bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effects of dynamic stabilization exercises and muscle energy technique on selected biopsychosocial outcomes for patients with chronic non-specific low back pain: a double-blind randomized controlled trial
Authors: Ahmed Usman Abba , Maharaj Sonill Sooknunan , Van Oosterwijck Jessica
Published: February 2021

Objectives

Low back pain is the most prevalent musculoskeletal condition, and causes activity limitations which result in reduced work productivity and high medical expenditure. The management of this condition has been challenging to both clinicians and researchers. While the use of Muscle Energy Technique (MET) as a potentially effective treatment strategy seems promising, studies examining MET combined with exercise therapy are scarce and studies with strong methodology are lacking. Therefore, this study aims to determine the effects of a combination of Dynamic Stabilization Exercises (DSE) and MET on selected biopsychosocial outcomes compared to DSE alone or conventional physiotherapy in the management of chronic non-specific low back pain (NSLBP).

Methods

A total of 125 (80 male and 45 female) patients with chronic NSLBP were involved in this study, they were recruited from Rasheed Shekoni Teaching hospital and Federal Medical centre Birnin-Kudu, Jigawa State, Nigeria. A random number generator method was used to allocate patients to either DSE + MET (n=41), DSE alone (n=39) or conventional physiotherapy (n=45). Interventions were administered twice a week over 12 weeks. Outcome measures included pain intensity, lumbar (flexion and extension) range of motion, functional-disability, self-perceived health status, limitations in activities and participation restrictions. These were assessed at baseline, mid-intervention at six weeks, post-intervention at 12 weeks and long term follow-up at 24 weeks. Data was analyzed using repeated-measures ANOVA to determine significance difference within groups and between groups.

Results

All intervention groups showed within-groups changes of the study outcomes over time (p<0.001). However, between-group comparisons showed greater improvements in pain intensity (F=7.91, p<0.001), lumbar ROM (flexion F=1.51, p<0.001; extension F=3.25, p<0.001), activity limitations/participation restrictions (F=3.7, p<0.001) and health status (F=10.9, p<0.001) for the intervention in which MET and DSE were combined. The MET plus DSE interventions were superior to DSE and convention physiotherapy for all outcome measures, except for functional disability (F=0.53, p=0.590).

Conclusions

The data from this study showed MET combined with DSE had greater therapeutic benefits compared to DSE or conventional physiotherapy on selected biopsychosocial outcomes in patients with chronic NSLBP. The findings from the study show that the combination of MET with DSE is safe and has beneficial effects in the management of patients with chronic NSLBP.

Clinical trial registration

The study protocol has been registered with www.ClinicalTrial.gov with the registration number NCT3449810.
Dividend maximization in a hidden Markov switching model
Authors: Szölgyenyi Michaela
Published: February 2021

In this paper we study the valuation problem of an insurance company by maximizing the expected discounted future dividend payments in a model with partial information that allows for a changing economic environment. The surplus process is modeled as a Brownian motion with drift. This drift depends on an underlying Markov chain the current state of which is assumed to be unobservable. The different states of the Markov chain thereby represent different phases of the economy.
We apply results from filtering theory to overcome uncertainty and then we give an analytic characterization of the optimal value function. Finally, we present a numerical study covering various scenarios to get a clear picture of how dividends should be paid out.
Quelques présupposés d’une politique linguistique. Grégoire et Manzoni
Authors: Vecchio Sebastiano
Published: February 2021

Aufbauend auf der Darstellung der unterschiedlichen Lösungsangebote aus den Jahren 1790 bis 1794 für das Sprachproblem wird die Auffassung des Abbé Grégoire untersucht, der in seinem Bestreben, die politische durch sprachliche Gleichheit zu sichern, den als unausweichlich betrachteten Prozeß des Absterbens der Dialekte durch die Verbreitung iler Hochsprache beschleunigen will. Im Gegensatz dazu faßt der von ihm beeinflußte Manzoni die Dialekte als vollwertige, wenn auch lokal begrenzte Kommunikationsmittel auf; eine italienische Gemeinsprache ist nach ihm nur durch die Ersetzung der Dialekte durch einen von ihnen (den florentinischen) möglich.
Tendenzen zur Affixderivation im Verbalbereich des modernen Chinesisch?
Authors: Beutel Helga
Published: February 2021

In the word formation of verbs in contemporary Chinese (putonghua) there are some one- syllable verbal morphemes that are attached to two-syllable (two-morpheme) verbs as a third syllable repeating synonymously tho meaning the two-syllable verbs already have. In this function the one-syllable verbal morphemes show properties of both compounds and derivations and represent a productive pattern of word formation forming semantically and syntactically uniform three-syllable verbs. In this connection we propose to treat verbs like dào “to say” that transform causative verba dicendi into non-causative verba dicondi and verbs like yŏu “to have, to exist” that substitute the function of the “aspect-suffix” zhe (“progressive form”) of verbs of existence as frequent constituents (“häufige Konstituenten”). Finally we suggest to treat huà “to change” as a quasi-suffix that transforms verbs, nouns, and adjectives into a certain subclass of causative verbs.
Instrumental semantic map in Western Iranian languages
Authors: Mohammadirad Masoud , Rasekh-Mahand Mohammad
Published: February 2021

This paper aims to study instrumental related functions in some Western Iranian languages. The data were collected from descriptive grammars, and interviews in some cases. Narrog’s instrumental semantic map is the basis for analyzing polysemy patterns in these languages. The data show that two main polysemy patterns are attested: (1) Instrumental and companion functions are coded alike. (2) They are coded differently. These two patterns are distributed areally. Furthermore, some languages are shifting/have shifted between these two types mainly as a result of contact-induced matters. In languages in which two or more functions are not directly connected, one marker generally has both instrumental and dative functions.
Desires, wishes and hopes – Desiderative predicates and presuppositions
Authors: Meinunger André
Published: February 2021

The expression of a desire – a wish, a request, a demand, one’s will – triggers a presupposition. This has grammatical consequences, such as mood choice in Romance, verbal positioning in Germanic or complementizer selection in Slavic. Desiderative predicates are argued to contain special features of (counter-) factivity. This explains the strikingly similar behavior of emotive factive and implicative predicates as well as volitional and request expressions; it also captures some common characteristics with negated affirmative predicates.
Within-type variation in Satellite-framed languages: The case of Serbian
Authors: Fagard Benjamin , Stosic Dejan , Cerruti Massimo
Published: February 2021

After a wealth of studies on motion event descriptions, it seems hard to say something new: the Verb-framed/Satellite-framed typology proposed by Talmy has spawned a long debate. Among other things, previous work has shown within-type variation for one of the two language types defined by Talmy, namely Verb-framed languages. In this paper, we address this debate, showing within-type variation for the other type, Satellite-framed languages, with new data elicited from native speakers of Serbian. In order to do so, we compare it with five other languages, from three Indo-European language families (Romance, Germanic and Slavic). Our data show that Serbian is a particularly interesting case, since it is structurally Satellite-framed, but behaves like Verb-framed languages in that speakers do not always express manner and path jointly (i.e. manner in the verb and path in the satellite), as expected on the basis of Talmy’s typology. The main result of our paper is thus that there is a good deal of within-type variation for both language types identified by Talmy.
Definiteness agreement and the pragmatics of reference in the Maltese NP
Authors: Gatt Albert
Published: February 2021

Maltese noun phrases exhibit ‘definiteness agreement’ between head noun and modifier. However, the status of this phenomenon as a case of true morphosyntactic agreement has been disputed, given its apparent optionality. The present paper presents a corpus-based study of the distribution of adjectives with and without definite marking, and then tests the pragmatic licensing claim through a production study. Speakers were found to be more likely to use definite adjectives in referential noun phrases when the adjectives had a specifically contrastive function. This result is discussed in the context of both theoretical and psycholinguistic work on the pragmatics of referentiality.
Definite article (omission) in British, Maltese, and other Englishes
Authors: Krug Manfred , Lucas Christopher
Published: February 2021

This article investigates factors that underlie the discrepancies in article omission between Maltese English (MaltE) and British English (BrE), with reference to further ENL, ESL and EFL varieties. We investigate seasons of the year, ordinal numbers, languages, proper nouns, titles, institutions and common nouns. Our sources include text corpora, and web and questionnaire-based data. Our key proposal is that MaltE has innovated a rule that the definite article may be omitted when the uniqueness or identifiability of a referent is salient in context. Furthermore, MaltE avoids the definite article commonly when the referent is generic rather than definite. The resulting MaltE system is regulated according to fewer parameters than in BrE, but more consistently.
The NP in academic Maltese English
Authors: Schembri Natalie
Published: February 2021

Despite recent advances, Maltese English remains under-researched as a regional variety of English. This study employs an error analysis approach to identify its nominal characteristics based on the assumption that fossilized learner competences shared by a speech community eventually develop into new dialects and that transfer phenomena play a pivotal role. The study analyses article usage, singular and plural forms and noncount nouns and finds that overuse of the definite article is a likely candidate as a feature of Maltese English.
Wachstum als Krisenpotenzial im Nachwuchsleistungssport – Genese und Konstruktion von Wachstumsproblemen jugendlicher Nachwuchsathleten aus soziologischer Perspektive / Growth as Crisis Potential in Elite Youth Sports – Origins and construction of growth problems in young elite athletes from a sociological perspective
Authors: Schubring Astrid , Thiel Ansgar
Published: February 2021

Nachwuchsathleten befinden sich in einer Lebensphase, die durch erhebliche soziale, psychische und physiologische Veränderungen charakterisiert ist. Diese Transformationen beeinflussen die sportliche Karriere und die Entwicklung der Athleten grundlegend. Gerade im Spitzensport kann insbesondere der Wachstumsprozess zu spezifischen, bisher in der soziologischen Forschung weitgehend vernachlässigten Problemlagen führen. Der Artikel untersucht Entstehungsbedingungen und die soziale Bedeutung wachstumsbedingter Krisen im Kontext des Nachwuchsleistungssports. Zugrunde liegt eine sozialkonstruktivistische Perspektive auf den Prozess des Aufwachsens und die Körpersozialisation von Nachwuchsathleten. Die biologische und soziale Bedingtheit des Körpers wird als ko-konstruktiv konzeptionalisiert. Ausgehend von qualitativen Interviews und teilnehmenden Beobachtungen im deutschen Nachwuchsleistungssport zeigen sich vier typische Problemlagen: Fehlpassung, Asynchronität, Bezugsgruppenwechsel und Überlastungen.
Sport als Sucht Zur Soziologie einer stoffungebundenen Abhängigkeit /
Authors: Bette Karl-Heinrich , Gugutzer Robert
Published: February 2021

Die Zahl jener Akteure, die sich in ihrer Freizeit exzessiv und unter Absehen der dadurch ausgelösten psychischen, physischen und sozialen Konsequenzen dem Sport hingeben, ist in den letzten Jahren stark angestiegen. Sportmedizin und Sportpsychologie haben hierfür den Begriff „exercise addiction“ geprägt und eine Vielzahl wichtiger Erkenntnisse hervorgebracht. Im Unterschied zu der in diesen Disziplinen üblichen Vorgehensweise, die psychischen und physischen Aspekte des Themas personalisierend in den Vordergrund zu rücken, um das stoffungebundene Suchtverhalten im Sport zu erklären, wählt der vorliegende Beitrag einen soziologischen Zugang. Die Sportsucht wird folglich als soziales Phänomen behandelt und analytisch auf einer makro-, meso- und mikrogesellschaftlichen Ebene verortet. Die soziokulturellen Bedingungen sportsüchtigen Handelns lassen sich so präzise herausarbeiten. Vor allem wird auch deutlich gemacht, warum immer mehr Menschen gerade den Sport als Suchtfeld nutzen. Damit präsentiert der Text erstmalig den Entwurf einer Soziologie der Sportsucht.
Effizienzverzicht durch Ehrenamt – Ist die Absorption von Hauptamtlichkeit in Sportvereinen funktional? / Reducing efficiency through volunteer work: Is the absorption of full-time paid positions in sports clubs functional?
Authors: Thieme Lutz
Published: February 2021

Entgegen häufig artikulierter Erwartungen ist die Erwerbstätigenquote in Sportvereinen noch immer gering und eine zunehmende Verberuflichung nicht zu beobachten. In Ergänzung vorliegender systemtheoretischer Erklärungsansätze wird ein produktionstheoretisches Modell entwickelt, das ehrenamtliche Arbeit als eine Form der Lohnspende auffasst und Entscheidungen des Sportvereins als Annäherung an eine minimale Kostenfunktion interpretiert. Aus dem Modell abgeleitete Hypothesen werden einer empirischen Prüfung aus den Daten einer Befragung aller rheinland-pfälzischen Sportvereine mit mehr als 750 Mitgliedern unterworfen. Es zeigt sich, dass sich die Hypothesen weitgehend bewähren, sodass das Modell zur Erklärung geringer Ausbildungsintensität von Sportvereinen sowie zu den Bedingungen der Integration von Erwerbstätigkeit in die Produktionsfunktion von Sportvereinen beitragen kann.
Gentrifizierung des Stadionpublikums seit den 1990er Jahren? Fußball und der Mythos vom Proletariersport/ The Gentrification of football since the 1990s? The myth of football as a working-class sport
Authors: Fürtjes Oliver
Published: February 2021

In diesem Beitrag wird gezeigt, dass die in Deutschland und England weitverbreitete Annahme von der Gentrifizierung des Fußballpublikums im Zuge der intensivierten Kommerzialisierung und Me­diatisierung der Fußballbranche vor allem seit den 1990er Jahren keine zutreffende Beschreibung der historischen Entwicklung der Publikumskomposition im Fußball ist. Der Grund dafür ist die fehleingeschätzte Kennzeichnung des Fußballs als Proletariersport in der Vergangenheit. Aus einer sozialhistorischen und struktursoziologischen Perspektive ist stattdessen von der Kontinuität des Fußballs als schichtenübergreifendes Massenphänomen auszugehen. Statushebungstendenzen im Fußballpublikum resultieren deshalb einzig aus den Statushebungstendenzen im Zuge der inter- und intragenerationellen sozialen Aufstiegsmobilität in postindustriellen Gesellschaften. Einen profun­den Nachweis dafür liefert die erstmals für Deutschland präsentierte Sekundäranalyse empirischer Daten zur Berufs- und Bildungsstruktur von insgesamt 20 repräsentativen vergleichbaren Stadioner­hebungen im Zeitraum von 1977 bis 2010.
Sport der Medialen Moderne. Ein gesellschaftstheoretischer Entwurf/ Sports in the Modern Media Age: Sketch of a Social Theory
Authors: Böckelmann Janine , Johnen Simon , Schürmann Volker
Published: February 2021

Um Veränderungen im sportlichen Handeln als solche kennzeichnen und analysieren zu können, schlägt das Forschungsprogramm Sport der Medialen Moderne vor, sportliche Phänomene in den Kontext einer Gesellschaftstheorie zu stellen. Der Artikel stellt einen ersten Entwurf dieser Gesellschaftstheorie dar. Anliegen ist es, bestimmte, für die moderne Gesellschaft basale Kategorien herauszustellen. Denn Begriffe bilden die Wirklichkeit nicht unmittelbar ab, sondern Wirklichkeit ist immer vermittelt durch Kategorien, die den Begriffen zu Grunde liegen. Die Herausstellung ermöglicht eine bedingte Bestimmung des Verhältnisses von klassischer Moderne und Postmoderne. Des Weiteren ermöglicht sie einen Vergleich verschiedener empirischer Begriffe. Beides ermöglicht die Analyse von Veränderungen z.B. des Olympismus in der Postmoderne im Vergleich zur klassischen Moderne.
Modelling damping in piezoceramics: A comparative study
Authors: Feldmann Nadine , Schulze Veronika , Claes Leander , Jurgelucks Benjamin , Meihost Lars , Walther Andrea , Henning Bernd
Published: February 2021

The progress in numerical methods and simulation tools promotes the use of inverse problems in material characterisation problems. A newly developed procedure can be used to identify the behaviour of piezoceramic discs over a wide frequency range using a single specimen via fitting simulated and measured impedances by optimising the underlying material parameters. Since there is no generally accepted damping model for piezoelectric ceramics, several mechanical damping models are examined for the material identification. Three models have been chosen and their ability to replicate the measured impedances is evaluated. On the one hand, the common Rayleigh model is considered as a reference. On the other hand, a Zener model and a model using complex constants are extended to model the transversely isotropic material. As the Rayleigh model is only valid for a limited frequency range, it fails to model the broadband behaviour of the material. The model using complex constants leads to the best fit over a wide frequency range while at the same time only adding three additional parameters for modelling damping. Thus, damping can be assumed approximately frequency-independent in piezoceramics.
Monitoring the swimzone while finding south: sustained orientation in multiactivity among beach lifeguards
Authors: Harrison Simon , Williams Robert F.
Published: February 2021

Lifeguards stationed opposite their swimzone on a beach in southwest France huddle around a diagram in the sand; the Head Lifeguard points to the sun then looks at the swimzone. What is going on here? Our paper examines two excerpts from this interaction to explore how lifeguards manage an instruction activity that arises in addition to the task of monitoring the swimzone. Building on frame analysis and multiactivity in social interaction, we focus on the role of gaze behavior in maintaining a sustained orientation to the swimzone as a distinct activity in this setting. Multimodal, sequential analyses of extracts from the video data show that orientation to the lifeguarding task is sustained primarily by body orientation and gaze patterns that routinely return to the swimzone. This is supported when sustained orientation away from the swimzone leads to the momentary suspension of the instruction activity and consequent re-organization of the interaction, illustrating the normative and visible nature of managing multiactivity. These gaze behaviors and interactive patterns constitute practices of professional vision among beach lifeguards.
Zur Problematik der Ableitung in sozialwissenschaftlichen Aussagensystemen / On the Problem of Deducing Valid Conclusions in Systems of Social Science Propositions. Part 2
Authors: Hummell Hans J.
Published: February 2021

The structure of some kinds of arguments typically to be found in theoretical-empirical social science is examined with special attention to the rules of deduction which in the majority of cases remain implicit. Four types of propositions - describing deterministic relations between attributes (statements of the form ‘if x, then y’), describing monotonous deterministic relations between serials (‘the more x, the more y’) and their probabilistic counterparts - as well as two classes of rules of deduction (based on the properties of transitivity and conjunctivity of corresponding statement forms) are treated. Of the propositions only those of the deterministic if-then kind are unproblematic. The thesis is advanced that most of those ‘arguments‘ presented in social science consisting of sentences of relatively complicated structures - using rules, however, which are exclusively valid for deterministic if-then-statements - are not correct.

Deterministic propositions being discussed in Part One, Part Two treats probabilistic ones with the following results: (I) By considering the ‘statistical syllogism’ the non-conjunctivity of probabilistic implications is shown; (II) their non-transitivity follows from the fact that in complex causal structures direct and indirect effects may vary independently of each other. For the simplest case of three attributes a qualitative analogon to the Simon-Blalock-Procedure is constructed and illustrated by an example from mobility research. (Ill) If monotonous probabilistic relations are characterized by coefficients of linear correlation, in the general case no deductions are possible which would use a rule of transitivity.

As a general solution to the problem of deducing valid conclusions it is suggested that the verbal language - which, though enriched by a technical vernacular, with respect to its formal apparatus is entirely based on elementary logics - should be replaced by languages of richer logical structures; this, however, means formalization. According to this function to warrant valid deductions the concept of formalization is specified and delimited from similar concepts as the construction of propositions within a linguistic framework of relatively rich logical structure which is given as a special calculus.
A crystallographic study of ammonium and rubidium imidodisulphates
Authors: Jones D. W.
Published: February 2021

Auszug

Ammonium und Rubidium-Imidodisulphat, NH(SO3NH4)2 und NH(SO3Rb)2, sind monoklin und strukturell verwandt, aber nicht isotyp mit Kalium-Imidodisulphat. Die Verfeinerung mittels Ausgleichsmethode auf Grund z.T. dreidimensionaler Interferenzdaten führte für 292 Reflexe zu R = 0,29. Trotz der in Überstrukturreflexen sich äußernden Abweichungen von der angenommenen Symmetrie, konnten Abstände von 1,74 ± 0,04 Å für S-Ν und von im Mittel 1,48 ± 0,03 Å für S-O bestimmt werden, die denen der Kaliumverbindung entsprechen. Für die Rubidiumverbindung war die Verfeinerung unbefriedigend; die wirkliche Struktur muß von der angenommenen stärker abweichen als bei den anderen Verbindungen. Die Ultrarotspektren bei Raumtemperatur sind für die Imidodisulphate von Ammonium, Kalium und Rubidium sehr ähnlich. Die magnetischen Kernresonanzlinien der Ammonium- und der Rubidiumverbindung verbreitern sich nicht nennenswert beim Übergang von 280° Κ zu 80 °K.
Crystal structure of magnesium potassium sulfate hexahydrate MgK2(SO4)2 · 6H2O
Authors: Κannan Ε. Ε. , Viswamitra M. A.
Published: February 2021

Auszug

Die Kristallstruktur des mit Mg(NH4)2(SO4)2 · 6H2O isomorphen MgK2(SO4)2 · 6H2O wurde aus dreidimensionalen Interferenzdaten mittels Fourier- und Ausgleichsmethoden verfeinert. Raumgruppe ist P21/a, die Gitterkonstanten sind: a = 9,072, b = 12,212, c = 6,113 Å, β = 104°50'; Ζ = 2. Mg ist von sechs H2O-Sauerstoflatomen oktaedrisch umgeben. Jedes dieser Atome ist mit zwei SO4 - Sauerstoffatomen durch Waeserstoffbindung gekoppelt. Das Mg-Atom hat somit zwölf O-Atome als zweitnächste Nachbarn, welche die Ecken eines abgeplatteten Ikosaeders bilden. Die S-Atome sind nahezu tetraedrisch von O-Atomen umgeben. Ein Η2Ο- und fünf SO4-Sauerstoffatome bilden die nächste Umgebung der K-Atome. Die Polyeder und die K-Atome sind durch die Gleitrichtung und durch gemeinsame Ecken zu Ketten parallel a angeordnet. Die Struktur ist aus diesen parallelen Ketten aufgebaut; die Polyeder um die S- und die Mg-Atome sind dazwischen eingelagert.
Über Verbindungen vom Anti-LaF3-Strukturtyp
Authors: Mansmann M.
Published: February 2021

In contradiction to former investigations Cu3P- and Cu3As are anti-isostructural with LaF3 (space group P3̄c1, 6 formula units in the unit cell). Phosphorus (arsenic) is surrounded by 11 copper atoms, Cu(1) has 4, Cu(2) and Cu(3) 3 phosphorus (arsenic) atoms as neighbours. It is very likely that α-Li,Sb, Li3As, Li3P, Na3Bi, Na3Sb, Na3As, Na3P, K3Bi, K3Sb, K3As also belong to the Cu3P type of structure. These compounds have been described earlier in the so-called Na3As type of structure (space group P63/mmc) containing only two formula units in the unit cell.
Atomanordnung und Strukturverfeinerung von Cancrinit
Authors: Jarchow O.
Published: February 2021

X-ray photographe of (Ca, Na)CO3 cancrinites show diffuse satellites with the indices (h k l ± 3/7), The examined crystals from Litchfield, U.S.A., have the space group P63 and the lattice dimensions a = 12.75 Å and c = 5.14 Å. The crystal structure has been determined-independently of all previous structure assumptions-from the relation of the transformation hauyn-canorinite and refined on three-dimensional data by the least-squares method to R = 0.089. The structure is composed of an ordered Si, Al framework with channels around the threefold axis and the axis 63; the other cations and anions as Na, Ca, H2O, CO3 etc. are enclosed in these channels.
Measuring fluorine in uranium oxyfluoride particles using secondary ion mass spectrometry for nuclear forensics
Authors: Kips Ruth , Kristo M. J. , Hutcheon I. D. , Wang Z. , Johnson T. J. , Gerlach D. C. , Amonette J. E. , Olsen K. B. , Stefaniak E.
Published: February 2021

Gaseous uranium hexafluoride (UF6) is used for the enrichment of uranium and is known to be a very reactive and volatile gas. When a small amount of UF6 is released in the environment, it forms uranium oxyfluoride (UO2F2) particles and hydrogen fluoride from the reaction with atmospheric moisture. The UO2F2 particles settle on various surfaces within the enrichment facility where they are collected by safeguards organizations such as the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) through a technique called environmental sampling. Despite their small size, the uranium isotopic composition of these particles is used to determine whether an enrichment facility is compliant with its declarations. Additional and complementary information on the particles' source, formation process and exposure history can be obtained from elemental, molecular and morphological analysis. As fluorine is not always detected in uranium particles originating from enrichment facilities, it is assumed that UO2F2 is unstable under certain environmental conditions. This study aims to determine how those environmental conditions affect the relative amount of fluorine in UO2F2 particles. Expressly for the purpose of this work, we prepared a set of UO2F2 particle samples from the hydrolysis of UF6 and stored these samples in environmental chambers at different temperature, humidity and lighting conditions. The NanoSIMS secondary ion mass spectrometer, with a nanometer-scale spatial resolution, was used to measure the F+/U+ secondary ion ratio of individual particles immediately after sample preparation, and at different time intervals. NanoSIMS analyses on single particles stored up to 7 months in dry air did not detect a significant decrease in the relative amount of fluorine. The exposure to high humidity however, resulted in a much lower F+/U+ ratio, up to 2 orders of magnitude below that of the particles stored in dry air. It should be noted that fluorine was still detected in these samples, even after 7 months of high humidity exposure.
Activities of the 7Be and 137Cs nuclides in mushrooms from southern and western Finland
Authors: Lönnroth T. , Lill J.-O. , Björkholm A. , Haavisto T. , Slotte J. M. K.
Published: February 2021

We report the results from activity measurements of 7Be and 137Cs nuclides in mushrooms in Southern and Western Finland. Fifty-three samples were studied, and they showed large variations especially in the 137Cs activity both regionally and between mushroom species.
Environmental monitoring of radioactive and non-radioactive constituents in the vicinity of WIP
Authors: Thakur P. , Monk J. , Conca J. L.
Published: February 2021

The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), a US Department of Energy (DOE) facility, is a deep geologic transuranic waste disposal site designed for the safe disposal of transuranic (TRU) wastes generated from the US defense program. Monitoring is a key component of the development and operation of any nuclear repository and is important to the WIPP performance assessment. Initial concerns over the release of radioactive and chemical contaminants from the WIPP led to various monitoring programs, including the independent, academic-based WIPP environmental monitoring (WIPP-EM) program conducted by the New Mexico State University (NMSU) Carlsbad Environmental Monitoring and Research Center (CEMRC) located in Carlsbad, NM. The mission of CEMRC is to develop and implement an independent health and environmental monitoring program in the vicinity of WIPP and make the results easily accessible to the public and all interested parties. Under the WIPP-EM program constituents monitored include: (1) selected radionuclides, elements, and ions of interest in air, soil, vegetation, drinking water, surface water and sediment from within a 100-mile radius of WIPP as well as in the air exiting the WIPP exhaust shaft, and (2) internally deposited radionuclides in the citizenry living within a 100-mile radius of WIPP. This article presents an evaluation of more than tens years of environmental monitoring data that informed the public that there is no evidence of increases in radiological contaminants in the region that could be attributed to releases from the WIPP. Such an extensive monitoring program and constant public engagement is an ideal model for all nuclear waste repositories anywhere in the world.
Iodine transfer from agricultural soils to edible part of crops
Authors: Uchida S. , Tagami K.
Published: February 2021

Information about the distribution and cycling of stable iodine (I) in the environment is useful for dose estimation from its long-lived radioiodisotpe, 129I, which is one of the most critical radionuclides to be managed for the safe disposal of nuclear fuel waste. The soil-to-plant transfer factor (TF) is an important parameter to predict internal radiation exposure pathways through the food chains using mathematical models. Therefore, we have measured stable I and bromine (Br) for comparison, in 142 crop samples and associated agricultural field soil samples collected throughout Japan. The crops were classified into eight groups, i.e. leafy vegetables, white part of leeks, fruit vegetables, tubers, root crops, legumes, wheat and barley (WB), and rice. The results showed that Br and I concentrations were higher in upland field soil samples than in paddy field soil samples. However, when we compared TF values of WB and brown rice, no statistical difference was observed. The highest geometric mean of TF for I, 1.4 × 102, was obtained for leafy vegetables and fruit vegetables and that for Br, 1.5, was for fruit vegetables. TF for I was much lower than Br, as reported previously, maybe due to their different chemcial forms in soil and uptake behaviors by plant roots.
Real-time imaging of 35S-sulfate uptake in a rape seed plant
Authors: Nakanishi T. M. , Yamawaki M. , Ishibashi H. , Tanoi K.
Published: February 2021

We present real-time images of 35S-sulfate uptake in a rapeseed plant visualized by the system we developed. In the leaves of rapeseed plants, 35S accumulated in higher amounts and more rapidly in the more developed leaves. This real-time imaging system can be used to visualize the movement of both 35S and 32P in the same plant. In the pods of rapeseed, images of 35S show that 35S accumulated mostly in the terminal parts; on the other hand 32P, when applied as 32P-phosphoric acid, accumulated in the middle part of the pods.
Nuclear analytical techniques for nanotoxicology studies
Authors: Zhang Z. Y. , Zhao Y. L. , Chai Z. F.
Published: February 2021

With the rapid development of nanotechnology and its applications, a wide variety of nanomaterials are now used in commodities, pharmaceutics, cosmetics, biomedical products, and industries. The potential interactions of nanomaterials with living systems and the environment have attracted increasing attention from the public, as well as from manufacturers of nanomaterial-based products, academic researchers and policymakers. It is important to consider the environmental, health and safety aspects at an early stage of nanomaterial development and application in order to more effectively identify and manage potential human and environmental health impacts from nanomaterial exposure. This will require research in a range of areas, including detection and characterization, environmental fate and transport, ecotoxicolgy and toxicology. Nuclear analytical techniques (NATs) can play an important role in such studies due to their intrinsic merits such as high sensitivity, good accuracy, high space resolution, ability to distinguish the endogenous or exogenous sources of materials, and ability of in situ and in vivo analysis. In this paper, the applications of NATs in nanotoxicological and nanoecotoxicological studies are outlined, and some recent results obtained in our laboratory are reported.
Research and Testing Experimental Thermal Vacuum Stand TVK-2,5
Authors:   National Technical University of Ukraine “Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute”, Kyiv, Ukraine, Poshtarenko Yu.A. , Rassamakin B.M. ,   National Technical University of Ukraine “Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute”, Kyiv, Ukraine, Sydorenko Yu.M. ,   National Technical University of Ukraine “Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute”, Kyiv, Ukraine, Khominich V.I. ,   National Technical University of Ukraine “Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute”, Kyiv, Ukraine, Shevchenko M.D. ,   National Technical University of Ukraine “Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute”, Kyiv, Ukraine
Published: February 2021

We present additional design features of the upgraded stand TVK-2,5, which provides a physical imitation of the complex effect on the object of the main factors of outer space, namely, deep vacuum, cryogenic temperatures, solar and terrestrial radiation, a high degree of absorption of thermal radiation by the external environment. The stand can be used to implement the internal heat release of the object and the dynamics of the object passing a given orbit.
Dependence of spatial periods of travelling ionospheric disturbances on their relative amplitudes
Authors:   V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University, Kharkiv, Ukraine, Fedorenko Yu.P.
Published: February 2021

The relationship between the horizontal spatial period L and the relative amplitude Ad of traveling ionospheric disturbances (TID) at various levels of solar (SA) and geomagnetic (GA) activity is experimentally studied. In the vast majority of cases, the TIDs observed during our study were generated by high-latitude sources. It was found that the period L and amplitude Ad of the medium-scale (MS) TIDs (L = 100 – 800 km) are related by a linear dependence, which does not depend upon the SA level. For large-scale (LS) TID with L = 1000 – 4000 km, the linear approximation of the function L(Ad) at low and high SA levels are increasing or decreasing functions, respectively. For global-scale (GM) TIDs with L = 5000 – 35000 km at low SA levels, the linear approximation L(Ad) is an increasing function. The function L(Ad) for TIDs of all spatial scales does not depend upon the GA level. The data were collected at the radio-physical observatory of V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University (j = 49.63°N, l = 36.32°E) in 1999—2010 with the ionosphere radio sounding by using coherent radio waves at frequencies of about 150 and 400 MHz radiated by low-orbit navigation satellites Parus and Cicada orbiting at circular near-polar orbit with a height of about 1000 km. The experimental dependence of the horizontal period L of TID upon their relative amplitude Ad is explained based on the global prognostic semi-empirical model of the generation and propagation of acoustic-gravitational waves and traveling ionospheric disturbances.
Solid fuel use in electrified low-income residential areas in South Africa: The case of KwaDela, Mpumalanga
Authors: Nkosi N.C. , Burger R.P. , Matandirotya N.R. , Pauw C. , Piketh S.J.
Published: February 2021

Domestic solid fuel combustion remains a key contributor to indoor and ambient air pollution in low-income settlements. Understanding solid-fuel cost perceptions and burning patterns variability is required for developing sustainable energy policies and applicable site-specific intervention strategies to effectively improve ambient air quality. The purpose of the study was to understand domestic solid fuel use dynamics and trends in KwaDela, a low-income residential area in Mpumalanga. Data were gathered using surveys, questionnaires, observations, and temperature sensors. Findings were that there are two main local sources of wood and coal within the settlement and each household was estimated to consume 1 800 to 2 992.5 kg of coal annually. The maximum amount of coal used per burning event was 9.3 kg, with an average of 4 kg and a standard deviation of ±2.5 kg. Coal and wood purchase price varied depending on their sources, but were cheaper than electricity. In winter, the burning events are longer (four to six hours) than in summer and more (one to three) per day, and start earlier (from 03:00 and 15:30) mainly due to space-heating needs. Cooking, space-heating and boiling water are the major household needs that drive the use of solid fuels in electrified low-income residential areas. The key to improving air quality in such areas is integrating fuel use intervention methods that the residents can afford and are readily accessible.
Highlights

Burning events are longer in winter than summer.
Solid fuels are affordable, available, and easily accessible.
Electricity remains sparsely used for domestic purposes.
South Africa’s integrated energy planning framework, 2015–2050
Authors: Akom K. , Shongwe T. , Joseph M.K.
Published: February 2021

The Integrated Energy Plan (IEP) was designed to consider South Africa’s energy needs from 2015 to 2050, as a guide for energy structural savings and the development of energy policy. The main aim of the Department of Energy is to ensure the security of energy supply. The current energy situation in the country has its gains and challenges. With the growing population and infrastructural development, the country requires prudent measures to meet the country’s energy needs for 2020–2050. The country’s energy is currently dominated by coal-fired plants, which represent about 70% of the total installed capacity, crude oil contributes about 21%, with only 9% from all other energy sources, including renewables. This paper examines the scope of the IEP framework, key objectives of the IEP, the methodology applied to achieve those objectives, and the projections made for attaining the framework target. The paper further reviews the energy requirements for the key sectors of the economy and analyses the effects of CO2 emissions and the benefits of job creation for the entire period. Despite substantial renewable potential in South Africa, at present it contributes as little as 2% of the energy mix. The global renewable energy policy on CO2 emissions reduction, improvement of energy efficiency and deployment of renewable development are not met in the IEP framework.
SOME OBSERVATIONS OF THE CONTEMPORARY MUSICAL AND RHETORIC ANALYTICS
Authors:   Novosibirsk State Conservatoire named after M.I. Glinka (Novosibirsk, Russian Federation), Maltseva Anastasiya А.
Published: February 2021

When considering the research of the musical rhetoric in the Russian musicology the leading significance of the intonation-semantic aspect should be highlighted, as well as active elaboration of the musical language and its communicative possibilities, but at the same time we should pay attention to fixation of the unidirectional concept of really board and heterogeneous range of Baroque musical and rhetoric figures. The early 1980s – 1990s and 2000s was the period of intensive studies of the musical language elements as meaning-forming building blocks of a work of arts as a total. In the 21st century the vector of the musical and rhetoric analysis has shifted only slightly. During the past 10 years a ‘musical-rhetorical figure’ has been defined through such notions as ‘symbol’, ‘a sound phrase (motive)’, ‘formula’, ‘sign, emblem’, ‘stable, semantically intense element’, ‘image-meaning unit, compositional sound idiom’, ‘leitmotif of affect’, ‘intonation pattern’, ‘intonation-symbol’. Apart from concentrating on the symbolic aspect of musical figures, the research of the 21st cen-tury sometimes substitutes the Baroque conceptual construct of theoretical treatise of the 17th – the first half of the 18th centuries for the ‘contemporary’ ones, which started in the 20th century within the context of J.S. Bach studies (research of A. Schweizer, B.L. Javorsky, M.S. Druskin, J.S. Druskin and other). For some contemporary scholars it was not the theoretical texts of the Baroque period that served as sources of information on musical and rhetoric figures. Instead, A. Schweizer’s works were such a source. However, A. Schweizer knew nothing of the lists of musical and rhetoric figures in the treatise of J.S. Bach’s contemporaries and predecessors. In many cases searches for the newly invented ‘symbolism of the rhetoric figures’, ‘intonation formulas’ and ‘motive-symbols’ become the favorite hermeneutic method involving a scarce number of figures by the Baroque theorists (anabasis, cataba-sis, circulatio and other) filtered by the musical analytics according to the criteria of the intonation semantics and potential symbolism. We also observe insufficient awareness of the musical and theoretical aspect, use of the outdated notions (on the set of all concepts as on a system of musical figures Baroque) and information (on the number of the musical figures given by the theorists). The author draws the conclusion that the ‘broad fame’ of the musical and rhetoric figures is so well-known that it sometimes has little to do with the authentic phenomenon of the musica poetica Baroque. At the current stage of development of the Rus-sian musicology the author sees it necessary to consolidate the approaches to understanding of the musical heritage of this epoch from the point of view of the historical analytics.
INTERPRETATION OF THE LIBRETTO BY PIETRO METASTASIO IN “ARTAXERXES” BY THOMAS AUGUSTINE ARNE
Authors:   Novosibirsk State Conservatory n. a. M.I. Glinka (Novosibirsk, Russian Federation), Pankina Eleva V. , Privalova Anastasia S. ,   Novosibirsk State Conservatory n. a. M.I. Glinka (Novosibirsk, Russian Federation)
Published: February 2021

Among the dramatic works of Pietro Metastasio libretto “Artaserse” (1730) occupies a leading position in the number of operas created on its basis. Among them is also the first opera-seria in English by Thomas Augustine Arne “Artaxerxes” (1762). The libretto of Metastasio was adapted for the English stage, probably by the composer himself. In the process of working on the libretto, Arne, preserving all the key points, made significant changes in the piece of Metastasio. Obviously a significant reduction of the text of Metastasio, is associated primarily with the exception of Megabise character and all his scenes, which entails underlining non-contentious lyrical plan, and strengthening another character – Rimenes, has incorporated function and part of the party Megabise. The total number of arias almost the same libretto by Metastasio with the change of their distribution characters: cut the Aria of the main character of Artaxerxes, of the secondary of Artabanes and Semira, added arias lyric couple Mandane and Arbaces. As a result, the plot is re – centered in the direction of the drama of lovers, which distinguishes the play of Arne from the original Metastasio-drama of feeling and duty, fully revealed in each character. In this case, arias are differentiated into those close to the original in semantic and textual relations, close in meaning, but inaccurate in text, and those whose content only remotely resembles the original. Arne in most of the arias kept the exact or close to the original text, five arias were removed, three arias were created by the composer. The number of ensembles in the processing of Arne has increased, and principally in the main lyrical pair; a significant innovation is the Quartet, which replaced the complex compositional scene of the judgment. Recitatives and recitative scenes are solved much more concisely, concentrated and restrained in comparison with the text of Metastasio. The changes in the libretto are intensifying as we approach the finale of the Opera – we should talk about the growing dynamization of the action. As a result of the revision of the libretto in the version of Arne, it became much more compact than the original Metastasio, while maintaining all the most significant plot twists. The shift of semantic and functional accents is also carried out by changing the number of solo numbers of the characters. The volume and quality of changes in the source of the libretto suggests that the composer did not plan to write the “next” Italian “Artaserse”, but worked deeply on its text with the aim of the most organic adaptation for the English stage.