bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Adverse Events Following BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine Immunization among Healthcare Workers in a Tertiary Hospital in Johor, Malaysia
Authors: Tan Aie Yen , Chang Chee Tao , Yu Yong King , Low Yi Xin , Razali Najah Fatehah Mohd , Tey Sui Yan , Lee Shaun Wen Huey
Published: March 2022

Background: The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), or 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19), was declared as pandemic in early 2020. While several studies reported the short-term adverse events (AE) of the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, medium-term AE have not been extensively evaluated. This study aimed to evaluate the 6-month side effect profiles of the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine. Methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study conducted in a tertiary hospital. Hospital workers who received two doses of the Cominarty (BNT162b2) mRNA vaccine, six months post-vaccination, were invited to participate in this study. All participants completed a self-reported survey assessing AEs occurrence and severity, duration of onset and recovery and if they previously reported these AEs. Results: Of the 670 respondents who completed the survey, 229 (34.2%) experienced at least one AEs, with a total of 937 AEs reported during the 6-month period. After the first dose, the most common reported localized symptoms were pain (n = 106, 27.2%), swelling (n = 38, 9.8%) and erythematous (n = 12, 3.1%) at injection site. Systemic symptoms reported include fatigue (n = 72, 18.5%), fever (n = 55, 14.1%) and headache (n = 46, 11.8%). After the second dose, pain at site of injection (n = 112, 20.4%), swelling (n = 42, 7.7%) and erythematous (n = 14, 2.6%) were among the localized AE reported, while fever (n = 121, 22.1%), fatigue (n = 101, 18.4%) and headache (n = 61, 11.1%) were the most common systemic AE. The proportion of respondents who experienced moderate (first dose: 156 events; second dose: 272 events) and severe (1st dose: 21 events; 2nd dose: 30 events) AEs were higher after the second dose. Most AEs commonly resolved within 1–2 days, and none required hospitalization. No new onset of AE was observed 7 days post-vaccination. A total of 137 (59.8%) participants did not proceed to formal AE reporting. Conclusion: Most of the AEs reported were of mild to moderate intensity and short-term, consistent with those reported in previous studies. No medium-term finding was detected in the survey. AE reporting was not routinely performed, necessitating the attention of health authorities in order to enhance pharmacovigilance.
Factors Associated with COVID-19 Vaccine Booster Hesitancy: A Retrospective Cohort Study, Fukushima Vaccination Community Survey
Authors: Yoshida Makoto , Kobashi Yurie , Kawamura Takeshi , Shimazu Yuzo , Nishikawa Yoshitaka , Omata Fumiya , Zhao Tianchen , Yamamoto Chika , Kaneko Yudai , Nakayama Aya , Takita Morihito , Ito Naomi , Kawashima Moe , Sugiura Sota , Shibuya Kenji , Iwami Shingo , Kim Kwangsu , Iwanami Shoya , Kodama Tatsuhiko , Tsubokura Masaharu
Published: March 2022

This was a retrospective cohort study, which aimed to investigate the factors associated with hesitancy to receive a third dose of a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine. A paper-based questionnaire survey was administered to all participants. This study included participants who provided answers in the questionnaire about whether they had an intent to receive a third dose of a vaccine. Data on sex, age, area of residence, adverse reactions after the second vaccination, whether the third vaccination was desired, and reasons to accept or hesitate over the booster vaccination were retrieved. Among the 2439 participants, with a mean (±SD) age of 52.6 ± 18.9 years, and a median IgG-S antibody titer of 324.9 (AU/mL), 97.9% of participants indicated their intent to accept a third vaccination dose. The logistic regression revealed that participants of a younger age (OR = 0.98; 95% CI: 0.96–1.00) and with a higher antibody level (OR = 2.52; 95% CI: 1.27–4.99) were positively associated with hesitancy over the third vaccine. The efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccine and concerns about adverse reactions had a significant impact on behavior regarding the third vaccination. A rapid increase in the booster dose rate is needed to control the pandemic, and specific approaches should be taken with these groups that are likely to hesitate over the third vaccine, subsequently increasing booster contact rate.
Side Effects of Mixing Vaccines against COVID-19 Infection among Saudi Population
Authors: Alshahrani Mohammed Merae , Alqahtani Abdulaziz
Published: March 2022

Background: Mixing two different vaccines has been utilized to minimize the impact of any supply chain interruptions and to combat the COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia. We conducted this study to evaluate the side effects, if any, associated with the mixed vaccination approach. Methods: An online survey study was administered among COVID-19 vaccine recipients in Saudi Arabia. Symptoms post vaccination were assessed in 311 vaccinated participants with two matched doses of either Oxford–AstraZeneca or Pfizer–BioNTech vaccines, or two mixed doses, respectively. Results: After the second dose, around 31% of the matched vaccine group reported no symptoms, while only 6% of the mixed vaccine group reported no symptoms. Most of the side effects after the second dose associated with matched vaccines were injection site pain (46%), while the mixed vaccines group reported significantly more symptoms compared with the matched vaccine group, which included fever (41%), fatigue (66%), muscle pain (44%), chills (17%) and injection site pain (60%). Conclusion: The data suggest the overall safety of the mixed vaccination protocol; however, it might be associated with side effects such as fever, fatigue, muscle pain, chills, and injection site pain. Further studies with a larger cohort size could shed more light on this aspect, which would be imperative for deciding to utilize a mixed vaccination approach.
Humoral Response after Three Doses of mRNA-1273 or BNT162b2 SARS-CoV-2 Vaccines in Hemodialysis Patients
Authors: Broseta José Jesús , Rodríguez-Espinosa Diana , Cuadrado Elena , Rodríguez Néstor , Bedini José Luis , Maduell Francisco
Published: March 2022

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to be a worldwide health issue. Among hemodialysis (HD) patients, two-dose immunization schemes with mRNA vaccines have contributed to preventing severe COVID-19 cases; however, some have not produced a sufficient humoral response, and most have developed a rapid decline in antibody levels over the months following vaccination. This observational, prospective, multi-center study evaluated the humoral response in terms of presence and levels of IgG antibodies to the receptor-binding domain of the S1 spike antigen of SARS-CoV-2 (anti-S1-RBD IgG) to the third dose of SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccines, either the mRNA-1273 (Moderna) or BNT162b2 (Pfizer), in 153 patients from three dialysis units affiliated to Hospital Clínic of Barcelona (Spain). Most hemodialysis patients responded intensely to this third vaccine dose, achieving the seroconversion in three out of four non- or weak responders to two doses. Moreover, 96.1% maintained the upper limit or generated higher titers than after the second. BNT162b2 vaccine, active cancer, and immunosuppressive treatment were related to a worse humoral response. Every hemodialysis patient should be administered a third vaccine dose six months after receiving the second one. Despite the lack of data, immunosuppressed patients and those with active cancer may benefit from more frequent vaccine boosters.
A Novel Radial Basis Function Approach for Infiltration-Induced Landslides in Unsaturated Soils
Authors: Ku Cheng-Yu , Liu Chih-Yu , Tsai Frank T.-C.
Published: March 2022

In this article, the modeling of infiltration--induced landslides, in unsaturated soils using the radial basis function (RBF) method, is presented. A novel approach based on the RBF method is proposed to deal with the nonlinear hydrological process in the unsaturated zone. The RBF is first adopted for curve fitting to build the representation of the soil water characteristic curve (SWCC) that corresponds to the best estimate of the relationship between volumetric water content and matric suction. The meshless method with the RBF is then applied to solve the nonlinear Richards equation with the infiltration boundary conditions. Additionally, the fictitious time integration method is adopted in the meshless method with the RBF for tackling the nonlinearity. To model the stability of the landslide, the stability analysis of infinite slope coupled with the nonlinear Richards equation considering the fluctuation of transient pore water pressure is developed. The validation of the proposed approach is accomplished by comparing with exact solutions. The comparative analysis of the factor of safety using the Gardner model, the van Genuchten model and the proposed RBF model is provided. Results illustrate that the RBF is advantageous for reconstructing the SWCC with better estimation of the relationship than conventional parametric Gardner and van Genuchten models. We also found that the computed safety factors significantly depend on the representation of the SWCC. Finally, the stability of landslides is highly affected by matric potential in unsaturated soils during the infiltration process.
Mapping Groundwater Potential Zones Using Analytical Hierarchical Process and Multicriteria Evaluation in the Central Eastern Desert, Egypt
Authors: Khan Mohd Yawar Ali , ElKashouty Mohamed , Tian Fuqiang
Published: March 2022

Exploring alternative freshwater resources other than those surrounding the Nile is critical to disperse Egypt’s population to other uninhabited desert areas. This study aims to locate groundwater potential zones (GWPZs) in the water-scarce desert between the Qina and Safga-Bir Queh regions to build groundwater wells, thereby attracting and supporting people’s demand for water, food, and urban development. Multi-criteria evaluation (MCE) and analytical hierarchical process (AHP) techniques based on remote sensing (RS) and Geographic Information System (GIS) were used to map GWPZs. The outcome of the GWPZs map was divided into six different classes. High and very-high aquifer recharge potentials were localized in the middle and western parts, spanning 19.3% and 17% (16.4% and 15.7%) by MCE (AHP). Low and very low aquifer recharge potentials were distributed randomly in the eastern part over an area of 29% and 14.3% (26.9% and 6.1%) by MCE (AHP). Validation has been undertaken between the collected Total Dissolved Solid (TDS) and with the calculated GWPZs, indicating that the highest and lowest TDS concentrations of most aquifers are correlated with low to very low and high to very high aquifer potential, respectively. The study is promising and can be applied anywhere with similar setups for groundwater prospect and management.
Regional Rainfall Regimes Affect the Sensitivity of the Huff Quartile Classification to the Method of Event Delineation
Authors: Dunkerley David
Published: March 2022

The widely used Huff quartile approach classifies rainfall events according to which quarter of their duration contains the largest rainfall depth. The rainfall events themselves are often delineated by specifying a minimum rainless interevent time (MIT) that must precede and follow a period of rainfall for it to be identified as a separate event. However, there is no standard or universally applicable value of this MIT criterion. Some studies have stipulated as little as 15 rainless minutes to mark the start of a new event, whilst others have required 24 h or more. The present work investigates how the adoption of different values of the MIT criterion, based, for instance, on the response time of a catchment or the drying time of a vegetation canopy, affects the Huff quartile classification. To date, this has not been explored. To address this issue, the Huff classification is herein applied to data from two Australian ground observing stations, one arid continental and one wet tropical. For each location, rainfall events were delineated using values of the MIT criterion ranging from 30 min to 24 h. In comparison with the 6 h MIT adopted by Huff (1967) as being appropriate for locations in the eastern USA, results show that, for instance, the proportion of events classified as 4Q ranges from 70.9% larger when events are delineated with a MIT = 30 min to 50.8% smaller when events are delineated using a MIT = 24 h. Moreover, the changes in the Huff classification that result from the use of different MIT values were not the same in wet tropical and arid locations. It is argued here that these findings reflect complexity in the arrival of rainfall, including differences in event duration and intraevent intermittency, that cannot be captured in the Huff classification system. Relevant rainfall regime characteristics such as these are likely to vary geographically, and the differences shown between the eastern USA and the two Australian locations are only examples of what is likely a more general effect. The results show that there is no single and generally applicable ‘Huff classification’ process, and that rather than a 6 h MIT being applicable everywhere, different MIT durations are needed in locations having differing rainfall regimes.
Density Effect of Eisenia sp. Epigeic Earthworms on the Hydraulic Conductivity of Sand Filters for Wastewater Treatment
Authors: Gilibert Océane , Gerino Magali , Costa Dan-Tâm , Sauvage Sabine , Julien Frédéric , Capowiez Yvan , Orange Didier
Published: March 2022

Inside sand filters, as inside other microporous substrates, several invertebrates create temporary burrows that impact on water movement through the filter. Lumbricids Eisenia fetida and Eisenia andrei live under a wide range of environmental conditions and have a high reproduction rate so they are good candidates for ecological engineering tests. We assessed the impact of these species at different densities (0, 100, 500, 1000 g m−2) on the hydraulic conductivity of small-sized experimental filters made of columns filled with filter sand classically used for sanitation mixed with 5% organic matter. The hydraulic conductivity was recorded every 7 days over 37 days in non-saturated conditions. On day 23, 40 g of peat bedding was added at the column surfaces to simulate a surface clogging organic matter pulse input. Columns with an earthworm density equal or superior to 500 g m−2 revealed the highest hydraulic conductivities during the first 21 days. At these densities, the hydraulic conductivity was also restored in less than 7 days after the addition of the surface organic matter, showing the influence of the earthworm species on the resilience capacity of the hydraulic conductivity. It was also highlighted that the hydraulic flow was dependent on the lumbricid densities with an optimal density/effect around 500 g m−2 in this specific substrate composition. This study showed that the feeding habits and burrowing activity of both Eisenia species significantly enhanced the hydraulic flow in a sandy substrate, providing a sustainable solution to limit the clogging of the substrate similar to the one used in filters to treat wastewater.
Mechanism of formation of the optimal investment portfolio of securities on the Markovits model on the example of shares of the largest oil companies of the Russian Federation
Authors: Yarosh A. .. , Rakhmatullina Yu. ..
Published: March 2022

This article discusses the mechanism for the formation of an optimal investment portfolio of securities according to the Markowitz model using the example of shares of the largest oil companies of the Russian Federation, the direct optimization problem, which maximizes the expected return on the stock portfolio and the inverse optimization problem, minimizes the overall risk for given restrictions, on the basis of the obtained solutions of the above problems, conclusions are drawn about the structure of the securities portfolio.
Analysis of the fulfillment of legal standards regulating the provision of subsidies for legal entities
Authors: Frumina S. ..
Published: March 2022

The purpose of the article is to develop proposals for adapting the most relevant Annotation. The purpose of the article is to identify discrepancies in regulatory legal documents and develop proposals for systematizing the legal framework governing the provision of subsidies to legal entities. The article analyzes the current regulatory legal documents governing the provision of subsidies to legal entities, in particular, the rules for granting subsidies, their compliance with the requirements provided for by the RF Government Decree № 1492, state programs and subprograms within which subsidies are distributed in specific areas of economic development. The authors are provided with facts confirming the need to correct and clarify legal documents, justify. When writing the article, the methods of comparative analysis, induction and deduction, graphical method of data visualization were used. The practical significance of the article lies in the possibility of clarifying regulatory legal documents in accordance with the proposals formulated in the article.
Company performance measurement systems:restrictions and ways of their elimination
Authors: Pristavka A. ..
Published: March 2022

The article considers the main restrictions of the existing performance measurement systems of a company, suggests possible ways to eliminate the identified restrictions by including in these systems an indicator of economic value added as well as shifting the emphasis when evaluating the effectiveness of the company's activity from general functional blocks to its main business processes on the example of a Balanced Scorecard by D.P. Norton and R.S. Kaplan. The expediency of such an assessment for the successful operation of the company in modern conditions is very significant, because it can help the management not only achieve the desired results, but also see the potential for improving efficiency.
Development of lease accounting in the conditions of application of the new federal standard
Authors: Selikhova A. .. , Kunitsyn D. ..
Published: March 2022

In the context of the changeover from national accounting standards to international financial reporting standards, a number of issues arise that require additional research. The article discusses the problems of calculation the fair value of the leased object and the discount rate in the new federal standard FSBU 25/2018 "Lease accounting". The methodological base of the study includes a critical analysis of the new requirements for accounting for lease transactions in the system of new federal accounting standards in terms of their validity, completeness and consistency.
Approaches to determining the operational efficiency of banks
Authors: Mogilnikov S. .
Published: March 2022

Having an efficient banking system is crucial to ensuring sustainable economic growth, but the resulting uncertainty threatens the economic stability on which most financial companies thrive. Banks' interest income is constantly decreasing, and competition in the transactional business is increasing. There is a need to focus efforts on increasing the operational efficiency of banks after a long period of concentration on customer satisfaction. The author continues to study the methodological elaboration of this problem, analyzing the scientific literature, including approaches to determining the operational efficiency of banks.
Debatable issues of positioning the modern monetary system
Authors: Kropin Yu. .
Published: March 2022

The relevance of the topic of the article is determined by the need to form an integral theory of the monetary system of the country. The purpose of the article is to critically comprehend the view of the neoliberal school of economic thought on the modern monetary system as fiduciary-active. The positive task of the article is to argue the position that money in modern conditions is not a representative of trust in the reputation of the Bank of Russia as a reliable counterparty to market relations and not its assets, but the material content of the market in all its variety of forms. The main research methods were deduction and induction, organic sequence in the presentation of the material and a number of other scientific methods. As a result of the conducted research, it was concluded that the modern monetary system has a market character.
The Lower Palaeolithic assemblage of Medzhibozh 1 layer III (Ukraine) and its palaeoenvironmental context
Authors: Stepanchuk Vadim , Ryzhov Sergii , Veklych Yurii , Naumenko Oleksandr , Matviishyna Zhanna , Karmazynenko Sergii
Published: March 2022

The main focus of this paper is to present the stone assemblage of one of the Lower Palaeolithic layers of Medzhibozh 1. Detailed typological and technological characteristics of the stone industry of layer III of the locality Medzhibozh 1 are given against the background of geomorphological characteristics and features of the Quaternary structure of the area. Medzhibozh 1 represents one of several multi-layered sites of Lower Palaeolithic age on the Upper Bug, among which are also Medzhibozh A, Golovchintsy 1 and Golovchintsy 2. Two layers containing Lower Palaeolithic evidence are distinguished in the profile of Medzhibozh to date. Medzhibozh 1 layer III is more recent, the age of culture-bearing sediments is currently correlated to MIS 11. This dating is fundamentally consistent with diverse biostratigraphic indications as well as several pilot ESR dates ranging between 373– 399 thousand years. Geomorphological features of the structure of the Medzhibozh area allow for the age estimation of culture-bearing sediments as older and presumably attribute them to MIS 15– 13. Despite its relatively young age, the Medzhibozh 1 layer III industry demonstrates quite archaic technology and typology. The knapping technology is almost totally characterised by the application of the bipolar on anvil technique. The basic range of lithic products includes bipolar cores, segmented supports, choppers, segments, flakes, and debris. Despite the abundance of items with signs of utilisation, pieces with secondary worked edges are isolated and atypical. Well-defined types of flake tools are practically not present. There are no freehand cores. There is no indication of use of bifacial technology. Currently, there is absolutely no formal ground to attribute the industry to the Acheulean. Instead, the Medzhibozh 1 layer III industry can currently be compared to a “ core-and-flake” industry, what is traditionally defined as Oldowan or mode 1. Perhaps the reason for the observed archaism can to some extent be explained by the properties of the available raw materials (granitoides of crystalline shield and mostly small-sized siliceous supports of Upper Cretaceous age) and the economic profile of occupation or recovered area (recurrent butchering site).
At the onset of the Micoquian in Central Europe: raw material constraints and technological versatility at Neumark-Nord 2/0 (Germany)
Authors: Picin Andrea
Published: March 2022

After the Eemian, Neanderthals of Central Europe produced new stone tools for coping with the increased seasonality and climatic deterioration of the Last Glacial. This new cultural tradition is named Micoquian, and is characterized by a broad range of asymmetric backed bifaces, foliate artefacts and bifacial scrapers. Despite the abundant number of sites and the broad geographical expansion, technological information on the early stages of development of the Micoquian are still few. This paper presents new data on the lithic assemblage of Neumark-Nord NN2/ 0, a Micoquian occupation dated to the MIS 5c/ 5a. The results point out a technical continuity with the previous Eemian settlements whereas the production of backed bifaces shows to be associated to new strategies of raw material economy in the technological context of Quina scrapers. This behaviour is different from other sites in Central Europe suggesting that the emergence of the Micoquian at the beginning of the Weichselian followed different trajectories.
Palaeolithic reindeer hunting camps from Cosăuți (Middle Dniester, Moldova)
Authors: Covalenco Serghei , Croitor Roman
Published: March 2022

Several Late Palaeolithic sites from the Middle Dniester area are characterized by specific artefact associations and archaeozoological assemblages that permit to include them in a particular category of reindeer hunting camps of the Palaeolithic communities. Among the Palaeolithic reindeer hunting camps, the multi-layered site of Cosăuți has a particular importance, since it includes more than two dozens of cultural layers dated from 20 to 14 thousand years BP. Nearly each of those strata exhibits an abundance of reindeer remains that represents up to 90% of the total archaeozoological material. The site of Cosăuți has yielded a variety of hunting weapons (spearheads, darts and spears, and a harpoon) that served for killing reindeer crossing the Dniester during the migration seasons. The geographical position of the site allows to control the part of the river valley where migrating reindeer herds crossed the Dniester and therefore the Cosăuți site had an advantageous strategical position. In many respects, the Palaeolithic site of Cosăuți resembles the location of the hunting camps of the ethnographically studied communities of caribou hunters in North America.
The lithic material discovered in the Starčevo-Criș cultural layer from the archaeological site of Negrilești-Curtea Școlii, Galați County. Text
Authors: Ilie Costel , Mihail Florian
Published: March 2022

În această lucrare sunt analizate piesele de piatră șlefuită și cioplită descoperite în nivelul cultural corespunzând culturii Starčevo-Criș, din situl arheologic Negrilești– Curtea Școlii (jud. Galați). Situl amintit se află în intravilanul satului Negrilești, pe terasa înaltă a râului Bârlad. Grupul de piese are în componență 91 de exemplare, dintre care 11 sunt de piatră șlefuită și 80 de piatră cioplită (silex și obsidian). În cadrul analizei prezentate în această contribuție arheologică au fost tratate mai multe aspecte a căror cunoaștere și interpretare contribuie la o bună înțelegere a circuitului parcurs de un obiect, de la stadiul de bloc de materie primă la cel de obiect abandonat, la determinarea materiei prime, încadrarea tipologică precum și la realizarea unor observații de ordin tehnologic și funcțional.
Human bones from Șoimuș-La Avicola (Ferma 2), Romania, in context
Authors: Ştefan Cristian Eduard
Published: March 2022

În această contribuție autorul prezintă un lot de oase umane descoperite în diferite contexte din așezarea vinčiană de la Șoimuș-La Avicola (Ferma 2), județul Hunedoara, România. Unele dintre acestea arată semne de violență, lucru ce face interpretarea mai dificilă comparativ cu contextele funerare obișnuite din neoliticul sud-est european. Pe de altă parte, acest tip de descoperiri nu este cu totul neobișnuit în neoliticul Europei în a doua jumătate a mileniului VI î. Chr. și prima jumătate a mileniului V î. Chr..
The first greenstone axe in Hungary
Authors: Biró Katalin T. , Szakmány György , Szilágyi Veronika , Kovàcs Zoltàn , Kasztovszky Zsolt , Harsányi Ildikó
Published: March 2022

Topoarele din rocă (de obicei metamorfică) de culoare verde erau considerate foarte valoroase în preistorie. Li se atașa un prestigiu special, iar rocile veneau de la mari distanțe. Cunoașterea rețelei de distribuție a celui mai popular tip de rocă de culoare verde – jadeitul – a luat amploare recent prin proiectul JADE 2 organizat de P. Pétrequin (Pétrequin et alii 2017). În Ungaria, astfel de artefacte au fost identificate și descrise prima dată în 2013 (Szakmány et alii 2013), pentru ca până în 2015 să fie analizate încă 25 (Bendő et alii 2014 2015, 2016, 2019), cărora li s-au adăugat în 2018 încă două (Biró et alii 2018). Recent, o altă piesă, parte a colecțiilor Muzeului Național al Ungariei, a fost identificată și studiată. Din dorința de a o integra circuitului științific internațional, o prezentăm în prezentul articol.
A new species of Loxosceles Heineken & Lowe, 1832 (Araneae: Sicariidae) from Chile
Authors: Taucare-Ríos Andrés , Brescovit Antonio D. , Villablanca Javier
Published: March 2022

A new species of Loxosceles of the laeta species-group, L. vicentei sp. nov., found in Chile is described and illustrated. The male of this species can be distinguished from that of other species by having a long and straight embolus with a truncated tip. The female is distinguished by the spermatheca with a large base and two slender, curved receptacles in both sides.
Ege Bölgesi’ndeki Çevreci Sivil Toplum Kuruluşları: Örgütsel Özellikler ve İlişkiler
Authors: CAN Özge , GÖNENÇ Defne
Published: March 2022

Hızlı sanayileşme, çarpık kentleşme ve derinleşen neoliberalizm çevre tahribatını giderek hızlandırmakta, bu tahribatı önlemek için farklı çevreci örgütlenmeler ortaya çıkmaktadır. Araştırmamızın amacı, Ege Bölgesi’nde faaliyet gösteren çevreci sivil toplum kuruluşlarını, kurumsal ve finansal özellikleri, amaçları, çevresel öncelikleri, stratejik eylemleri ve ilişkileri açısından çok boyutlu biçimde incelemektir. Toplam 150 çevreci kuruluştan anket yöntemiyle veri toplanmış ve tanımlayıcı istatistiksel analizler gerçekleştirilmiştir. Araştırma bulguları, incelenen çevreci örgütlerin hem çevre sorununa genel yaklaşımları hem de odaklandıkları çevresel meseleler açısından önemli bir çeşitliliğe sahip olduklarını göstermektedir. Öte yandan, bu kuruluşların amaç, faaliyet ve mücadele taktikleri, karar verici aktörler üzerinde doğrudan etki yaratmak yerine bireyleri ve toplumu bilinçlendirmeye dönük daha edilgen bir nitelik taşımaktadır. Bir diğer önemli bulgu, hem kaynak yetersizliği hem de ideolojik sebeplerle birçok çevreci örgütün bağlantı ve işbirliklerinin zayıf olmasıdır. Bu yetersizliklerin nedenleri, yereldeki etkin mücadele örneklerinin ve ortaklıkların hangi koşullarda ve nasıl çoğaltılabileceği, öne çıkan sorulardır.
INSTITUTIONAL STRUCTURE OF RUSSIAN-KYRGYZ HUMANITARIAN COOPERATION
Authors: Muratshina K.G. , Mamin N.V.
Published: March 2022

This paper discusses the institutional structure of humanitarian cooperation between the Russian Federation and the Kyrgyz Republic. Humanitarian cooperation involves the following areas of bilateral relations: education, science, culture, sport, tourism, youth policy, and media. The authors display and discuss the institutions, which put in practice the Russian-Kyrgyz interaction, their scope and symmetry. The study involved such sources of information, as bilateral diplomatic documents, reports of state and non-state organisations, field research, and media news archives. In the paper, the authors consequently study state and non-state institutions of cooperation. The paper concludes that the institutional structure of cooperation between Russia and Kyrgyzstan, including both state and non-state organisations, covers all humanitarian areas. The most diverse is the structure of the bilateral contacts in education and culture. Institutions of different nature interact in the process of cooperation. Meanwhile, the structure of cooperation is asymmetrical, as the number of Russian institutions (both state and non-state) is larger, and their contribution is larger, too. However, the Kyrgyz side, even possessing less resources, is evidently interested in cooperation. The vast humanitarian potential of the diasporas is a specific factor of the relationship. The multiple organisations of Russians in Kyrgyzstan are a significant resource for cooperation, and require more financial and organisational support from Russia. There are many Kyrgyz communities in Russia, too, and they also participate in cultural activities, so this institution can be further involved in bilateral cooperation. People-to-people exchanges between non-state institutions can be successful and should be further developed. Generally, Russia needs to maintain and enhance its humanitarian activities in Kyrgyzstan, raise the intensity of the institutional contacts, and develop successful partnerships, while the risk of the increasing impact of other leading powers in Kyrgyzstan can destabilize the Kyrgyz society and the long-term Russian-Kyrgyz partnership.
Van Hiele Geometrik Düşünme Düzeyleri, Başarı ve Tutum Arasındaki İlişki: Bir Meta-Analiz Çalışması
Authors: CANTÜRK GÜNHAN Berna , DOLUZENGİN Bedriye , DİNÇER AKSOY Behiye , ÖZDİŞÇİ Selda
Published: March 2022

Bu çalışmada Türkiye’de Van Hiele geometrik düşünme düzeyleri, başarı ve tutum arasındaki ilişkileri araştıran çalışmaların meta-analiz yöntemi ile incelenmesi amaçlanmıştır. Alan yazın taraması sonucunda Van Hiele geometrik düşünme düzeyleri ve araştırma kriterlerine uygun 10 tez ve 5 makale olmak üzere toplam 15 çalışma meta-analize dahil edilmiştir. Bu çalışmalardan geometrik düşünme düzeyleri ile başarı arasındaki ilişkiyi inceleyen çalışmalardan pozitif yönde orta düzeyde bir ortalama etki büyüklüğü (r=0.503) olduğu görülmüştür. Bu etki konu alanı ve yayın türü moderatör değişkenlerine göre anlamlı bir farklılık göstermezken öğrenim kademesine göre anlamlı farklılık vardır. Geometrik düşünme düzeyleri ile tutum arasındaki ilişkiyi inceleyen çalışmalardan pozitif yönde orta düzeyde bir etki büyüklüğü (r=0.394) olduğu görülmüş ve bu etki yayın türü moderatör değişkenine göre anlamlı değil iken konu alanı ile öğrenim kademesi değişkenlerine göre anlamlıdır. Sonuç olarak, başarı ve tutum olumlu yönde arttıkça geometrik düşünme düzeyleri artmaktadır.
Fringe- and speckle-free holographic patterned illumination using time-multiplexed temporal focusing
Authors: Ishikawa Tomohiro , Isobe Keisuke , Inazawa Kenta , Michikawa Takayuki , Namiki Kana , Miyawaki Atsushi , Kannari Fumihiko , Midorikawa Katsumi
Published: March 2022

Multi-photon holographic patterned illumination using temporal focusing (TF) pulses provides 10 μm multi-spots with an axial confinement of 5 μm, enabling parallel photo-stimulation of multi-target cells in three dimensions. However, interference fringes and speckles degrade the uniformity of the spots, causing spatio-temporal fluctuations in photoactivation. Here, we demonstrate fringe- and speckle-free holographic patterned illumination using multifocal time-multiplexed (TM) TF pulses even when the multi-spots overlap spatially. The uniform patterned illumination enabled the expansion of the field-of-view of TM-TF microscopy by more than fivefold and enhanced the axial resolution to 1.3 μm.
Continuous-wave lasing of AlGaN-based ultraviolet laser diode at 274.8 nm by current injection
Authors: Zhang Ziyi , Kushimoto Maki , Yoshikawa Akira , Aoto Koji , Schowalter Leo J. , Sasaoka Chiaki , Amano Hiroshi
Published: March 2022

We demonstrated continuous-wave lasing of an AlGaN-based ultraviolet laser diode, fabricated on a single-crystal AlN substrate when operating at 5 °C. The threshold current density and device series resistance were reduced by improvements to the epitaxial structure and electrode arrangement. A peak wavelength of 274.8 nm was observed for lasing at a drive current over 110 mA, which corresponded to a threshold current density of 3.7 kA cm−2. The operating voltage at the threshold current was as low as 9.6 V.
TO EVALUATE THE ROLE OF SERUM ALBUMIN AS A PREDICTOR OF FUNCTIONAL OUTCOME OF ACUTE ISCHEMIC STROKE
Authors: Kanara L. N. , Chavda Ramde
Published: March 2022

INTRODUCTION Stroke or cerebrovascular accident is a life threatening neurological disorder. It constitutes more than 50% of admissions in a
hospital. Westernization of lifestyle and the resulting demographic transition might increase the burden of stroke even in the developing countries.
Albumin is a multifunctional protein which has been proven to have neuroprotective effects in animal studies. There have been several studies in
the western world including interventional studies trying to explore the scope of albumin as a neuroprotective agent. Some of these have shown that
albumin therapy is capable of minimizing infarction volume and cerebral oedema. Therefore, the present study was conducted to evaluate the role
of serum albumin as a predictor of functional outcome of acute ischemic stroke. AIMS & OBJECTIES To determine the correlation between
serum albumin level and functional outcome of acute ischemic stroke. MATERIALS & METHODS This prospective, observational study was
conducted at district hospital, JamKhambhalia, Dist. Devbhoomi Dwarka. 75 patients admitted with the diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke and
meeting the inclusion and exclusion criteria. OBSERVATIONS & RESULTS Most of the cases (58.66%) belonged to the age group of 51 to 70
years. There was a male preponderance. Majority of the cases of minor stroke had serum albumin level of more than 4.5 g/dL, those with moderate
stroke had serum albumin of 4.0 to 4.49 g/dL while cases of severe stroke had serum albumin levels of less than 3.0 g/dL; P value: less than 0.001.
DISCUSSION Globally, stroke is a leading cause of mortality and disability and there are substantial economic costs for post-stroke care. From the
present study, it can be effectively concluded that acute ischemic stroke is prevalent in the older age groups with signicant male preponderance.
Hypertension is the most commonly associated co-morbidity. Acute ischemic stroke affects the cerebral arteries more commonly than the
cerebellar and lacunar circulation. Middle cerebral artery is the most commonly affected arterial territory. When assessed with the mean serum
albumin levels, there was a signicant strong negative correlation with NIHSS score and MRS score. This indicates that low serum albumin levels
are associated with increased severity of the stroke and increased/severe disability indicating poor recovery prole.
DETAILED REVIEW ABOUT PREGABALIN AND ITS DERIVATIZATION TECHNIQUES
Authors: Jokhi Yachita , Barse Rohan
Published: March 2022

Pregabalin capsules, extended-release (long-acting) tablets and oral solution (liquid) are used to relieve neuropathic pain (pain from damaged nerves) and also used in spinal cord injury and to treat bromyalgia (a long-lasting condition that may cause muscle stiffness and tenderness, tiredness, pain, and difculty falling asleep) as well as in epilepsy, so determination of pregabalin in various dosage form is very important, but direct determination of pregabalin in pharmaceutical dosage form is quite difcult as pregabalin is an aliphatic agent (absence of any chromophoric group). Addition of chromophoric group – derivatization of pregabalin is necessary for effective determination of pregabalin in pharmaceutical dosage form. Derivatization of pregabalin is done with various derivatizing agent – benzyl chloride, ninhydrin, , Gibb's and MBTH reagent 1- Fluoro-2,4-dinitrobenzene for spectroscopic method. For HPLC method, pre coloum and post coloum derivatization is done with Na-5- uoro-2, 4-dinitrophenyl-5-L-alanine amide, o-phtaldialdehyde/2-mercaptoethanol.
EFFECT OF PLACENTAL CORD DRAINAGE ON THE THIRD STAGE OF LABOR
Authors: Varsha MU. Alamelu , Deshpande S.A
Published: March 2022

Placental cord drainage is unclamping the maternal side of the umbilical cord, thereby permitting the blood from the placenta to drain freely into a
vessel immediately after the clamping and cutting of the umbilical cord. The aim was to study observe the Effects of Placental Cord Drainage on the
third stage of labor progress. This study was an observational study carried out in the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, who undergo
spontaneous vaginal delivery over a period of six months were included in the study. This study population have been divided into two groups. In
Group 1(30 women-unclamped), Group 2(30 women-clamped). The amount of blood loss and the time duration taken for the separation of placenta
was noted in both groups. The mean duration of the third stage of labour was 6.36 ± 1.47 mins in Group 1 and 25.30 ± 4.98 mins in Group 2. The
average amount of blood loss was 191.53 ± 37.51 ml in Group 1 and 359.63 ± 61.11 ml in Group 2. There was no retained placenta in the study. One
patient in Group 2 had PPH. None of the women required blood transfusion. Placental cord drainage is simple, safe and non-invasive method.
OUTCOME OF TUBERCULOSIS IN HIV INFECTED PATIENTS WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO CD4 COUNT IN AN ART CENTRE, WEST BENGAL
Authors: L Sherpa Pasang , Ray Subhabrata , Ghosh Indranath , Mandal Biplab , Bandyopadhyay Dipanjan
Published: March 2022

Background: Opportunistic Infections in HIV are major determinants of mortality in HIV patients. Tuberculosis is a leading cause of mortality. Tuberculosis is a public health challenge specially in developing countries like India. The incidence of TB HIVco-infection is gradually increasing. Methods: This was institution based, retrospective study. Study was conducted at ART Centre, North Bengal Medical College & Hospital, Sushruta Nagar, Darjeeling, West Bengal from January 2015 to January 2020 including 105 HIV-TB co-infected patients. Data was collected and template was generated in MS excel sheet and analysis was done on SPSS software. Results: 105, HIV-TB co-infected patients were registered with majority being male (n=79), mean age for male and female patients were 36.78 years and 35.73 years respectively.. The number of patients diagnosed with Extra-pulmonary tuberculosis (EPTB) and Pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) were almost equal. Majority of patients (34.3%) had CD4 counts <200 whereas (33.3%) had CD4 counts between 200-349. Favourable outcome in terms of cured patients were 82.85% with a statistically signicant pre-treatment and post-treatment improvement in body weight (p value<0.0001) and CD4 count (p value<0.002. Conclusions: There is a strong association between incidence of TB and HIV infection. Early diagnosis and treatment are essential to reduce mortality and morbidity in people living with HIV. Strict adherence to treatment and dedicated counseling for drug compliance is the need of the hour.
A Dual-Branch Network for Diagnosis of Thorax Diseases from Chest X-rays
Authors: Chowdary G. Jignesh , Kanhangad Vivek
Published: March 2022

Automated chest X-ray analysis has a great potential for diagnosing thorax diseases since errors in diagnosis have always been a concern among radiologists. Being a multi-label classification problem, achieving accurate classification still remains challenging. Several studies have focused on accurately segmenting the lung regions from the chest X-rays to deal with the challenges involved. The features extracted from the lung regions typically provide precise clues for diseases like nodules. However, such methods ignore the features outside the lung regions, which have been shown to be crucial for diagnosing conditions like cardiomegaly. Therefore, in this work, we explore a dual-branch a network-based framework that relies on features extracted from the lung regions as well as the entire chest x-rays. The proposed framework uses a novel network named R-I UNet for segmenting the lung regions. The dual-branch network in the proposed framework employs two fine-tuned AlexNet models to extract discriminative features, forming two feature vectors. Each of these feature vectors is fed into a recurrent neural network consisting of a stack of gated recurrent units with skip connections. Finally, the resulting feature vectors are concatenated for classification. The R-I UNet has been evaluated on the JSRT and Montgomery datasets, while the dual-branch classification network has been evaluated on the NIH ChestXray14 dataset. The proposed models achieve state of-the-art performance for both segmentation and classification tasks on the above benchmark datasets.
Explainable Federated Learning: A Lifecycle Dashboard for Industrial Settings
Authors: Ungersböck Michael , Hiessl Thomas , Schall Daniel , Michahelles Florian
Published: March 2022

As the adoption of Federated Learning (FL) in the manufacturing industry grows and systems get increasingly complex, a need to inspect their behavior arises. Stakeholders of the FL process want a more transparent system to understand the current state and analyze how its performance changed over time. However, current representation approaches are often not designed for industrial applications and do not cover the entire FL model lifecycle. We propose the Lifecycle Dashboard, which considers the different requirements and perspectives of industrial stakeholders by visualizing information from the FL server. In addition, our representation approach is generic enough to be applied to different use cases and industries. We evaluate the Lifecycle Dashboard in a semi-structured expert interview, show improvements in the understandability of FL systems, and discuss possible use cases in the industry.
Participatory Variety Selection of Orange Fleshed Sweet Potato (Ipomoea batatas L.) Varieties at Wondo Genet and Koka
Authors: Abewoy Damtew , Megersa Habtamu Gudisa , Lamma Dadi Tolessa , Banjaw Dejene Tadesse
Published: March 2022

The experiment was conducted during the 2019 and 2020 growing seasons at wondo genet and Koka area. Five orange-fleshed sweet potato varieties were tested using a randomized complete block design with three replications using the mother-baby trial approach. All necessary data were collected from the mother trial and analyzed using SAS software and SPSS. The combined analysis of variance showed the presence of significant differences (p≤0.05) among tested varieties for plant height, root diameter, root yield per hectare, and root dry matter content. From the tested varieties, the highest root yield was obtained from Kulfo (33.90 t ha-1), which was statistically similar with Kabode (31.64 t ha-1), followed by Alamura variety (23.00 t ha-1) and Vitae variety gave the lowest root yield of 10.8 t ha-1as compared to the other varieties. The participated farmers have given a rank for the traits used for selection and evaluated the varieties using their selection criteria. Even though the Kulfo variety gave the highest yield, farmers have discarded it as a result of the taste after boiling. As a result, based on their preferences Kabode, Alamura, and Dilla varieties were selected as the first, second, and third choices. Therefore, scaling up of these selected varieties should be done in the study area and areas with similar agro-ecologies so that producers can able to access the variety to produce them resulted in overcoming the nutritional deficiency and food insecurity.
Management of E-Learning Technologies in Era of Emergency in Secondary Schools in Rivers State
Authors: Uzochukwu Orji W. , Oluwuo Samuel O.
Published: March 2022

The study investigated management of e-learning technologies in era of emergency in secondary schools in Rivers State. Two research questions and two hypotheses tested at 0.05 level of significance guided the study. The study adopted descriptive design. The population of the study comprised all the 276 public senior secondary schools in Rivers State. A sample of 206 principals was drawn using simple random sampling technique. The instrument for data collection was titled ‘Management of E-Learning Technologies in Era of Emergency in Secondary Schools in Rivers State Questionnaire’ (METEESSRSQ). The instrument was validated by an expert in Educational Management and two other experts in Measurement and Evaluation for internal consistency. Cronbach Alpha method was used to establish reliability index of the instrument at 0.82. Data collected was collated and analyzed using mean and standard deviation. The findings of the study showed that principals responded positively that the use of smartphone and radio can be applied in the management of secondary schools in the era of emergency. Furthermore, the study showed that no significant difference exists between the mean scores of male and female respondents on the ways the use of smartphones can be applied in the management of secondary schools in the era of emergency. It was concluded that e-learning technologies can be used in the management of secondary schools in the era of emergency in Rivers State. Recommendations were made included that government and Ministry of Education should train educators on the digital skills as part of preparing principals and teachers on how to conduct educational activities through e-learning technologies during emergency.