ABSTRACT
In organizations and on the home front, the challenge of work-life balance is rising to the top of many employers' and employees' consciousness. the challenge of work-life balance is rising to the highest of the many women employers' and employees' consciousness. In today's fast-paced society, human resource professionals seek options to positively impact rock bottom line of their companies, improve employee morale, retain women employees with valuable company knowledge, and keep step with workplace trends. this text provides human resource professionals with a historical perspective, data, and possible solutions for organizations and women employees alike to work/life balance. Three factors global competition, personal lives/family values, and an aging workforce present challenges that exacerbate work/life balance. this text offers the attitude that human resource professionals can assist their companies to maximize these factors by using work-life initiatives to realize a competitive advantage within the marketplace.
ABSTRACT
Batch and packed bed continuous biosorption studies were conducted to investigate the kinetics and isotherms of Cu(II) ions on the biomass of blue green alga Azolla rongpong. It is observed that the biosorption capacity of algae depends on initial pH and dosage. The biosorption capacity increases with increasing concentration and follows Freundlich isotherm model well with k and n values 0.06223 and 0.949 respectively. The optimum pH of 3.5 with an algae dosage of 1 g/L was observed. The results indicate that with the advantage of high metal biosorption capacity and recovery of Cu(II) ions, A. rongpong can be used as an efficient and economic biosorbent for the removal and recovery of toxic heavy metals from aqueous wastes even at higher concentration.
Subject(s)
Adsorption , Eukaryota , Biomass , Biotechnology/methods , Copper/analysis , Ferns , Hydrogen-Ion Concentration , Ions , Kinetics , Metals/chemistry , Time Factors , Water/chemistry , Water Purification/methodsABSTRACT
AIM OF THE STUDY: To study the clinical and immunological profile of mixed connective tissue disease (MCTD) in rheumatic disease population. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed 6400 cases of rheumatic disease population who took treatment in the Department of Rheumatology, Madras Medical College, Chennai during the period of 1996 to 1999, in which eight cases fulfilled the preliminary diagnostic criteria of mixed connective tissue disease devised by Kasukawa et al. All eight cases were studied in detail. RESULTS: All cases were females between 23 to 50 years of age. Polyarthritis, Raynaud's phenomenon and sclerodactyly were present in all eight patients. Oesophageal abnormalities, pulmonary changes and myositis were present in six patients. Facial erythema was observed in five patients. Alopecia and oral ulcers were seen in four patients. Two patients had pulmonary hypertension and migraine like headache. One patient had diffuse proliferative glomerulonephritis as an interesting feature by renal biopsy. Pleuritis, pericarditis and trigeminal neuropathy with lower cranial nerve palsies were present in one case each. Immunological tests showed presence of antinuclear antibodies and anti U1 ribonucleoprotein (anti U1RNP) antibodies in all eight patients. CONCLUSIONS: Mixed connective tissue disease should be considered as an important syndrome in any patient who presents with heterogeneous clinical presentation and who do not fit into any definite criteria of systemic connective tissue disorders.