bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Impact of defence spending on economic growth in Africa: The Nigerian case
Authors: Ajefu Joseph Boniface
Published: August 2015

This paper examines the relationship between defence burden and real gross domestic products in Nigeria, using annual time series data. This study uses Johansen’s Cointegration approach to investigate the relationship between government’s military expenditure (defence burden) and real gross domestic products, among other variables. In light of the lingering controversy on military expenditure and growth nexus, this paper contributes to the existing literature using time-series data from Nigeria, a country with high military spending over the years to re-investigate the impact of military expenditures on economic growth and the direction of causality between military spending and economic growth. Specifically, this study discusses the long run relationship between military expenditure and economic growth using Johansen cointegration approach. The key variables used in the study include: military burden (military expenditure), real GDP, real education expenditure, real health expenditure. The nature of the relationship that exists between military expenditure and economic growth as well as the cointegrating vector, taking into cognizance all other variables is focus of this paper. The results of the study show that increased defence burden is harmful to the Nigerian economy, and there exists a negative long-run relationship between defence burden and increase in the growth of real gross domestic products, the impact of defence burden remains negative both in the short-run and long-run respectively. It is not sufficient to have cuts in military expenditure, but such reallocation from defence should be directed towards productive investment in other sectors of the economy in order to generate economic prosperity and enhance the welfare of the citizens. Implications of having a negative effect of defence burden on growth rate of real Gross Domestic Products result in crowding-out of private sector investment, retards economic progress or growth rate of real gross domestic products, and therefore, is an ineffective tool to stimulate the growth of the economy in Nigeria. Military expenditure cannot be an effective tool of fiscal policy (government revenue and expenditure to regulate the economy), from the results of the study both short-run and long-run impact are negative, hence, the role of military sector should be limited to the maintenance of internal law and order as well as the defence of the country against any form of external aggression. This study will be of immense significance towards shaping policies that relate to military spending in Nigeria.
Is China’s economic growth sustainable?: A general equilibrium analysis
Authors: Zhang James Xiaohe
Published: August 2015

Despite China’s remarkable economic growth over the last three decades have been well acknowledged, there seems no consensus being reached on how this growth is created and whether it can be sustained in the future. While some economists (e.g., Holz, 2008) argue that “China’s potential for economic growth from relatively low labor costs will continue to exist for another 30 years”, others (e.g., Hofman and Kuijs, 2008, Prasad, 2009, Whalley and Xin, 2010) have questioned its sustainability. Based on a brief literature review and with the help of a well-known CGE model (the GTAP model), this paper attempts to identify the most significant factors that have contributed to the miraculous economic growth in China, namely international trade, FDI, and migrant labor, and to explore how some other economic potentials such as the removal of the household registration system and engaging free trade with its major trade partners could be further exploited. The GTAP is a multi-region, multi-sector CGE model that has been used widely to tackle many economic and trade policy issues in developing countries. The latest version of the dataset which is based on 2007 actual data is used for running two sets of eight counter-factual simulations. According to the results of the simulations, it is concluded that the export-orientation development strategy, effective use of FDI, and exploitation of comparative advantage of its migrant workers are the most significant factors that have contributed to the remarkable economic growth in China. While the opening effect accounts for roughly 40% of GDP growth, the effective use of the migrant workers contributes to about 50%, leaving the remaining 10% or less as the contribution of TFP. Although not all of these factors will persist in the future, several alternative reform measures including the removal of the household registration system and further liberalising international trade through forming FTAs with its major trade partners would keep contributing to sustain China’s economic growth. The policy implication is that China should continue its opening and reform policies toward developing a more liberalised domestic factor market and engaging more FTAs with its major trading partners. When these economic potentials are further exploited, China’s rapid economic growth can be sustained further for at least another decade.
The adverse effect of child marriage on women’s economic well being in Bangladesh – can microfinance help?
Authors: Abdullah Shahnaz , Qureshi Halima , Quayes Shakil
Published: August 2015

This paper examines the impact of child marriage on women’s economic well being using cross sectional data from Bangladesh. Child marriage is a serious social problem in itself but it can also exacerbate the prevalence of domestic violence and undermine the empowerment of women. As such, policy makers are faced with the daunting task of tackling these three issues that are intricately interrelated. This study constructs two separate indices, one for domestic violence and another for economic empowerment, to examine how they are affected by child marriage. Using probit regression models, we obtained parameter estimates that were adjusted for cluster-level correlation and unobserved heterogeneity. Domestic Violence is defined as a dummy variable, which is equal to 1, if the woman has been ever subjected to domestic violence and 0 otherwise. The empirical results show that child marriage, greater age difference between husband and wife, and poverty contribute to an increase in the incidence of domestic violence toward women, whereas both secondary and higher education result in lowering domestic violence. The variable empowerment was constructed based on aggregating a woman’s response to five questions pertaining to women’s participation in household decision-making–(i) who controls the earnings generated by the woman; (ii) who makes decisions regarding healthcare; (iii) who makes decisions on large household purchases; (iv) who makes decisions on small household purchases; and (v) whether a woman is able to visit her family and relatives. The empowerment dummy variable takes the value 1, if the woman had some role in the decision making in at least one of the five categories and 0, if she had no role in household decision making. The results of the study show that women who get married during their adolescent years are subject to increased domestic violence and are less likely to be empowered. Not surprisingly, results also show that higher educated women are more empowered than women who have primary and secondary education. Finally, using data from three microfinance institutions in Bangladesh - Grameen Bank, BRAC, and ASA, the study investigates the role of microfinance with respect to empowerment of women. Findings of the study show that while access to microcredit enhances women’s empowerment in general, this result does not hold for women who underwent child marriage. The results are similar to earlier findings which show that access to microcredit can empower women, however, unlike previous literature, this study finds that credit has no effect on the incidence of domestic violence. The policy implications of the findings of the study underscore the importance of stricter enforcement on the prohibition of child marriage and overall benefit of female higher education.
Performance of tourism sector with regard to the global crisis - a comparative study between Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore
Authors: Purwomarwanto* Yunitazari Laksmi , Ramachandran Jayalakshmy
Published: August 2015

Tourism contributes to the growth of economy of a nation through employment, multiplier effect, and foreign exchange earnings and also contributes to positive balance of payments. Therefore, developed and developing countries have incorporated tourism into their long-term economic development planning. However, tourism is vulnerable to crisis events, such as outbreaks, political turmoil and also financial crisis. This study examines the performance of tourism sector in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore with regard to the recent global crisis. The three countries are chosen because of several reasons. Firstly, they have incorporated tourism as one of the focuses in their long-term economic development plan. Secondly, although they are closely related in terms of geographic proximity and regional cooperation, they differ in terms of size and openness of economy. All the commonalities and differences make it more intriguing to carry out the study. This study employs ordinary least squares method to investigate the significance of tourism in relation to economic growth. There are two models used in this study. First model employs GDP to represent economic growth and the number of international tourist arrival to represent tourism growth. Second model employs hotel’s rate of occupancy, average length of stay, and the number of tourist arrival as proxy of tourism growth. Comparative study is also done in the discussion in order to analyze how the respective countries differ in tourism performance. The study finds out that for the three countries, tourism is of significance for the economic growth. Tourism was also affected by financial crisis, as seen from the short dip in the performance of the tourism sector in terms of the number of tourist arrival and hotel’s rate of occupancy in first quarter of 2009. Nevertheless, the sector is considered as a resilient sector as it successfullyrecovered in 2010a. Based on the comparison, it is found that Singapore is affected much in comparison with the other two. It may be linked to strong real effective exchange rate, which makes the price less competitive compared to the other two. This study also finds that regional tourists actually play an important role in the development of tourism, because they comprise the largest portion of tourist arrival compared to outside-regional tourists, and the number has remained stable. Based on the result obtained, we consider tourism development as one of strategic economic pillars since it has significantly positive impact on GDP growth. We also deliberate that the countries should focus on catering to the preferences of regional tourists to accelerate the growth of this sector.
Dublin, Inc.: Municipal Corporation Reform in “Ivy Day in the Committee Room”
Authors: Marshik Celia
Published: August 2015

In my essay, I suggest that Joyce deploys references to the Dublin Corporation, the governmental body established to manage the affairs of the metropolis, to highlight the legal anomaly of local self-governance in the context of the colony. I highlight the rights retracted and granted through different iterations of Irish corporations, which were the focus of parliamentary reforms during Joyce’s youth. I then examine “Ivy Day in the Committee Room,” which has been read as a lens on Irish national, but not municipal, politics, and argue that our attention to “Ivy Day” has detracted from the story’s interest in “the Committee Room,” a site of local governance upended by changes to corporation law. Joyce’s story reveals an interest in reformism and structures of municipality; more importantly, “Ivy Day” suggests that strong municipalities make for strong nations and that nationalist efforts should not ignore the city in a focus on the state.
Pro Bono Publico : Urban Space in “Cyclops”
Authors: Brazeau Robert
Published: August 2015

This essay examines the ways in which legislation around alcohol consumption in late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century Ireland was part of a concerted reorganization of public space in colonial Dublin. Focusing on “Cyclops,” the study examines Joyce’s attentiveness to the ways in which changes in the design or administration of public space register deeper political and cultural tensions in the Dublin that he portrays. Spatial and cultural boundaries become intertwined in “Cyclops,” and the episode explores the complicated relationship between space and forms of political allegiance and identity.
Feminist Thought and Rational Authority: Getting Things in Perspective
Authors: Crary Alice
Published: August 2015

This article is about an aspect of feminist moral and political thought that tends to get obscured in central strands of contemporary feminist theory. Its thesis is that, if we are to bring the lives of women into focus in a manner relevant to ethics and politics, we need to take seriously the cognitive power of utterances and inscriptions (as well as of nonverbal modes of communication) that invite us to see things in specific ethical lights. I start by discussing how two prominent strands of feminist theorizing—strands associated, respectively, with poststructuralist thought and Anglo-American moral philosophy—deprive us of resources for doing justice to the relevant aspect of feminist thinking. I argue that we can find resources for a more satisfactory conception in some of Wittgenstein’s later observations about the workings of language. My goal in sounding themes from Wittgenstein’s philosophy is to illuminate challenges of feminist thought in a way that brings out productive connections between such thought and feminist praxis. I close with a remark about the bearing of my argument on a set of ongoing conversations about sources of the conspicuous underrepresentation of women in philosophy today.
Aesthetic Experiences, Ancient and Modern
Authors: Grethlein Jonas
Published: August 2015

The essay argues that ancient authors provide fascinating material for the re-awakened interest in aesthetic experience. Their emphasis on the immersive power of art can stimulate an aesthetic theory that tries to recover from the diet prescribed by poststructuralism, Critical Theory and the mainstream of analytical philosophy. Exemplary readings of an archaic epic, the Odyssey , and a late antique novel, the Ethiopica , drive home that narrative is more than a means of representation (as opposed to presence); it also has the capacity to trigger experiences in its recipients. While highlighting the spell that narrative can cast on its recipients, Homer and Heliodorus remain aware of the “as-if” that distinguishes aesthetic experiences from real-life experiences. Of course, the meditations of ancient authors do not fully map onto our current debate. Yet, it is the very chasm that allows ancient texts to cast light on present concerns, as an attempt to mediate between the caveats of historical semantics and the transhistorical claims of phenomenology shows
Thinking Through Examples: What Ordinary Language Philosophy Can Do for Feminist Theory
Authors: Moi Toril
Published: August 2015

Toril Moi shows that Wittgenstein’s philosophy, and particularly his critique of the “craving for generality” transforms our understanding of concept, and theory. By teaching us how to think through examples, ordinary language philosophy releases us from the grip of the logic of representation—the logic of inclusion/exclusion—that dominates feminist theory today. Taking her examples mostly from intersectionality theory, Moi shows that ordinary language philosophy offers a powerful alternative to contemporary identity and anti-identity theories, and that this philosophy is more attentive to particulars, better capable of helping to make sense of women’s experiences than the standard attempts to “do theory.”
Are There any Women in Shakespeare’s Plays?: Fiction, Representation, and Reality in Feminist Criticism
Authors: Beckwith Sarah
Published: August 2015

This essay suggests that the question of response to literary texts has been superseded by almost exclusive concerns about representation in recent feminist criticism. It charts a way back to criticism as a form of just response by examining the versions of reality as they appear in feminist theories of representation as opposed to the vision of language in the ordinary language philosophy pioneered by Austin, Wittgenstein, and Cavell. After exploring the role of criteria in fiction and arguing that fiction does conceptual work, Beckwith gives examples of just response in two key texts: Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale , and Felicie’s response to the last act of that play in Eric Rohmer’s film Conte d’hiver .
Un/Voicing the Self: Vocal Pedagogy and the Discourse-Practices of Subjectivation
Authors: Schlichter Annette
Published: August 2015

This essay uses the popular vocal pedagogy of voice teacher Kristin Linklater as a paradigmatic example to interpret the discourse-practices of voice training within a Foucauldian framework as a form of subjectivation in contemporary US culture. In Schlichter’s cultural analysis, complemented by participatory research, voice work appears both as a disciplinary regime that ties the student to a version of an authentic self via the “natural” voice and as a current version of the “care of self,” as Foucault calls somatic strategies of experimentation with the self, that opens venues to physical and psychic emotional transformation.
The Micropolitics of Listening to Vocal Timbre
Authors: Eidsheim Nina Sun
Published: August 2015

Why are notions about voice and race that are no longer supported by research still reproduced? Through ethnography work on classical vocal training in southern California in the early twenty-first century, this article demonstrates that listeners—teacher and audiences—project intention and identity onto vocal timbres and entrain the voices accordingly. As such, this research is concerned with the cultural-historical formation of one specific category of vocal timbre. More broadly, it argues that by paying attention to the microscopic nuances of vocal timbre, awareness can be drawn to the politics of listening that come into play each time vocal timbre is assessed.
Tubercular Singing
Authors: Kasunic David
Published: August 2015

As the first death by tuberculosis on the operatic stage, Violetta’s death in Verdi’s La traviata (1853) raises questions about the origins of tubercular singing and how early audiences made sense of it. This essay finds answers to these questions in the medical, musical, and fictional literature of the day, starting with the 1826 edition of René Laënnec’s treatise on diagnostic pathology via the stethoscope. In this work, Laënnec documents “songs” coming from the carotid artery of female patients in the advanced stages of their disease and suffering from nervous agitation—songs Laënnec transcribes in musical notation.
Silence and Speech in Lecture on Nothing and Phonophonie
Authors: Bulut Zeynep
Published: August 2015

This article discusses the ways that experimental music and deaf performance critique the presumed limits of hearing, voice, silence, and speech. It analyzes artist and scholar Brandon LaBelle’s rendition of John Cage’s Lecture on Nothing , which features an audio recording of the text read by a deaf person, and bass baritone Nicholas Isherwood’s rendition of Maurizio Kagel’s Phonophonie , which mobilizes seemingly far-fetched personas by means of voice. Through the analyses of these works, the article contests the normative attributions for hearing, voice, silence, and speech.
The Resonance of Brando’s Voice
Authors: Kinney Katherine
Published: August 2015

Like the material voice, film acting has long been rendered abstract and disembodied, eclipsed by the privileging of the visual over the aural and language over speech in film studies. Attention to the actor’s voice challenges these assumptions and opens new ways to understand embodiment, a question key to acting and voice studies. These ideas are developed through a consideration of the place of the voice in classical Hollywood cinema and of Marlon Brando’s transformative vocal performances in A Streetcar Named Desire (1951) and The Godfather (1972), which have been recognized as exemplifying naturalism and the construction of voice, respectively.
Weltschmerz in the Banat : The Great War, Globalization, and Miloš Crnjanski’s Novel Dnevnik o Čarnojeviću
Authors: Cox John K.
Published: August 2015

The 1921 novel Dnevnik o Čarnojeviću (The Carnojevic Diaries), which launched the career of the Serbian intellectual Miloš Crnjanski, was a bold attempt to come to terms with the effects of World War I in the ethnically mixed region of the Banat in southern Hungary. The novel portrays savage fighting on the Eastern front, long recuperation times for its protagonist in hospitals, and unsettling homecomings, and in these ways it exhibits similarities to other anti-war novels of the period. But this mesmerizing work of fiction also treats the ideas of nationality and nationalism from a variety of perspectives. As such, it is key to understanding Crnjanski’s controversial later evolution as an editor, political figure, and emigre. Using concepts such as demographic spectacle, “family catastrophe,” and universal imagery, this article points out the tension between various types of Serbian nationalism and argues that some of them contained significant, unexpected elements of globalization or post-modernism well before their time.
A Personality Cult’s Rise and Fall: Three Cities after Khrushchev’s “Secret Speech” and the Stalin Monument that Never Was
Authors: Kabachnik Peter , Gugushvili Alexi , Jishkariani David
Published: August 2015

Recently, in post-Soviet space, new Stalin statues have been created, and old ones have reappeared. These battles, both symbolic and material, over monuments fuel and exemplify contemporary “memory wars.” This article highlights the disparate meanings of three historical Stalin monuments that served as focal points for three major cases of mass demonstrations during Khrushchev’s de-Stalinization campaign: Tbilisi, Budapest, and Prague. Next, drawing on newly found materials from Tbilisi’s Central Committee Archive of the Communist Party of Georgia, this article discusses Bogdan Muradovich Kirakosian’s never-realized project to build a massive Stalin monument that would have overlooked Tbilisi. Last is the analysis of survey data that captures individuals’ attitudes towards Stalin for those born in Georgia before 1945 in order to surmise how such a grand monument to Stalin would have been received at the time.
The Great War and the 1918–19 Revolutions as Experienced and Remembered by the Hungarian Peasantry
Authors: Romsics Ignác
Published: August 2015

At the beginning of the 20th century more than 60 percent of the Hungarian population was made up of peasants. This essay examines how this large section of society experienced and remembered the Great War, and the 1918–19 revolutions that followed. Utilizing letters, diaries, memoirs, and autobiographies produced by the peasants themselves, as well official reports, newspapers, oral history interviews, and novels with sociological observations, this study emphasizes that the reception of the mobilization was much more reserved among peasants than within the urban population. With the outbreak of the war the traditional immobility, isolation, and political disengagement of the peasants ended. One of the lasting effects of the war on the mentality of the peasantry was the widening of their worldview and the strengthening of their self-respect. The other was their becoming acquainted with the modern techniques of killing and the consequent devaluation of human life. Finally, this paper considers how such affects contributed to the red terror practices by the Communists in 1919 and the white terror committed by rightist paramilitary units in 1919–20.
The Role of Russian Federal and Regional Political Elites in the Modernization of Public Administration
Authors: Avdokushin Evgeny , Ponedelkov Alexander , Vorontsov Sergey
Published: August 2015

This article discusses the state and developmental prospects of modern Russian elitology. Popular estimates of modern regional political elites provide an indicator reflecting the state of internal regional security. The analysis of the criteria of elitism, i.e., defining the set of personal and professional qualities of the people recruited into the elite, notes a discrepancy between the traditional meaning of elitism and the possession of real political power. The research of the features of the formation of the state elite in China has been done. The experience of the modernization of the American political elite ensuring the US withdrawal from the protracted social and economic crisis in the first half of the last century and the experience of the national elite reformatting in the South Korea, which was managed to bring the country out of a deep crisis in the postwar period was analyzed. This article is one of the first attempts to assess objectively the status and prospects of domestic elitology and regional elites in order to formulate recommendations for Russian elitologists.
From Imperial to National: Przemyśl, Galicia’s Transformation through World War I
Authors: Fahey John E.
Published: August 2015

During the last decades of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Przemyśl, Galicia was the Empire’s largest and most important fortified stronghold. Military spending and construction fueled Przemyśl’s urban growth and a multiethnic community of Poles, Ukrainians, and Jews. During World War I, Przemyśl was completely dominated by the Austro-Hungarian army and the site of the longest siege of the war. At times each of Przemyśl’s ethnic groups was the victim of punitive measures by the Austro-Hungarian or Russian armies, and most of the city’s civilian population was forced to flee at various points during the war. Wartime disruption and the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire resulted in intense ethnic conflict in Przemyśl. This article shows that as Przemyśl’s military organization was strained to the breaking point, its civil society similarly fractured and eventually turned to national organizations for the security and stability that the Habsburgs could no longer provide.
Burgenland and the Austria-Hungary Border Dispute in International Perspective, 1918–22
Authors: Imre Joseph
Published: August 2015

Burgenland “was the first awarded, but last annexed territory” in Europe’s long and drawn out postwar territorial reorganization. This article will examine the intricate history of Burgenland and the Austria-Hungary border dispute from 1918–22, with the intent to place the territorial dispute of Western Hungary, from an international perspective, within a much larger continental framework that will challenge our traditional view of these events and place Burgenland within a discernable pattern of post-Habsburg state formation and decline. In retelling this historical narrative, Burgenland may find a reoriented role in the contemporary history of Austria, Hungary, and Central and Eastern Europe.
Putting the case for building a bridge between drama and citizenship education
Authors: Ikeno Norio , Fukazawa Hiroaki , Watanabe Jun , Elliott Victoria , Shawyer Catherine , Olive Sarah , Olive Sarah , Davies Ian
Published: September 2015

We discuss the connections between drama education and citizenship education in Japan and England. This discussion is developed in the context of collaboration among colleagues in two countries. We provide some background information about the nature of education in Japan and England, exploring relevant policy and professional initiatives. We discuss three areas of possible congruence between activity-based drama and citizenship education: the importance of public spaces, the use of specific forms of content and educational processes. We suggest that there is potential for fruitful further exploration of the connections between these areas.
Reconstructing Hong Kong’s civic education in the postnational education era: Rethinking about conceptual, curricular and pedagogical matters
Authors: Chong Eric K.M , Yuen Timothy W. W , Leung Y.W
Published: September 2015

This article argues for reconstructing Hong Kong’s civic education in the post-national education era, and puts forward some rethinking on conceptual, curricular and pedagogical matters. This article starts with a brief critical review of the development of school civic education in Hong Kong to set the context. This is followed by a discussion of the MNE controversy. It points out that the shelving of the mandatory subject and reversion to depoliticized school-based civic education is inadequate to address the needs of civic education in Hong Kong. Finally, this article argues in favour of the type of civic education that aims at cultivating politically literate, critically thinking and actively participating citizens, with particular reference to the Civic Education Guidelines from Civil Society. This set of unofficial Guidelines proposes that Hong Kong’s civic education has to be reconstructed both in conceptual, curricular and pedagogical terms accordingly. Hopefully, this article will shed light on the development of civic education in societies that are facing similar challenges in the process of democratization and an upheaval of civic consciousness of the citizenry.
Hong Kong teachers’ receptivity towards civic education
Authors: Wong Koon Lin , Lee Chi Kin John , Kennedy Kerry John , Chan Jacqueline Kin-sang
Published: September 2015

This study investigates Hong Kong primary teachers’ perceptions of moral, civic and national education, which may have an impact on how they prepare students to become ‘good citizens’ through classroom instruction. Moral and Civic Education (MCE) has been an overall goal of Hong Kong’s education system since 2001, while Moral and National Education (MNE) was proposed as a new subject in an effort to introduce a patriotic agenda in 2011. Teachers play essential roles in nurturing students to become ‘good citizens’ because they are the key figures in implementing education and curriculum policies in schools. Therefore, gaining a greater understanding of teachers’ perceptions of MNE provides insights into the extent to which teachers are prepared to contribute to the patriotic agenda as part of a revamped civic education curriculum. While there are complex factors affecting teachers’ receptivity to curriculum change, an understanding of factors that influence teachers’ perceptions of patriotic education could be valuable for school stakeholders (such as policymakers, educators and researchers), not only in Hong Kong but in other places (such as the United States and the United Kingdom), when they consider what can be done to influence students’ attitudes towards citizenship. Utilizing pilot data, this study reports Hong Kong teachers’ attitudes towards patriotic education through the proposed new school subject of MNE. The findings indicate that ‘perceived others’ support’, ‘perceived concerns of MNE’ and ‘non-monetary cost-benefits’ were the significant predictors of teacher receptivity of MNE. The results suggest that when teachers had concerns about patriotic education, they were less likely to support its implementation, while if they had the support of others they were more likely to support implementation of MNE. More importantly, teachers who perceived that patriotic education can cultivate more well-rounded students were more likely to support the implementation of MNE.
Recipientes e substratos na germinação e desenvolvimento de crisântemo e amor-perfeito
Authors: Pirola Kelli , Dotto Marcelo , Júnior Américo Wagner , Alegretti Alexandre Luis , Conceição Paulo César , Mendes Angélica Signor
Published: September 2015

The aim of this work was to evaluate the substrate effect and recipient size on the germination and initial growth of chrysanthemum and perfect-love ornamental plants. The works was carried out in the Horticulture Nursery from UTFPR - Campus Dois Vizinhos - Paraná State, Brazil. The experimental design was in blocks randomized, in factorial 3 x 4 (recipient size x substrate), with four replications, considering 4 recipients by plot. It was used as recipients, small, medium and king container and as substrate the Plantmax® and the mixture Red Latosoil + Sand + Poultry Litter 1 (1:1:1 v/v), Red Latosoil + Sand + Poultry Litter 2 (1:1:1 v/v) and Red Latosoil + Sand + Poultry Litter 1 + Poultry Litter 2 (1:1:1:1 v/v). The Poultry Litter 1 and 2 had wood shavings and sawdust as different ingredients, respectively. The germination (%), total lenght plants(cm), roots length(cm), height(cm), leaf number and plants dry mass matter(g), were evaluate 63 days after experiment installation. For germination and early development of perfect-love the best container was small with a mixture the red latosoil + sand + Poultry Litter 1 + Poultry Litter 2 (1:1:1:1 v/v). For Chrysanthemum, besides to this container and mixing, the mixtures were also important Red Latosoil + sand + Poultry Litter 1 (1:1:1 v/v) e Red Latosoil + sand + Poultry Litter 2 (1:1:1 v/v).
Material design self- efficacy belief scale: a validity and reliability study
Materyal tasarımı öz-yeterlik inancı ölçeği: geçerlik ve güvenirlik çalışması
Authors: Bakaç Ebru , Özen Raşit
Published: August 2015

The aim of this study is to develop a scale which will be used to determine preservice teachers’ material design self-efficacy beliefs. Draft scale consist of 74 items created as a result of the examination of Education  Faculty curriculum and Instructional Technologies and Material Design course books were presented to the fifteen measurement and evaluation, computer and instructional technologies and curriculum development field experts opinions. Draft scale is reduced to 53 items according to field experts opinions. The participants of the study were 300 preservice teachers who were studying at Abant Izzet Baysal University in academic year 2013-2014. Participants were selected by using random sampling method. The construct validity of scale was tested by using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis and a three-factor structure scale which accounts of 48%  of total variance was  reached. As a result of factor and item analysis, a 25 item-final scale was obtained. The cronbach alpha reliability coefficient of the scale was calculated as 0,92. Those results show that this scale can be used as an appropriate measurement tool to preservice teachers’ material design self-efficacy beliefs.

 

Özet

Bu araştırmanın amacı öğretmen adaylarının materyal tasarımı öz-yeterlik inanç düzeylerini belirlemek için kullanılacak bir ölçme aracı geliştirmektir. Eğitim Fakültesi öğretim programları ile Öğretim Teknolojileri ve Materyal Tasarımı ders kitaplarının incelenmesi sonucu oluşturulan 74 maddelik taslak ölçme aracı ölçme ve değerlendirme, bilgisayar ve öğretim teknolojileri ile program geliştirme alanlarında çalışan on beş uzmanın görüşüne sunulmuştur. Alan uzmanlarının görüşü sonucu taslak ölçeğin madde sayısı 53 olarak sınırlandırılmıştır. Araştırmanın çalışma grubunu 2013-2014 eğitim–öğretim yılında Abant İzzet Baysal Üniversitesi’nde öğrenim gören ve ÖTMT dersini daha önce almış olan 300 öğretmen adayı oluşturmuştur. Katılımcılar tesadüfi örnekleme yöntemi ile belirlenmiştir. Ölçeğin yapı geçerliği açımlayıcı ve doğrulayıcı faktör analizi yapılarak test edilmiş ve toplam varyansın % 48’ini açıklayan üç boyutlu bir yapıya ulaşılmıştır. Faktör analizleri ve madde analizleri sonucunda 25 maddelik nihai ölçek elde edilmiştir. Ölçeğin Cronbach-Alfa güvenirlik katsayısı 0,92 olarak hesaplanmıştır. Elde edilen bu sonuçlar ölçeğin öğretmen adaylarının materyal tasarlamaya yönelik öz-yeterlik inançlarının ölçülmesi için uygun bir ölçme aracı olarak kullanılabileceğini göstermektedir.
Design of reversible logic circuits using quantum dot cellular automata-based system
Authors: Purkayastha Tamoghna , Chattopadhyay Tanay , De Debashis
Published: September 2015

Shrinking transistor sizes and power dissipation are the major barriers in the development of future computational circuits. At least when the transistor size approaches the atomic scale, duplication of transistor density according to Moore’s law will not be possible. Physical limits, like quantum effects and nondeterministic behavior of small currents, and technological limits, such as high power consumption and design complexity, may hold back the future program of microelectronic conventional circuit scaling. Hence, an alternative technology is required for future design. Quantum dot-cellular automata (QCA) is a transistor-less, very promising nanotechnology that can be used to build nanocircuits. The conventional computer is an irreversible one; i.e. once a logic block generates the output bits, the input bits are lost. A possible solution is reversible computing, where no bit is lost during computation. Hence, logically reversible circuit can consume less energy than any conventional circuit. In this paper, a brief review on evolution of the QCA in reversible computing is discussed. Various reversible gates that are designed using QCA technology as well as the modification of those designs that are made in latter works are highlighted.
Biochemical and clinical benefits of unilateral adrenalectomy in patients with subclinical hypercortisolism and bilateral adrenal incidentalomas
Authors: Perogamvros I , Vassiliadi D A , Karapanou O , Botoula E , Tzanela M , Tsagarakis S
Published: September 2015

Objective

The treatment of subclinical hypercortisolism in patients with bilateral adrenal incidentalomas (AI) is debatable. We aimed to compare the biochemical and clinical outcome of unilateral adrenalectomy vs a conservative approach in these patients.

Design

Retrospective study.

Methods

The study included 33 patients with bilateral AI; 14 patients underwent unilateral adrenalectomy of the largest lesion (surgical group), whereas 19 patients were followed up (follow-up group). At baseline and at each follow-up visit, we measured 0800 h plasma ACTH, midnight serum cortisol (MSF), 24-h urinary-free cortisol (UFC) and serum cortisol following a standard 2-day low-dose-dexamethasone-suppression test (LDDST). We evaluated the following comorbidities: arterial hypertension, impaired glucose tolerance or diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia and osteoporosis.

Results

Baseline demographic, clinical characteristics and the duration of follow-up (53.9±21.3 vs 51.8±20.1 months, for the surgical vs the follow-up group) were similar between groups. At the last follow-up visit the surgical group had a significant reduction in post-LDDST cortisol (2.4±1.6 vs 6.7±3.9 μg/dl,P=0.002), MSF (4.3±2 vs 8.8±4.6 μg/dl,P=0.006) and 24-h UFC (50.1±21.1 vs 117.9±42.4 μg/24 h,P=0.0007) and a significant rise in mean±s.d.morning plasma ACTH levels (22.2±9.6 vs 6.9±4.8 pg/ml,P=0.002). Improvement in co-morbidities was seen only in the surgical group, whereas no changes were noted in the follow-up group.

Conclusions

Our early results show that removal of the largest lesion offers significant improvement both to cortisol excess and its metabolic consequences, without the debilitating effects of bilateral adrenalectomy. A larger number of patients, as well as a longer follow-up, are required before drawing solid conclusions.
Prácticas pedagógicas y competencias ciudadanas: El caso del docente de historia en Chile
Authors: Muñoz Labraña Carlos , Martínez Rodríguez Rosendo
Published: September 2015

En el presente artículo exponemos los resultados obtenidos sobre las prácticas pedagógicas y las competencias ciudadanas en una investigación financiada por el Centro de Investigación Avanzada en Educación (CIAE). En él analizamos algunas de las estructuras comunicativas presentes en la intervención didáctica del docente de Historia, Geografía y Ciencias Sociales de quinto a octavo año de Educación Básica en la ciudad de Concepción (Chile), desde donde se atiende la forma como estas interfieren en el desarrollo de determinadas competencias ciudadanas. Para ello, se utilizó una metodología cualitativa por medio de observaciones y registros de aula en 12 escuelas, tomando en consideración su dependencia administrativa. Los resultados demuestran cómo algunas de las dinámicas de comunicación y participación más comunes en las aulas dificultan y hasta contradicen el desarrollo de las competencias ciudadanas, que exigen el desarrollo autónomo y la participación activa de los estudiantes. Consecuentemente, el mundo de vivencias que conforman la realidad del aula resulta estar muy alejado de las experiencias propias de la vida social y democrática, donde idealmente los jóvenes debieran ser protagonistas para el desarrollo de una ciudadanía activa.
Escuela, conocimiento y saber NASA. Aspectos críticos para una política educativa intercultural en Colombia
Authors: Molina Bedoya Víctor Alonso
Published: September 2015

El artículo presenta los resultados alusivos a la educación, el saber y el conocer de la investigación: “Cosmovisión de la unidad en un territorio indígena de Colombia”. El proyecto tuvo como propósito reconocer las relaciones entre el ocio, la producción, la educación y el desarrollo sostenible y se realizó a partir de un ejercicio etnográfico, a la manera de un oficiar el sentido y la mirada para explorar las tramas de sentido cultural de la comunidad. Lo que implicó una estadía en el resguardo indígena por más de 180 días, durante los cuales se realizó observación de diversas prácticas cotidianas y entrevistas semi-estructuradas que fueron registradas en el diario de campo. El análisis se hizo a partir del método de comparación constante. Como resultados se destacan: la tensión entre las prácticas educativas propias y el interés integracionista de la educación oficial. Al igual que el deseo de las comunidades por consolidar sus procesos formativos desde una relación respetuosa de los saberes, los seres y de lo social. A manera de conclusión se manifiesta quees necesario avanzar en la construcción de proyectos educativos simétricos que permitan el diálogo de seres y de saberes para edificar la nación diversa, como está plasmado en la Constitución Política de 1991 donde se reconoce a Colombia como una nación multicultural y pluriétnica.
Sphaenorhynchus carneus (Cope, 1868) (Amphibia: Anura: Hylidae): distribution extension, geographic distribution map and new state record
Authors: Corrêa Juliana Gonçalves , Souza Jackson Cleiton , França Pedro Ferreira , Costa-Campos Carlos Eduardo
Published: August 2015

The genus Sphaenorhynchus Tschudi, 1838, is currently composed of 14 species, three of which are associated to the Amazon basin. Herein, we report the first record of Sphaenorhynchus carneus for the state of Amapá, district of Ariri, municipality of Macapá, Amapá state. This record represents an increase of its known geographic distribution of approximately 1,085 km northwest from its nearest locality, state of Amazonas.
Sex Pistols' Guitar Tuner
Authors: Graves-Brown Paul
Published: September 2015

Thanks largely to the print and TV media, the Sex Pistols are one of the most mythologised bands of the last 50 years. I argue that by studying the material culture evidence of their career, and comparing and contrasting it with other sources, we can begin to grasp something of the “truth” behind the legends.
Science as Sacred Myth? Ecospirituality in the Anthropocene Age
Authors: Sideris Lisa H.
Published: August 2015

This article focuses on New Story/Universe Story/Epic of Evolution movements, forms of science-based ecospirituality that have emerged in recent decades. One of my central claims is that these narratives tend to encourage awe and wonder at scientific information and expert knowledge as that which is most ‘real’, over and above direct encounters with the natural world. As such, I question whether these new myths are likely to engender the environmental values they seek to cultivate. Everyday experiences and encounters with the natural world—encounters not filtered through scientific analysis and explanation—are likely to be devalued in this worldview. This tendency is particularly pronounced in iterations that are inspired by the work of E.O. Wilson and Richard Dawkins, both of whom promote a mythopoeic rendering of scientific information as a robust and superior rival to religion. Espousing a religion based on scientific reality, some proponents of these narratives express attitudes of intolerance toward religious and cultural traditions that do not derive meaning and value directly from science, even though these traditions may embrace green values on their own terms. As a whole these movements discourage sensory, experience-infused forms of engagement with nature that are less dependent upon and mediated by expert knowledge.
Atypical and anaplastic meningiomas in a public hospital in São Paulo State, Brazil
Authors: Colli Benedicto Oscar , Carlotti Junior Carlos Gilberto , Assirati Junior João Alberto , Coelho Junior Vicente de Paulo Martins , Neder Luciano
Published: September 2015

Atypical/anaplastic (World Health Organization (WHO) grades II and III) are less common and have poorer outcomes than benign meningiomas. This study aimed to analyze the outcome of patients with these tumors.Method Overall/recurrence-free survivals (RFS) and the Karnofsky Performance Scale of 52 patients with grades II (42) and III (9) meningiomas surgically treated were analyzed (uni/multivariate analysis).Results Total/subtotal resections were 60.8%/35.3%. Patients <60 years-old and grade II tumors had longer survival. Grade II tumors, total resection andde novo meningioma had better RFS (univariate analysis). Patients >60 years-old, de novo meningioma and radiotherapy had longer survival and patients <60 years-old and with grade II tumors had longer RFS (multivariate analysis). Recurrence rate was 51% (39.2% Grade II and 66.7% Grade III). Operative mortality was 1.9%.Conclusion Age <60 years-old, grade II tumors and de novomeningiomas were the main predictors for better prognosis among patients with grades II and III meningiomas.
Surgical treatment of non-functioning pituitary macroadenomas by the endoscopic endonasal approach in the elderly
Authors: Marenco Horacio Armando , Zymberg Samuel Tau , Santos Rodrigo de Paula , Ramalho Cláuder Oliveira
Published: September 2015

Over the past three decades, surgical series of elderly patients treated for pituitary adenomas have been published, all of which used the microscopic transsphenoidal or transcranial approach. The objective of this study was to retrospectively analyze the surgical results of our first 25 elderly patients with non-functioning pituitary macroadenoma (NFPM) operated by the endoscopic endonasal approach (EEA). Preoperative visual loss was found in 92.8% of the cases, and 70.8% experienced visual improvement following surgery. Preoperative pituitary dysfunction was found in 69.2% of the cases and postoperative pituitary recovery occurred in 22.2% of them. Mean hospital stay was 6.7 days. The results of this study suggest that surgery remains the first line of treatment for NFPM in the elderly. Because age alone is not a barrier for surgery, patients should be selected for surgical treatment based on their symptoms and clinical condition, as defined by comorbidities.