bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Anne Girişimciler ve Sosyal Medya: İstanbul İlindeki Anne Girişimci Sayfalarının İncelenmesi
Authors: Soyer Melis , Uludağ Duygu
Published: March 2024

Çalışmanın amacı, hobileri veya yetenekleri olan kadınların sosyal medya ortamlarını nasıl bir çalışma alanına dönüştürdüklerini ortaya çıkarmaktır. Bu çalışmada, kendi küçük döngüsünü kuran ve sunan girişimci annelerin sosyal medya sayfaları incelenmektedir. Kadın girişimciler; evde kalan anneler, çalıştıkları işlerinden ayrılan kadınlar veya yanlarında yeni iş istihdamı yaratanlar olarak kategorize edilmektedir. Araştırmadaki amaç, sosyal medya kullanan ancak iş hayatında aktif rol oynamayan annelerin sosyal medyada ne gibi çalışmalar yaptığını incelemektir. İstanbul ili özelinde anne girişimciliğine uygun olan sosyal medya sayfalarında yer alan görsel öğeler, içerik analizi yöntemiyle analiz edilmiştir. Araştırma bulguları sonucunda elde edilen sonuçlara göre, anne girişimcilerin sosyal medya sayfalarını etkinlik duyuruları ve bilgilendirme ve tanıtım amaçlı kullanıldığı görülmüştür. Günümüzde sosyal medya kullanımının yoğunluğu yaş, cinsiyet, eğitim durumu farketmeksizin birçok insanın ilgisini çekmektedir. Özellikle anneler sosyal medya sayfalarını etkin bir şekilde kullanmaktadır. Girişimcilik ile annelik kavramlarını birleştirerek anne girişimciliği kavramına değinilecek bu çalışmada; iş-aile dengesinin kurulmasında sosyal medyanın yeri ve önemi araştırılacaktır. Literatür taraması yapılırken kavramın sınırlı sayıda çalışıldığı görülmektedir. Girişimcilik kavramı literatürde desteklenmiş ancak anne girişimciliği ile ilgili sosyal medya alanında çalışmaya rastlanılmamıştır. Literatürde yapılan çalışmalar, anne figürünün kutsallığına değinirken aynı zamanda girişimcilik olgusunu kadın girişimciliği çatısı altında açıklanmıştır.
Türkiye’de Banka Kredileri ile Ekonomik Büyüme Arasındaki Nedensellik İlişkisinin Analizi
Authors: Altun Fatime , Göçmen Yağcılar Gamze
Published: March 2024

Banka kredileri ve ekonomik büyüme arasında çok yönlü ilişki söz konusudur. Banka kredileri ekonomik büyümeyi desteklerken aynı ilişki tam tersi durum için de geçerlidir. Bu çalışmada banka kredileri ekonomik büyüme arasındaki ilişki test edilmiştir. Çalışmada Türkiye’de 2010 Q1 – 2022 Q4 yılları arasındaki üçer aylık veriler incelenmiştir. Toda-Yamamoto nedensellik testi sonuçlarına göre ekonomik büyüme ile KOBİ kredileri, ticari krediler ve tüketici kredileri arasında nedensellik ilişkisi olduğu tespit edilmiştir. Bir başka ifadeyle ekonomik büyümenin, bankalar tarafından kullandırılan kredi hacmine etkisi olduğu görülmüştür.
Une clinique du « travail émotionnel » chez les directeurs d’hôpital français, entre contrainte et élaboration psychique
Authors: Haliday Héloise
Published: March 2024

The preprint deals with emotional work as performed by French hospital administrators. We conducted a longitudinal exploratory study on hospital administrators' lived experience of the COVID-19 pandemic, using a qualitative research methodology combining semi-directed interviews, focus groups sessions and observations. We propose HA have to deal with both emotional labor, i.e. emotional constraints, and emotional work, which consists in an elaboration of other people's feelings and their own. Our focus group sessions seem to point that, contrary to how the highly concurrential nature of their profession might lead to see them (mainly as individualists), group sessions prove useful to help them maintain their emotional work, and detoxify their psychic life by elaborating on the guilt, shame and agressivity they feel in a great affective solitude.
Parenting in Motion: Parent’s Perspectives on the Relationships between Play-based Physical Activity and Emotion Regulation in Early Childhood.
Authors: Bufton Kelsie , Berkowitz Tomer S , Evans Subhadra , Fuller-Tyszkiewicz Matthew , Hiskens-Ravest Storm , Bates Maria , Hamid Jasmin , Westrupp Elizabeth
Published: March 2024

Physical activity during early childhood, otherwise known as ‘play-based physical activity’, may support emotion regulation development, thereby contributing to positive mental health outcomes across the lifespan. To initiate the co-design of a novel play-based physical activity parenting program, one-hour qualitative interviews (n=17) were conducted with parents of children aged two-four years. Interviews aimed to understand the regulatory effects of play-based physical activity and its role in parenting practices. Thematic template analysis identified five themes highlighting that play-based physical activity encompasses various forms, and dimensions, and is interwoven with learning across multiple domains. Play-based physical activity offered both preventative and immediate regulatory benefits, and facilitated family connection, and co-regulation. However, variation was found in parents’ utilisation of play-based physical activity for managing child emotion regulation difficulties. Some parents reported using it to respond to child dysregulation sensitively, others used it to distract and promote positive emotions during child dysregulation, and some did not consciously use it as a parenting strategy. Furthermore, several barriers were identified that limit play-based physical activity engagement and effectiveness, such as low parent capacity. Our findings confirm prior evidence of the regulatory benefits of play-based physical activity and physical activity, and extend this literature by showing the role, and effects of play-based physical activity in early childhood parenting practices.
A Comparative Analysis to Evaluate Bias and Fairness Across Large Language Models with Benchmarks
Authors: 陳文意  , 黃兆明
Published: March 2024

This study performs a comprehensive evaluation of bias and fairness within Large Language Models (LLMs), including ChatGPT-4, Google Gemini, and Llama 2, utilizing the Google BIG-Bench benchmark. Our analysis reveals varied levels of biases across models, with disparities particularly notable in dimensions such as gender, race, and ethnicity. The Google BIG-Bench benchmark proved instrumental in identifying these biases, though its effectiveness is tempered by challenges in capturing the sophisticated manifestations of bias that emerge in real-world contexts. Comparative performance analysis indicates that while each model exhibits strengths in certain areas, no single model uniformly excels across all fairness and bias metrics. The study underscores the intricate balance between model performance, fairness, and efficiency, highlighting the necessity for ongoing research and development in AI ethics to mitigate bias effectively. Insights from this research advocate for a multifaceted approach to AI development, integrating ethical considerations at every stage to ensure the equitable advancement of technology. The findings prompt a call for continued innovation in model training and benchmarking methodologies, aiming to enhance the fairness and inclusivity of future LLMs.
High Entropy Alloys (HEAs): Properties, Comparative Analysis, and Engineering Applications.
Authors: MOMIN RASHID
Published: March 2024

High Entropy Alloys or simply termed as HEA’s are a major breakthrough in the field of material science showing properties which surpasses other materials used to a large extent. These types of alloys due to their high strength and immense light weight with a mix of thermal resistance is under consideration to replace previous game changer CFRP or Carbon Fiber. This study aims to deal with the overall science of physics and materials behind this alloy and how it stands among the plethora of existing materials along with major applications for which it is best suited. This study highlights the distinctive advantages inherent in HEAs, heralding transformative implications for industrial applications.
Does degree of innovation modulate the influence of cognitive biases on language structure?
Authors: Holtz Annie , Kirby Simon , Culbertson Jennifer
Published: March 2024

A number of previous studies have argued that individual-level cognitive biases can influence population-level typological patterns. Here, we highlight a recurring pattern among these studies: different types of cognitive biases appear to be most active in particular tasks or contexts. For example, biases which affect the organisation of linguistic items into a wider system are especially active in language learning tasks; biases which influence the expression of individual linguistic items or categories independent of any system tend to be observed in language creation tasks. The contexts in which a cognitive bias applies are important: the more restricted the contexts, the greater the limit placed on that bias to influence language structure. Item-based (or category-specific) biases may only influence behaviour when a language is first created, or when novel items are needed. By contrast, system-wide biases can apply iteratively with each new generation of learners. This study seeks to further examine the apparent contextual restrictions on category-specific biases. We target linguistic tasks that may combine elements of language learning with language innovation---for example contexts which require generalisation to new items. Our goal is to see whether both types of biases emerge in this context. If so, this might supply a missing link, explaining how category-specific biases come to influence typology. Using word order in the noun phrase as a case study, we examine whether category-specific biases favouring postnominal adjectives but prenominal genitives---previously only seen in improvisation tasks---also influence behaviour in a task that involves generalisation.
Tell Me Your (Cognitive) Budget and I'll Tell You What You Value
Authors: Kinney David , Lombrozo Tania
Published: March 2024

Consider the following two (hypothetical) generic causal claims: “Living in a neighborhood with many families with children increases purchases of bicycles” and “living in an affluent neighborhood with many families with children increases purchases of bicycles.” These claims not only differ in what they suggest about how bicycle ownership is distributed across different neighborhoods (i.e., “the data”), but also have the potential to communicate something about the speakers’ values: namely, the prominence they accord to affluence in representing and making decisions about the social world. Here, we examine the relationship between the level of granularity with which a cause is described in a generic causal claim (e.g., neighborhood vs. affluent neighborhood) and the value of the information contained in the causal model that generates that claim. We argue that listeners who know any two of the following can make reliable inferences about the third: 1) the level of granularity at which a speaker makes a generic causal claim, 2) the speaker’s values, and 3) the data available to the speaker. We present results of four experiments (N=1,323) in the domain of social categories that provide evidence in keeping with these predictions.
A Contrastive Investigation into the Non-native Speakers of English Academicians’ Academic Writing Cognitions and Challenges in the First and Second Languages
Authors: CANLI Zeynep , YAĞIZ Oktay
Published: March 2024

Academic writing has been a focal point for research inquiry in the first and second languages. The present study aims to investigate non-native speakers of English writers’ knowledge, opinions, and preferences regarding academic writing in the first and second languages for publications and to identify the possible challenges these writers meet in their research articles in the first and second languages. The results will help academicians be aware of difficulties in the article sections and challenges in language use to overcome these problems and alleviate their recent experiences since they may be influenced negatively during the writing and publishing of an article. Therefore, this study contributes to the field because the implications may guide academicians while they write. A convergent-parallel design of mixed method designs was adopted. Data were obtained from structured questionnaires filled out by 440 participants and semi-structured interviews conducted with 30 participants. SPSS 21.0 was used to analyze the quantitative data using descriptive statistics and inferential analyses. Content analysis was used to analyze the qualitative data. The results showed that the academicians felt more confident when they wrote in their first language. The academicians had positive views about academic writing since they had self-confidence, self-motivation, and awareness of their academic status requirements. The abstract and results were the most manageable sections of the research articles, while the discussion section was slightly challenging. These academicians had more language use awareness in their first language. The study underlined the advantages and necessity of explicit AW instruction.
Knowledge Workers across the Italian Regions
Authors: Leogrande Angelo
Published: March 2024

In the following article I take into consideration the role of knowledge workers in the Italian regions. The analysed data refers to the ISTAT-BES database. The metric analysis consists of an in-depth analysis of the trends of the regions and macro-regions, followed by clustering with the k-Means algorithm, the application of machine learning algorithms for prediction, and the presentation of an econometric model with panel methods date. The results are also critically discussed in light of the North-South divide and the economic policy implications.
A Critical Review of Digital Technology in Education: A Pause for Thought in 2024
Authors: Butler Tom
Published: March 2024

There is a dearth of scientific evidence and evidence-based practice to justify current levels of Digital Technology use for educational purposes in the classroom and the home. In contrast, there is a growing body of scientific studies across several disciplines that highlight the direct and indirect negative effects of Digital Technology use on human cognition, learning, and behaviour. This paper considers objective evidence from peer-reviewed scientific studies in cognitive psychology, neuroscience, and related disciplines, as well as the field of education itself, to review the fundamental problems that beset Digital Technology use in education. The paper highlights, for example, that: (1) Screens lead to sleep disruption and deprivation, which impacts on learning, and is associated with obesity, and other physical disorders, such as computer vision syndrome; (2) Computer and digital device use in class disrupts the learning process and impairs learning outcomes for users and non-users alike; (3) Learning with books and paper is superior in comparison to learning with e-books; (4) Taking notes with pen and paper, as opposed to touch typing lecture notes in class, leads to better learning outcomes; (5) Smart phone, iPAD and laptop use result in student distraction and multitasking, which, impair learning and lead to neural addiction problems, such as Internet addiction disorder and other psychological maladies; (6) There are islands of success in an ocean of failure when it comes to Digital Technology and educational technologies, with researchers arguing that there is little evidence to support the proposition that Digital Technology and/or EdTech improve pedagogy or learning outcomes; (7) Finally, basic education about Digital Technology is one topic that needs to find a place in the curriculum. However, as with all Digital Technology initiatives, the introduction of programmes at primary and secondary school levels needs to be considered mindfully, with the strengths and limitations of the proposed enabling technologies clearly in focus. All this should give educators, administrators and politicians pause for thought. The paper concludes by discussing its findings, offering practical recommendations, and suggesting a change in emphasis in pedagogy in and through Digital Technology.
Influence of Consumer Attitudes and Social Interactions in Electric Vehicle Purchasing: Integrating Agent Based Modelling and Machine Learning
Authors: XU WEN , Harris Irina , LI JIN , Wells Peter , Foxall Gordon
Published: March 2024

Investigating consumer attitudes towards electric vehicle (EV) purchasing is crucial for understanding their slow adoption rate. Traditional aggregated models evaluate EV market penetration with a top-down approach but fail to reflect individual attitudes. Agent-based modelling (ABM) captures consumer heterogeneous decision-making and simulates social interactions in a bottom-up approach. Our work represents a novel integrated model to study consumers’ attitudes towards EV adoption, using empirical data and synthesised social interactions with ABM. The developed model was micro-validated and optimised using parameter variation experiments and supervised machine learning (SML) methods. The results show that consumers’ attitudes towards EV purchasing are influenced by early adopters and environmental factors. This work concludes that capturing consumers’ heterogeneity plays an important role in investigating their attitude formation under social interactions, providing new insights into EV promotion as an application of Rogers’s Diffusion of Innovations Theory at an early stage.
The prefigurative politics of leadership education: Connecting our practice to broader movements
Authors: Fink Alexander
Published: March 2024

Why develop leaders? What politics are implicit in our practice? This paper uses the history and practice of Popular Education as a comparative framework to survey the politics of intentional emergence leadership pedagogy, surfacing potential alliances for building social change movements. Using a case analysis, the article elucidates the ways the classroom embodies an opportunity to explore and enact a prefigurative politics of significant social change that upends traditional relationships to authority, hierarchy, and decision-making. Exploring the opportunities and dangers of connecting the classroom to broader social movements, the article concludes by advocating that such connections could offer a firmer and more explicit stance to the question: why develop leaders?
ForeignLanguage Teaching Methods in Task-Based Learning
Authors: Shukurova Farida
Published: March 2024

This article explores various aspects of task-based language teaching, a method of foreign language teaching. The current paper will analyze recent studies on task-based Teaching of a foreign language will be analyzed in a way, and its advantages and various manifestations. First, the nature of task-based language learning and its role in communication will be discussed. Later, the main characteristics of this method, the roles of teacher and student will be studied. Finally, the advantages and disadvantages of this method will be discussed. In traditional learning (grammar translation, listening-speaking) the language is taught to foreigners or second language learners in a group. In this case, the focus is on the language itself. Rather, it is not any information that language carries or how it is used. The teacher’s goal is to teach his students new vocabulary and grammatical rules of the language.
Investigating Saudi EFL Female University Students’ Command of Journalistic Writing: An SFL-based Study on Textual Organization
Authors: Alshehri Abdulmohsin A.
Published: March 2024

This study examines written literacy outcomes among Saudi female university students undertaking an EFL journalistic course over fourteen weeks. It specifically aims to explore their competence in the English hard news genre. It, thus, seeks to address the following question: after completing the course, to what degree did students create texts structurally matching the conventional English news report? The significance of this study lies in its integration of media and education, employment of linguistic analysis based on Systemic Functional Linguistics, and use of English expert news reports for comparison with students’ journalistic texts. It deployed the genre-based pedagogy devised within the Sydney School to design the news writing course. Twenty-five students undertook such a course during the 2022 academic year. This study gathered those students’ writing to subject it to linguistic scrutiny, assessing each student over one news report after completing the course. It reports that, after the course, half of the class developed their ability to produce the genre of the standard English language hard news report. Those students created texts that matched the professional news articles in the corpus, thus effectively following the textual features of such a genre.
Culture of Cynicism and Cooperation: Extracting Ways Out of Non-Cooperation with Government Trap by the Usage of Gaming
Authors: Amoozadeh Mahdiraji Hanif
Published: March 2024

The culture of cynicism expresses that problems in sustainable financial resource security could come from the historical distrust of society members and the government. This study uses a simulated experiment to evaluate this claim while analyzing possible solutions to escape this non-cooperation trap. Therefore, it analyzes the “reasons behind this non-cooperation” while evaluating effective methods to get out of it with an experimental approach using the gaming method as a simulation tool. In this experiment, more than 1,200 people participated in the game through a telegram robot. The experiment results show that people’s cooperation with the government is affected by the government's performance more than the cooperation between other society members or their previous experiences. Finally, a logistic regression model is presented to predict the behavior of participants in the future.
Pathology of Public Policy Concerning Iran’s Cooperatives: Bridging Local Challenges and Global Alternatives
Authors: Amoozadeh Mahdiraji Hanif
Published: March 2024

The cooperative sector in Iran holds a distinctive position within the nation's constitutional framework and official documents. However, despite concerted efforts, it presents a duality in its performance. While demonstrating relative acceptability compared to peers within the Middle East, it remains notably distant from the prescribed standards delineated in foundational documents. Notably, in 2013, an amendment bill addressing the Cooperative Sector Law, aiming for substantial revisions, was presented by the Executive branch to Parliament. This Bill, however, failed to garner the necessary attention from stakeholders and legislative bodies, prompting a critical evaluation of its necessity. This evaluative process encompassed meticulous scrutiny of the sector's standing, involving an alignment of definitions with legal frameworks and a comprehensive assessment of goal achievement utilizing official statistical data. A systematic review of antecedent research on cooperatives was also conducted to unearth and comprehend the critical operational barriers. The findings of this comprehensive analysis unveiled a spectrum of challenges afflicting Iran's cooperative sector, ranging from ambiguity in defining cooperatives to inadequate competitiveness vis-à-vis private enterprises, lack of member awareness, deficiencies in human resources and administrative capacities, financial constraints, overreliance on governmental support, and inefficiencies within supervisory institutions. A series of strategic alternatives have emerged to address these multifaceted challenges effectively. These include redefining cooperatives in alignment with international benchmarks, harnessing the potential of New-Generation Cooperatives (NGCs), diversifying shareholding structures, deploying Crowdfunding tools, establishing Cooperatives Credit Unions, fortifying internal supervisory entities, revising founding member prerequisites, reinstating cooperative education within legal frameworks, integrating specialized expertise on cooperative boards, and rejuvenating cooperative management certifications.
The Positive Effect of the English Reading Circle Method on Students’ Reading Performance: Tishk University Case Study
Authors: Kucuk Turgay
Published: March 2024

This study aims to investigate how the reading circle, also known as the literature circle method, affects students’ reading performances and lessons. his study will be an example study in helping students who do not like reading gain a reading habit. In this study, a mixed research method was applied by collecting both qualitative and quantitative data. At the beginning of the study, control and experimental groups were created using the stratified sampling method, and a pre-test was applied by an expert staff to see the students’ reading performances at the beginning of the study. The reading circle method was followed in the experimental group, and the traditional text reading and answering method was followed in the control group. During this five-week study, weekly tests were applied to both groups, and their reading performances were monitored. At the end of the study, post-tests and semi-structured interviews were applied to the students. According to SPSS t-statistics analysis, a significant difference of .001 was observed between the reading performances of the experimental group and the control group. In addition, students’ positive feedback about the reading circle method was recorded from the interview analysis. As a result, this study revealed that the reading circle method made a positive contribution to students’ reading performance. This study will shed light on other studies on reading in Iraq.
Expanding Horizons: Harnessing Social Media Platforms to Teach English as a Second Language
Authors: Singer Nermeen
Published: March 2024

This review article explores the potential of social media platforms in teaching English as a second language and expanding language learning horizons. The article discusses various strategies and activities that utilize social media to enhance language learning, such as using multimedia resources, leveraging interactive features and tools, and promoting authentic language input and exposure to native speakers. Language teachers present success stories and case studies highlighting the implementation of social media in teaching. The review also examines research findings and measurable impacts of social media on language learning, including increased language proficiency, enhanced intercultural competence, and improved motivation and engagement. Additionally, the article addresses challenges and considerations associated with social media use, such as privacy concerns, managing information overload, and promoting inclusivity in access to technology. The article concludes by emphasizing the transformative potential of social media in expanding language learning horizons. It highlights the importance of social media in creating dynamic and interactive learning environments beyond traditional classroom boundaries. Furthermore, the article discusses the future implications of social media in English as a second language education, emphasizing the need for educators to stay informed, adapt to emerging trends, and explore innovative approaches. Overall, this review article underscores the significance of social media in language teaching and the opportunities it offers to enhance language learning experiences. It provides insights and recommendations for educators and researchers interested in harnessing the potential of social media platforms for teaching English as a second language.
KONSERVATISME AKUNTANSI DITINJAU DARI BESARNYA PAJAK, LEVERAGE, CASH FLOW DAN UKURAN PERUSAHAAN
Authors: Hita Hita Puspita Sari , Rasuli M , Natariasari Riska
Published: March 2024

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menguji pengaruh pajak, leverage, cash flow dan ukuran perusahaan terhadap konservatisme akuntansi. Populasi dalam penelitian ini adalah perusahaan properti & real estate yang terdaftar di Bursa Efek Indonesia periode 2016-2020. Teknik pengambilan sampel dalam penelitian ini menggunakan purposive sampling dan diperoleh sampel sebanyak 10 perusahaan. Analisis yang digunakan yaitu regresi linier berganda. Hasil penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa pajak, leverage, cash flow dan ukuran perusahaan tidak berpengaruh terhadap konservatisme akuntansi.
Assessing Water Deficit Induced Water Stress of Households and their Welfare in Small Cities of Nepal
Authors: Bista Raghu Bir , Thakuri Sudeep , Koirala Prakirti , Bhattarai Arun
Published: March 2024

This study investigates water deficit-induced stress in 12 small cities within Nepal's Marshyangadi River Basin, crucial for sustainable water management amid global water scarcity concerns. Employing the Milankovitch Theory, it explores Earth-Sun relationships and their impact on long-term climate changes, shaping societal adaptation strategies. Utilizing the Water Deficit Model, the study unveils the multifaceted consequences of water scarcity of Gandaki Province's Marshyangdi River basin. The study employs a comprehensive design, sampling 317 households across diverse ecological zones and elevations. The study finds the existing month-long water deficit in these cities to the higher water demand of households, along with water stress in the cities of Himal and Terai more than in the Hill. Water deficit is higher in Himal than in Hill and Terai because of lower water availability in Himal (below average 0.9). The people of Himal and Terai have extremely high stress but the people of Hills are comfortable without stress, except in Bandipur for drinking and cleanliness. In the 20 litres per capita per day water, water stress is found mixed. Five small cities in Himal and Terai are extremely stressed, meanwhile, 7 small cities in the Hill are not stressed, except two cities, Bandipur and Marshangdi. Relatively, the water deficit in the Hill is less than Himal and Terai. Similarly, in 20 liters per capita per day water, it is good for households but most cities have extreme water stress. The Hill’s water stress is lower than that of the Himalayan and Terai. By WHO’s standard (50 liters-100 liters per day per capita), all cities are extremely water deficient and critically water stressed. The findings reveal a direct correlation between water deficit and stress, impacting survival, hygiene, and living standards. The study concludes that despite ample water resources, poor governance and inadequate policies contribute to extreme water deficit, challenging SDG targets and living standards. It urges urgent action, accountability, budgeting, and a comprehensive plan for water poverty reduction.
Synthesis, Characterization, and Antibacterial Activity Study of Novel Curcuminoids Derivatives
Authors: M. AL-Hakiem Mustafa , Q. Alderawy Mustafa , Adnan Riham , S Elias Rita
Published: March 2024

Curcumin is a well-known compound with broad spectrum biological activities, but unfortunately rapid degradation properties and low bioavailability. Therefore, several attempts have been made to overcome these obstructions through chemical modifications. This investigation aimed to prepare several curcuminoids and their pyrazole derivatives and study their antibacterial activity. Curcuminoids and their pyrazole derivatives were synthesized, and their Chemical structures were established from their mass, 1H NMR, and 13C NMR spectra, followed by an in vitro study of the antibacterial activity of these compounds against the gram-negative Escherichia coli and the gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus using disc diffusion method. No compound has recorded any activity against Escherichia coli, while compounds 1-9 have shown anti-staphylococcus activity, compounds 11-14 didn’t present any activity, and compound 10 shows activity at the lowest studied concentration only. These findings suggest that the pyrazole substitution on curcumin derivatives that do not bear an aromatic hydroxyl group would diminish their anti-staphylococcal activity. More antibacterial activity studies are suggested regarding compound 10 activity
University of Sri Jayewardenepura: Towards Meeting National Aspirations
Authors: Karunanayake M.M.
Published: March 2024

The Vidyodaya University (presently University of Sri Jayewardenepura) was established in 1959 under the provisions of the Vidyodaya and Vidyalankara University Act No 45 of 1958. Prior to the granting of university status the Vidyodaya and Vidyalankara Pirivenas had gained recognition as traditional centres of hip her learning. The Vidyodaya Pirivena pioneered by the erudite scholar monk Venerable IIikkaduwe Sri Sumangala was established as far back as 1873 at Maligakanda in Colombo. The Vidyodaya University commenced operations from these haloed grounds but shifted to its present location in Gangodawila in 1961 where a new Campus had been expeditiously completed thanks to the untiring efforts of the first Vice Chancellor Venerable Weliwitiye Soratha.
Consumer Perceived Risk, Involvement and Risk Coping Strategies: A Comparative Study in Product-Service Purchase Situations
Authors: Warnakulasooriya B.N.F.
Published: March 2024

The literature on services marketing holds that a number of unique characteristics separate services from tangible products. These distinguishing characteristics make service more difficult to evaluate than goods and the knowledge developed from experience in physical product marketing is not sufficient to understand service consumer behaviour. From this ferment this study is designed to examine some consumer behavior related conceptsperceived risk, and consumer involvement (CI) -and risk coping strategies in service purchase situations and compare them withproduct purchase situations. The objectives of the study are (a) to examine whether the differences between product and services influence the degree of association between the perceived risk and the consumer involvement, (b) to investigate whether the differences between product and services influence the consumer s risk coping strategy selection, and (c) to discuss the strategic implications for service marketers. The study is basically an empirical descriptive in nature. A sample survey was conducted with a help of structured questionnaire to collect data. The degree of association between the perceived risk and the consumer involvement was measured by calculating Pearson correlation coefficient. And, the association between the product category and the risk coping strategy selection of consumers was tested by performing Chi-Square test. The results of the tests show that (a) there is a positive relationship between the degree of perceived risk and the consumer involvement in both purchase situations, and (b) the differences between product and services influence the degree of association between the perceived risk and the consumer involvement. The results also show that the coping strategies vary in terms of the degree of perceived risk. The study recommend that services marketers should understand degree of risk the service customers perceive, their degree of involvement and coping strategies to develop their marketing programmes.
An Analysis of the Critical Factors of ISO 9001:2000 Management Practices and Customer Satisfaction of the Selected Listed Manufacturing Companies in Sri Lanka
Authors: Gunawardana K.D.
Published: March 2024

This paper analyses the impact of ISO 9001 :2000 management practices on customer satisfaction among the manufacturing companies listed in the Colombo Stock Exchange. The scope of this paper lFas limited to the companies that applied ISO 9001.2000 certifications for at least 3 years until 2007. The International Organizationfor Standardization widely known as ISO is an international-standars-setting body composed of representatives from various national standards organizations. The objective ofthis paper is to assess whether the management practices indicated in the ISO 9001:2000 framework brings about Customer satisfaction as a reduction of the customer complaints among the listed manufacturing companies in Sri Lanka. The management practices included in ISO 9001: 2000 are Management policies. plan and actions: Focus on Customers. Capable employees. Reliable Suppliers, Sound communication System, Steady processes and Consistent quality output. A total of 161 questionnaires were distributed among the 10 listed manufacturing companies targeting managers responsible for quality, production, procurement and other key areas. This paper proves empirically that there is a relationship between the management practices and reduction of the customer complain as a customer satisfaction among the listed manufacturing companies in Sri Lanka and further management practices which introduced by ISO 9001 :2000 reduce the customer complaint, product returns, increase repeat customers, customer loyalty. Finally the management practices of the ISO increase customer satisfaction.
Job Performance Evaluation of Sri Lankan University Lecturers: An Agenda for Action and a Suggested Scheme
Authors: Opatha H.H.D.N.P.
Published: March 2024

This paper provides a conceptual understanding of University Lecturer Performance Evaluation (ULPE), which is an important function of managing Human Resources in higher education, especially in modern universities in an industrializing country. A ULPE should possess a wide range of utility. The paper describes six key issues of the ULPE and finally suggests an agenda for action and a scheme that may be useful for evaluating job perrformance of lecturers in Sri Lankan universities. Also the paper may be of value to those who are interested in understanding ULPE for research purposes.
ආදි ම මුද්‍රිත ක්‍රිස්තියානි සිංහල සාහිත්‍ය කෘති හා තදීය භාෂා ලක්ෂණ
Authors: Arangala Ratnasiri
Published: March 2024

ආදි ම මුද්‍රිත ක්‍රිස්තියානි සිංහල සාහිත්‍ය කෘති හා තදීය භාෂා ලක්ෂණ
Modern Sinhalese Fiction and Social Change in Sri Lanka
Authors: Suraweera A.V.
Published: March 2024

Modern Sinhalese Fiction and Social Change in Sri Lanka
ඉසුරුමුනි විහාරයේ මිනිසා සහ අශ්ව හිස පිළිබඳව නව සංකල්පයක්
Authors: Gamage Dinarathne
Published: March 2024

ඉසුරුමුනි විහාරයේ මිනිසා සහ අශ්ව හිස පිළිබඳව නව සංකල්පයක්
A Note on some Sanskrit Words in the Japaneese Language
Authors: Weeratunge S.
Published: March 2024

A Note on some Sanskrit Words in the Japaneese Language
Small Farm Mechanization Through Group Tractor Ownership: A Lesson Form Japan's Experience
Authors: Ulluwishewa Rohana , Sakai Jun
Published: March 2024

Small Farm Mechanization Through Group Tractor Ownership: A Lesson Form Japan's Experience
Professionalism in Academia; The Role of University Teachers in Sri Lanka
Authors: Navaratne Banda H.M.
Published: March 2024

Universities in Sri Lanka are facing radical expansion and changes. The increasing numbers of students entering the country's limited universities mandate a higher calibre of professionalism among the academic staff. The country's academics, however, face several problems that hinder professional development. The majority of the teaching load is carried by senior and probationary lecturers, thereby limiting their potention for personal development through research and publications. A dearth of qualifies teachers signifies that only a linited number of students receive quality education. Furthermore, there is an uneven distribution of academic staff within the country's universities. The result is a convergence of students, funding and resources on only a select few universities. While Sri Lanka's free education system can and should be considered a national asset, more needs to be done to ensure that the standards of the country's higher education institutions remain competitive in a global context. A motivated and productive teaching staff will lead to effective learning by the students, which then will lead to a qualified and valuable workforce. This article begins by analysing the role of teachers in Sri Lanka's higher education system. It then considers certain universal, professional standards of university teaching that should be employed to enhance the quality of eucation students receive. Finaly, several recommendations are offered for broad changes to organizational structures and traditional practices that relate to the professional development of academics.
Meeting the Basic Needs of the Family: The Changing Economic Role of Wives and Daughters in the Villages of the North Central Province of Sri Lanka
Authors: Wanasinghe Y.A.D.S. , Tennakoon Sunethra
Published: March 2024

Women fulfill several important roles during their lifetime but in recent years, the productive role of rural women has assumed greater importance. Traditionally, their economic role was confined to work within their homes, home gardens, farma and villages. Today there is an increasing tendency for women to engage in full-time or part-time non-farm occuapations. The objective of this paper is to assess the extent to which incomes of women in traditional tank villages contribute to the provision of food, clothing,shelter, health and educational requirements of their children through in situ and ex situ non-farm employment; highlight some of the conflicts faced by wlmen when they attempt to balance the demands of their multiple roles; identify major issues and suggest suitable recommendations. The sample selected from three traditional villages included: a male headed households in which the husband and wife spend an equal proportion on basic needs facto and de jure female headed households and households with unmarried employed women Accepted ethmographic techniques were used to collect data. Thte study highlighted the urgent need to support diversification of economic activities of rural woman,combat domestic violence, facilitate them to obtain micro credit, acquire skills, and gain access to new opportunities.
An Empirical Study of Potential Challenging of Implementing e-Commerce Strategy; Special Reference to BOI Companies in Sri Lanka
Authors: Gunawardana K.D.
Published: March 2024

The growth of information technology in the business world is spreading at a phenomenal rate. The success of a business organization stands at the usage of IT in their business. Growth of E-Commerce is the new born business method, which has orginated through an extensive usage of IT in their business. SMEs under the BOI in Sri Lanka are far behind the fast moving world of IT. Though E-Commerce is accelerating at a high pace,most of the SMEs are still at the lower level compared to their competitors in business. This study will focus on the level of adoption of E-Commerce in a population of 30 SMEs. The results on the adoption of E-commerce showed a significant relationship with the two firm based characteristics. That is Management Involvement and adoption of IT. The study also identified E-marketing and supplier service as the critical success factors in adoption of E-Commerce. Therefore, this research is conducted to assess the readiness for E-commerce among the SME in Sri Lanka, and hopefully the research will help to convey the awareness among the SME towards ecommerce and help them to speed up their involvement in e-business.
Complementizer Distribution in Sinhala
Authors: Ananda M.G.L.
Published: March 2024

The extensive amount of empirical studies and consequent theorizing associated with the complementizer show the prominence attached to this functional category over the last few decades. Its evolution from an underdetermined status to a 'core functional category' is evident in its syntactic anchoring as a Phase in the current Minimalist approaches. Concurrently with these developments, there have been Cartographic approaches that have attempted to project the complementizer in a different perspective. However, both these approaches, the Minimalist and the Cartographic, have maintained their distinctiveness thus showing less potential for convergence. In this paper I attempt to incorporate Rizzi's (1997) Left Periphery analysis into the Generative framework with evidence from complementizer distribution in Sinhala.
Collaborative Requirements Review Tool (Collaborev) to Support Requirements Validation
Authors: Nazurin Jamaludin , Alya Ahmad Kamran , Nordin Azlin
Published: March 2024

Requirements review involves a team of reviewers, who will go through the requirements in an attempt to find any requirements issues. The checklist-based technique is the most typically adopted method during requirements reviews. Due to the inconsistency and inefficiency of manual requirements review procedures, requirement engineers often find it challenging to effectively and productively review requirements.  By streamlining the process with automated processes, collaborative features, and clear traceability, the web-based solution increases productivity, accuracy, and transparency of review.  This innovative solution solves the shortcomings of manual procedures, paving the way for more fruitful software development endeavours. The software project was planned and managed using the Model-View-Controller (MVC) architecture framework and adopted an iterative prototyping methodology. The implementation of the project is using Laravel framework by utilizing PHP, JavaScript, HTML, CSS, Bootstrap, and MySQL.
Streams of Data Flow in Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) Request-Response Cycle Efficiency
Authors: Abubakar Adamu , Muhammed Yusof Zulkefli
Published: March 2024

This study examines the complexities of data transmission in Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) Request-Response cycles, with the goal of improving overall efficiency. The research aims to enhance the efficiency of these cycles by studying the dynamic characteristics of data streams. An experimental analysis was carried out utilising a thorough examination of TCP streams of HTTP request-response cycle, with a focus on the complex interaction between client requests and server responses. This study utilises BlazeMeter and JMeter to analyse the effectiveness of TCP request-response cycles, specifically examining the dynamics of data flow. Significant variances were seen in performance indicators across a range of different settings. Analysis of certain experimental request-response scenarios reveals that consistently high response times leads to a persistent server load as well as resource limitations, which negatively affect the overall user experience. In contrast, certain request-response scenarios demonstrate a greater throughput, suggesting a more efficient data transfer capacity, whilst lower throughput scenarios in the experimental conditions indicate the possible bottlenecks as well as network problems. The analysis encompasses various thread groups, providing insights into error rates, response times, and throughputs. These findings enhance the understanding of the efficiency of the TCP request-response cycle and emphasise the elements that affect the flow of data during transmission sessions. Consequently, the research concludes that the data flow within TCP request-response cycles lacks a discernible pattern that can be utilised for training purposes in the field of Artificial Intelligence
The National economy of Russia as a general meta-subject of scientific analysis
Authors: Danilchenko Sergei Leonidovich
Published: March 2024

The systemic world crisis testify to the complete invalidity of neoclassical economic theory and the neoliberal model of the national economy. In this regard, the development of a new economic theory that combines a political economy approach to the national economy with a national economic research methodology becomes of special relevance. The chapter highlights relevant issues of the development of world and domestic economic science, substantiates the importance of social sciences and humanitarian knowledge as the basis for the development of modern economics. It is important to observe the principle of historicism - orientation on civilisation conditions and national needs, adaptation of Russia to new geopolitical realities. The scientific content makes it possible to talk about the progressiveness of the ideas of nationally-oriented economic reform, consistent modernisation of the economic sphere of the Russian society.