Four Indian-Americans, including two women, elected to House of Representatives and the Senate in the historic US general elections are here for their first official Congressional orientation meeting to find out how they can work collectively.

Fr. John discusses the importance of worship to Byzantium, the immense degree to which its culture was influenced by liturgy, and the significance of "facing East."

Fr. John looks at traditional Christianity's eucharistic rites in order to see how they served to reorient the world toward the kingdom of heaven.

In this special video episode (the first of two parts), Father John discusses the background to the revolution in art during the Italian Renaissance. Though it produced some of the most stunning and innovative works ever, secular humanism represented a radical departure from the heavenly orientation of traditional Christian art.

This is part 2 to last week's special video episode, on the revolution of art during the Italian Renaissance.

Fr. John shares an update from the Department of Evangelization with the 18th All-American Council of the Orthodox Church in America, July 2015.

Listen to this week's podcast (January 20, 2012)! iOS Orientationchange Fix jQuery Mobile's Scott Jehl has released iOS-Orientationchange-Fix (read his blog post). This has been a persistent annoyance on iOS since its release. You may be familiar with the mobile viewport tag, which allows you to properly fit sites to ...

Aim/Purpose: Two research objectives were addressed in this study. The first objective was to determine the effect of knowledge management orientation behaviour on business performance, and the second objective was to investigate the mediating effect of market orientation in the relationship between knowledge management orientation behaviour and business performance. Background: In business strategic perspective, the idea of knowledge management has been discussed widely. However, there is a lack of study exploring the notion of knowledge management orientation especially in the perspective of Indonesia’s creative economy sector. Methodology: One hundred and thirty one participants were involved in this study. They were economy creative practitioners in Indonesia. Data were analysed by using Partial Least Squares. Contribution: Upon the completion of the research objectives, this study contributes to both theoretical and practical perspectives. From a theoretical standpoint, this study proposes a conceptual model explaining the relationship among knowledge management orientation behaviour, market orientation, and business performance in Indonesia’s creative economy sector. As this study found a significant effect of knowledge sharing in market orientation and market orientation in business performance, the study showed the mediation role of market orientation in the relationship between knowledge sharing and business performance. From a practical perspective, this study implies a guideline for business practitioners in enhancing business through the application of knowledge management orientation behaviour. Findings: The results show that organizing memory, knowledge absorption, and knowledge receptivity has a direct significant effect on business performance. However, in affecting business performance, knowledge sharing must be mediated by market orientation. Recommendations for Practitioners: Based on the results of the study, practitioners should enhance their behaviour in implementing knowledge management in terms of increasing business performance. In addition, it is suggested that business practitioners must be market driven, as market orientation was found to have an important role in affecting business performance. Recommendation for Researchers: Future researchers might integrate other constructs such as innovation, marketing capabilities, or organizational learning with this current conceptual model to have more comprehensive insight about the relationship between knowledge management orientation and business performance. Impact on Society: This study suggests that business practitioners must have knowledge management driven behaviour as well as market orientation to enhance the performance of their business. Future Research: Future research might add other variables to make the conceptual model more comprehensive and also replicate this study into different industrial settings.

Aim/Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the impact of innovation management and learning orientation as the mechanisms playing the role of an intermediate relationship between entrepreneurial leadership and organisational performance of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Kuwait. Background: SMEs are currently among the principal economic instruments in most industrialised and developing countries. The contribution of SMEs can be viewed from various perspectives primarily related to the crucial role they play in developing entrepreneurial activities, employment generation, and improving innovativeness. Developing countries, including Kuwait and other countries, in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), have recognised the key role played by SMEs as a strong pillar of growth. Consequently, many governments have formulated policies and programmes to facilitate the growth and success of SMEs. Unfortunately, the organisational performance of SMEs in developing countries, particularly in Kuwait, remains below expectations. The lagged growth could be due to a lack of good managerial practices and increasing competition that negatively impact their performance. Numerous researchers discovered the positive effect of entrepreneurial leadership on SMEs’ performance. However, a lack of clarity remains regarding the direct impact of entrepreneurial leadership on SMEs’ performance, especially in developing countries. Therefore, the nexus between entrepreneurial leadership and organisational performance is still indecisive and requires further studies. Methodology: This study adopted a quantitative approach based on a cross-sectional survey and descriptive design to gather data within a specific period. The data were collected by distributing a survey questionnaire to Kuwaiti SMEs’ owners and Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) via online and on-hand instruments. A total of 384 useable questionnaires were obtained. Moreover, the partial least square-structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) analysis was performed to test the hypotheses. Contribution: The current study contributed to the existing literature by developing a moderated mediation model integrating entrepreneurial leadership, innovation management, and learning orientation. The study also investigated their effect on the organisational performance of SMEs. The study findings also bridged the existing significant literature gap regarding the role of these variables on SMEs’ performance in developing countries, particularly in Kuwait, due to the dearth of studies linking these variables in this context. Furthermore, this study empirically confirmed the significant effect of innovation management and learning orientation as intermediate variables in strengthening the relationship between entrepreneurial leadership and organisational performance in the settings of Kuwait SMEs, which has not been verified previously. Findings: The study findings showed the beneficial and significant impact of entrepreneurial leadership and innovation management on SME’s organisational performance. The relationship between entrepreneurial leadership and SMEs’ organisational performance is fundamentally mediated by innovation management and moderated by learning orientation. Recommendations for Practitioners: The present study provides valuable insights and information regarding the factors considered by the government, policymakers, SMEs’ stakeholders, and other authorities in the effort to increase the organisational performance level and facilitate the growth of SMEs in Kuwait. SMEs’ owners or CEOs should improve their awareness and knowledge of the importance of entrepreneurial leadership, innovation management, and learning orientation. These variables will have beneficial effects on the performance and assets to achieve success and sustainability if adopted and managed systematically. This study also recommends that SMEs’ entrepreneurs and top management should facilitate supportive culture by creating and maintaining an organisational climate and structure that encourages learning behaviour and innovation mindset among individuals. The initiative will motivate them towards acquiring, sharing, and utilising knowledge and increasing their ability to manage innovation systemically in all production processes to adapt to new technologies, practices, methods, and different circumstances. Recommendation for Researchers: The study findings highlighted the mediating effect of innovation management on the relationship between entrepreneurial leadership (the independent variable) and SMEs’ organisational performance (the dependent variable) and the moderating effect of learning orientation in the same nexus. These relationships were not extensively addressed in SMEs of developing countries and require further validation. Impact on Society: This study aims to influence the management strategies and practices adopted by entrepreneurs and policymakers who work in SMEs in developing countries. The effect will be reflected in the development of their firms and the national economy in general. Future Research: Future research should investigate the conceptual research framework against the backdrop of other developing economies and in other business settings to generalise the results. Future investigation should seek to establish the effect of entrepreneurial leadership style on other mechanisms, such as knowledge management processes, which could function with entrepreneurial leadership to improve SMEs’ performance efficiently. In addition, future studies may include middle and lower-level managers and employees, leading to more positive outcomes.

Aim/Purpose: This paper aimed to examine the impact of learning orientation on organizational performance of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) via the mediating role of total quality management (TQM) practices and the moderating role of innovation culture. Background: SMEs’ organizational performance in developing countries, particularly in Kuwait, remains below expectation due to increasing competition and inadequate managerial practices that negatively impact their performance. Although several studies had revealed a significant effect of learning orientation on SMEs’ performance, the direct impact of learning orientation on their performance is still unclear. Thus, the link between learning orientation and organizational performance remains inconclusive and requires further examination. Methodology: This study adopted a quantitative approach based on a cross-sectional survey and descriptive design to gather the data in a specific period. The data were collected by distributing a survey questionnaire to the owners and Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of Kuwaiti SMEs using online and on-hand instruments with 384 useable data obtained. Furthermore, the partial least square-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) analysis was performed to test the hypotheses. Contribution: This study bridged the significant gap in the role of learning orientation on SMEs’ performance in developing countries, specifically Kuwait. In this sense, a conceptual model was introduced, comprising a learning orientation, TQM practices, innovation culture, and organizational performance. In addition, this study confirmed the significant influence of TQM practices and innovation culture as intermediate variables in strengthening the relationship between learning orientation and organizational performance, which has not yet been verified in Kuwait. Findings: The results in this study revealed that learning orientation had a significant impact on organizational performance of SMEs in Kuwait. It could be observed that TQM practices play an important role in mediating the relationship between learning orientation and performance of SMEs, as well as that innovation culture plays an important moderating role in the same relation. Recommendations for Practitioners: This study provided a framework for the decision-makers of SMEs on the significant impact of the antecedents that enhanced the level of organizational performance. Hence, owners/CEOs of SMEs should improve their awareness and knowledge of the importance of learning orientation, TQM practices, and innovation culture since it could significantly influence their performance to achieve success and sustainability when adopted and managed systematically. The CEOs should also consider building an innovation culture in the internal environment, which enables them to transform new knowledge and ideas into innovative methods and practices. Recommendation for Researchers: The results in this study highlighted the mediating effect of TQM practices on the relationship between learning orientation (the independent variable) and organizational performance (the dependent variable) of SMEs and the moderating effect of innovation culture in the same nexus. These relationships were not extensively addressed in SMEs and thus required further validation. Impact on Society: This study also influenced the management strategies and practices adopted by entrepreneurs and policymakers working in SMEs in developing countries, which is reflected in their development and the national economy. Future Research: Future studies should apply the conceptual framework of this study and assess it further in other sectors, including large firms in developing and developed countries, to generalize the results. Additionally, other mechanisms should be introduced as significant antecedents of SMEs’ performance, such as market orientation, technological orientation, and entrepreneurial orientation, which could function with learning orientation to influence organizational performance effectively.

We show that the interplay of multiple magnetic sublattices in Er2CuMnMn4O12 leads to four magnetic phase transitions characterized by the onset of ferrimagnetic order, spin-reorientation, spin canting, and the polarization of Er ions. While we elucidate numerous features of this complex magnetic system, the exact nature of the low-temperature coupling between erbium and manganese, and the origin of a k = (0, 0, ½) modulation, remain intriguing topics for future studies.

Through a combination of magnetic susceptibility, specific heat, and neutron powder diffraction measurements we have revealed a sequence of four magnetic phase transitions in the columnar quadruple perovskite Er2CuMnMn4O12. A key feature of the quadruple perovskite structural framework is the complex interplay of multiple magnetic sublattices via frustrated exchange topologies and competing magnetic anisotropies. It is shown that in Er2CuMnMn4O12, this phenomenology gives rise to multiple spin-reorientation transitions driven by the competition of easy-axis single ion anisotropy and the Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction; both within the manganese B-site sublattice. At low temperature, one Er sublattice orders due to a finite f-d exchange field aligned parallel to its Ising axis, while the other Er sublattice remains non-magnetic until a final, symmetry-breaking phase transition into the ground state. This non-trivial low-temperature interplay of transition metal and rare-earth sublattices, as well as an observed k = (0, 0, ½) periodicity in both manganese spin canting and Er ordering, raises future challenges to develop a complete understanding of the R2CuMnMn4O12 family.

The formation of a vitrified thin film embedded with randomly oriented macromolecules is an essential prerequisite for cryogenic sample electron microscopy. Most commonly, this is achieved using the plunge-freeze method first described nearly 40 years ago. Although this is a robust method, the behaviour of different macromolecules shows great variation upon freezing and often needs to be optimized to obtain an isotropic, high-resolution reconstruction. For a macromolecule in such a film, the probability of encountering the air–water interface in the time between blotting and freezing and adopting preferred orientations is very high. 3D reconstruction using preferentially oriented particles often leads to anisotropic and uninterpretable maps. Currently, there are no general solutions to this prevalent issue, but several approaches largely focusing on sample preparation with the use of additives and novel grid modifications have been attempted. In this study, the effect of physical and chemical factors on the orientations of macromolecules was investigated through an analysis of selected well studied macromolecules, and important parameters that determine the behaviour of proteins on cryo-EM grids were revealed. These insights highlight the nature of the interactions that cause preferred orientations and can be utilized to systematically address orientation bias for any given macromolecule and to provide a framework to design small-molecule additives to enhance sample stability and behaviour.

The orientation ordering and assembly behavior of silica–nickel Janus particles in a static external magnetic field were probed by ultra small-angle X-ray scattering (USAXS). Even in a weak applied field, the net magnetic moments of the individual particles aligned in the direction of the field, as indicated by the anisotropy in the recorded USAXS patterns. X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy (XPCS) measurements on these suspensions revealed that the corresponding particle dynamics are primarily Brownian diffusion [Zinn, Sharpnack & Narayanan (2023). Soft Matter, 19, 2311–2318]. At higher fields, the magnetic forces led to chain-like configurations of particles, as indicated by an additional feature in the USAXS pattern. A theoretical framework is provided for the quantitative interpretation of the observed anisotropic scattering diagrams and the corresponding degree of orientation. No anisotropy was detected when the magnetic field was applied along the beam direction, which is also replicated by the model. The method presented here could be useful for the interpretation of oriented scattering patterns from a wide variety of particulate systems. The combination of USAXS and XPCS is a powerful approach for investigating asymmetric colloidal particles in external fields.

The application of grazing-incidence total X-ray scattering (GITXS) for pair distribution function (PDF) analysis using >50 keV X-rays from synchrotron light sources has created new opportunities for structural characterization of supported thin films with high resolution. Compared with grazing-incidence wide-angle X-ray scattering, which is only useful for highly ordered materials, GITXS/PDFs expand such analysis to largely disordered or nanostructured materials by examining the atomic pair correlations dependent on the direction relative to the surface of the supporting substrate. A characterization of nanocrystalline In2O3-derived thin films is presented here with in-plane-isotropic and out-of-plane-anisotropic orientational ordering of the atomic structure, each synthesized using different techniques. The atomic orientations of such films are known to vary based on the synthetic conditions. Here, an azimuthal orientational analysis of these films using GITXS with a single incident angle is shown to resolve the markedly different orientations of the atomic structures with respect to the planar support and the different degrees of long-range order, and hence, the terminal surface chemistries. It is anticipated that orientational analysis of GITXS/PDF data will offer opportunities to extend structural analyses of thin films by providing a means to qualitatively determine the major atomic orientation within nanocrystalline and, eventually, non-crystalline films.

The spatial orientation of α lamellae in a metastable β-Ti matrix of Timetal LCB (Ti–6.8 Mo–4.5 Fe–1.5 Al in wt%) was examined and the orientation of the hexagonal close-packed α lattice in the α lamella was determined. For this purpose, a combination of methods of small-angle X-ray scattering, scanning electron microscopy and electron backscatter diffraction was used. The habit planes of α laths are close to {111}β, which corresponds to (1320)α in the hexagonal coordinate system of the α phase. The longest α lamella direction lies approximately along one of the 〈110〉β directions which are parallel to the specific habit plane. Taking into account the average lattice parameters of the β and α phases in aged conditions in Timetal LCB, it was possible to index all main axes and faces of an α lath not only in the cubic coordinate system of the parent β phase but also in the hexagonal system of the α phase.

Slow-cooled CF8M duplex stainless steel is used for critical parts of the primary coolant pipes of nuclear reactors. This steel can endure severe service conditions, but it tends to become more brittle upon very long-term aging (tens of years). Therefore, it is essential to understand its specific microstructure and temporal evolution. As revealed by electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) analyses, the microstructure consists of millimetre-scale ferritic grains within which austenite lath packets have grown with preferred crystallographic orientations concerning the parent ferritic phase far from the ferrite grain boundaries. In these lath packets where the austenite phase is nucleated, the lath morphology and crystal orientation accommodate the two ferrite orientations. Globally, the Pitsch orientation relationship appears to display the best agreement with the experimental data compared with other classical relationships. The austenite lath packets are parallel plate-shaped laths, characterized by their normal n. A novel methodology is introduced to elucidate the expected relationship between n and the crystallographic orientation given the coarse interfaces, even though n is only partly known from the observation surface, in contrast to the 3D crystal orientations measured by EBSD. The distribution of retrieved normals n is shown to be concentrated over a set of discrete orientations. Assuming that the ferrite and austenite obey the Pitsch orientation relationship, the determined lath normals are close to an invariant direction of the parent phase given by the same orientation relationship.

The demand for family caregivers for adults who are 65 or older is increasing significantly, and family caregivers need more recognition, information, and support to fulfill their responsibilities and maintain their own health, financial security, and well-being, says a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

The National Institutes of Health should adopt new practices and standardized language to collect data about sex, gender identity, and sexual orientation from survey respondents or research participants. Better measurements will improve data quality, as well as NIH’s ability to identify and understand LGBTQI+ populations.

The complaint alleges that this policy was unfair and facially discriminated on the basis of sex and/or sexual orientation.

The federal Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs is holding a basic orientation course Aug. 21 for providers recently authorized to render medical treatment and evaluations for injured federal workers. The program will…

Orientation & Identity

Wayfinding, signage design is still a young profession, balancing on the edge of two and three dimensional design. Wayfinding often is described as spatial problem solving and designers are multidisciplinary, with a psychological look into showing the way.

The book Orientation & Identity has 17 different projects discussed and show the potential for clients, urban planners, entrepreneurs and politicians. Each project is described from designer and client point of reference, giving a great insight on how the projects came together. This heavy weighted book shows a great in-depth insight in the field of architecture, environmental graphic design and wayfinding.

About Orientation & Identity

The first few chapters give an insight on identity and orientation standard, the philosophy and architecture. The wide range of interviews include, city-wayfinding, airport signage, Dutch road signs, museum design and corporate wayfinding in Europe. The book is written in both German and English, at first you need to adjust a bit to find the reading language of choice, after a few moments I was used reading the bottom of the pages.

The case studies starts off with a introduction of the topic followed by the people behind the projects, with full background details you will get a good feeling of who participated in the project. The interviews start by asking who participated and why projects are initiated, then the story following the discussion during the project. A great insight on how they made specific choices to come to a solution for the project.

The pages are filled with full color (detailed) photos of projects accompanied by sketches and / or 2D images of the wayfinding systems.

Projects included in the book:

• Legible London, London; City wayfinding
• Dialogmuseum, Frankfurt; Museum wayfinding
• Effenaar, Eindhoven; Environmental identity
• Messe, Stuttgart; Identity and wayfinding
• College wayfinding
• Dutch road signage, Holland; Typography Road signs and wayfinding
• Zürich Airport, Zürich; signage design and wayfinding strategy
• Lower Austrian Clinics, Niederösterreich; Hospital wayfinding systems
• and much much more

As the true value of the book is the various insights on the people involved to get a great perspective on how the projects emerged.

Conclusion

I personally enjoyed reading Orientation & Identity for various reasons; the focus of projects are European, that makes this book very relevant for EU countries and stands out to the many US wayfinding / signage books. Secondly the in-depth interviews with various stakeholders, architects and designers behind a project makes it interesting to get a peek inside a project. Lastly the book also provides in technical details, at the end some projects are displayed with typefaces details, construction drawings and iconography.

The language separation is not disturbing but could have been done better in my opinion and the weight of the book does not make it comfortable holding it for a longer period of time. Overall, if you are looking for the stories behind large-scale wayfinding and signage projects in Europe, this is the book for you.

Availability

The book is worldwide available via amazon.

Dan and Art share some great thoughts on making sure your orientation process is as effective as possible, and they issue a challenge!

What does orientation look like in your restoration company?

Who should be designated to do the orientation for new hires at your restoration company?

Just as you do on-boarding for your own employees, you should also be sure your subcontractors understand your policies and philosophies.

New members-elect arrived on Capitol Hill for orientation on Tuesday eager to jump in and get to work as the House prepares for fresh faces to join their ranks with a majority still in play. With most races in the 2024 election called, both Democratic and Republican representatives-elect participated in forums, meetings, and orientation classes […]

Democrats and elites are making straight white men the enemy of their new world order. Blacks, hispanics, gays are now the good guys; straight white men are the bad guys. Continue reading →

Today’s methods for computing orientation are quaternion and rotation matrix. However, their efficiencies are tarnished by the complexity of the rotation matrix and the counterintuitivity of quaternion. A better method is presented here. It uses complex multiplication for rotating vectors in 3D space and can compute orientation without angle and trigonometric functions, which is simple,...

Netflix's film is based on a 1955 novel about a man who goes in search of the father he’d never met — only to discover that his father is dead, and the village he inhabited is haunted by ghosts.

Colors to Fit Your Kitchen’s Orientation

New Student Orientation (NSO) happens each summer to prepare accepted students for the fall semester. The first of several NSO sessions at Penn State York will take place on June 12.

People's reported sexual orientation could change after reading about the nature of sexual orientation, according to a study published in journal iNature's Scientific Reports/i.

The report highlighted the Trump’s plans include imposing a 60 per cent tariff on imports from China, as well as additional tariffs ranging from 10 per cent to 20 per cent on imports from other countries

Four Indian-Americans, including two women, elected to House of Representatives and the Senate in the historic US general elections are here for their first official Congressional orientation meeting to find out how they can work collectively.

In the case of Smith v Ideal Shopping Direct Ltd [2013], the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) considered the statutory definition of harassment. Facts Mr Smith was an openly gay employee of Ideal Shopping Direct Limited. He brought a claim allegin...

Crystallographic textures, as they develop for example during cold forming, can have a significant influence on the mechanical properties of metals, such as plastic anisotropy. Textures are typically characterized by a non-uniform distribution of crystallographic orientations that can be measured by diffraction experiments like electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). Such experimental data usually contain a large number of data points, which must be significantly reduced to be used for numerical modeling. However, the challenge in such data reduction is to preserve the important characteristics of the experimental data, while reducing the volume and preserving the computational efficiency of the numerical model. For example, in micromechanical modeling, representative volume elements (RVEs) of the real microstructure are generated and the mechanical properties of these RVEs are studied by the crystal plasticity finite element method. In this work, a new method is developed for extracting a reduced set of orientations from EBSD data containing a large number of orientations. This approach is based on the established integer approximation method and it minimizes its shortcomings. Furthermore, the L1 norm is applied as an error function; this is commonly used in texture analysis for quantitative assessment of the degree of approximation and can be used to control the convergence behavior. The method is tested on four experimental data sets to demonstrate its capabilities. This new method for the purposeful reduction of a set of orientations into equally weighted orientations is not only suitable for numerical simulation but also shows improvement in results in comparison with other available methods.

An X-ray cross-correlation study of the impact of ligand composition and salt content on the self-assembly of soft-shell nanoparticles is presented, indicating symmetry-selective formation of order.

The crystal structure of the organic pigment 2-monomethyl-quinacridone (Pigment Red 192, C21H14N2O2) was solved from X-ray powder diffraction data. The resulting average structure is described in space group Poverline 1, Z = 1 with the molecule on the inversion centre. The molecules are arranged in chains. The molecules, which have no inversion symmetry, show orientational head-to-tail disorder. In the average structure, the methyl group is disordered and found on both ends of the molecule with an occupancy of 0.5 each. The disorder and the local structure were investigated using various ordered structural models. All models were analysed by three approaches: Rietveld refinement, structure refinement to the pair distribution function (PDF) and lattice-energy minimization. All refinements converged well. The Rietveld refinement provided the average structure and gave no indication of a long-range ordering. The refinement to the PDF turned out to be very sensitive to small structural details, giving insight into the local structure. The lattice-energy minimizations revealed a significantly preferred local ordering of neighbouring molecules along the [0ar 11] direction. In conclusion, all methods indicate a statistical orientational disorder with a preferred parallel orientation of molecules in one direction. Additionally, electron diffraction revealed twinning and faint diffuse scattering.