bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Post-Petroleum Security in a Changing Arctic: Narratives and Trajectories Towards Viable Futures
Authors: Dale Brigt , Kristoffersen Berit
Published: October 2018

In this paper we explore how post-petroleum security is continually shaped by both the micropolitical practices of everyday life as well as the changing geopolitics of energy landscapes. We focus in particular on the two-decade long struggle over access to hydrocarbon deposits outside the Lofoten, Vesterålen and Senja archipelago groups (LoVeSe), and show how local security perspectives permeate both national and international debates concerning the future of oil and the global climate challenge. These developments, we argue, are taking place in a paradoxical conjunction with Norwegian political establishment who along with the oil and gas industry insist on continued petroleum dependency as the only viable future. We further investigate how particular controlling measures have determined past, present and future narratives, and assess how alternative ideas that include multiple possible trajectories have found their way into national and global debates despite these efforts. The argument permeating this paper states that while oil remains a security concern to both proponents and opponents to oil development in the Arctic, the extent to which this situation is seen as a threat or a security provider varies greatly.
Reflexões sobre a teoria das situações didáticas por duas pesquisadoras em diferentes estágios da vida acadêmica
Reflections on the theory of didactical situations by two researchers in different phases of academic life
Authors: Lamblém Regina Litz , Bittar Marilena
Published: October 2018

Apropriar-se de uma teoria significa conhecer suas ideias centrais, as questões às quais ela busca (permite) responder, conhecer seus paradigmas. Porém desenvolver pesquisa em uma determinada perspectiva teórica significa mais do que isso. É preciso ter coerência entre o dito e o praticado. É disso que trata este artigo. Discutimos a apropriação da teoria das situações didáticas por duas pesquisadoras em educação matemática que vivem momentos distintos da carreira acadêmica. Uma relata os tropeços e o entusiasmo em um novo caminhar teórico e a outra discute a forma com que lida com as questões teóricas que se dispõe a estudar e a praticar. Nesse texto trazemos tanto reflexões da jovem pesquisadora sobre seu processo de transformação de paradigmas quanto da pesquisadora responsável por auxiliá-la nessa caminhada. S’approprier d’une théorie signifie connaître ses idées centrales, les questions auxquelles elle cherche (permet) à répondre, connaître ses paradigmes. Mais faire de la recherche sous une certaine perspective théorique signifie plus que cela. Il faut avoir une cohérence entre ce qui est dit et ce qui est pratiqué. C'est de cela que parle cet article. Nous discutons de l'appropriation de la théorie des situations didactiques par deux chercheurs en éducation mathématique qui vivent différents moments de leur parcours académique. Une raconte les difficultés et l'enthousiasme dans un nouveau parcours théorique et l'autre discute la façon selon laquelle elle traite les questions théoriques qu’elle s’apprête à étudier et à pratiquer. Dans cette texte nous apportons de réflexions aussi bien d'une jeune chercheur sur sont processus de transformation de paradigmes que de la responsable pour la guider dans ce processus.
Educação Etnomatemática: ensino e formação de alfabetizadores no Projeto Alfa-Cidadã/Pronera
Ethno-mathematics education: teaching and training of literacy teachers in Alfa-Cidadã/Pronera project
Authors: Barros Osvaldo Dos Santos , Xavier Antônio Roberto , Fialho Lia Machado Fiuza
Published: October 2018

Objetiva-se compreender a possibilidade de fomentar o ensino da etnomatemática na interface com a cultura local de assentados rurais na formação de alfabetizadores do Projeto de Alfabetização Solidária na Transamazônica, parte do Programa Nacional de Educação na Reforma Agrária. Para a coleta de dados, utilizou-se a técnica de rodas de conversa para compreensão do contexto social dos alfabetizadores em formação e seleção do tema gerador: Agricultura Familiar. Os procedimentos teórico-metodológicos adotados baseiam-se em estudos que acompanham as fases da Lua. A formação etnomatemática constatou que as práticas matemáticas dos agricultores podem ser utilizadas como suporte significativo no Ensino da Matemática e que ações educativas contextualizadas dão suporte à leitura e à interpretação dos processos de objetivação do tempo.The objective is to understand the possibility of fomenting the teaching of Ethnomathematics in the interface with the local culture of rural settlers in the formation of literacy teachers of the Solidarity Literacy Project in the Transamazônica, part of the National Program of Education in Agrarian Reform. For the collection of data, we used the talk wheels technique to understand the social context of literacy teachers in training and selection of the generating theme: Family Agriculture. The theoretical-methodological procedures adopted are based on studies by Vergani (2007) that accompany the phases of the Moon with their respective meanings: “New Moon”, the awareness that the different peoples of the world have always dedicated themselves to mathematical activities (functional, symbolic, ritualistic or aesthetic); “Crescent Room”, the awareness that the mathematical activities of the different socio-cultural traditions are not reduced to mere numerical, geometric or operative practices; “Full Moon”, the awareness that Ethnomathematics has a mission in today’s world that transcends the inter-cognition of socio-cultural alterities and “Waning Room”, the consciousness of future time, in which Ethnomathematics will become just a simple historical designation linked to a certain period of human travel. The Ethnomathematics formation verified that the mathematical practices of the farmers can be used as a significant support in the Teaching of Mathematics and that contextualized educational actions support the reading and the interpretation of the processes of objectivation of the time.
Educação matemática e educação técnica agrícola na década de 1980
Mathematics education and technical agricultural education in the 1980s
Authors: Toledo Neila De Toledo
Published: October 2018

O artigo examina como o princípio pedagógico “aprender a fazer fazendo” se expressava no âmbito da educação matemática no curso Técnico em Agropecuária da Escola Agrotécnica Federal de Sertão (EAFS/RS) nos anos de 1980. Os aportes teóricos encontram-se, principalmente, nas formulações de Michel Foucault e John Dewey. O material de pesquisa é composto por entrevistas realizadas com egressos, além de cadernos, provas e trabalhos da disciplina de Matemática. O exercício analítico sobre esse material, realizado na perspectiva da análise do discurso foucaultiano e por meio da abordagem de Storytelling, possibilitou concluir que a educação matemática da disciplina de Matemática era pouco vinculada ao princípio pedagógico “aprender a fazer fazendo”, priorizando-se o uso da escrita e o formalismo. The paper examines how the “learning to make by making” pedagogical principle was present in the context of mathematical education at Federal Agrotechnical School of Sertão (EAFS/RS) in the 1980s. The theoretical framework is based mainly on the works of Michel Foucault and John Dewey. The research material is composed of interviews with egresses, as well as Mathematics notebooks, tests and schoolwork from that period. The analytical exercise concerning this material, undertaken in the perspective of foucauldian discourse analysis and by means of the Storytelling approach, demonstrated that mathematical education in Mathematical classes was hardly related to the "learning to make by making" pedagogical principle, prioritizing formalism and the use of writing.
O estudo de Grafos: uma proposta investigativa
The study of Graphs: an investigative proposal
Authors: Baltazar Rene , Pereira Letícia
Published: October 2018

O presente estudo é uma experimentação acerca da abordagem estudo por investigação, com ênfase em Grafos. A proposta apresentada nesse trabalho tem como enfoque a elaboração de um ensaio sobre a inserção do Algoritmo de Dijkstra no Ensino de Matemática. Para isso, propõe-se o desenvolvimento de uma atividade pautada no ensino por investigação, onde os alunos foram instigados a resolver determinados problemas totalmente construídos com dados reais e com informações do âmbito da escola. Durante o desenvolvimento dessa experimentação, surgiram peculiaridades que nos fizeram validar a inserção de uma abordagem baseada no ensino por investigação destacando a importância do estudo da Teoria de Grafos na Educação Básica. This paper presents an experimentation based on the study by investigation with emphasis in the Theory of the Graphs. The proposal presented in this paper focuses on the elaboration of an essay on the insertion of the Dijkstra Algorithm in Mathematics Education. In order to elaborate this, it is proposed the development of an activity based on study by investigation, where the students were instigated to solve certain problems totally constructed with real data and with information of the scope of the school. During the development of this experiment, peculiarities appeared that allowed us to validate the insertion of an approach based on study by investigation and finally observing the importance of the study of Graph Theory in Basic Education.
STRATEGY IN WRITING IN CONSTRUCTING PARAGRAPH IN THE ESSAY AT UKI TORAJA
Authors: Arrang Judith Ratu Tandi , Sallata Yizrel Nani
Published: October 2018

All the sentences in a paragraph should be organized well to support the main idea which is stated in one sentence called topic sentence. In fact, the sixth semesters students of English Department of Christian University of Indonesia Toraja can write an essay but the paragraph in the essay sometime still far from a good paragraph. It is still difficult for students to construct a good paragraph. This is caused by the lack of skill in constructing paragraph. The objective of this research is to produce teaching writing strategy based on the identified errors by Satayatam and Pongrat criteria (2008). This research is designed as quantitative descriptive research. The result of the analysis shows that using outline is the strategy developed based on the result.
In Vitro Investigation of Potential Anti-Diabetic Activity of the Corm Extract of Hypoxis Argentea Harv. Ex Baker
Authors: Akinrinde Akinleye , Koekemoer Trevor , Venter Maryna Van De , Bradley Graeme
Published: October 2018

The corms of Hypoxis argentea are widely used as a traditional remedy for diabetes mellitus in South Africa. In this study, we investigated the effects of non-toxic concentrations (12.5-100 μg mL-1) of the aqueous extract of H. argentea (HAA) corms on glucose uptake, pancreatic beta cell proliferation, and adipocyte differentiation. HAA stimulated glucose uptake in HepG2 cells up to 19.6 % and 17.0 % in L6 myotubes. Live-cell imaging microscopy revealed significant increases (p < 0.001) in total INS-1 cell numbers exposed to HAA, although no effect was observed on adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 pre-adipocytes. HAA produced weak to moderate inhibition of porcine pancreatic α-amylase, α-glucosidase, porcine pancreatic lipase, dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP IV) activities, as well as protein glycation. Our results suggest that the acclaimed anti-diabetic effects of H. argentea could be mediated by its promotion of glucose utilization and preservation of pancreatic beta cell populations while preventing fat accumulation in adipocytes.
Catha Edulis Active Principle, Cathinone, Suppresses Motor Coordination, Accelerates Anxiety and Alters the Levels of Dopamine and its Metabolites in the Limbic Areas of Male Swiss Albino Mice
Authors: Safhi Mohammed M. , Alam Mohammad Firoz , Khuwaja Gulrana , Hussain Sohail , Siddiqui Mohammed Hakeem , Islam Farah , Khardali Ibrahim , Al-Sanosi Rashad Mohammed , Alhazmi Hassan A. , Khan Andleeb , Islam Fakhrul
Published: October 2018

Cathinone, the active principle of khat (Catha edulis), stimulates, excites and produces euphoric feelings in khat users. Locomotor and rearing activities, either individual or in groups, of male Swiss albino mice were decreased significantly compared to the control. Motor coordination tests (rotarod, rope climb and grip tests) have shown decreased motor performance in the mice treated with cathinone compared to the control. The elevated plus maze test has shown significant anxiety in the mice compared to the control. Contents of dopamine and its metabolite, homovanillic acid, were increased in the limbic areas compared to the control group. In contrast, contents of 3,4-dihydroxyphenyl acetic acid were depleted significantly and dose dependently compared to the control group in the limbic areas of mice. In conclusion, natural cathinone has depleted motor coordination, accelerated anxiety in mice and altered the contents of dopamine and its metabolites.
Molecular Evidence of Q Fever Agent Coxiella Burnetii in Ixodid Ticks Collected from Stray Dogs in Belgrade (Serbia)
Authors: Bogunović Danica , Stević Nataša , Sidi-Boumedine Karim , Mišić Dušan , Tomanović Snežana , Kulišić Zoran , Magaš Vladimir , Radojičić Sonja
Published: October 2018

Q fever is a zoonotic disease caused by Coxiella burnetii, a gram-negative coccobacillus, which has been detected in a wide range of animal species, mostly domestic ruminants, but also in wild mammals, pets, birds, reptiles, arthropods (especially ticks), as well as in humans. Although the exposure to domestic animals in rural areas is regarded as the most common cause of the disease in humans, recent studies have shown that the role of pets in the epidemiology of Q fever has been increasingly growing. Although the primary route of infection is inhalation, it is presumed that among animals the infection circulates through ticks and that they are responsible for heterospecifi c transmission, as well as spatial dispersion among vertebrates. The aim of this study was to determine the presence and prevalence of C. burnetii in ticks removed from stray dogs, as well as to examine the distribution of tick species parasitizing dogs on the territory of Belgrade city. A PCR protocol targeting IS1111 repetitive transposon-like region of C. burnetii was used for the detection of C. burnetii DNA in ticks and the results were confi rmed by sequence analysis. In total, 316 ticks were collected from 51 stray dogs - 40 females (78.43%) and 11 males (21.57%). Three species of ticks were identifi ed: Rhipicephalus s anguineus (72.15%), Ixodes ricinus (27.53%) and Dermacentor reticulatus (0.32%). Out of 316 examined ticks, C. burnetii DNA was detected only in the brown dog tick R. sanguineus, with a total prevalence of 10.53% (24/228) . The high prevalence of C. burnetii in R. sanguineus, which is primarily a dog tick, indicates the importance of dogs in the epidemiology of Q fever in the territory of Belgrade.
Effect of Subclinical and Overt Form of Rat Maternal Hypothyroidism on Offspring Endochondral Bone Formation
Authors: Milošević Ivan , Radovanović Anita , Danilović Luković Jelena , Lužajić Božinovski Tijana , Sourice-Petit Sophie , Beck-Cormier Sarah , Guicheux Jerome , Branislav Vejnović , Kovačevič Filipović Milica
Published: October 2018

Maternal hypothyroidism in its overt form affects skeletal development of the offspring, but these data are not available for the subclinical form which is becoming very frequent among pregnant women. We hypothesized that the subclinical form of hypothyroidism in rat dams, infl uences the process of offspring endochondral ossifi cation affecting proliferation and differentiation of chondrocytes, osteoclasts and osteoblasts in pups. Seven-day-old male pups (n=18) derived from control dams and dams treated with a low dose (1.5 mg/L) or high dose (150 mg/L) of propylthiouracil in drinking water during pregnancy and lactation were used. Histomorphometric analysis of pups’ tibia proximal growth plate, expression of mRNA, immunohistochemical and histochemical visualization of extracellular matrix components was performed. The length of the tibia was reduced in hypothyroid pups. Secretion of type 2 and 10 collagens in the subclinical and overt form were lower while the amount of glycosaminoglycans was higher when compared with controls. Down-regulated tartrate resistant acid phosphatase mRNA indicated altered osteoclasts function while lower expression of dentin matrix acid protein-1 mRNA and reduced synthesis of type 1 collagen accentuated a compromised bone formation in the overt form of hypothyroidism. The subclinical form of maternal hypothyroidism had a negative effect on the differentiation of hypertrophic chondrocytes and calcifi ed cartilage removal in 7-day-old pups. In addition, overt hypothyroidism had a negative effect on the proliferation of chondrocytes and deposition of osteoid. Both forms of hypothyroidism resulted in a decrease of tibia length due to changes in growth plate formation.
Phacoemulsification for Cataract Secondary to Persistent Hyperplastic Tunica Vasculosa Lentis and Peristent Hyperplastic Primary Vitreous in a Welsh Corgi
Authors: Mu-Young Kim , Joon Young Kim , Hun-Young Yoon
Published: October 2018

A 7-month-old Cardigan Welsh Corgi was presented with rapid cataract formation. Slit lamp biomicroscopy revealed mature cataract in the left eye. Ultrasonography revealed a microphakic lens and the presence of a cord-like structure extending from the posterior lens to the optic disc. On the basis of ophthalmological examinations, a diagnosis of cataract secondary to persistent hyperplastic tunica vasculosa lentis and persistent hyperplastic primary vitreous was made. Routine phacoemulsifi cation with a capsular tension ring and intraocular lens implantation were performed. Although a blood-fi lled vasculature with focal hemorrhage was observed during surgery, we did not fenestrate the posterior capsule or cut the hyaloid artery. We only polished the posterior capsule carefully for 2 min. At 22 days after surgery, Doppler ultrasonography did not detect blood fl ow within the cord-like structure, and the implanted intraocular lens appeared clear without fi brin formation or posterior capsule opacifi cation. The fi ndings from this case suggest that routine cataract surgery is an optimal surgical treatment for persistent hyperplastic tunica vasculosa lentis and persistent hyperplastic primary vitreous. To the best of our knowledge, this is the fi rst case report of phacoemulsifi cation with intraocular lens implantation for persistent hyperplastic tunica vasculosa lentis and persistent hyperplastic primary vitreous in a Welsh Corgi.
How sulphur dioxide and storage temperature contribute to patulin degradation in homemade apple juice
Authors: Bevardi Martina , Petrović Marinko , Markov Ksenija , Bošnir Jasna
Published: October 2018

Mycotoxin patulin is one of the quality indicators for apple juice. Like other mycotoxins, it raises consumer health concerns. The issue of low quality is particularly relevant for apples provided by small producers, whose quality control may not be standardised. As sulphur dioxide (SO2) is common in fruit preservation against fungi, the aim of this study was to determine how efficient it is in degrading patulin in apple juices stored in real-life conditions. This included refrigerated (4 °C) and non-refrigerated warehouses/environments (30 °C) over 8, 10, 12, and 20 weeks of storage. Apple juice was diluted to 0.010 μg g-1, 0.050 μg g-1, and 0.100 μg g-1 of patulin. SO2 was added to each sample in the amounts of 250 μg mL-1 and 50 μg mL-1. Untreated juice samples for each patulin concentration served as controls under the same experimental conditions. Patulin content was determined with high performance liquid chromatography. The best degradation was observed with 250 μg mL-1 of SO2 at 30 °C regardless of the patulin baseline concentration. Although treatment with SO2 and refrigeration did not fully remove patulin, it was highly efficient over twelve weeks of storage. Our results suggest that patulin levels can be reduced between 33 and 100 % at 30 °C and up to 100 % at 4 °C.
Employment status of workers with a diagnosed occupational disease in Croatia: a 10-year trend (2005-2014)
Authors: Nemarnik Renata Ecimović , Macan Jelena
Published: October 2018

Occupational diseases (ODs) often have a chronic, progressive course, resulting in reduced work capacity and quality of life, prolonged sick leaves, unemployment, early retirements, and disability claims. The aim of this retrospective study was to see how diagnosed ODs affected the employment of 95 Croatian workers between 2005 and 2014. To do that, we reviewed archived data and made a telephone survey. The lowest age at which an OD was diagnosed was 20 years in women and 22 in men, while the shortest duration of work before OD diagnosis was one year for both genders. The most common ODs were overuse syndromes on the arms, carpal tunnel syndrome in particular, diagnosed mostly in textile and office workers. Of the 95 participants, 12 lost their jobs since the OD diagnosis, 46 retired, and 37 continued to work. Significantly more participants became unemployed after OD diagnosis in the period 2010-2014 than 2005-2009 (9 out of 43, 21 %, vs. 3 out of 52, 6 %, P<0.05). Only five participants were included in an occupational rehabilitation programme. Our findings warn against the deterioration in care for workers diagnosed with OD in Croatia.
Stability of Interval Positive Fractional Discrete–Time Linear Systems
Authors: Kaczorek Tadeusz
Published: October 2018

The aim of this work is to show that interval positive fractional discrete-time linear systems are asymptotically stable if and only if the respective lower and upper bound systems are asymptotically stable. The classical Kharitonov theorem is extended to interval positive fractional linear systems.
An Ant–Based Filtering Random–Finite–Set Approach to Simultaneous Localization and Mapping
Authors: Li Demeng , Zhua Jihong , Xu Benlian , Lu Mingli , Li Mingyue
Published: October 2018

Inspired by ant foraging, as well as modeling of the feature map and measurements as random finite sets, a novel formulation in an ant colony framework is proposed to jointly estimate the map and the vehicle trajectory so as to solve a feature-based simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) problem. This so-called ant-PHD-SLAM algorithm allows decomposing the recursion for the joint map-trajectory posterior density into a jointly propagated posterior density of the vehicle trajectory and the posterior density of the feature map conditioned on the vehicle trajectory. More specifically, an ant-PHD filter is proposed to jointly estimate the number of map features and their locations, namely, using the powerful search ability and collective cooperation of ants to complete the PHD-SLAM filter time prediction and data update process. Meanwhile, a novel fast moving ant estimator (F-MAE) is utilized to estimate the maneuvering vehicle trajectory. Evaluation and comparison using several numerical examples show a performance improvement over recently reported approaches. Moreover, the experimental results based on the robot operation system (ROS) platform validate the consistency with the results obtained from numerical simulations.
Regression Function and Noise Variance Tracking Methods for Data Streams with Concept Drift
Authors: Jaworski Maciej
Published: October 2018

Two types of heuristic estimators based on Parzen kernels are presented. They are able to estimate the regression function in an incremental manner. The estimators apply two techniques commonly used in concept-drifting data streams, i.e., the forgetting factor and the sliding window. The methods are applicable for models in which both the function and the noise variance change over time. Although nonparametric methods based on Parzen kernels were previously successfully applied in the literature to online regression function estimation, the problem of estimating the variance of noise was generally neglected. It is sometimes of profound interest to know the variance of the signal considered, e.g., in economics, but it can also be used for determining confidence intervals in the estimation of the regression function, as well as while evaluating the goodness of fit and in controlling the amount of smoothing. The present paper addresses this issue. Specifically, variance estimators are proposed which are able to deal with concept drifting data by applying a sliding window and a forgetting factor, respectively. A number of conducted numerical experiments proved that the proposed methods perform satisfactorily well in estimating both the regression function and the variance of the noise.
Assessment of Commuter Satisfaction in the Usage of Bus-Shelters: the Ataköy Zone 5 and Beşyol Metrobus Stops, Istanbul
Authors: Caymaz Gökçen Firdevs Yücel
Published: October 2018

Bus shelters, which form a part of daily lives of people, generally provide service as small areas of urban space created for short-term periods of waiting. From the perspective of spatial design, it is important that an environment of good quality is provided for users of bus-shelters. This study proposed hypotheses to research how the physical design of bus shelters (location-accessibility, anthropometric characteristics, roofing and walls, lighting, electronic information, seating, etc.) affected general satisfaction of their users. To establish users’ general satisfaction, direct observation was performed and the hypotheses were tested through surveys conducted at bus-shelters selected in two areas of Istanbul (Ataköy-Beşyol) with different economic levels, and an assessment was made of the users’ satisfaction analyses and related problems of bus shelter design. In the conclusion, it was established that there is a significant correlation between general satisfaction and, among other things, the perceived degree of difficulty in getting on and off buses, the harmonization of bus shelter design with the surroundings, the adequacy of a shelter for summer use, the comfort of a shelter, the adequacy of seating, and the extent to which the shelter is maintained.
Understanding Red Blood Cell Rheology in Sepsis and its Role in Clinical Practice. From Biomolecular Aspects to Possible Therapeutic Interventions
Authors: Moisă Emanuel , Negoiţă Silvius , Corneci Dan
Published: October 2018

Erythrocyte rheology is of interest in understanding microcirculation and oxygen delivery and consumption alterations induced by sepsis and septic shock. Several mechanisms are proposed: (i) direct or indirect RBC membrane alterations, (ii) abnormal intraerythrocytic homeostasis, (iii) RBCs interaction with other cells and extracellular molecules, (iiii) increased reactive species production and altered redox homeostasis. In this review, we describe in part these mechanisms and what’s the impact of these hemorheological disturbances on the outcome and mortality rate. Also, we outline the possible therapeutic interventions and further perspectives regarding sepsis and septic shock management.
On consistent nonlinear analysis of soil–structure interaction problems
Authors: Truty Andrzej
Published: October 2018

Nonlinear soil–linear structure computational strategy is commonly accepted in the community of geotechnical engineers using advanced finite element software for solving complex soil–structure interaction problems. However, further design procedure of the structural elements is carried out using increased values of the computed elastic stress resultants. It is absolutely not clear whether this method is conservative and, therefore, whether safe or not. To tackle this problem, a fully consistent nonlinear analysis of a deep excavation protected by the diaphragm wall is analysed here. The subsoil is modelled using the Hardening Soil model, while reinforced concrete is modelled using the modified Lee–Fenves model enhanced by the Eurocode 2 (EC2)-compatible creep module, developed by the author. It is shown that the commonly used nonlinear soil–linear structure computational strategy may yield insufficient amount of reinforcement from the ultimate limit state (ULS) and serviceability limit state (SLS) points of view. A consistent and conservative method of combining fully nonlinear analysis and the rules imposed by the EC2 is proposed.
Tilting a Ground State Reactivity Landscape by Vibrational Strong Coupling
Authors: Thomas Anoop , Lethuillier-Karl Lucas , Nagarajan Kalaivanan , M. A. Vergauwe Robrecht , George Jino , Chervy Thibault , Shalabney Atef , Devaux Eloïse , Genet Cyriaque , Moran Joseph , Ebbesen Thomas W.
Published: October 2018

Site-selectivity is fundamental for steering chemical reactivity towards a given product and various efficient chemical methods have been developed for this purpose. Here we explore a very different approach by using vibrational strong coupling (VSC) between a reactant and the vacuum field of a microfluidic optical cavity. For this purpose, the reactivity of a compound bearing two possible silyl bond cleavage sites, at Si-C and Si-O, was studied as a function of VSC of its various vibrational modes in the dark. The results show that VSC can indeed tilt the reactivity landscape to favor one product over the other. Thermodynamic parameters reveal the presence of a large activation barrier and significant changes to the activation entropy, confirming the modified chemical landscape under strong coupling. This study shows for the first time that VSC can impart site-selectivity for chemical reactions without the need for chemical intervention.
Expressão gênica de ApoA1 e ApoB em de frangos de corte de duas linhagens diferentes
Authors: Khatlab Angélica De Souza , Silva Stefânia Caroline Claudino da , Garcia André Luiz Seccatto , Silva Éverton Ferreira da , Fachinello Marcelise , Gasparino Eliane
Published: October 2018

objetivo desse estudo foi avaliar a expressão gênica das apolipoproteínas A1 e B, bem como a relação entre elas no fígado de frangos de corte de duas linhagens, selecionada e não selecionada. O experimento foi conduzido na fazenda experimental da Universidade Estadual de Maringá. Os animais das duas linhagens, uma selecionada e outra não selecionada, foram alojados em gaiolas em ambiente climatizado durante 42 dias. As dietas oferecidas foram adequadas a cada fase de desenvolvimento, porém não diferiram entre os dois grupos. Ao final desse período os animais foram abatidos e foram realizadas coletas de fígado para as análises de expressão gênica. As amostras foram armazenadas em tubo criogênico imerso em nitrogênio líquido até o momento da extração de RNA das amostras. Os animais da linhagem selecionada apresentaram maior expressão relativa dos genes estudados, quando comparados com os animais da linhagem não selecionada, entretanto, a relação entre as apolipoproteínas se manteve constante nas duas linhagens. A seleção para ganho em peso reduz a expressão dos genes das apolipoproteínas A1 e B no fígado de frangos de corte.
THE IMPROVEMENT OF CRITERIA FOR IDENTIFICATION OF SYSTEMICALLY IMPORTANT BANKS BASED ON CROSS-SECTORAL APPROACH
Authors: Gospodarchuk G. G. , Suchkova E. O.
Published: October 2018

In this article, the authors investigate the current theoretical and methodological approaches to the identification of systemically important banks, taking into account the specifics of national economies. The purpose of our study is an elaboration of criteria for the identification of systemically important banks at the national level. It creates a platform for the use of a proportional approach to the regulation of their activities. We used a cross- sectoral approach. It is based on the use of methods of induction and cluster analysis, which involves ranking banks in terms of their impact separately on the non-financial and financial sectors of the economy, followed by aggregation and ranking of the results. The study is based on the analysis of theoretical and methodological approaches to the identification of systemically important banks and was performed in relation to the Russian economy. It includes an analysis of the financial statements of commercial banks and the definition of indicators characterizing their cross-sectoral impact on the economy. We have elaborated criteria and evaluation scales for quantitative and qualitative characteristics of the systemically important banks with the allocation of significance levels. On the basis of the developed criteria, we analyzed the systemically important Russian banks for the non- financial and financial sectors, and for the economy as a whole. Further, we gave the quantitative and qualitative assessment of the systemically important Russian banks and provided a comparative analysis of the results with the officially established list of systemically important banks in the Russian Federation. The criteria and evaluation scales proposed in the study allow increasing the objectivity of the banks’ classification as systemically important ones. At the same time, they create a platform for using a proportional approach to regulating the activities of systemically important banks. Proposed in the study the criteria for identification of the systemically important banks, with regard to their impact on certain sectors of the economy, are universal and can be used in different countries.
QUANTITATIVE ASSESSMENT OF THE VALUE OF HUMAN LIFE IN RUSSIA AND IN THE WORLD
Authors: Zubets А. N. , Novikov А. V.
Published: October 2018

The authors of the article present modern approaches to the assessment of the value of human life abroad and in contemporary Russia, which can be used to determine the fair amount of compensation payments to victims in emergency situations of various natures. To this end, a wide range of initial data was used: the results of Russian and international sociological surveys, statistics of Rosstat, the World Bank, and other international databases. The analysis of the legislation carried out by the authors showed that the value of human life in Russia fixed in the normative acts is from 0.5 to 9.2 million roubles. The authors obtained estimates of material losses for the national economy due to the premature death of the average person as a result of emergency situations and for the individual household — they amount to 31.7 and 7.9–10.5 million roubles respectively (in 2017 prices). The authors also provided estimates of the value of the life of the average person in Russia, obtained on the basis of sociological surveys conducted in 2017. The average value of human life in Russia, obtained by methods of sociology, is 5.2 million roubles; the median value is 1.4 million roubles. The article presents the author’s method of assessing the value of human life, taking into account the material and moral damage caused to the family of the deceased, built on the balance of average life expectancy, per capita final consumption, and satisfaction of the population of different countries with their lives. As an equivalent of people’s satisfaction with their lives, the authors also used data on the level of domestic violence in society and the balance of migration flows, both at the national and regional levels. Within the framework of this method, the value of the life of the average person is the average increase in the level of individual consumption, necessary to restore a normal level of satisfaction with their lives in conditions of increased mortality and reduction of the average life expectancy. The article presents also the author’s calculations performed by this method for different groups of countries. It is shown that the total value of human life in the world as a whole is 4.6–4.7 million uS dollars in 2011 prices. In the group of countries with per capita consumption of more than 10 thousand uS dollars the value of human life reaches 18.5 million dollars per year. In the group of countries with incomes below this mark, the value of human life reaches 0.5–1.9 million dollars. According to the authors, in Russia, the “value” of human life should be 51–61 million roubles in the prices of 2017 (about 1 million uS dollars depending on the official exchange rate). The results of the study of the quantitative assessment of the value of human life in Russia are correlated with the conclusions about the social need for just compensation of the damage suffered by the families of the victims of natural, man-made and other emergencies.
FOREIGN CURRENCY CONTROL IN CASE OF FREE MOVEMENT OF CAPITAL
Authors: Levashenko A. D. , Koval’ A. A.
Published: October 2018

The current practice of foreign currency control in Russia is based on the mechanisms that were formed during the period of the Soviet administrative and command economy. The approaches applied in Russia to foreign currency regulation and foreign currency control (repatriation requirements, closed list of operations for crediting funds to foreign accounts) create barriers for the Russian business and citizens, significantly complicating the procedure for their foreign economic activity. At the same time, the existing restrictions, in conditions when the requirements for the sale of a part of foreign currency earnings and other restrictions on the movement of capital are not applied, do not ensure the achievement of macroeconomic goals, which are laid down in the preamble of the act “On foreign currency regulation and foreign currency control”. The foreign currency act in Russia does not currently ensure the achievement of the goals for which it was adopted. In practice, the act solves the tax objectives and the tasks of combating the legalization of criminal revenue. Developed countries and members of the Organization for economic cooperation and development (OECD) do not use similar mechanisms to control the movement of funds. At the same time, foreign countries are actively developing instruments to control cross-border cash flows within the framework of legislation on combating money laundering and financing of terrorism, as well as in the framework of improving the mechanisms of international exchange of financial information for tax purposes. The authors propose a reform of the current foreign currency regulation aimed at the abolition of currency restrictions and the development of alternative mechanisms for controlling the cross-border movement of funds by improving the international exchange of tax information, including automatic one, as well as improving the effectiveness of measures to combat money laundering in international trade.
Surrogate Humanity: Posthuman Networks and the (Racialized) Obsolescence of Labor
Authors: Atanasoski Neda , Vora Kalindi
Published: October 2018

Historical forms of domination and power, encompassed but not limited to social categories and hierarchies of difference, get built into seemingly non-human objects and the infrastructures that link them, thus sanitizing digital media technologies as human-free.  Rather than questioning the epistemological and ontological underpinnings of the human, fantasies about the revolutionary nature of new media and technology developments as posthuman carry forward and re-universalize the historical specificity of the category “human” whose bounds they claim to surpass.  To begin to theorize some of the ways in which the notion of a revolutionary network of humans and things is both racial and racializing, the first part of this article develops a reading of Sylvia Wynter’s theorization of modern “man” as fundamentally constructed through racial-scientific notions of the biological and economic.  We then think Wynter’s notion of homo-oeconomicus alongside Rifkin’s postulation that in fact the infrastructure revolution marks a paradigm shift away from capitalism. Through an analysis of several contemporary platforms (including Alfred and Amazon Mechanical Turk), we address the global-racial erasures and disappearances undergirding techno-utopic fantasies of a post-labor society.  At the same time, as we argue, it is insufficient to merely point out the way in which human racialized and gendered labor underwrites techno-utopic fantasies. Instead, we move to a consideration of the epistemological and material shifts as well as legacies tied to prior post-Enlightenment revolutionary thought, such as that of Franz Fanon, to reconceptualize who or what can count as human.  In conversation with feminist science studies scholarship on the posthuman, we grapple with what it means to think the subject of labor, and the human as subject, outside of the biological-economic imperatives of prior imaginaries.
On Writing About Illness: A Dialogue with S. Lochlann Jain and Jackie Stacey on Cancer, STS, and Cultural Studies
Authors: Jain S. Lochlann , Stacey Jackie
Published: October 2018

In this dialogue, S. Lochlann Jain and Jackie Stacey put into conversation their respective monographs, Malignant and Teratologies. Drawing on perspectives in feminist science studies and cultural studies, the discussion dovetails their first-person accounts and the critical analyses in their books.
A Discussion on Experiments and Experimentation: NIH to Balance Sex in Cell and Animal Studies
Authors: Joel Daphna , Kaiser Anelis , Richardson Sarah S. , Ritz Stacey A. , Roy Deboleena , Subramaniam Banu
Published: October 2018

In 2014, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) proposed a new policy to promote “sex parity” in research.  As an extension to the 1993 NIH Revitalization Act which mandated the inclusion of women and minorities in clinical trials, the new NIH policy will require scientists to include “sex” as a variable in both animal model and in vitro cell line-based research.  The end goal is to ensure that NIH funded scientists “balance male and female cells and animals in preclinical studies in all future applications” (Clayton and Collins 2014, 283). The curators of this section asked four interdisciplinary scholars to discuss this proposed policy.
Introduction to the Inaugural Issue
Authors: Editorial Board Catalyst Journal
Published: October 2018

The editorial board introduces the inaugural issue of Catalyst. The first issue demonstrates the scope of Catalyst's intellectual and political vision.
Review of iMedia: The Gendering of Objects, Environments and Smart Materials by Sarah Kember (Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan, 2016)
Authors: Gotkin Kevin
Published: October 2018

Review of iMedia: The Gendering of Objects, Environments and Smart Materials by Sarah Kember (Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan, 2016)
The Mattering of Black Lives: Octavia Butler’s Hyperempathy and the Promise of the New Materialisms
Authors: Leong Diana
Published: October 2018

This article argues that the ethical potential of “the nonhuman turn” advanced by the new materialisms is structured by disavowed social fantasies about black female flesh. The most recent new materialist publications draw upon the techno-scientific developments of the Anthropocene, a geological epoch defined by the cumulative effects of species-level human activity, to demonstrate the supposed inadequacy of poststructuralist “identity politics” for meeting the intellectual challenges of our time. But as a close reading of Octavia Butler’s Parable duology reveals, any model of ethics that dismisses considerations of race as such, and attention to the history of racial slavery in particular, will fail to address the most fundamental questions, ethical and otherwise, of the modern world.
Misogynoir in Medical Media: On Caster Semenya and R. Kelly
Authors: Bailey Moya
Published: October 2018

Misogynoir describes the co-constitutive, anti-Black, and misogynistic racism directed at Black women, particularly in visual and digital culture (Bailey, 2010). The term is a combination of misogyny, the hatred of women, and noir, which means black but also carries film and media connotations. It is the particular amalgamation of anti-Black racism and misogyny in popular media and culture that targets Black trans and cis women. Representational images contribute to negative societal perceptions about Black women, which can precipitate racist gendered violence that harms health and can even result in death. As philosopher Linda Alcoff asserts, racism depends on perceptible difference to determine which bodies are expendable, and in this cultural moment of Black hypervisibility, Black women are particularly vulnerable (Philosophy). I use two culture examples to explore the real life impact of misogynoir in medical media. I explore the ways in which the biomedical knowledge produced by physicians reinforces certain bodies as normal and others as pathological. The case of Caster Semenya as well as the trial of R&B star R. Kelly, allow me to introduce Black feminist health science studies as a critical intervention into current medical curriculum reform conversations.
Sense of Things
Authors: Jackson Zakiyyah
Published: October 2018

An inquiry into onto-epistemology, this essay investigates the reciprocal production of aesthesis and empiricism, both the seemingly scientific and the perceptual knowledge that signifies otherwise under conditions of imperial Western humanism. In a reading of Nalo Hopkinson’s Brown Girl in the Ring (1998), I argue that as an enabling condition of imperial Western humanism, the black mater(nal) is foreclosed by the dialectics of hegemonic common sense and that the anxieties stimulated by related signifiers, such as the black(ened) maternal image, voice, and lifeworld, allude to the latent symbolic-material capacities of the black mater(nal), as mater, as matter, to destabilize or even rupture the reigning order of representation that grounds the thought-world relation. In other words, the specter of the black mater(nal)—that is, nonrepresentability—haunts the terms and operations tasked with adjudicating the thought-world correlate or the proper perception of “the world” such as hierarchical distinctions between reality and illusion, Reason and its absence, subject and object, science and fiction, and speculation and realism, which turn on attendant aporias pertaining to immanence and transcendence. Exploring the mind-body-social nexus in Hopkinson’s fiction, I contend that in Brown Girl vertigo is evoked as both a symptom and a metaphor of inhabiting a reality discredited (a blackened reality) that is at once the experience of the carceral and the apprehension of a radically redistributed sensorium. I argue the black mater(nal) holds the potential to transform the terms of reality and feeling, therefore rewriting the conditions of possibility of the empirical.
Introduction:Feminism’s Sciences
Authors: Subramaniam Banu , Willey Angela
Published: October 2018

Introduction to Part 1- Feminism's Sciences
From Mother/Fetus to Holobiont(s): A Material Feminist Ontology of the Pregnant Body
Authors: Takeshita Chikako
Published: October 2018

Across scientific, medical, legal, political, popular, and religious discourses, the “mother” and the “fetus” are regarded as being separated by a physical boundary. Time and time again, feminist theorists have proposed ways to disband the mother/fetus division derived from Cartesian self/other binarism and individualism. The goal of this article is to introduce and explore an alternative ontology of the pregnant body I call the motherfetus. I follow material feminist Karen Barad (2007) in contending that the “fetus” does not preexist as an object with a distinct agency who interacts with the “mother,” but only materializes through what Barad calls intra-action. I argue that the pregnant body can be reconfigured in such a way that the material distinction between the “mother” and the “fetus” disappears. This endeavor entails re-interpreting material “evidences” provided by twenty-first century technosciences while mobilizing the motherfetus as an apparatus of bodily production. Through a lens that insists on rejecting the genetic, immunological, anatomical, and physiological separation of the “mother” and “fetus,” this article will borrow elements from immunology, microchimerism, and the human microbiome to generate multiple incarnations of the motherfetus as a material-discursive product. In the conclusion, I will examine how the motherfetus as a feminist theory can alter the ways in which the pregnant body is dealt with in feminist activisms as well as in scientific studies and medical practices.