bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Solidarities from Below in the Making of Emancipatory Rural Politics: Insights from Food Sovereignty Struggles in the Basque Country
Authors: Calvário Rita , Desmarais Annette Aurélie , Azkarraga Joseba
Published: July 2019

Exclusionary and regressive politics are on the rise globally. How do food sovereignty struggles help counter these forces? We ground our analysis on how EHNE‐Bizkaia, a Vía Campesina member organisation in the Basque Country, conceptualises and practices food sovereignty. Inspired by Massey’s ‘politics of place beyond place’ and Featherstone’s work on left politics and solidarity, we shed light on the ways that this organisation mobilises food sovereignty to establish political bonds between those marginalised by neo‐liberalism, helping to construct political identities and enact forms of subaltern agency that challenge uneven power relations and geographies. We argue that ‘solidarity from below’ is key in building an emancipatory rural politics rooted in class‐based alliances, intersectionality, and internationalism as well as non‐exclusionary notions of sovereignty. The article provides theoretical and empirical insights on what constitutes an emancipatory politics of food sovereignty that has the potential to act as a counterforce to right‐wing populism.
High incidence of drug‐resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis in Hainan Island, China
Authors: Lin Mingguan , Zhong Yeteng , Chen Zhuolin , Lin Chong , Pei Hua , Shu Wei , Pang Yu
Published: July 2019

Objectives

To assess the proportion of drug‐resistant tuberculosis (TB) cases and to identify independent risk factors associated with drug‐resistant TB in Hainan.

Methods

Descriptive analysis of demographic and clinical data of culture‐positive TB patients to assess the trends in drug‐resistant TB at the Provincial Clinical Center on Tuberculosis of Hainan between 2014 and 2017.

Results

994 patients were recruited into the study. Overall, the proportion of patients resistant to at least one TB drug tested was 36.1% (359/994). The most frequent resistance was to isoniazid (INH, 29.8%), followed by rifampin (RIF, 29.3%), streptomycin (19.3%), ofloxacin (OFX, 17.4%), ethambutol (9.5%) and kanamycin (KAN, 3.2%). Of 291 RIF‐resistant isolates, 228 (78.4%) were also resistant to INH, while the remaining 63 (21.6%) were susceptible to INH. Among those with multidrug‐resistant tuberculosis (MDR‐TB), 41.2% had additional resistance to OFX and 3.9% to KAN. 8.8% of MDR‐TB patients were affected by extensively drug‐resistant (XDR‐TB). Females were more likely to infected with MDR‐TB than males, and young people (<20 years old) were more likely to have MDR‐TB; patients exhibited decreasing MDR‐TB risk with increasing age.

Conclusions

Our data provide the first primary understanding of the drug‐resistant TB epidemic in Hainan. The high incidence of drug resistance, especially RIF and FQ resistance, highlight the importance of interventions for preventing epidemics of drug‐resistant TB. Younger age is an independent predictor of MDR‐TB, reflecting the potential transmission in this population.
The mitochondrial NAD+ transporter (NDT1) plays important roles in cellular NAD+ homeostasis in Arabidopsis thaliana
Authors: de Souza Chaves Izabel , Feitosa-Araújo Elias , Florian Alexandra , Medeiros David B. , da Fonseca‐Pereira Paula , Charton Lennart , Heyneke Elmien , Apfata Jorge A.C. , Pires Marcel V. , Mettler‐Altmann Tabea , Araújo Wagner L. , Neuhaus H. Ekkehard , Palmieri Ferdinando , Obata Toshihiro , Weber Andreas P.M. , Linka Nicole , Fernie Alisdair R. , Nunes‐Nesi Adriano
Published: July 2019

Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) is an essential coenzyme required for all living organisms. In eukaryotic cells, the final step of NAD+ biosynthesis is exclusively cytosolic. Hence, NAD+ must be imported into organelles to support their metabolic functions. Three NAD+ transporters belonging to the mitochondrial carrier family (MCF) have been biochemically characterized in plants. AtNDT1 (At2g47490), focus of the current study, AtNDT2 (At1g25380), targeted to the inner mitochondrial membrane, and AtPXN (At2g39970), located in the peroxisomal membrane. Although AtNDT1 was presumed to reside in the chloroplast membrane, subcellular localization experiments with green fluorescent protein (GFP) fusions revealed that AtNDT1 locates exclusively in the mitochondrial membrane in stably transformed Arabidopsis plants. To understand the biological function of AtNDT1 in Arabidopsis, three transgenic lines containing an antisense construct of AtNDT1 under the control of the 35S promoter alongside a T‐DNA insertional line were evaluated. Plants with reduced AtNDT1 expression displayed lower pollen viability, silique length, and higher rate of seed abortion. Furthermore, these plants also exhibited an increased leaf number and leaf area concomitant with higher photosynthetic rates and higher levels of sucrose and starch. Therefore, lower expression of AtNDT1 was associated with enhanced vegetative growth but severe impairment of the reproductive stage. These results are discussed in the context of the mitochondrial localization of AtNDT1 and its important role in the cellular NAD+ homeostasis for both metabolic and developmental processes in plants.
Toxoplasma gondii in edible fishes captured in the Mediterranean basin
Authors: Marino Anna Maria Fausta , Giunta Renato Paolo , Salvaggio Antonio , Castello Annamaria , Alfonzetti Tiziana , Barbagallo Antonio , Aparo Alessandra , Scalzo Fabrizio , Reale Stefano , Buffolano Wilma , Percipalle Maurizio
Published: July 2019

The issue of whether market fish can be involved in the transmission of Toxoplasma gondii in the marine environment is highly debated since toxoplasmosis has been diagnosed frequently in cetaceans stranded along the Mediterranean coastlines in recent times. To support the hypothesis that fishes can harbour and effectively transmit the parasite to top‐of‐the‐food‐chain marine organisms and to human consumers of fishery products, a total of 1,293 fishes from 17 species obtained from wholesale and local fish markets were examined for T. gondii DNA. Real‐time PCR was performed in samples obtained by separately pooling intestines, gills and skin/muscles collected from each fish species. Thirty‐two out of 147 pooled samples from 12 different fish species were found contaminated with T. gondii DNA that was detected in 16 samples of skin/muscle and in 11 samples of both intestine and gills. Quantitative analysis of amplified DNA performed by both real‐time PCR and digital PCR (dPCR) confirmed that positive fish samples were contaminated with Toxoplasma genomic DNA to an extent of 6.10 × 10−2 to 2.77 × 104 copies/ml (quantitative PCR) and of 1 to 5.7 × 104 copies/ml (dPCR). Fishes are not considered competent biological hosts for T. gondii; nonetheless, they can be contaminated with T. gondii oocysts flowing via freshwater run‐offs (untreated sewage discharges, soil flooding) into the marine environment, thus acting as mechanical carriers. Although the detection of viable and infective T. gondii oocysts was not the objective of this investigation, the results here reported suggest that fish species sold for human consumption can be accidentally involved in the transmission route of the parasite in the marine environment and that the risk of foodborne transmission of toxoplasmosis to fish consumers should be further investigated.
Mechanisms underlying the cross‐talk between heart and cancer
Authors: Brancaccio Mara , Pirozzi Flora , Hirsch Emilio , Ghigo Alessandra
Published: July 2019

Cardiovascular diseases and cancer remain the leading cause of death worldwide. Despite the fact that these two conditions have long been considered as distinct clinical entities, recent epidemiological and experimental studies suggest that they should be contemplated and treated as co‐morbidities. Heart failure represents nowadays a well‐established complication of cancer, primarily as a consequence of the aggressive use of cardiotoxic anti‐cancer treatments. On the other hand, the provocative idea that heart failure can prime carcinogenesis has started to emerge, though the molecular basis is still to be fully elucidated. This review summarizes the current knowledge on the mechanisms underlying the bidirectional communication between the failing heart and the cancer. We will discuss and/or speculate on the role of molecular mediators released by either the tumour or the heart that can potentially link heart failure and cancer.

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A computational model of induced pluripotent stem‐cell derived cardiomyocytes incorporating experimental variability from multiple data sources
Authors: Kernik Divya C. , Morotti Stefano , Wu HaoDi , Garg Priyanka , Duff Henry J. , Kurokawa Junko , Jalife José , Wu Joseph C. , Grandi Eleonora , Clancy Colleen E.
Published: July 2019

Key points

Induced pluripotent stem cell‐derived cardiomyocytes (iPSC‐CMs) capture patient‐specific genotype–phenotype relationships, as well as cell‐to‐cell variability of cardiac electrical activity

Computational modelling and simulation provide a high throughput approach to reconcile multiple datasets describing physiological variability, and also identify vulnerable parameter regimes

We have developed a whole‐cell model of iPSC‐CMs, composed of single exponential voltage‐dependent gating variable rate constants, parameterized to fit experimental iPSC‐CM outputs

We have utilized experimental data across multiple laboratories to model experimental variability and investigate subcellular phenotypic mechanisms in iPSC‐CMs

This framework links molecular mechanisms to cellular‐level outputs by revealing unique subsets of model parameters linked to known iPSC‐CM phenotypes

There is a profound need to develop a strategy for predicting patient‐to‐patient vulnerability in the emergence of cardiac arrhythmia. A promising in vitro method to address patient‐specific proclivity to cardiac disease utilizes induced pluripotent stem cell‐derived cardiomyocytes (iPSC‐CMs). A major strength of this approach is that iPSC‐CMs contain donor genetic information and therefore capture patient‐specific genotype–phenotype relationships. A cited detriment of iPSC‐CMs is the cell‐to‐cell variability observed in electrical activity. We postulated, however, that cell‐to‐cell variability may constitute a strength when appropriately utilized in a computational framework to build cell populations that can be employed to identify phenotypic mechanisms and pinpoint key sensitive parameters. Thus, we have exploited variation in experimental data across multiple laboratories to develop a computational framework for investigating subcellular phenotypic mechanisms. We have developed a whole‐cell model of iPSC‐CMs composed of simple model components comprising ion channel models with single exponential voltage‐dependent gating variable rate constants, parameterized to fit experimental iPSC‐CM data for all major ionic currents. By optimizing ionic current model parameters to multiple experimental datasets, we incorporate experimentally‐observed variability in the ionic currents. The resulting population of cellular models predicts robust inter‐subject variability in iPSC‐CMs. This approach links molecular mechanisms to known cellular‐level iPSC‐CM phenotypes, as shown by comparing immature and mature subpopulations of models to analyse the contributing factors underlying each phenotype. In the future, the presented models can be readily expanded to include genetic mutations and pharmacological interventions for studying the mechanisms of rare events, such as arrhythmia triggers.
Liver sympathetic denervation reverses obesity‐induced hepatic steatosis
Authors: Hurr Chansol , Simonyan Hayk , Morgan Donald A. , Rahmouni Kamal , Young Colin N.
Published: July 2019

Key points

Non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease, characterized in part by elevated liver triglycerides (i.e. hepatic steatosis), is a growing health problem.

In this study, we found that hepatic steatosis is associated with robust hepatic sympathetic overactivity.

Removal of hepatic sympathetic nerves reduced obesity‐induced hepatic steatosis.

Liver sympathetic innervation modulated hepatic lipid acquisition pathways during obesity.

Non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) affects 1 in 3 Americans and is a significant risk factor for type II diabetes mellitus, insulin resistance and hepatic carcinoma. Characterized in part by excessive hepatic triglyceride accumulation (i.e. hepatic steatosis), the incidence of NAFLD is increasing – in line with the growing obesity epidemic. The role of the autonomic nervous system in NAFLD remains unclear. Here, we show that chronic hepatic sympathetic overactivity mediates hepatic steatosis. Direct multiunit recordings of hepatic sympathetic nerve activity were obtained in high fat diet and normal chow fed male C57BL/6J mice. To reduce hepatic sympathetic nerve activity we utilized two approaches including pharmacological ablation of the sympathetic nerves and phenol‐based hepatic sympathetic nerve denervation. Diet‐induced NAFLD was associated with a nearly doubled firing rate of the hepatic sympathetic nerves, which was largely due to an increase in efferent nerve traffic. Furthermore, established high fat diet‐induced hepatic steatosis was effectively reduced with pharmacological or phenol‐based removal of the hepatic sympathetic nerves, independent of changes in body weight, caloric intake or adiposity. Ablation of liver sympathetic nerves was also associated with improvements in liver triglyceride accumulation pathways including free fatty acid uptake and de novo lipogenesis. These findings highlight an unrecognized pathogenic link between liver sympathetic outflow and hepatic steatosis and suggest that manipulation of the liver sympathetic nerves may represent a novel therapeutic strategy for NAFLD.
Observations on the intensity and prevalence of Batrachochytridium dendrobatidis in sympatric and allopatric Epidalea calamita (native) and Discoglossus pictus (invasive) populations
Authors: Montori Albert , San Sebastián Olatz , Franch Marc , Pujol-Buxó Eudald , Llorente Gustavo A. , Fernández-Loras Andrés , Richter-Boix Àlex , Bosch Jaime
Published: July 2019

We analyse if the presence of the invasive Discoglossus pictus and the native Epidalea calamita in the same geographic area can shape the dynamics of infection by Batrachochytridium dendrobatidis (Bd). Both amphibian species share breeding habitat preferences in the area (i.e. ephemeral and temporary ponds) and are common syntopic competitors. We sampled adults of either species in a total of nine breeding localities in Catalonia (NE Iberian Peninsula): six localities within sympatric geographic areas, two localities outside the current invasion range of D. pictus, and one locality comprising solely D. pictus due to its recent introduction and the ancient extinction of E. calamita. We analysed the prevalence and intensity of infection by Bd in 183 individuals (81 D. pictus and 101 E. calamita). The presence of Bd was detected in eight of the localities, all of which had not been yet confirmed as positive for the fungus. Only in one locality, with presence of D. pictus, Bd presence was not detected. Mean prevalence was slightly but non-significantly higher in E. calamita (46.5%) than in D. pictus (36.6%). Allopatric populations of E. calamita showed significantly lower prevalence of Bd infection than sympatric ones, but similar differences were not found for infection intensity. Likewise, no significant differences were found in infection intensity between allopatric and sympatric D. pictus populations. The presence of abundant Bd outside the invasion range of D. pictus supports the assertion that Bd has not been introduced in the studied area because of D. pictus invasion. However, the presence of the two species in sympatry may enhance the infection rates and therefore the prevalence of Bd in the native species.
Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillators in Patients With Continuous Flow Left Ventricular Assist Devices: Utilization Patterns, Related Procedures, and Complications
Authors: Alvarez Paulino A. , Sperry Brett W. , Pérez Antonio L. , Yaranov Dmitry M. , Randhawa Varinder , Luthman Jacob , Cantillon Daniel J. , Starling Randall C.
Published: July 2019

Background

The effect of implantable cardioverter defibrillators (
ICD
) in patients with continuous flow left ventricular assist devices (
LVAD
s) on outcomes has not been evaluated in a randomized clinical trial.

Methods and Results

This is a retrospective single‐center study that included patients who underwent continuous flow
LVAD
implantation at the Cleveland Clinic between October 2004 and March 2017. Patients were evaluated according to the presence or absence of
ICD
at the time of
LVAD
insertion. Among 486 patients in the study cohort, 387 (79.6%) had an
ICD
before
LVAD
insertion. Patients with
ICD
before
LVAD
were older and had lower use of pre‐
LVAD
inotropes, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, and mechanical ventilation. There were 81 patients (21.4% of patients with
ICD
) who required 93 procedures after
LVAD
: 74 generator exchanges, 12 lead revisions, and 7 complete system removals because of infection. Of the 99 patients without
ICD
, 52 (53%) underwent
ICD
implantation: 29 for primary prevention and 23 for secondary prevention. Patients were followed for a median of 401 (interquartile range 150–966) days. The presence of a pre‐
LVAD ICD
was not associated with mortality in a multivariable model (hazard ratio 1.19, 95%
CI
0.73–1.93,
P
=0.492), nor was the presence of an
ICD
at any point when analyzed as a time‐varying covariate (hazard ratio 1.05, 95%
CI
0.50–2.20,
P
=0.907).

Conclusions

There is no apparent mortality benefit associated with an
ICD
in a contemporary cohort of patients with continuous flow
LVAD
s to balance considerable morbidity involving
ICD
‐related procedures and complications.
The Early Arabic Liar: The Liar Paradox in the Islamic World from the Mid-Ninth to the Mid-Thirteenth Centuries CE
Authors: Alwishah Ahmed , Sanson David
Published: July 2019

We describe the earliest occurrences of the Liar Paradox in the Arabic
tradition. The early Mutakallimūn claim the Liar Sentence is both true and
false; they also associate the Liar with problems concerning plural
subjects, which is somewhat puzzling. Abharī (1200-1265) ascribes an
unsatisﬁable truth condition to the Liar Sentence—as he puts it, its being
true is the conjunction of its being true and false—and so concludes that
the sentence is not true. Tūsī (1201-1274) argues that self-referential
sen-tences, like the Liar, are not truth-apt, and defends this claim by
appealing to a correspondence theory of truth. Translations of the texts are
provided as an appendix.
How to Understand ʿal yede? Title Pages of Hebrew Private Library Catalogues Printed in the Dutch Republic during the Long 18th Century
Authors: de Wilde Anna E.
Published: July 2019

As a first step towards more research in the field of Jewish private libraries and Hebrew auction catalogues, this zuta focuses on the understudied corpus of 18th-century Hebrew book sales catalogues printed in the Dutch Republic. It is not always clear if these 18th-century catalogues contain collections from private libraries or retail stocks of publishers, printers, or booksellers. In this article I will analyse and compare the title pages of several catalogues, in order to understand the meaning of the phrase ʿal yede in relation to ownership of the catalogued collections.
Changes in soil properties along a forest succession gradient in mid Himalayan region, India
Authors: Bhardwaj D.R. , Pal Sharmistha , Panwar Pankaj
Published: July 2019

In this paper we investigated how succession has altered soil properties in relation to plant biomass and litter characteristics in mid Himalayan region of India. The natural forest with four succession phases were identified. The early stages are (1) pure Pinus roxburghii forest of coniferous shade intolerant species (2) middle stage is a Pinus roxburghii + Quercus leucotricophora (60: 40) forest with combination of coniferous and deciduous species (3) later stage is a Quercus leucotricophora + Pinus roxburghii (60: 40) and (4) climax stage is a Pure Quercus leucotricophora forest of shade tolerant deciduous broadleaf species. The soil samples were collected from surface (0–15 cm) and subsurface (15–30 cm and 30–45 cm) levels. The soil properties showed gradual improvement with progress in succession phases. Our study shows that, there was a substantial increase in level of soil organic carbon and nitrogen from early to climax phase. Soil pH was significantly lower in early succession phase. The highest available nitrogen was under climax (pure oak) and least in early phase (pure pine) (402 and 347 Kg ha–1 in surface soil, respectively). The concentration of very labile carbon (fraction 1) was highest in climax and least in early stage. The highest biomass accumulation was in climax (pure oak, 420.6 Mgha–1), followed by oak + pine (348.7 Mgha–1) and least in pine + oak (299.3 Mgha–1). Out of 4 stages, shrub biomass was maximum in early (pure pine) (20.5 M Mgha–1), being 6.57% of total biomass and least in climax (pure oak) (10.7 Mgha–1), being 2.54% of total biomass. Further, the labile carbon pools showed a strong positive correlation with total biomass at different succession stages. The recalcitrant carbon pool had significant negative correlation with biomass. Hence, the study suggests that, this increase in soil organic carbon, nitrogen and soil fertility parameters are in accordance to changes in biomass and litter fall characteristics with progress in forest succession.
Thoughts on the Future of Teaching
Authors: Schleicher Andreas
Published: July 2019

Top school systems select and educate their teaching staff carefully, they provide an environment in which teachers work together to frame good practice, they encourage teachers to grow in their careers; and they have moved on from administrative control and accountability to professional forms of work organisation.

Still, the laws, regulations, structures and institutions on which education policy tends to focus are just like the small visible tip of an iceberg. The reason why it is so hard to move school systems is that there is a much larger invisible part under the waterline. This invisible part is about the interests, beliefs, motivations and fears of the people who are involved in education, parents and teachers included. This is where unexpected collisions occur, because this part of educational reform tends to evade the radar screen of public policy. That is why educational leaders are rarely successful with reform unless they build a shared understanding and collective ownership for change, and unless they build teacher capacity and create the right policy climate, with accountability measures designed to encourage innovation rather than compliance.

The most essential reason why teachers’ ownership of the profession is a must-have rather than an optional extra lies in the pace of change in 21st century school systems. Even the most effective attempts to translate a central curriculum into local classroom practice will drag out over a decade, because it takes so much time to communicate the goals and methods through the different layers of the system and to build them into traditional methods of teacher education. In a fast-changing world, when what and how students need to learn changes so rapidly, such a slow process leads to a widening gap between what students need to learn and what and how teachers teach. The only way to shorten that pipeline is to professionalise teaching, that is to ensure that teachers not only have a deep understanding of the curriculum as a product, but equally with the process of curriculum and instructional design and the pedagogies to enact and enable the ideas behind the curriculum. The challenge is to build on the expertise of the teachers and school leaders and to enlist them in the design of superior policies and practices. Where systems fail to engage teachers in the design of change, teachers will rarely help systems in the implementation of change.
The Future of Teaching-learning in Africa: The Quest for Ubuntu Justice in Higher Education
Authors: Waghid Yusef
Published: July 2019

Much of the pedagogical work with which I have been involved over the last three decades in higher education directly concerns my relations with students and vice a versa. More recently (Waghid, 2019), I have given some thought to my pedagogical relations vis-à-vis the virtue of caring in an attempt to make sense of my encounters with students in higher education. This article reflects a closer look at pedagogical encounters between students and myself (as a university educator). In a way, I firstly reflect on my teaching and learning in a university context by making a connection between what it means to engage in pedagogical encounters through the act of caring. Secondly, I show how pedagogical encounters constituted by care could enhance both teacher and student autonomy, before, thirdly, tackling the notion that caring in pedagogical encounters cannot be remiss of deliberative iterations. Finally, I argue why caring pedagogical encounters are inextricably connected to an enactment of play which, in my view, corroborates the future of teaching.
Being a Teacher of Holistic Profession: A Perspective of Transformative Learning
Authors: Zhu Xudong , Li Jian
Published: July 2019

This study explores how to be a teacher of holistic profession from a perspective of transformative learning. Cultivating holistic profession in transformative learning involves the process of changes in communicative and instructional learning, the process of learning practical experience, and the process of critical reflection. These transformative learning processes contribute to the construction of teachers’ holistic profession contextually. The rationales of applying a perspective of transformative learning concentrate on three major reasons. Cultivating teachers’ profession as one type of adult learning is the core subject of transformative learning. Development serves as core idea of teachers’ holistic professional consciousness. The learning transformation occurred from semi-profession to holistic profession. In this sense, the transformative learning model for teachers’ profession is initially proposed to identify a special lens to shape an explicit pathway of being a teacher of holistic profession. In this model, transformative learning involves identifying “learning being professional”. Transformative relationship focuses on “teaching being professional”. Transformative context view concentrates on contenting being professional. Transformative context view involves contenting being professional. The conclusion and remarks are offered to summarize the rewards of being a teacher of holistic profession.
Changing Learning Ecologies in Early Childhood Teacher Education: From Technology to stem Learning
Authors: Hu Xinyun , Yelland Nicola
Published: July 2019

This review examines the design cycles of innovation in response to changing policy, technological and practical imperatives. It begins with the initial creation of an information and communication technology course in an early childhood teacher education program and describes its evolution into a contemporary topic. Program changes occur because of policy-driven trends, including the expansion of the definition of what constitutes technology and the incorporation of innovations into curricula and pedagogical practices. We characterize these changes in three design cycles. In the first cycle, courses to prepare preservice teachers for early childhood centers focused primarily on computer-based skills. In the second cycle, new technologies were integrated into the curricula and teaching programs and incorporated into the practicum. In the third cycle, the principles and practices inherent to science, technology, engineering and mathematics (stem) education were adopted to extend the role of new technologies in contemporary curricula and pedagogies. These new learning ecologies were characterized by the application of inter-disciplinary knowledge in authentic learning contexts. The reviewed case studies included students in three new technologies course projects in an early childhood teacher education program. The findings revealed that early childhood preservice teachers expected more opportunities to practice and apply new technologies in innovative learning spaces focused on stem learning. Furthermore, they believed that university teacher education courses should be applicable to practice-based contexts. The implications of this review inform the process of change in the design of teacher education programs from technology-based learning to the pedagogical innovations needed to prepare future teachers. It illustrates that new technologies for learning should consider changing learning ecologies in their design and implementation, and should support early childhood teachers in understanding and using child-centered pedagogical approaches.
New Curricular Standards of Senior High Schools in China
Authors: Ji Yanyan , Zhang Yanjun
Published: July 2019

China has embarked on a new wave of curriculum reform since 2018. New Curricular Standards attempts to reposition high schools with the aim of improving the quality of citizens nationwide. It repositions basic education for the public which shall not only prepare students for university, but also for students to adapt to social life and career development, thus laying a foundation for their whole-life development. Emphasizing the key competence that students are expected to possess and formulating the academic quality standards are the two major innovations in this reform.
Canadian Literacy Curricula in Macau, China: Students’ Lived Curriculum
Authors: Zhang Zheng
Published: July 2019

This ethnographic case study documents students’ lived experience at a Canadian offshore school in Macau through students’ multimodal artifacts, interviews, and teacher-student interactions in English and Mandarin literacy classes. Undergirded by the theory of cosmopolitan literacies, this study revealed the opportunities at mcs for difference negotiation and fluid identity formation that were enabled by mcs’s curricular emphasis on celebrating multiculturalism and multimodality. However, interview and observation data showed that literacy practices in the English literacy classes also centered around pen to paper meaning-making. This study identified human and non-human actors that enabled and constrained students’ literacy and identity options in the unique cross-border education context in Macau, such as mcs’s multicultural reality, school’s curricular emphasis on celebrating multiculturalism and multimodality, individual teachers’ preferences in literacy practices, and the expectations of the standardized Alberta test. The paper discusses the pedagogical potentials of cosmopolitan literacies to expand transnational education students’ literacy and identity options.
Digitalization and A.I. as Challenges and Chances for Future Teaching and Teacher Education: A Reflection
Authors: Zeinz Horst
Published: July 2019

Digitalization as a key issue of society is increasingly a topic in school. Authorities like the recently deceased scientist Stephen Hawking and the founder and ceo of Tesla, Elon Musk, see both challenges and chances in the developing artificial intelligence (A.I.). Musk remarked: “A.I. will be the best or worst thing ever for humanity” (
cnbc 1 2017). The solution, Musk said, is to increase regulatory oversight of the development and implementation of A.I. immediately: “AI is a rare case where I think we need to be proactive in regulation than be reactive.” (
cnbc 2 2017). Stephen Hawking emphasizes the same point: “The emergence of A.I. could be the “worst event in the history of our civilization” unless society finds a way to control its development (…). Success in creating effective A.I. could be the biggest event in the history of our civilization. Or the worst. We just don’t know.” Hawking said during a talk at the Web Summit technology conference in Lisbon, Portugal, in 2017. (
cnbc 3 2017). In view of these considerations and in regard to the meaning for education in school the question arises: Which topics and competencies should be presented to pupils against the background of the rapid processing in the field of digitalization and the corresponding uncertainty of topics and competencies that could be of importance in some years and decades? Verbalized differently: What does sustainable education for our future include? The answer will be aimed at the teaching and acquirement of basic competencies in general and in the field of digitalization. What should this “basic education” include? Another question is: How is it possible to combine learning processes in a “virtual reality” with learning processes in a “natural reality”? Further considerations are given in this article.
Karl Marx, Digital Technology, and Liberation Theology
Authors: McLaren Peter , Jandrić Petar
Published: July 2019

Since 2011 Peter McLaren and Petar Jandrić have written a dozen of dialogic articles focused to critical pedagogy in the age of information technology and liberation theology. These articles are packed with Peter McLaren’s interpretations of Karl Marx in various contexts, yet they never focused explicitly to McLaren’s Marxist thought. In this article we present a collection of Peter McLaren’s interpretations of Karl Marx written during 8 years of working together. Developed and published in various contexts, insights in this article do not present a complete overview of Peter McLaren’s understanding of Marxism. Yet, focusing to extremely radically different themes of information technology and liberation theology, Peter McLaren’s views present a rich source for understanding Marxist theory in the 21st century.
“The Students Have Been Spoilt Previously”
Authors: Ren Ping , Meyer Meinert
Published: July 2019

The professional development of Chinese teachers of Chinese as a foreign language (cfl) in Europe is confronted with various complex educational challenges and problems. Traditional Chinese educational schemata and cultural values have great impact on these teachers’ professional beliefs and their perceptions. My case studies of six cfl teachers show that their professional challenges are connected with the cultural differences of Chinese and German educational contexts. Open-ended questions, in-depth interviews and classroom observation were employed. And multiple data sources, such as the transcripts of teacher interviews, field notes were included. Cross-case analysis indicated that the cfl teachers have to deal with some conflicts of their previous biographies and new requirements of local educational context, such as teacher-centered didactics versus student-centered didactics, traditional Chinese language approaches versus intercultural communicative didactics; strict classroom discipline versus acknowledgement of students’ individuality etc. I depict their professional development by employing a theoretic framework of developmental task theory, i.e. professional competence, mediation, acknowledgment and institution. My study may help to shed light on understanding the individual difficulties that cfl teachers face in overseas teaching environments. The study’s findings and recommendations therefore are of significance for the future design of teacher training for cfl teachers in Germany and in other European countries.
Educating Teachers and Fostering Authentic Professional Learning in an Era of Austerity, Global Competition and Quality Assurance Rhetoric
Authors: Stickney Jeff
Published: July 2019

Writing from the perspective of both an instructor in a teacher education program at University of Toronto and more importantly as a mentor for teacher candidates in the classroom, hosting for over twenty years student teachers from six universities in Ontario and New York, the paper explores the master-apprentice relationship within the practicum placement in schools – drawing philosophically on Martin Heidegger’s reflections on apprenticeship, Donald Schön’s pragmatic emphasis on studio work and Lee Shulman’s focus for training on developing subject related pedagogical-content-knowledge, to resituate the significance of what many educators and student-teachers say forms the core of teacher education. Subtle changes in teacher education over the last thirty years, set against dominant themes of professional autonomy and agency within sweeping educational and economic reforms such as the neo-liberal accountability and austerity movements, are sketched in order to follow their arc or trajectory into possible futures. Using a Foucauldian genealogical approach, the author aims to show how we could think and act differently in our practices and governance of teacher education.
Inclusion in Education and in Public Debates on Education
Authors: Papastephanou Marianna
Published: July 2019

Inclusion is nowadays a most cherished notion in educational discourses and policies around the globe. Discourses of inclusion appear as the most humane, politically sensitive and praiseworthy heights that political thought and educational practice can reach. At the same time, a kind of inclusion in the public sphere is enacted whenever people freely join debates on matters of general interest, educational or other. For, participation in debates on education and on teacher education is not limited to educational researchers, teacher organizations and all those involved in educational theory and practice. The present article begins with the operations of inclusion in educational theory and discusses some complicities and risks lurking in the unqualified valorization of inclusion that is noticeable in educational discourses and in public debates on education and teachers’ performance. Such valorization operates inter alia at the expense of thoughtful withdrawal and pertinent self-exclusion. In societal debates on education, inclusion as unconditional prerogative of a narcissist I (eye) or as social interpellation to participate legitimizes just everybody’s having investigative relevance to issues of education. The article ends with some suggestions concerning the positioning of inclusion within a broader set of concepts required for a desirable redirection of educational discourses and policies.
Reflecting and Verbalizing Teaching – Supported by Didactic and Digital Tools
Authors: Cronqvist Marita
Published: July 2019

In teacher education, it is problematic to intertwine theory and practice. It is also problematic that student teachers lack self-awareness about what values they express in their meetings with pupils. They need to reflect and verbalize their teaching experiences. In this article, results from a study in teacher education are presented from a development work where a combination of a didactic tool that visualizes ethics in teaching and a digital tool, video paper is tried. The purpose is to investigate how this combination can stimulate student teachers´ reflections on their teaching during their internship and through follow-up in the campus course. Findings indicate that the tools in themselves are not enough to bridge theory and practice. However, the tools can be helpful to teacher educators. Reflections presented in video papers are quite different in content, range and depth which are visualized through the questions of the didactic tool and by different typologies for reflection. The reflections show that there are many ways to verbalize ethics which raises questions about what it really means to visualize ethics.
The Orthoptera (Ensifera) from the Santana formation (Early Cretaceous, Northeast Brazil): A statistical and paleoecological approach, with description of new taxa
Authors: MARTINS-NETO RAFAEL GIOIA , TASSI LARA VAZ
Published: July 2019

This paper on the Araripe orthopterofauna reviews the Cearagryllus-like Grylloidea (Orthoptera: Ensifera) from the laminated limestone of the uppermost part of the Crato Member, lowest unit of the Santana Formation (Early Cretaceous), Araripe Basin, near Santana do Cariri and Nova Olinda municipalities (Ceará State, Northeast Brazil). The following new taxa are proposed: Notocearagryllus arturandradai n. sp., Cryptocearagryllus revelatus n. gen. et n. comb., Allocearagryllus leipnitzi n. gen et n. comb., Cearagrylloides perforatorius n. gen. et n. comb., Cearagrylloides microcephalus n. gen. et n. comb., Cearagrylloides previstus n. gen. et n. comb., and Paracearagryllus poliacanthus n. gen. et n. comb. (Cearagryllinae n. subfam.). Additionally new data on the paleoecology and paleoethology are furnished as well as a statistical approach.
A new species of Seira Lubbock (Collembola: Entomobryidae) from Brazil with sexually dimorphic legs
Authors: BELLINI BRUNO CAVALCANTE , PAIS ALEXANDRA PEREGRINO , ZEPPELINI DOUGLAS
Published: July 2019

A new species of Seira Lubbock, S. bicolorcornuta sp. nov., from Alto do Moura, Pernambuco State, Brazil, is described and illustrated. The males of this species have conspicuous modifications on the first pair of legs. This condition and other morphological features indicate a clear relationship between S. bicolorcornuta sp. nov. and S. raptora Zeppelini & Bellini. The distribution and chaetotaxic patterns of both species are discussed.
Taxonomic status of Velinoides Matsumura (Hemiptera: Reduviidae: Harpactorinae) inferred from mitochondrial and nuclear genes
Authors: LIU HUI , ZHAO PING , LI SHUJUAN , CAI WANZHI
Published: July 2019

In this study, we used three mitochondrial genes (cyt b, COI, and 16S rRNA) and one nuclear gene (28S rRNA) to evaluate the current taxonomic status of the genus Velinoides erected by Matsumura. Phylogenetic analyses of genes using maximum parsimony, maximum likelihood, and minimum evolution resulted in different phylogenetic trees. However, the combined dataset analysis revealed better phylogenetic relationships. The constructed phylogenies appeared to be largely congruent with morphological studies. Results based on the molecular data strongly supported that the C. dilatatus, the type species of Velinoides, was the sister group to all other species of the genus Coranus Curtis. Incorporation with the morphological and cytogenetic characteristics, we proposed that Velinoides is of subgeneric status, the genus Coranus Curtis should be divided into two subgenera, Velinoides Matsumura and Coranus Curtis. Our phylogenetic results suggested that the 28S rDNA gene segment alone might not be an optimal molecular marker for the phylogeny of the genus Coranus Curtis.
A review of the Afrotropical jumping plant-lice of the Phacopteronidae (Hemiptera: Psylloidea)
Authors: MALENOVSKÝ IGOR , BURCKHARDT DANIEL
Published: July 2019

The Afrotropical jumping plant-lice of the family Phacopteronidae are revised. Thirty-one species are recognized, 18 of which are described as new (Pseudophacopteron arcuatum sp. nov., P. aulmanni sp. nov., P. benguelense sp. nov., P. bicolor sp. nov., P. carapae sp. nov., P. geminum sp. nov., P. hankae sp. nov., P. hollisi sp. nov., P. khayae sp. nov., P. lautereri sp. nov., P. magnum sp. nov., P. marmoratum sp. nov., P. nigritulum sp. nov., P. serrifer sp. nov., P. sodalis sp. nov., P. stigmatum sp. nov., P. tamessei sp. nov. and P. wagneri sp. nov.); Pseudophacopteron caffrariense Capener, 1973, P. pretoriense Capener, 1973 and P. zimmermanni (Aulmann, 1912) are redescribed. A lectotype is designated for P. zimmermanni. All species are illustrated and keys for the identification of adults and fifth instar larvae are provided. Information is given on distribution, host plants and biology. Twenty-six species are associated with plants of the order Sapindales ( = Rutales), one species has been collected on Tabernaemontana stapfiana (Gentianales: Apocynaceae), and four species lack reliable host data. Sympatric occurrences of several Pseudophacopteron species on particular host species are recorded on Commiphora africana from Kenya, Dacryodes edulis from Cameroon, Ekebergia benguelensis from Angola, Khaya senegalensis from Nigeria, and Vepris nobilis from Kenya and Uganda. Two large, probably monophyletic groups are recognized within the Afrotropical Phacopteronidae.
Description of three new caddisfly species from Mayotte Island, Comoros Archipelago (Insecta: Trichoptera)
Authors: JOHANSON KJELL ARNE , MARY NATHALIE
Published: July 2019

We report five new species records from the Comoros Archipelago. Two of the species are known from outside the Archipelago, Hydroptila cruciata Ulmer (Hydroptilidae) and Anisocentropus voeltzkowi Ulmer (Calamoceratidae), and three species are described as new to science: Pisulia stoltzei ,new species (Pisuliidae), and: Chimarra mayottensis, new species and Chimarra koulaeensis, new species (Philopotamidae). Five species have been previously recorded from the Comoros Islands: Cheumatopsyche comorina (Navás), Macrostemum capense (Walker), Cheumatopsyche vala Malicky (Hydropsychidae), Hydroptila voticia Malicky (Hydroptilidae), and Oecetis atpomarus Malicky (Leptoceridae). With this report the number of species from the Comoros is doubled. These findings also represent the first records of Trichoptera from Mayotte.
The genus Neopseustis (Lepidoptera: Neopseustidae) from China, with description of one new species
Authors: CHEN LIUSHENG , OWADA MAMORU , WANG MIN , LONG YANG
Published: July 2019

The members of the genus Neopseustis Meyrick, 1909 from China are reviewed, and a key to the species is given. Neopseustis moxiensis Chen & Owada is described as a new species, characterized by the monotonous fuscous hindwings, and by the compressed clavate tegumenal lobes as well as slender uncinate apex of valvae. All the type specimens of new species are deposited in the Department of Entomology, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China. Neopseustis fanjingshana Yang, 1988 (type locality: Guizhou) is redescribed on the basis of a male specimen, collected in Hunan. Diagnoses, notes and collecting data are given for N. bicornuta, N. sinensis, N. meyricki and N. archiphenax. A checklist of the Neopseustidae (4 genera, 13 species) is provided with their distribution.
A taxonomic review of the Old World leafhopper genus Changwhania Kwon (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae: Deltocephalinae: Paralimnini)
Authors: ZHANG YALIN , DUAN YANI , WEBB M. D.
Published: July 2019

The Old World leafhopper genus Changwhania Kwon is reviewed and three of its four species are illustrated and male genital characters are provided. One new species from China, Changwhania digitata Zhang and Duan, is described. A key to species is also provided.
Studies on neotropical Phasmatodea VIII: Revision of the genus Decidia Stål, 1875 with the description of a new species from Colombia (Phasmatodea: Pseudophasmatidae: Pseudophasmatinae: Anisomorphini)
Authors: CONLE OSKAR V. , HENNEMANN FRANK H. , RAMÍREZ-MORA MANUEL A. , QUIRÓZ JOHN A.
Published: July 2019

The genus Decidia Stål, 1875 is revised with an updated description of the genus, descriptions of all four known species, illustrations and keys are provided. The male of the type-species Decidia soranus (Westwood, 1859) is described and illustrated for the first time and a re-description of the females is given. Examination of the Colombian Peruphasma doylei (Caudell, 1906) has shown this to belong in Decidia (n. comb.); the male is re-described and the previously unknown female described and illustrated for the first time. Also Autolyca blapoides Redtenbacher, 1906 from South Ecuador has proven to belong in Decidia and is here transferred (n. comb.) with the female re-described and unknown male described and illustrated for the first time. These two species show the genus Decidia to contain not only winged but apterous species as well. A very colourful new species, Decidia magnifica n. sp. from the central Cordillera of Colombia, is described and illustrated from both sexes. The eggs of Decidia remain as yet unknown. Decidia appears to be restricted to the Andean regions of Central and Southern Colombia and Ecuador above an altitude of 2000 metres, referred to as the biogeographical province Cauca. The genus shows close relation to the Central American Autolyca Stål, 1875 and is hence re-transferred from Pseudophasmatini to the tribe Anisomorphini (rev. stat.).