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There is limited research in Pakistan that describes how organizational learning, which is not contingent on funding, can be used to improve the quality of education in developing countries. This study addresses this gap in the literature with a study that examines the perceptions of educators at medium-cost schools in Karachi, Pakistan.

As part of a larger mixed-method QUAN-qual study, this study used an instrument based on Watkins and Marsick’s Dimensions of the Learning Organization, to collect survey data from 21 head teachers/coordinators, 653 teachers at 32 urban schools. This paper presents an analysis of survey data and findings related to two research questions. This paper used exploratory factor analysis and simultaneous regression analysis to test four hypotheses.

The findings suggest that of the four levels of learning, global and school level learning predict knowledge performance at medium-cost urban schools in Karachi, Pakistan.

The paper includes implications for both school leaders and the education leadership faculty who prepare them to play a vital role in schools.

The paper adds to a limited body of literature that describes how organizational learning can be used to improve the quality of education in developing countries such as Pakistan.

This chapter is born out of concern about the perception of the physical and symbolic place of the live-in housekeeper, both in socioeconomic, and historical terms, as well as the architectural and social dynamics of the home. An intersectional and teleological analysis of the intrinsic devaluation of paid social reproduction work is carried out, based mainly on gender, race, and class inequalities. Ultimately, the chapter tries to locate the position in which the maid finds herself in the domestic environment, both in family relationships and in the symbolism inherent to the concept of the maid’s room. Based on sociological, philosophical, and anthropological analysis, the ambiguous place of domestic workers becomes clearer, promoting a reflection on the very concept of family and household. Thus, the chapter proposes to achieve a hermeneutic dive into the experience of this working class, revealing a hierarchical system beyond the socioeconomic, but above all, of their subjectivities.

With the rapid surge of mobile marketing, an increasing number of brands have launched branded emoticons in an attempt to build brand relationships with consumers. Despite the apparent promise of branded emoticon usage, there is only limited academic research on branded emoticons. This paper aims to build on impression management theory and the conceptualization of cuteness to investigate how the effect of cuteness in branded emoticon design influences perceived playfulness in mobile instant messaging (MIM) interaction and the creation of brand engagement in self-concept.

Consumers with usage experience of branded emoticons in MIM apps were recruited to complete an online survey. Partial least squares structural equation modelling was used to analyze the data.

Two facets of cuteness – kindchenschema cuteness and whimsical cuteness – can project a favourable social image to consumers that facilitates playfulness in social interaction and enhances brand engagement in self-concept, which leads to their willingness to purchase the brand and stickiness to the MIM apps.

The popularity of branded emoticons represents a new form of social interaction and an innovative way to build brand relationships. The present study is the first to examine the design aspects of branded emoticons and highlights that the cuteness of a branded emoticon may be a crucial factor in engaging consumers in MIM.

The purpose of this paper is to present the application of Design of Experiments techniques for the analysis of operating parameters of an industrial oven for the heat treatment process of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottle filaments.

The focus is on evaluating new ways of operating the transformation process. The main issue is to raise what are the variables interfering with the performance of the oven. The complete 2k factorial for three factors of control was used to analyze the behavior of these variables and their relationships in the specific response parameter for the process.

The results presented in this work allow the company to have greater knowledge about the operation of the equipment. The study showed possibilities of 14.8% energy reduction.

The heat treatment activity was characterized as a critical point in the production process, and techniques with empirical approaches, based on statistical techniques, was an opportunity that the company has to improve the execution of activities without major investments for the quality of the final product. The application of statistical quality techniques showed to be very promising.

The fact that the study was conducted using subjective quality performance makes this work different from others presented in the literature, showing the possibility to apply Design of Experiments using main control factors based on the opinion of experienced personnel involved in the process analyzed.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the largely unexplored conceptualisation of the brand-as-a-person metaphor in small-to-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by examining its potential relation with the SME owner-manager, the pathways to its creation and development and the intuitive nature of this relationship.

A grounded theory approach was used, and data were collected through a set of 36 semi-structured interviews with 30 SME owner-managers in various sectors in Mexico.

The results indicate that SME owner-managers intuitively humanise their brands. The study revealed four pathways to develop the brand-as-a-person metaphor in the SME context: through personality traits, tastes and preferences, abilities and knowledge and values, all suggesting that SMEs’ brand-as-a-person metaphors are largely an extension of their owner-managers.

The paper presents a theoretical framework that illustrates the four pathways to the creation and development of brand-as-a-person that are derived from the brand’s relationship with the SME owner-manager. The results of cross-industry semi-structured interviews are limited to a single culture context.

SME owner-managers should first undertake an introspective personal assessment of their intuitive and conscious decision-making, as SME owner-managers often make decisions in an intuitive way. The results suggest that they should act in a more conscious, responsible and rational way when formulating their brand strategies.

This is the first study to clarify the profound influence of SME owner-managers’ personal characteristics, including personality traits, tastes and preferences, abilities and knowledge and values, on the brand-as-a-person metaphor. This study also confirms the intuitive learning strategy formulation of SME owner-managers’ branding practices and SMEs’ need for a more rational approach to branding.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the nonlinear Schrödinger equation (NLS) incorporating spatiotemporal dispersion and other dispersive effects. The goal is to derive various soliton solutions, including bright, dark, singular, periodic and exponential solitons, to enhance the understanding of soliton propagation dynamics in nonlinear metamaterials (MMs) and contribute new findings to the field of nonlinear optics.

The research uses a range of powerful mathematical approaches to solve the NLS. The proposed methodologies are applied systematically to derive a variety of optical soliton solutions, each demonstrating unique optical behaviors and characteristics. The approach ensures that both the theoretical framework and practical implications of the solutions are thoroughly explored.

The study successfully derives several types of soliton solutions using the aforementioned mathematical approaches. Key findings include bright optical envelope solitons, dark optical envelope solitons, periodic solutions, singular solutions and exponential solutions. These results offer new insights into the behavior of ultrashort solitons in nonlinear MMs, potentially aiding further research and applications in nonlinear wave studies.

This study makes an original contribution to nonlinear optics by deriving new soliton solutions for the NLS with spatiotemporal dispersion. The diversity of solutions, including bright, dark, periodic, singular and exponential solitons, adds substantial value to the existing body of knowledge. The use of distinct and reliable methodologies to obtain these solutions underscores the novelty and potential applications of the research in advancing optical technologies. The originality lies in the novel approaches used to obtain these diverse soliton solutions and their potential impact on the study and application of nonlinear waves in MMs.

This study aims to investigate the effect of electrodeposition parameters (i.e. time and voltage) on the properties of hydroxyapatite (HA) coating fabricated on Ti6Al4V surface.

A full factorial design along with response surface methodology was utilized to evaluate the main effect of independent variables and their relative interactions on response variables. The effect of electrodeposition voltage and deposition time on HA coatings Ca/P molar ratio and the size of deposited HA crystals were examined by structural equation modeling (SEM). The formation of plate-like and needle-like HA crystals was observed for all experiments.

The results obtained showed that the higher electrodeposition voltage leads to lower Ca/P values for HA coatings. This is more significant at lower deposition times, where at a 20-minute deposition time, the voltage increased from 2 to 3 V and the Ca/P decreased from 2.27 to 1.52. Full factorial design results showed that electrodeposition voltage has a more significant effect on the size of the deposited HA crystal. With increasing the voltage from 2 to 3 V at a deposition time of 20 min, the HA crystal size varied from 99 to 36 µm.

The investigation delved into the impact of two critical parameters, deposition time and voltage, within the electrodeposition process on two paramount properties of HA coatings. Analyzing the alterations in coating characteristics relative to variations in these process parameters can serve as a foundational guide for subsequent research in the domain of calcium-phosphate deposition for implants.

The potential of the Cerrado fruit could be explored by development of new products, such as jellies that can be used to add value to the fruit, as well as to preserve this biome. This paper aims to evaluate the effect of processing, the glass packaging type and storage time on the quality of jelly, prepared from reconstituted murici pulp, over 12 months of storage.

The authors used a completely randomized design (CRD) in factorial 2 × 5, with two types of glass packaging (transparent and amber) and five storage periods (0, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months), with four replications and the experimental parcel consisting of 80 g of jelly (two bottles of 40 g). The quality of jelly was monitored through 12 months using physicochemical (proximal composition, color, soluble solids, titratable acidity and pH), microbiological (coliforms at 35 °C and 45 °C, filamentous fungi and Salmonella sp) and sensory analyses (sensory acceptance and purchase intent).

The pulp processing effectively affected the physicochemical and nutritional composition (proximal composition, soluble solids and color). It was found that only the storage time significantly influenced (p < 0.05) jelly quality, considering the variables analyzed, except the soluble solids, ash, dietary fiber and sensory texture attributes. However, the glass packaging factor (transparent and amber) did not result in significant changes in those variables. Moreover, the pulp processing allows a seasonal fruit with a short harvest period and short post-harvest life to be available to consumers as a new product throughout the year.

Based on the present study, the native Cerrado fruit such as murici [Byrsonima crassifolia (L.) Rich] is appreciated for its pleasant peculiarities such as color, aroma and taste; however, it is underutilized as food for lack of information and studies. Although the fruit does not have widespread use as food, it is necessary to make the population aware about its importance, not only as a source of nutrients, but also for its functional and sensory potential. Therefore, the production of murici jelly can increase consumption of the fruit, besides being a way to add value and extend the shelf life and sensory acceptance of the product prepared.

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effect of different times and freezing temperatures on the antioxidant activity of raw human milk (HM) and the impact of light by different packaging on retinol level and the antioxidant activity of pasteurized HM.

Donor milks were homogenized to form the pool of the experimental study characterized by the evaluation of the effects of time (0, 2, 4, 8 and 15 days) freezing temperatures (−3°C, −8°C and −18°C) and the interference of the type of packaging on the antioxidant activity and retinol levels of HM.

The existing studies do not reveal the real impact of HM storage conditions adopted by human milk banks (HMB) in Brazil on their compounds, mainly in relation to the effects of temperature and freezing time and the incidence of light on retinol levels and antioxidant activity. In view of the already documented importance of these compounds for the growth, development and health of children, it is extremely important to assess their stability according to the procedures adopted by the banks. It has been observed in this study that lower freezing temperatures (−18°C) further preserve the antioxidant activity. It was found that the amber and transparent vials wrapped with aluminum foil allowed for greater retinol stability of HM, with values of 2.501±0.757 µmol/L and 4.991±0.825 µmol/L, respectively. On the contrary, there was no significant influence on antioxidant activity.

It is suggested that HMB store milk at lower temperatures and use glass jars that block the passage of light.

This paper aims to present a broad review of near-a titanium alloys for high-temperature applications.

Following a brief introduction of titanium (Ti) alloys, this paper considers the near-α group of Ti alloys, which are the most popular high-temperature Ti alloys developed for a high-temperature application, particularly in compressor disc and blades in aero-engines. The paper is relied on literature within the past decade to discuss phase stability and microstructural effect of alloying elements, plastic deformation and reinforcements used in the development of these alloys.

The near-a Ti alloys show high potential for high-temperature applications, and many researchers have explored the incorporation of TiC, TiB SiC, Y₂O₃, La₂O₃ and Al₂O₃ reinforcements for improved mechanical properties. Rolling, extrusion, forging and some severe plastic deformation (SPD) techniques, as well as heat treatment methods, have also been explored extensively. There is, however, a paucity of information on SiC, Y₂O₃ and carbon nanotube reinforcements and their combinations for improved mechanical properties. Information on some SPD techniques such as cyclic extrusion compression, multiaxial compression/forging and repeated corrugation and straightening for this class of alloys is also limited.

This paper provides a topical, technical insight into developments in near-a Ti alloys using literature from within the past decade. It also outlines the future developments of this class of Ti alloys.