, and nozzle diameter as input variables. Further optimization is performed for the input variables using the genetic algorithm technique, and the results at optimum conditions are compared with those of dry cutting. From the results, lower cutting force is observed at lower coolant pressure and cold fraction and higher nozzle diameter. The cutting temperature is minimized by increasing coolant pressure and cold fraction and by decreasing nozzle diameter. A better surface finish is observed at high coolant pressure and cold fraction and lower nozzle diameters. It is observed from the response surface method (RSM) that the coolant pressure is most significantly affecting all the responses. At optimum conditions, the cutting temperature and surface roughness are 35.6% and 66.14%, respectively, lower than dry cutting due to the effective cooling and lubricating action of the CO2 gas, whereas cutting force observed under the VTCS is 18.6% higher than that of dry cutting because of the impulse force of the coolant VTCS and thermal softening of the workpiece in dry cutting.

Sprouted Syrian Wheat in The Production of Arab Bread: القمح السوري المنبت في إنتاج الخبز العربي

The research aims to study the optimum conditions for germination of Syrian hard wheat Cham 3, and to study the possibility of benefiting from sprouted wheat in fortifying Syrian Arab bread. The results were then treated statistically at the 95% reliability level using the Minitab program version 14. 0. It was evident through the statistical results that the optimum germination conditions for Syrian durum wheat Sham 3 is a temperature of 20 °C for a period of 4 days, as with these conditions the folic acid content reached 1. 75 mg / kg, which is approximately 13 times the folic acid content of meal wheat without sprouting (0. 135 mg / kg). By studying the rheological properties of flour and meal using Alveograph and Mixolab, it was noticed that germination led to a decrease in the strength of meal wheat. Where all the Alveograph indicators (P, L, G, W) and Mixolabs (C1, C2, C3, C4, C5, DDT) of germinated wheat significantly decreased compared to both flour and non-germinated meal. It was found that the possibility of benefiting from the Syrian sprouted wheat in fortifying the Syrian Arab bread, and the best percentage of adding crushed wheat sprouts to the Arabic bread is 40%, as it gave a sensory acceptable Arabic bread in terms of texture, separability, foldability and in terms of physical properties. The benefiting from the Syrian sprouted wheat in fortifying the Syrian Arab bread is possible, and the best percentage of adding sprouted wheat meal to the Arabic bread is 40%, as it gives a sensory acceptable Arabic bread in terms of texture, separability, foldability and in terms of physical properties.