O-Acyl substituted derivatives of 3-benzyl-5-(2-hydroxyethyl)-4-methyl-1,3-thiazolium chloride which is a structural analog of vitamin B₁ were synthesized and evaluated towards acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase in vitro. The inhibition properties of the O-substituted compounds depend on nature of substituents at position 3 and 5 of the thiazolium ring. Some of the thiazolium salts showed high potency in the inhibition of only one of the two enzymes. The selective effects of these inhibitors are governed by substituent at position 5. Kinetic studies and molecular docking simulation were performed for elucidating mechanisms of enzyme-inhibitor complex formation.

In the context of active world markets expansion including actively emerging markets such as Rus-sia, the search for possible ways of integrated development of various industries becomes an issue of special state significance for the economy competitiveness improvement. This article focuses on finding ways to optimize travel business environment in Russia by improving passengers’ transportation service.

This study examines the factors affecting audit fees in firms listed primarily in Sub-Saharan Africa countries by focusing on the relationship between ownership structure and audit fees. The study uses an unbalanced panel dataset of 531 observations of non-financial firms collected from annual reports for the years 2005 to 2009. The findings show that audit fees vary with ownership structure. Particularly, the study shows managerial ownership and concentrated ownership are negatively related to audit fees, whereas foreign ownership is related positively to audit fees. This study provides valuable insights on effects of ownership structure on audit fees pricing. Specifically, the study emphasizes that decisions of pricing of audit fees should consider characteristics of the ownership structure of a firm. The study makes contributions to the literature that focuses on the nexus between corporate governance and audit fees. Particularly, the findings provide empirical evidence of impacts of ownership structure on audit fees in Sub-Saharan African context, which is characterized by less developed financial markets and a weak institutional environment relative to developed countries where most studies are conducted.

The honeycomb sandwich structures are extensively utilized in the satellite load bearing structure due to their superior mechanical properties. Investigating such structures and establishing their failure map implies the estimation of their equivalent elastic parameters as well as the experimental measurements of their ultimate strengths. Through a comprehensive study, this article discusses thoroughly the mechanical behavior of an aluminum honeycomb structure exposed to flat-wise compressive and flexural testing. Furthermore, an equivalent finite element model, based upon the sandwich theory, is proposed for simulating the elastic behavior of the flexural testing and comparing computational and experimental results. The comparison of results confirms accurately the usage of the sandwich theory and its related shell-volume-shell approach in the efficient modeling of honeycomb sandwich structures. In addition, the aforementioned honeycomb structure is parameterized from the geometry and material perspective. The outcome of such study reveals that the honeycomb core thickness has the greatest influence on the maximum displacement value. In addition, aluminum alloys are optimum choice for facing sheets material of the honeycomb structure.

In the dynamic field of cybersecurity within intelligent vehicle systems, the sophistication of threats necessitates continual advancemenThe purpose of this study is to: (1) evaluate the technological skills of the final-year undergraduate students, (2) how such abilities influence their likelihood of getting employed and (3) student opinions on whether a computer lab-based specialization in software training can boost employability. This study is a survey-based methodology. The sample size encompasses 140 final year students in the College of Business Administration at Prince Sattam bin Abdulaziz University during the academic year 2023-2024. Descriptive statistical analyses indicate that most students believe they have sufficient technical skills but not enough for securing better jobs. Moreover, it is clear among them that expertise in specialized software packages enhances career prospects significantly. The research results also show a huge gap between technological competencies learners have now and what employers demand currently. In response, this study suggests that PSAU should establish software laboratories in their colleges for specialized training on software as required by the job market and workplace. The Vice Rectorate for Academic and Educational Affairs launches a program called “Graduate and Professional Skills Development Program (PSAU-GPSDP)”, which emphasizes student employability as it develops, implements, and evaluates mechanisms to enhance students’ chances of getting jobs upon graduation. The results of this study are in line with SDG No. 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), SDG No. 4 (Quality Education), and Saudi Vision 2030. Therefore, this study has practical implications for decision-makers at the Ministry of Education and university levels, university professors, researchers on how employability skills of students could be enhanced in the higher education institutions.

The purpose of this study is to assess the influence of total quality management (TQM) dimensions on the product and process innovation perspectives of Jordanian manufacturing organizations. In this quantitative study; a questionnaire was sent to 249 randomly selected ISO 9001:2000 certified firms in different manufacturing industries in Jordan and we obtained 123 usable questionnaires. After confirming the validity and reliability of the latent variables with confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses, we examined the model and hypotheses. This search outcome confirmed the significant and positive relationship between TQM dimensions overall and product and process innovation perspectives. However, the supplier’s management failed to show a significant relationship with product and process innovation perspectives. Meaningful implications are made that building extensive and effective TQM dimensions and product and process innovation in manufacturing organizations is crucial to face with high competition and innovation in Jordan manufacturing organizations sector.

This paper aims a novel and a useful multi-objective optimization approach named Non-Dominated Sorting Ions Motion Algorithm (NSIMO) built on the search procedure of Ions Motion Algorithm (IMO). NSIMO uses selective crowding distance and non-dominated sorting method to obtain various non-domination levels and preserve diversity amongst the best set of solutions. The suggested technique is employed to various multi-objective benchmark functions having different characteristics like convex, concave, multimodal, and discontinuous Pareto fronts. The recommended method is analyzed on different engineering problems having distinct features. The results of the proposed approach are compared with other well-regarded and novel algorithms. Furthermore, we present that the projected method is easy to implement, capable of producing a nearly true Pareto front and algorithmically inexpensive.

The Orienteering Problem (OP) is an optimization problem that finds the locations and routes that will return the highest profit/benefit, starting from the initial location of the traveler/vehicle, visiting these locations, and ending with the starting location of the tour within a given time or distance limit. There is no obligation to visit all locations in the problem structure. OP has many real-life applications, such as staff routing and disaster relief routing. In this study, OP with Time Windows (OPTW), an extension of OP, is discussed with hotel selection and mandatory visits. Although the main objective of OPTW is profit maximization, it is also essential to minimize the total travel time to complete the tour efficiently. For this reason, we consider the OPTW as a multi-objective problem. In the problem considered here, it is assumed that the profit/benefit, travel time between locations, service period, and time interval that each location can be visited are determined to be known. Within the scope of the study, first, a Mixed Integer Programming (MIP) model is prepared for the problem. Since the proposed mathematical model does not provide solutions in a reasonable time for large networks, the problem is solved by a Constraint Programming (CP) approach. Attractive tourist points of interest for Izmir, one of Turkey's major tourist cities, are determined, and the proposed method is applied to the real-life problem. The problem is modeled as Multi-Objective OPTW with MIP and CP and solved. Also, sensitivity analysis is performed by considering two different scenarios.

The main purpose of this study is to present a framework on the construct, knowledge hoarding by investigating and distinguishing it from related concepts such as knowledge sharing and knowledge hiding. Furthermore, it aims to strengthen our understanding of knowledge hoarding by defining the construct in detail while seeking answers to why employees hoard their knowledge. The present study contains a discussion of related research on knowledge hoarding and its implications for organizations, managers and employees. By integrating research from the fields of knowledge man-agement, human resources management and organizational behavior, this paper attempts to clarify a number of issues about this concept and aims to offer a factual report on what research has to say about it. Knowledge is not an individual, but an organizational asset. In today’s business environ-ment, hoarding knowledge erodes one’s power rather than constituting a source of power. In order to remain competitive in the future, organizations will need to abandon their ideas of information hoarding and embrace knowledge management. Downsizing in organizations and the potential loss of employment due to the global economic crisis alerts the managers to be sensitive to the reasons why the individuals avoid sharing their knowledge. The managerial level should attempt to break the hoarding cycle and create new models for interaction and knowledge sharing. It is important to examine why some employees would sometimes prefer to keep knowledge to themselves. Thus, the present study seeks an answer to that area of under-investigated research.

The present work deals with some machinability studies on tool wear and surface roughness, in finish hard turning of AISI D2 steel using PCBN, Mixed ceramic and coated carbide inserts. The machining experiments are conducted based on the response surface methodology (RSM). Combined effects of three cutting parameters viz., cutting speed, cutting time and tool hardness on the two performance outputs (i.e. VB and Ra), are explored employing the analysis of variance (ANOVA).The relationship(s) between input variables and the response parameters are determined using a quadratic regression model. The results show that the tool wear was influenced principally by the cutting time and in the second level by the cutting tool hardness. On the other hand, cutting time was the dominant factor affecting workpiece surface roughness followed by cutting speed. Finally, the multiple response optimizations of tool wear and surface roughness were carried out using the desirability function approach (DFA).