bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
La biodiversidad en la formación inicial del profesorado de Educación Primaria: análisis de propuestas didácticas
Authors: Fernández Díaz Manuel , Ayuso Fernández Gabriel Enrique , Robles Moral Francisco Javier
Published: July 2022

One of the consequences of the current global environmental crisis is the loss of biodiversity. For decades human beings have been aware, thanks to numerous scientific investigations, of the impact of our activity on living systems. For this reason, with the aim of knowing the knowledge about biodiversity and analyzing how this topic can be transferred to Primary classrooms, we present a didactic experience carried out with future Primary. This study was carried out within Talleres de la Naturaleza, a subject framed in the 4th year of the Degree in Primary Education at the University of Murcia, during the academic years 2018-2019 and 2019-2020. Twenty didactic proposals were analyzed qualitatively with QDA Miner 5 Lite Version in relation to pre-established didactic, curricular and scientific criteria. The proposals analyzed reveal a predisposition to work with the 3rd year of Primary, with an average duration of 3 sessions and 3 activities per session. Besides, proposals evidence a very descriptive vision of biodiversity which is not dynamic. In the analysis of the proposals, we detected errors originating from a lack of knowledge of the surrounding environment and little or no understanding of the values of local or regional biodiversity. This deficit in scientific knowledge may lead future teachers to have a deficit in didactic knowledge.

Una de las consecuencias de la actual crisis ambiental global es la pérdida de biodiversidad. Desde hace décadas los seres humanos son conscientes, gracias a numerosas investigaciones científicas, del impacto de nuestra actividad sobre los sistemas vivos. Por ello, con el objetivo de saber los conocimientos sobre biodiversidad y analizar cómo se puede trasladar esta temática a las aulas de Primaria, se propone una experiencia didáctica llevada a cabo con futuros docentes de Primaria. Este trabajo se realizó en el seno de la asignatura de Talleres de la Naturaleza, enmarcada en el 4º curso del Grado de Educación Primaria de la Universidad de Murcia, durante los cursos académicos 2018-2019 y 2019-2020. Como resultado de esta iniciativa se obtuvieron 20 propuestas didácticas, que fueron analizadas de forma cualitativa con QDA Miner 5 Lite Version en relación a la idoneidad con respecto a criterios didácticos, curriculares y científicos preestablecidos. De las diferentes propuestas analizadas, se observa una predisposición al trabajo con el 3º curso de Primaria, con una duración media de 3 sesiones, coincidiendo con la media de 3 actividades que presentaban los diferentes trabajos, con una visión muy descriptiva de la biodiversidad y no dinámica. En el análisis de las propuestas detectamos errores provenientes del desconocimiento de lo cercano y una escasa o nula percepción de los valores de la biodiversidad local o regional; de tal modo que ese déficit de conocimiento científico pueda conllevar en los futuros docentes, un déficit de conocimiento didáctico.
Imaginarios de las infancias en el cine mexicano del narcomundo: los casos de Vuelven y Noche de fuego
Authors: Murillo Tenorio Ilse , Lagunas Cerda Samuel
Published: July 2022

In this article we ask ourselves about the construction of childhood imaginaries in recent Mexican cinema (2017-2021). We chose to limit ourselves to the narcoworld cinema because we consider that the inclusion of children’s points of view has been what has marked the transformation of this genre in the last five years. We selected the films Tigers are not afraid (Issa López, 2017) and Prayers for the stolen (Tatiana Huezo, 2021), as they feature groups of boys and girls who inhabit the bowels of the narco world and who, beyond being victims of narco-violence, appear as transforming subjects of their environment, generating survival strategies. In the first place, we define film imaginaries as the set of symbols and images that, through specific cinematographic elements, give meaning to individual and collective identities in the film’s fictional world. Then, we present the analysis results in three axes: childhood-adulthood, boys-girls, and game-reality. Finally, we highlight the relevance of studying the filmic imaginaries of childhoods, not only to account for a specific cultural phenomenon but also to investigate the paths that cinema opens from childhood in the dark reality of the narcoworld.

En este artículo nos preguntamos por la construcción de imaginarios de las infancias en el cine mexicano reciente (2017-2021). Elegimos circunscribirnos al cine del narcomundo pues consideramos que ha sido la inclusión del punto de vista de la niñez lo que ha marcado la transformación de este género en el último lustro. Seleccionamos las películas Vuelven (Issa López, 2017) y Noche de fuego (Tatiana Huezo, 2021), porque son protagonizadas por grupos de niños y niñas que habitan las entrañas del narcomundo, quienes, más allá de ser víctimas de la narcoviolencia, son sujetos transformadores de su entorno, generando estrategias creativas de supervivencia. En primer lugar, definimos los imaginarios fílmicos como el conjunto de símbolos e imágenes que, a través de elementos cinematográficos concretos, produce una significación que da sentido a las identidades individuales y colectivas en el mundo de la película. Después, presentamos los resultados del análisis en tres ejes: niñez-adultez, niños-niñas y juego-realidad. Finalmente, remarcamos la pertinencia de estudiar los imaginarios fílmicos de las infancias, no solo para dar cuenta de un fenómeno cultural específico, sino para, a partir del concepto de imaginarios, indagar en los caminos que el cine abre desde las infancias en la oscura realidad del narcomundo.
La maternidad como tema en la pintura contemporánea: Jenny Saville y Marlene Dumas
Authors: Andrés Fernández María Isabel
Published: July 2022

Due to the unequal distribution of caregiving tasks, which still exists today, motherhood can be an obstacle to the professional development of many women artists. However, given the right conditions, this is not an insurmountable challenge, and in fact there are renowned artists who are also mothers. In this article, two of them, Marlene Dumas and Jenny Saville, are taken as case studies. Both are critical of previous interpretations of motherhood, due to its excessive sentimentality and idealization, and they seek to reinterpret this topic from their personal experience. We analyse the way in which both approach the subject, what contributions they make to previous versions and to what extent having children influences their artistic creation. In both cases, the experience of motherhood inspires a part of their artworks at a certain moment, even opening a new stylistic line in Saville’s work, but it does not define them as artists, since their production is not limited to this aspect.

La maternidad puede suponer, debido al todavía desigual reparto de las tareas del cuidado, un obstáculo para el desarrollo profesional de muchas mujeres artistas. Pero, dadas las condiciones adecuadas, no se trata de un obstáculo insalvable, y de hecho existen artistas de reconocido prestigio que también son madres. En este artículo se toma como casos de estudio dos de ellas, Marlene Dumas y Jenny Saville. Ambas se muestran críticas con interpretaciones previas del tema de la maternidad, por su excesivo sentimentalismo e idealización, y pretenden reinterpretarlo desde su experiencia personal. Se analiza la forma en que ambas abordan el tema, qué aportaciones realizan sobre versiones previas y en qué medida influye el hecho de tener hijos en su creación artística. En ambos casos, la experiencia de la maternidad inspira una parte de su actividad artística en una época determinada, abriendo incluso una nueva línea estilística en el caso de Saville, pero sin que podamos decir que las defina como artistas, ya que su producción no se limita a este aspecto.
Las movidas ecosociales de Fortaleza de la Mujer Maya A. C. Con-fabulaciones, re-existencias y maniobras de retaguardia
Authors: Romero Caballero Belén
Published: July 2022

Fortaleza de la Mujer Maya is a self-managed civil association founded by indigenous Tsotsil and Tseltal women, in February 1994, in San Cristóbal de las Casas (Mexico), in the geopolitical context of the uprising of the Zapatista Army of National Liberation. Although they are known nationally and internationally for their popular theater work, this has not been the only eco-social move. Reflect this, the workshops with women and children from different indigenous and peasant communities of Chiapas who, in 1994 and 1995, came to the city fleeing the violence of the armed conflict, or from previous migrations, because of forced expulsions caused by for religious intolerance. This article will try to show how the pareja and indissoluble articulation with practices located in an ontology and epistemology based on care and other maneuvers to sustain human and non-human life, with-fabled in the kuxlejal lekil, which have as a pedagogical device collective backbone of the popular arts, highlights the scope and particularity of their work as social actors, as well as their political commitment to the transformation of the material and visual culture of indigenous, mestizo and low-income women, and the politics of place.

Fortaleza de la Mujer Maya es una asociación civil autogestionada fundada en febrero 1994 por mujeres indígenas tsotsiles y tseltales, en San Cristóbal de las Casas (México), en el contexto geopolítico del levantamiento del Ejército Zapatista de Liberación Nacional. Si bien, son conocidas a nivel nacional e internacional por su trabajo de teatro popular comunitario, esta no ha sido su única movida ecosocial. Dan cuenta de ello, los talleres con mujeres y niños de diferentes comunidades indígenas y campesinas chiapanecas que, en los años 1994 y 1995, llegaban a la ciudad huyendo de la violencia del conflicto armado, o procedentes de migraciones anteriores, consecuencia de expulsiones forzosas causadas por la intolerancia religiosa. Este artículo tratará de mostrar cómo la articulación pareja e indisoluble con unas prácticas situadas en una ontología y epistemología de los cuidados y otras maniobras de sostenimiento de la vida humana y no humana, con-fabulada en el lekil kuxlejal, que tienen como dispositivo pedagógico colectivo vertebrador el teatro y las artes populares, pone de manifiesto el alcance y la particularidad de su trabajo como actoras sociales, así como su compromiso político para la transformación de la cultura material y visual de las mujeres indígenas, mestizas o de escasos recursos, y las políticas del lugar.
Educación para el Desarrollo Sostenible y Responsabilidad Social: claves en la formación inicial del docente desde una revisión sistemática
Authors: Pegalajar Palomino Mª del Carmen , Burgos García Antonio , Martínez Valdivida Estefanía
Published: July 2022

Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) in initial teacher training means integrating elements of Social Responsibility into their training curriculum, towards a demanding adaptation and continuous social change as a way of understanding human development, explaining the establishment of social links and the construction of fairer and better human communities. In this sense, the purpose of this study is to collect and analyse the evidence from international and national scientific literature on the attitudes, competencies and training of future teachers towards ESD. For this reason, a qualitative methodological process has been applied based on a systematic review of the most important and influential scientific databases (WoS and Scopus). One of the most interesting results of the research work shows that there are favourable attitudes among university students of Education regarding sustainability and their commitment to the environment and to a fairer society. However, it is concluded that, among other aspects, in the academic curriculum of the Degrees in Education there is a deficit in the student formation towards the development of the necessary professional competencies to apply ESD in their professional teaching practice.

La Educación para el Desarrollo Sostenible (EDS) en la formación inicial del docente significa integrar en su currículum formativo elementos propios de la Responsabilidad Social (RS), dirigido hacia una exigente adaptación y cambio social continuo como forma de entender el desarrollo humano, explicando el establecimiento de vínculos sociales y de construcción de comunidades humanas más justas y mejores. En este sentido, el propósito de este estudio consiste en recopilar y analizar la evidencia de la literatura científica internacional y nacional sobre las actitudes, competencias y formación del futuro docente hacia la EDS. Por este motivo, se ha aplicado un proceso metodológico cualitativo a partir de una revisión sistemática realizada en las bases de datos científicas más importantes e influyentes (WoS y Scopus). Uno de los resultados más interesantes del trabajo de investigación demuestra que existen actitudes favorables entre los estudiantes universitarios de Educación hacia la sostenibilidad y su compromiso con el entorno y con una sociedad más justa. Sin embargo, se concluye que, entre otros aspectos del estudio, en el currículum académico de los Grados en Educación existe un déficit en la formación del estudiante hacia el desarrollo de competencias profesionales necesarias para aplicar la EDS en su práctica docente profesional.
Forensic Iris :
Authors: Matey James R , Quinn George W , Grother Patrick
Published: July 2022

John Daugman correctly summarized the state of forensic iris recognition circa 2006 for the book Forensic Human Identification: an Introduction by Thompson (CRC Press, 2006). Iris recognition has limited forensic value, because (unlike fingerprints or DNA, for example) (1) iris patterns are not left behind at crime scenes; (2) and in death the pupil usually dilates significantly, the cornea clouds, and the iris tissue degrades relatively rapidly. (3) Moreover, currently available iris databases are quite small (only a few million digitized samples of iris patterns exist today); and because of the novelty of this biometric, (4) such data currently has no legal or established forensic status as admissible evidence. [Numbers () added.] In the intervening ?15 years, all of Daugman s observations, save one, have been overtaken by events: (1) The advent of ubiquitous high resolution video/photography has led to widespread collection/retention/dissemination of imagery of sufficient resolution for iris recognition. (2) Demonstrations of post-mortem iris recognition have been made. (3) Large iris databases have been constructed. The last issue (4) regarding admissible evidence remains to be resolved. Forensic iris was a topic at the June 2018 Iris Experts Group Meeting1. Key issues discussed there were: measurements and analysis that need to be done to provide the underpinnings for a resolution of the forensic status of iris recognition and the development of documentation for such measurements and analysis that will enable explanation of iris collection and recognition to lay audiences, including those in a courtroom. An important point was that the perceptions of the public and the popular media with respect to biometrics and to iris recognition in particular are frequently inaccurate and must be considered in any development of materials designed to explain iris recognition to the lay public. To help resolve the questions discussed at that meeting, this paper reviews the current state of the art in iris recognition, the perceptions of the public regarding iris recognition, and makes suggestions regarding measurements and analysis that will help enable use of forensic iris in appropriate settings going forward. We welcome comments for the next revision of this document. Please send comments to james.matey@nist.gov.
Data assimilation in 2D nonlinear advection diffusion equations, using an explicit stabilized leapfrog scheme run backward in time
Authors: Carasso Alfred S
Published: July 2022

With an artificial example of a 2D nonlinear advection diffusion equation on the unit square this paper considers the data assimilation problem of finding initial values that can evolve into a close approximation to a desired target result at some realistic T > 0. Highly non smooth target data are considered, that may not correspond to actual solutions at time T, and it may not be possible to find such initial values. The aim is to illustrate the inherent difficulties of the ill-posed data assimilation problem.
Den sociale konstruktion af uvidenhed: en medlemskabskategoriseringsanalyse (MCA) af samskabelsen af identiteter, når ældre svagsynede borgere møder ny teknologi
Authors: Due Brian L. , Nielsen Ann Merrit Rikke , Jakobsen Savi D.
Published: July 2022

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Review of Christian Fleck, Matthias Duller, Victor Karády: Shaping Human Science Disciplines - Institutional Developments in Europe and Beyond,
Authors: Kropp Kristoffer
Published: July 2022

This is a reveiw of: Review of Christian Fleck, Matthias Duller, Victor Karády: Shaping Human Science Disciplines - Institutional Developments in Europe and Beyond
Una Calculadora de Genes para enseñar mendelismo, interacciones génicas y ligamiento
Authors: Gálvez Salido Aaron , Navajas-Pérez Rafael
Published: July 2022

La Genética Mendeliana representa el primer contacto de los estudiantes con la Genética. Aunque es fundamental para entender las bases de la herencia, no recoge dos de las grandes excepciones que se producen en la naturaleza y que alteran las proporciones mendelianas: (1) las interacciones génicas, o la acción de varios genes que contribuyen a un mismo fenotipo y (2) el ligamiento genético, o la localización de varios genes en un mismo cromosoma. En este contexto, presentamos una herramienta web denominada Calculadora de Genes que permite profundizar en ambos aspectos. Por un lado, simula cruzamientos no solo de rasgos mendelianos tradicionales, sino también de rasgos con todos los tipos de interacciones génicas existentes. Por otro lado, permite estudiar el efecto del ligamiento en las proporciones mendelianas, haciendo estimas de distancias genéticas y ofreciendo una salida con la representación gráfica de los gametos que produciría un individuo que porta varios genes ligados. Analizamos el potencial educativo de esta herramienta y proponemos una actividad práctica para su aplicación en el aula.
Los modelos de inmunidad y vacunas en los libros de texto de la enseñanza obligatoria
Authors: Gómiz Aragón Marta , Aragón Méndez María del Mar , Oliva José María
Published: July 2022

En este trabajo se estudia el modelo de inmunidad y vacuna que presentan los libros de texto de educación secundaria, considerados un nexo entre el currículum y la práctica docente. El objetivo de nuestro estudio era explorar qué contenidos se incluyen en dichos modelos y cómo se articulan. A la vez, se propone un procedimiento basado en la elaboración de mapas conceptuales para alcanzar tal fin. En general, los modelos de los libros de texto de nuestro corpus de estudio presentan procesos celulares de la inmunidad centrados en lo individual antes que en lo colectivo. Las conclusiones de esta investigación suponen un diagnóstico parcial de cómo se aborda la enseñanza de la inmunología en las aulas para así diseñar un modelo que permita poner en práctica estrategias y recursos que impliquen al alumnado en la modelización de la inmunidad.
Identification of Dendrobiums in situ by Raman spectroscopy and micro-computed tomography imaging
Authors: Zhang Wei , You Yu-Ting , Guo Jian-Ying , Wang Si-Ming , Liu Chang-Qing , Zhao Da-Qing , Wang Jia-Wen , Bai Xue-Yuan
Published: July 2022

Background

Dendrobium candidum/officinale (Dendrobium candidum Wall.ex Lindl.; Dendrobium officinale Kimura et Migo) is an expensive medicinal plant used mainly as a tonic in China. Tie-pi-feng-dou is the common name of the processed medicinal Dendrobium candidum/officinale. The market prices of Dendrobium sources vary significantly and it is difficult to identify different types of Dendrobiums due to their similar appearances. The use of counterfeit Dendrobium candidum/officinale is ubiquitous and problematic. Therefore, it is important to be able to discriminate between the wide range of available Dendrobium.

Methods

In an effort to better distinguish between the varieties of Dendrobium, Raman spectroscopy was used to detect specific Dendrobiums relative to their source. Transport channel imaging of the microstructural sites by micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) was used to identify the unique constitution and enrichment status of dendrobines, which was determined mainly by the geographical source of the Dendrobium. This implies that exclusive spectral traits may be unique to different regions. The presence or absence of these traits differ among the geographical origins.

Results

We can identify several spectral traits for various Dendrobiums. An intense peak at 1,525 cm−1 was only found in Dendrobium candidum/officinale (Zhe-jiang/Yun-nan/An-hui), while the characteristic Dendrobium candidum/officinale bands were near 742 cm−1, 1,326 cm−1 and 1,330 cm−1. A systematic method for distinguishing between four geographical locations of Dendrobium (Zhe-jiang/Yun-nan/An-hui/Gui-zhou) were established. This reveals that the origin of an unknown Dendrobium may be identified by Raman spectroscopy and micro-CT imaging. This method was shown to be efficacious, fast, and non-destructive.
Ensemble of adapted convolutional neural networks (CNN) methods for classifying colon histopathological images
Authors: Albashish Dheeb
Published: July 2022

Deep convolutional neural networks (CNN) manifest the potential for computer-aided diagnosis systems (CADs) by learning features directly from images rather than using traditional feature extraction methods. Nevertheless, due to the limited sample sizes and heterogeneity in tumor presentation in medical images, CNN models suffer from training issues, including training from scratch, which leads to overfitting. Alternatively, a pre-trained neural network’s transfer learning (TL) is used to derive tumor knowledge from medical image datasets using CNN that were designed for non-medical activations, alleviating the need for large datasets. This study proposes two ensemble learning techniques: E-CNN (product rule) and E-CNN (majority voting). These techniques are based on the adaptation of the pretrained CNN models to classify colon cancer histopathology images into various classes. In these ensembles, the individuals are, initially, constructed by adapting pretrained DenseNet121, MobileNetV2, InceptionV3, and VGG16 models. The adaptation of these models is based on a block-wise fine-tuning policy, in which a set of dense and dropout layers of these pretrained models is joined to explore the variation in the histology images. Then, the models’ decisions are fused via product rule and majority voting aggregation methods. The proposed model was validated against the standard pretrained models and the most recent works on two publicly available benchmark colon histopathological image datasets: Stoean (357 images) and Kather colorectal histology (5,000 images). The results were 97.20% and 91.28% accurate, respectively. The achieved results outperformed the state-of-the-art studies and confirmed that the proposed E-CNNs could be extended to be used in various medical image applications.
Un espacio feminizado desde sus orígenes: profesoras en el Conservatorio de Granada hasta la Guerra Civil Española (1921-1936)
Authors:   Universidad de Granada (España), Martínez Díaz Helena
Published: July 2022

El Conservatorio de Música de Granada fue un espacio feminizado desde sus inicios, al contar con un elevado número de mujeres entre el alumnado y el profesorado que contribuyeron significativamente a hacer posible su primera andadura. Partiendo de esta premisa, en este trabajo se analiza el origen, formación y trayectorias de las primeras profesoras en este centro desde su creación en 1921 hasta 1936. Concretamente, se estudian las condiciones que propiciaron su incorporación a esta institución musical, teniendo en cuenta las características de sus itinerarios vitales y profesionales. Para ello se parte de la investigación directa de una amplia documentación administrativa y hemerográfica desde los enfoques de los Estudios de las Mujeres y de la Historia social y cultural, que permite descubrir y valorar la experiencia y contribución singular de estas profesoras. En último término, este estudio ofrece una visión inexplorada hasta ahora sobre la temprana profesionalización musical de las mujeres en la vida cultural de las ciudades españolas en las primeras décadas del siglo XX.
Inaccessibility to Healthcare Services amidst COVID-19 Pandemic: Threat to Universal Health Coverage among Sub-saharan African Countries
Authors: Salinsile Sajanat O. , Badmus Oyebola I. , Paul Ibe P. , Oyerinde Oyesegun O. , Eniade Olanrewaju D.
Published: July 2022

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic is still a major global public health hazard, posing a threat to healthcare availability and accessibility. It is of importance for researchers to contribute towards the achievement of the SDG goal 3.8.1 by keeping an eye on any potential threats to  universal health coverage. This study aim to document the rate and pattern of inaccessibility to healthcare services during the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the factors associated with the likelihood of healthcare services inaccessibility during the pandemic in three selected sub-Saharan African countries (Burkina Faso Congo Democratic Republic, and Nigeria).

Methods: We analysed a secondary data collected by the Performance for monitoring Action (PMA), the cross-sectional survey was carried out among women of reproductive age 15 – 49 years. Dataset with valid responses to question on healthcare accessibility were extracted from the dataset for Burkina Faso (1486), CDR (402), and Nigeria (322). The outcome variable was Healthcare services accessibility (Inaccessible=1, accessible=0). Descriptive statistics were analysed and presented, chi-square and logistics regression were used to explore associated factors of inaccessibility. Stata MP 16 was used for the Analysis. P values were considered significant at P <0.05.

Results: On the overall, about 13.6% (7.5% in Burkina Faso, 19.2% in CDR, and 14.0% in Nigeria) women had no access to healthcare services. Women in CDR (AOR= 2.56, 95%CI:1.74 - 3.77), and Nigeria (AOR=1.94, 95%CI: 1.28 – 2.95) were more likely to encounter inaccessibility to healthcare services during the pandemic compared to women from Burkina Faso. Also, women who visited for ANC (AOR=0.54, 95%CI:0.32 – 0.91), Child’s health (AOR=0.59, 95%CI: 0.41 – 0.84), and Immunization (AOR: 0.63, 95%CI: 0.37 – 1.05).

The COVID-19 pandemic threatened the SDG goal for Universal health coverage as the pandemic led to inaccessibility to healthcare services in the Burkina Faso, Congo Democratic Republic and Nigeria. This study recommends that policies and measures to ensure that access to healthcare are not disrupted during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Carrot Productivity under Various Levels of Irrigation and Fertilization
Authors: Ciza A. , Silungwe F. R. , Kihupi N. I.
Published: July 2022

Carrot (Daucus carota L.) is normally grown under irrigation system. In Tanzania, carrot productivity is still low, mainly due to poor agronomic practices as a result of limited information on optimal levels of irrigation water that enhance crop production. Thus, a study was conducted to evaluate the interactions between various irrigation levels under drip irrigation and soil-based NPK fertilizer for optimal growth, yield, and sugar content of carrots in Morogoro, Tanzania. The crop water requirement was calculated in terms of crop evapotranspiration (ETc) as the product of ETo, Kc, and the ground cover reduction factor (Kr). Soil-based fertilizer was applied at a level of 150 kg NPK ha-1, while irrigation levels applied were 100, 80, and 60% of ETc. It was found that the growth, yield, and sugar content of carrots were affected differently at various irrigation water (IW) application levels. The growth parameters of carrots improved consistently to optimum IW levels. Further, the highest yield of 33.0 tons ha-1 of carrots was obtained under 100% of IW, and the lowest yield of 18.47 tons ha-1 was obtained at 60% of IW. The 60 and 80% IW level yields did not differ significantly (p>0.05). Carrots grown at a deficit irrigation water level of 80% were found to have the highest content of sugar. Therefore, for optimal growth and yield, an irrigation level of 100% is recommended for carrots. However, for high sugar content, an irrigation level of 80% is recommended.
Performance of Cashew Processing Units in Tamil Nadu; A Case Study in Kanyakumari
Authors: Mohan S. Megha , Vidhyavathi A. , Padmarani S. , Balaji P.
Published: July 2022

Aims: This study aimed to analyse the growth rate of export and import of raw cashew nuts and Cashew Kernels in terms of quantity and value in India and to carry out the economic analysis and evaluate investment efficiency of Mechanised and partially mechanised processing units in the Kanyakumari District.

Study design:  Purposive random sampling is used.

Place and Duration of Study: The study was carried out in the Kanyakumari District of Tamil Nadu in February 2022. Data were also collected from the official website of DCCD(Directorate of Cashew and Cocoa Development) and the UNCTAD(United Nations Conference on Trade and Development) special issue on cashew nuts.

Methodology: The growth rate of exports of cashew kernels and import of raw cashew nuts in terms of quantity and value is calculated using CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) and the instability index has also been calculated using Cuddy Della Valle Index(CDVI). Economic analysis of cashew processing units was calculated by categorizing processing units into mechanized and partially mechanized units. 10 samples in each category were selected randomly and analyses like gross returns, net returns, payback period, and break-even point were carried out.

Results: The study lead to many important findings as follows. The CAGR of export of cashew kernels in terms of quantity and value is found to be -2.27% and 5.19% respectively. Also, the CAGR of import of raw cashews in terms of quantity and value was found to be 4.91% and 13.27% respectively. The net returns from processed cashew products gave a mechanised business an edge over a partially mechanised firm (a mechanised firm earned a net return of Rs.31126/tonne, whereas a partially mechanised firm received a net return of Rs.18032/tonne).

Conclusion: Also, this study shows that even though mechanization involves a large initial expenditure, mechanisation is a beneficial alternative in the long term.

As a recommendation, it could be suggested from the study that mechanization is a feasible option wherever there is labour shortage as it can help the processors to maintain the quantity of cashew processed to obtain the benefits.
Valorization of Carapa procera Oil and Evaluation in vitro of Antimalarial Activity of Its Bitter Content
Authors: Joachim Muyumba Nsomue , Naomie Bolangongo Mpandu , Arnold Mulula , Haddy Mbuyi Katshiatshia , Kashishi K. T. , Kalulu Taba , Ntumba Joséphine K.
Published: July 2022

Aims: To extract the bitter content of Carapa procera oil and to evaluate the antimalarial activity of its bitter content.

Study Design:  Experimental research.

Place and Duration of Study: Department of Chemistry (University of Kinshasa) and National Institute for Biomedical Research, between December 2016 and June 2018.

Methodology: The seeds of C. procera were collected in the Kwilu region (Democratic Republic of Congo). A standardized method of Soxhlet was used for the extraction and determination of the oil content. The bitter content of C. procera oil was removed by liquid-liquid extraction. Organoleptic sensory analyzes have used a test of the effectiveness of debittering.

The in vitro antimalarial activity of bitter content, extracts, crude oil and the debittered oil on Plasmodium falciparum were evaluated according to the method of maturation test of trophozoites into schizonts.

Results: Quality indexes such as acid values (12.72 and 2.72 mg KOH/g), saponification values (190.36 and 193.12 mg KOH/g), peroxide values (5.26 and 19.66 meq O2/Kg), and iodine values (69.09 and 68.63 g I2/100 g) was determined for crude oil and debittered oil respective antimalarial activity was evaluated. Crude oil and bitter content showed respectively significant antimalarial activity with IC50 values of 3.44 and 0.30 µg/mL.

Conclusion: The elimination of the bitter content does not affect the quality of C. procera oil. These results were, for the most part, in accordance with the codex alimentarius for edible oils. Concerning the antimalarial activity, according to RITAM, C. procera crude oil could present probable antimalarial activity against P. falciparum (3.44 μg/mL), low value compared to that of the bitter content.
Anti-inflamatory Effects of Aqueous Extract of Alchornea cordifolia in Wistar Rats
Authors: Eruotor Harrison Ogheneochuko , Blessing Ukoro , Emmanuel Peters Dikioye , Ajirioghene Akpotu E. , Chinonye Nduka Ignatius
Published: July 2022

The World Health Organization (WHO) ranks chronic inflammatory diseases as the greatest threat to human health. The current study investigated the anti-inflammatory effects of aqueous leaf extract of Alchornea cordifolia on Wistar rats. Twenty Wistar rats of both genders weighing between 110-178g were used for this study. Egg albumin was used for induction of inflammation. The rats were grouped into five groups of 4 per group. Groups 3, 4 and 5 received 400, 800mg/kg b.w of aqueous extract and reference drug respectively after induction. Groups 1 and 2 served as normal and negative controls. Rats were sacrificed and blood samples collected for hematological and biochemical analyses. Phytochemical screening of the plant revealed the presence of alkaloid, phenolic compounds, Tannins and Quinine.  Result showed significant in (p≤ 0.05) in paw size, rectal temperature and number of writhing in group 2 and non-significant reduction (p ≥ 0.05) in group 4 were seen when compared to group 1 and 2 respectively. Significant (p≤0.05) increase in C-reactive protein and nitric oxide concentrations were observed in groups 3 and 4 when contrasted to group 2 in the studies. Non-significant differences in all hematological parameters in all treated groups were observed when compared to group 2. Aqueous leaf extract of Alchornae cordifolia displayed anti-inflammatory effects at 800 mg/ kg b.w after 4 hours of treatment.
Deforestation in Indonesian and Malaysian Novels: When Wild Forests are Destroyed by Anthropocentricism
Authors: Wiyatmi Wiyatmi , Liliani Else , Sari Esti Swatika , Safei Mawar
Published: July 2022

Anthropocentrism is one of the perspectives applied in figuring out human relations with the environment. The environmental crisis happening in most areas of the world lately is allegedly the impact of anthropocentrism, which views humans as the center of the universe, and only humans have the right to utilize and make use of nature for their interests and needs. One of the environmental crises which hit the world today is deforestation. The description of deforestation and its various consequences can be looked through not only from the news in mass media or research reports, but also from Indonesian and Malaysian novels. This study aims at examining the issue of deforestation described in Indonesian and Malaysian novels. The method applied is a comparative qualitative descriptive with an ecocritical perspective. As data sources, two Indonesian novels and two Malaysian novels were selected, namely Api Awan Asap (Rampan) and Tanah Tabu (Thayf) as the samples of Indonesian novels; Penunggu Rimba: Tombiruo (Mursid) and Anak Belantara (Abdullah) as the samples of Malaysian novels. From an eco-critical perspective, the results of the study show that in the four novels studied, it appears that there is an issue of deforestation in Indonesia and Malaysia which has resulted in various other environmental problems. The four analyzed novels reveal how local wisdom can prevent and fight deforestation which occurs in the forests of Kalimantan and Papua. Added to this, through the novels, Indonesian and Malaysian writers both present ecocentrism perspectives to fight anthropocentrism which causes deforestation. Some different views are expressed by Indonesian and Malaysian writers in dealing with deforestation.
Interacting partners of Golgi‐localized small G protein Arl5b identified by a combination of in vivo proximity labelling and GFP‐Trap pull down
Authors: Houghton Fiona J. , Makhoul Christian , Cho Ellie Hyun‐Jung , Williamson Nicholas A. , Gleeson Paul A.
Published: July 2022

The small G protein Arl5b is localised on the trans‐Golgi network (TGN) and regulates endosomes‐to‐TGN transport. Here, we combined in vivo and in vitro techniques to map the interactive partners and near neighbours of Arl5b at the TGN, using constitutively active, membrane‐bound Arl5b(Q70L)‐GFP in stably expressing HeLa cells, and the proximity labelling techniques BioID and APEX2 in parallel with GFP‐Trap pull down. From MS analysis, 22 Golgi proteins were identified; 50% were TGN‐localised Rabs, Arfs and Arls. The scaffold/tethering factors ACBD3 (GCP60) and PIST (GOPC) were also identified, and we show that Arl5b is required for TGN recruitment of ACBD3. Overall, the combination of in vivo labelling and direct pull downs indicates a highly organised complex of small G proteins on TGN membranes.
Guanzi
Authors: Leung Vincent
Published: July 2022

The
Guanzi
is one of the most important textual collections from early China. It is a sprawling text with seventy‐six chapters, totaling more than 135,000 characters. They touch on a wide range of topics, including politics, ethics, military strategies, geography, cosmology, education, and self‐cultivation. It is particularly noted for containing some of the most sophisticated writings on economic theories from early China. There is no identifiable author of the texts in the
Guanzi
; they are also of uncertain dates. It was put together, as a distinct collection, for the first time in the late first century
bce
, and scholars have surmised that most of the pieces were likely written between the late fourth century and the first century
bce.
The
Guanzi
provides a valuable snapshot of the dynamic intellectual universe of early China in this period.
Sand, Windblown
Authors: Munro Robert Neil
Published: July 2022

Aeolian sand formations are a function of sand supply, wind, and topography. The ancients were unable to stabilize sands, despite the presence of natural stabilization in many areas. However, providentially sand accumulation has buried and thus preserved many ancient sites. There is a huge literature on this subject: the Bibliography of Aeolian Research for example has over 43,000 articles listed, to which excavators with a sand problem should refer.
Water‐Insensitive Electron Transport and Photoactive Layers for Improved Underwater Stability of Organic Photovoltaics
Authors: Lin Chieh‐Ting , Hsieh Cheng‐Tien , Macdonald Thomas J. , Chang Jia‐Fu , Lin Po‐Chen , Cha Hyojung , Steier Ludmilla , Wadsworth Andrew , McCulloch Iain , Chueh Chu‐Chen , Durrant James R
Published: July 2022

Water ingress is one of the major environmental stresses to cause the degradation of device performance in organic photovoltaic (OPVs) and is one of the major barriers impeding their commercialization. This work demonstrates that combining the use of a nanoparticle titanium dioxide (np‐TiO2) electron transporting layer (ETL) and an all‐polymer bulk heterojunction (BHJ) photoactive layer can endow the derived OPV with a much better water resistivity than the commonly employed zinc oxide (ZnO) ETL or polymer:small molecule BHJ blends. Polymer donors/acceptors are first shown to possess better water‐immersion than the small molecule counterparts. Hence, the all‐polymer blend exhibits the lowest absorbance losses after water immersion among the studied BHJ systems. Furthermore, the result reveals that tailoring the structure of the TiO2 ETL from planar to nanoparticles effectively strengthens the adhesion at the ETL/BHJ interface to prevent physical delamination. Finally, the np‐TiO2/all‐polymer blend (half‐cell) is demonstrated to have superior stability under water immersion, i.e., unchanged morphology and charge carrier transfer, as well as no efficiency changes in the complete cells. This work demonstrates the great potential of the all‐polymer blends and np‐TiO2 ETL for improving the durability of unencapsulated OPVs under high humidity environments and even water immersion.
Toward Precision Recognition of Complex Hand Motions: Wearable Thermoelectrics by Synergistic 2D Nanostructure Confinement and Controlled Reduction
Authors: Du Chunyu , Cao Min , Li Gang , Hu Yue , Zhang Yichuan , Liang Lirong , Liu Zhuoxin , Chen Guangming
Published: July 2022

Smart wearable electronics have attracted increasing attention because of their great prospects in motion monitoring. To date, a specific design of thermoelectric wearable devices aiming at precision monitoring is still challenging, although thermoelectric materials and devices have witnessed significant developments. In this work, intercalated composites of reduced graphene oxide/reduced poly(3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) (rGO/rPEDOT:PSS) are reported through the insertion of PEDOT:PSS into 2D graphene oxide layers followed by precise optimization of oxidation‐level of composite, exhibiting an outstanding thermoelectric performance along with excellent thermoelectric stability and mechanical flexibility. Furthermore, a novel‐concept, simple‐structural, self‐powered thermoelectric wearable sensor is demonstrated with rGO/rPEDOT:PSS composite as the active sensing component of the thermoelectric device. Combined with the excellent thermoelectric performance, ingenious device design, and optimized algorithm, the thermoelectric wearable device achieves precision recognition of various hand motions. This study provides a new way to design wearable sensors toward the precision recognition of human motions.
Endocytosis‐Independent and Cancer‐Selective Cytosolic Protein Delivery via Reversible Tagging with LAT1 substrate
Authors: Zhao Ziyin , Liu Xun , Hou Mengying , Zhou Renxiang , Wu Fan , Yan Jing , Li Wei , Zheng Yujia , Zhong Qinmeng , Chen Yongbing , Yin Lichen
Published: July 2022

Protein drugs targeting intracellular machineries have shown profound therapeutic potentials, but their clinical utilities are greatly hampered by the lack of efficient cytosolic delivery techniques. Existing strategies mainly rely on nanocarriers or conjugated cell‐penetrating peptides (CPPs), which often have drawbacks such as materials complexity/toxicity, lack of cell specificity, and endolysosomal entrapment. Herein, a unique carrier‐free approach is reported for mediating cancer‐selective and endocytosis‐free cytosolic protein delivery. Proteins are sequentially modified with 4‐nitrophenyl 4‐(4,4,5,5‐tetramethyl‐1,3,2‐dioxaborolan‐2‐yl) benzyl carbonate as the H2O2‐responsive domain and 3,4‐dihydroxy‐l‐phenylalanine as the substrate of l‐type amino acid transporter 1 (LAT1). Thus, the pro‐protein can be directly transported into tumor cells by overexpressed LAT1 on cell membranes, bypassing endocytosis and endolysosomal entrapment. In the cytosol, overproduced H2O2 restores the protein structure and activity. Using this technique, versatile proteins are delivered into tumor cells with robust efficiency, including toxins, enzymes, CRISPR‐Cas9 ribonucleoprotein, and antibodies. Furthermore, intravenously injected pro‐protein of saporin shows potent anticancer efficacy in 4T1‐tumor‐bearing mice, without provoking systemic toxicity. Such a facile and versatile pro‐protein platform may benefit the development of protein pharmaceuticals.
State‐saturated resilient filtering for nonlinear complex networks under event‐triggering protocol
Authors: Huang Cong , Mei Peng , Ding Weiping , Shi Quan , Wu Qiang
Published: July 2022

This article is concerned with the resilient state‐saturated filtering issue for nonlinear complex networks via the event‐triggering protocol. The nonlinear inner coupling is taken into account, thereby better reflecting the nature of the complex networks. A set of Bernoulli‐distributed sequences are introduced to model the randomly occurring nonlinearities with a given probability. The signum function is utilized to characterize the state saturation owing to the physical limits on the system. For the purpose of energy saving, an event‐triggering protocol is adopted to govern the regulation of the transmission. The objective of this article is to develop an event‐triggering resilient filtering for nonlinear complex networks subject to state saturations as well as randomly occurring nonlinearities. By using matrix analysis techniques, we first guarantee the upper bound on the filtering error covariance by means of recursions and subsequently minimize such an upper bound by looking for the proper gain matrix relying on the solutions to two difference equations. Moreover, the performance evaluation of the designed filtering scheme is conducted by analyzing the boundedness of the estimation error in the mean square sense. Finally, an experimental example is exploited to validate the usefulness of the state‐saturated resilient filtering algorithm.
Towards a more comprehensive assessment of the intensity of historical European heat waves (1979–2019)
Authors: Becker Florian N. , Fink Andreas H. , Bissolli Peter , Pinto Joaquim G.
Published: July 2022

Europe has been affected by record‐breaking heat waves in recent decades. Using station data and a gridded reanalysis as input, four commonly used heat wave indices, the heat wave magnitude index daily (HWMId), excess heat factor (EHF), wet‐bulb globe temperature (WBGT) and universal thermal climate index (UTCI), are computed. The extremeness of historical European heat waves between 1979 and 2019 using the four indices and different metrics is ranked. A normalisation to enable the comparison between the four indices is introduced. Additionally, a method to quantify the influence of the input parameters on heat wave magnitude is introduced. The spatio‐temporal behaviour of heat waves is assessed by spatial–temporal tracking. The areal extent, large‐scale intensity and duration are visualized using bubble plots. As expected, temperature explains the largest variance in all indices, but humidity is nearly as important in WBGT and wind speed plays a substantial role in UTCI. While the 2010 Russian heat wave is by far the most extreme event in duration and intensity in all normalized indices, the 2018 heat wave was comparable in size for EHF, WBGT and UTCI. Interestingly, the well‐known 2003 central European heat wave was only the fifth and tenth strongest in cumulative intensity in WBGT and UTCI, respectively. The June and July 2019 heat waves were very intense, but short‐lived, thus not belonging to the top heat waves in Europe when duration and areal extent are taken into account. Overall, the proposed normalized indices and the multi‐metric assessment of large‐scale heat waves allow for a more robust description of their extremeness and will be helpful to assess heat waves worldwide and in climate projections.