bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Towards Alleviating Threat Factors in Small Scale Palm Oil Enterprises in the Tropics: Evidence from Nigeria
Authors: ACHOJA Felix
Published: April 2020

Smallholder palm oil enterprises dominate the vegetable oil industry in Nigeria but their operational continuity and growth have been under serious threat. This study analysed the threat factors in small scale palm oil firms with data collected from 84 palm oil processors. The finding indicates that the enterprise is profitable (₦486,745) but could be wipe out by external environmental factors. Further result indicates that the most significant threat factor to traditional palm oil extraction firms is climate hazards, particularly bush burning, product competitiveness with substitutes, theft of palm bunches, non-participation of youths, aging farmers and aged farmers’ quit tendencies. It was recommended among others that environmental protection policies and regulations by relevant agencies should be intensified against bush burning and reduce the external threats to small scale palm oil extraction firms in Nigeria. Advocacies for climate change mitigation measures should be intensified so as to reduce the external threats to small scale palm oil extraction firms in Delta State, Nigeria.
Basınçlı Sulama Sistemleri Hibe Destek Uygulamalarının Değerlendirilmesi: Yozgat İli Örneği
Authors: KILIÇ YOLAL Ayşen , DEĞİRMENCİ Hasan
Published: April 2020

Bu araştırma, Tarım ve Orman Bakanlığı tarafından verilen hibe destek programından yararlanılarak yapılan basınçlı sulama sistemlerinin değerlendirilmesi amacıyla yapılmıştır. Araştırma verileri tam sayım yöntemine göre Yozgat İlinde 50 üretici ile yüz yüze görüşülerek anket yolu ile toplanmıştır. Anket sonuçlarının değerlendirilmesinde çeşitli frekans tabloları ve tanımlayıcı istatistikler kullanılmıştır. Araştırmada yeterli eğitim düzeyi, ekipman varlığı, arazi varlığı ve gelir düzeyine sahip olan çiftçilerin hibe destek programından yararlandığı gözlemlenmiştir. Ayrıca hibe desteğinden yararlanan ve modern teknolojilere açık olan kişilerin çoğunlukla genç yaşta olduğu görülmüştür. Üreticilerin il/ilçe Tarım ve Orman Müdürlükleri ile iletişimleri kuvvetli, sosyal anlamda gelişmiş olduğu TV, radyo, gazete, internet gibi iletişim araçlarından daha fazla yararlandığı belirlenmiştir. Basınçlı sulama sistemini kullanan üreticilerin danışman hizmet alımı konusunda eksik olduğu ve karşılaşılan problemleri kendi tecrübeleriyle çözdüğü anlaşılmıştır. Üreticilerin basınçlı sulama sistemini genelde tek bir parsele uyguladığı görülmüştür. Ayrıca basınçlı sulama sistemini kullananların problemlerinin %44’ü tıkanma, %28’i yakıt tüketimi, %16’sı aşınma ve yıpranma, %12’si bozuk veya kusurlu mal alımı olduğu tespit edilmiştir. Sonuç olarak, basınçlı sulama sistemlerinin daha verimli kullanılması amacıyla eğitimler düzenlenmesi ve teknik bilgilerin kullanıcılara uzman kişiler tarafından verilmesi gerekmektedir. Basınçlı sulama sisteminin kullanımını engelleyen önemli problemlerden olan arazi parçalığı ve yakıt masraflarına gelişmiş çözümler sunulmalıdır. Karar vericilerin yenilikçi sulama teknolojilerinin kullanımını daha geniş tabana yaymak için eksikleri görüp çözüm odaklı yeni politikalar geliştirmesi gerekmektedir.
Finike (Antalya) Orman Planlama Biriminin Vasküler Bitki Florası
Authors: KARAKÖSE Mustafa , TERZİOĞLU Salih
Published: April 2020

Bu çalışma 2012-2013 yılları arasında Finike Orman Planlama Birimi’nin vasküler bitki florasını tespit etmek amacı ile yapılmıştır. Çalışma alanı Antalya ili C2-C3 karelerinde, Akdeniz ile İran-Turan fitocoğrafik bölgeleri arasında kalmaktadır. Çalışma sonucunda 80 familyaya ait 523 vasküler bitki taksonu tespit edilmiştir. Tespit edilen bitki taksonlarından 3’ü Pteridophyta bölümüne, 520’si ise Spermatophyta bölümüne aittir. Spermatophyta bölümüne ait bitki taksonlarından 9’u (%1.7) Gymnospermae alt-bölümü, 511 (%98.3)’ü ise Angiospermae alt-bölümü içerisinde kalmaktadır. Tespit edilen 523 taksonun 437’si otsu, 45’i ağaç, 30’u çalı, 10’u tırmanıcı ve 1’i damarlı parazit formundadır. Çalışma sonucu tespit edilen 523 taksondan 67’si Türkiye için endemiktir. Çalışma alanının endemizm oranı ise %12.8 olarak hesaplanmıştır. Takson zenginliği dikkate alındığında en zengin familya 63 takson (%12) Asteraceae’dir. Bu familyayı sırası ile Lamiaceae (50 takson; %9.6), Fabaceae (35 takson; %6.7), Brassicaceae (33 takson; %6.3) ve Poaceae (30 takson; %5.7) takip etmektedir. Çalışma alanında saptanan 523 taksonun 265 (%50.7)’sinin fitocoğrafik bölgesi belirlenebilmiştir. Bu taksonlardan 214’ü (%40.9) Akdeniz, 26’si (%5) Avrupa-Sibirya, 25’i (%4.8) İran-Turan elementi olup geriye kalan taksonlar (258 takson; %49.3) geniş yayılışlıdır. Finike Orman Planlama Birimi içerisinde tespit edilen taksonlardan Hemikriptofitler 195 (%37.3) takson ile dominant durumda olup, bunu daha sonra Terofitler (135 takson) ve Fanerofitler (77 takson) karakterde hayat formları takip etmektedir.
Yumurtacı Tavuklarda Yumurta Verim Eğrilerinin Modellenmesi
Authors: YALÇINÖZ Emin , ŞAHİN Mustafa
Published: April 2020

Bu çalışmada yumurtacı tavuklarda yumurta verim eğrilerinin modellenmesinde kullanılan bazı modeller karşılaştırmalı olarak incelenmiştir. Bu amaçla Nick Brown ve Leghorn ırkı tavukların 18. haftadan 59. haftaya kadar olan haftalık yumurta verimleri kullanılmıştır. Modelleme çalışmasında yaygın olarak kullanılan iki farklı kubik parçalı regresyon (iki ve üç boğumlu), lojistik, MMF, gamma, McNally, modifiye compartmental ve kuadratik parçalı regresyon modelleri ele alınmıştır. Modellerin karşılaştırılmasında ise hata kareler ortalamaları, belirleme katsayısı, düzeltilmiş belirleme katsayısı, akaike bilgi kriteri ve durbin-watson otokorelasyon değerleri kullanılmıştır. Çalışma sonucunda her iki ırktada en iyi sonuçlar modifiye compartmental modelinden elde edilmiştir (Nick Brown; HKO=0.000007, R2=0.9999, R ̅^2=0.9998, AIC=-392.966, DW=1.345: Leghorn; HKO=0.0001, R2=0.9998, R ̅^2=0.9997, AIC=-373.225, DW=1.845). Kuadratik parçalı regresyonun ise incelenen modeller içerisinde en kötü sonuçlara sahip olduğu belirlenmiştir (Nick Brown; HKO=0.0007, R2=0.9486, R ̅^2=0.9412 AIC=-298.257, DW=2.341: Leghorn; HKO=0.0002, R2=0.9787, R ̅^2=0.9776, AIC=-340.824, DW=2.171).
Análisis del sector manufactura en México
Authors: BERRA BARONA CLAUDIA , RAMÍREZ RAMÍREZ MARGARITA
Published: April 2020

This article shows an exploratory and descriptive analysis of the manufacturing sector in Mexico. A Model of Structural Equations (SEM) is presented by the method of partial least squares (PLS) with statistical data of the country’s manufacturing industry and through software Smart PLS analyzes sixteen indicators grouped into six variables that contain statistical information on the manufacturing sector from 2011 to 2019. With the construction of variables, the relationships between the indicators that allow companies in the manufacturing sector to move from the current state of simple manufacturing to advanced manufacturing are identified. The object of study are companies in the manufacturing sector nationwide.
Determinantes clave en el debate teórico sobre crecimiento empresarial
Authors: MELGAREJO ZURAY , CIRO DIANA , SIMÓN ELORZ KATRIN
Published: April 2020

Business growth has been widely noted in the academic literature as a relevant variable that explains the level of employment and welfare. Recently, other studies consider the influence of High-Growth firms and Gazelles to explain the dynamics growth. The aim of this work is to approach business growth from a theoretical point of view, establishing is impact as a multidimensional variable. Some factors that explain the growth are look over to improve the impacts of them in the business growth such as size, age, region and economic cycle. Finally, this paper analyzes the studies of Colombian growth and their characteristics to explain their path and conditioning factors.
La comunicación integrada de marketing: un análisis empírico desde la perspectiva del consumidor joven
Authors: OTERO GÓMEZ MARÍA CRISTINA , GIRALDO PÉREZ WILSON
Published: April 2020

The objective of this article is to categorize the elements of integrated marketing communication, according to the assessments given by university students from Villavicencio - Colombia and Coatzacoalcos - Mexico. This is a quantitative study, whose hypothesis was contrasted with a sample of 1591 individuals. The data were processed using SPSS version 18 software. Based on the general concept of Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC), the variables are studied: direct marketing, sales promotion, public relations, advertising and online marketing. In addition, a comparative study was conducted based on the variables gender, age and country of origin. The results indicate that only the country of origin variable presents differences in attitudes towards integrated marketing communication tools among young people in Villavicencio and Coatzacoalcos. On the contrary, it is determined that gender and age variables do not influence young consumers’ attitudes towards marketing communications. This work contributes to the advancement of research on consumer behavior, as well as generating some implications that favor decision-making in the commercial area.
Features of Reparative Histogenesis in Bioplastic Material Application
Authors: Shevlyuk N. N. , Gatiatullin I. Z. , Stadnikov A. A.
Published: April 2020

In modern medicine, various biocompatible materials (based on biodegradable natural biopolymers – collagen, hyaluronic acid, chitin, chitosan, etc.) are widely used, primarily for the purposes of reconstructive and plastic surgery. The development of these materials and their introduction into clinical practice is an extremely urgent task of regenerative biology and medicine. One of the most important properties of bioplastic materials is their ability to undergo biodegradation and gradually be replaced by the recipient's proper tissues. In this case, the intermediate and final metabolic products of these materials should be included in the natural biochemical cycles of the body without their systemic and local accumulation, and degradation products should lack the toxicity effect. Bioplastic materials can also serve as carriers of biologically active substances, for example, growth factors and morphogenetic proteins, antibacterial substances, as well as pharmacological agents that affect the rate of regeneration. The designed three-dimensional porous structure of new materials, morphologically similar to the structure of body tissues, allows them to ensure the migration of fibroblastic cells, the growth of blood vessels in the area occupied by this material, that is, they can serve as a skeleton (matrix), a basis for histio- and organotypic regenerates developing in various organs. Many bioplastic materials have the ability to enhance angiogenesis, and are also able to activate proliferation and cytodifferentiation of epithelial cells and fibroblast differentiation cells of the connective tissue, which leads to the formation of young connective tissue in the transplant zone and epithelization of organ damage. Thus, biocompatible and biodegradable polymers are able to stimulate reparative histogenesis, providing optimal conditions for the formation of histio- and organotypic regenerates of various tissues and organs.
Aproximación al desempeño operativo de un modelo de redes neuronales en el diagnóstico de la infertilidad masculina
Authors: Velilla-Hernández Esteban , Velilla-Hernández Paula A. , Cardona-Maya Walter
Published: April 2020

Objetivo: realizar una aproximación a la capacidad de las redes neuronales supervisadas para clasificar lizando los parámetros seminales convencionales.Materiales y métodos: estudio de corte transversal ensamblado sobre la base de datos del Grupo Reproducción de la Universidad de Antioquia, en el que se escogieron hombres con problemas re-productivos en los doce meses previos y hombres con antecedente de haber tenido hijos. Muestreo por conveniencia. Se tomaron en cuenta: la edad, el tiempo de abstinencia sexual, el volumen del eyaculado, el pH, los porcentajes de movilidad y de viabilidad, y la concentración espermática. Mediante una red neuronal supervisada se desarrolló un modelo de entrenamiento y un modelo de validación.Resultados: se incluyeron 204 hombres. Para el modelo de entrenamiento 129 hombres, 35 para la validación, 40 para probar el modelo y 25 para la validación externa. En el modelo de la red neuronal clasificó adecuadamente el 90% de los sujetos con problemas reproductivos y el 91% de los sujetos cuadamente el 40% de los sujetos con problemas reproductivos y el 100% de los sujetos fértiles.Conclusión: las redes neuronales surgen como una tecnología que podría ser valiosa para el estudio de la infertilidad masculina. Se requieren evaluaciones más rigurosas para definir su real utilidad en el estudio de la pareja infértil.
John Mitchell Kemble’s Anglo-Germanic legal historiography
Authors: Stuckey Michael
Published: April 2020

Ideas about legal and constitutional systems in the British Isles, based upon a native genius, and ultimately upon the racial composition of the nation(s), were developed and deployed during the nineteenth century. The work of John Mitchell Kemble can be counted here amongst the developers of the literature informing this evolving historiographical norm of the Common Law tradition. Kemble’s work was fundamental to the establishment of a historical theory which underlay the development of the Common Law and its institutions with a specific and conscious Germanic attribution and constructed derivation. Kemble’s role was critical, in this creative discourse, as a polymath aggregator, whose work crossed modern-day conceptions of disciplinary boundaries. The developed and acquired Germanic historico-legal convention consistently emphasised a narrative of the Common Law’s uniqueness, and it was a tradition which eventually gained a fundamental intellectual position.
To Ally or Not? The Critical Factors of a New Alliance Model in Urban Infrastructure Projects
Authors: Valkama Pekka , Oulasvirta Lasse , Karppi Ilari
Published: April 2020

The research explains the background of an alliance model which is a new collaborative project concept in urban infrastructure investments and reviews stakeholder views of applied alliances based on a case study analys­ing project experiences in the city of Tampere, Finland. The alliance model is considered a potential solution for some of the chronic productivity and other problems of the building industry and the classic difficulties in public-sector investment projects, but the model fits a purpose primarily only in publicly funded, technically challenging and sufficiently large projects. The alliance model has initiation, development and implementation phases, and of these phases, the interviewed experts named the development phases as particularly critical, as team spirit, shared ethos, and joint goals must all be built in that phase before the actual collaboration between contract parties can be initiated.
The Old Church Slavonic Version of Epiphanius of Salamis’ Panarion in the Ephraim Kormchaya (the 12TH Century)
Authors: Lekova Tatiana
Published: April 2020

The Panarion treatise is a dogmatic and polemical writing that earned Epiphanius his well-deserved reputation of a zealous defender of the Orthodox faith and a “hunter of heresies”. Its list of heresies was translated into Church Slavonic during the 1st Bulgarian Empire at the time of tsar Symeon and quickly spread throughout the Slavic-Orthodox world. It is a part of the oldest Slavonic version of Syntagma of XIV titles without any commentary (Syntagma XIV titulorum sine scholiis), called Efremovskaya Kormchaya. It is a monumental compendium of the centenary heresiological literature, and is the most complete treatise on heresies that the age of the Fathers left us. The paper presents a description of the three books and seven volumes of the Panarion with a list of eighty heresies, sects and schisms – twenty heresies before the incarnation of Christ and sixty of Christian times. Within the work attributed to Epiphanius, a chapter of the Ecclesiastical History of Theodoret of Cyrus and two other chapters of the theological-philosophical work Arbiter or Umpire by Joannes Philoponus have been identified. A number of 103 heresies was revealed, all of them ascribed to Epiphanius. It is presented as a preliminary study of 140 terms used by an anonymous Slavic translator. To the various lexemes, two different criteria have been applied: grammatical and semantic. The research determines 15 ethnonyms and eponyms, 60 anthroponyms formed on the names of the heresiarchs, 30 calques from Greek and 35 compounds. Among the latter, two distinct groups have been distinguished: structural calques, exactly corresponding to the Greek models, and “neologisms”, formally independent of the Greek formations. Adaptation to the original Bulgarian linguistic system was achieved by the translator (or the editor) by using interpretative supplements, i.e. glosses. It is assumed that the translator’s primary objective was to remain as faithful as possible to the Greek original. It turns out that the translator showed excellent knowledge of the comple XGreek models of word formation and exceptional skills in adapting them to the Palaeoslavic linguistic system. The compound lexemes were created for stylistic reasons and are a result of a specific translation technique.
On (Quasi-)Gnostic Strategies for Overcoming Cognitive Dissonance. The Bulgarian Case
Authors: Szwat-Gyłybowa Grażyna
Published: April 2020

The article poses a research question, important not only in the studies on (neo-)gnosticism, concerning the relationship between the gnostic strategies of interpreting the world (and especially its typical rules of classifying people, based on the externalization of evil) and the tendency to construct a figure of “hylic” as a person embodying evil, and thus “unworthy of life”. In this context, the author is interested in the dynamics of the relationship between the religious worldview declared by the authors, the one they actually profess, and their attitude towards the so-called Jewish question. Bulgarian material, which is a case of a particular kind of aporia, cognitive dissonances emerging due to tension between the pressure of cultural stereotypes, pragmatic (economic), religious, parareligious and humanistic thinking, has been analyzed on the basis of post-secular thought. The investigator posits that Bulgarian culture, despite the “economic” anti-Semitism that exists within it, did not produce a figure of a Jew the hylic that absorbs all evil and that could be inscribed (as is the case in popular Polish culture, among others) in every troublesome local political and symbolic context.
Was Constantine the Great Aware of the Constantinian Shift?
Authors: Bralewski Sławomir
Published: April 2020

In this article, I try to answer the following question: was Constantine himself aware of the revolution that he was carrying out? Did he realise that his actions were going to change the course of the history of the Empire? An analysis of sources seems to indicate that emperor Constantine the Great saw in his reign a fundamental change not only in the history of the Imperium Romanum, but also of the entire world. He believed that this change had an eschatological dimension. Constantine’s reign, at least in its propagandist framing, was to be the turning point in the fight against evil. It appears that the ruler was fully aware that by putting an end to the persecutions of Christians he was restoring universal peace. Thus, the shift with which he is associated amounted, on the one hand, to restoring the pax Christiana and the beginning of the Kingdom of God on earth, and on the other to eliminating evil from the world. Therefore, Constantine, in believing that he had become God’s tool for fighting evil, must have also been convinced that he played an incredibly important role in God’s plan of salvation; especially since the Kingdom of God, apparently realised on earth through Constantine’s military victories, was to only finally prevail when evil and death had been defeated forever.
Understanding the Use of Byzantine Routes in Central Anatolia (ca. 7TH–9TH Centuries)
Authors: Kaya Tülin
Published: April 2020

This paper mainly focuses on the impact of the change in the political equilibrium in the East caused by the effects of the Arab invasions on the main communication routes in Byzantine Central Anatolia. Beginning in the 640s and continuing for over 150 years, these incursions had an impact on the ways in which major routes in and through the new frontier zone were used, reflecting in part the fact that during this period the Taurus mountain range constituted the natural frontier between the Byzantines and the Arabs. The main communication routes in Central Anatolia, which lie on the northwest-southeast axis, were of importance in terms of the changing role of the main urban centres established along them, since Arab attacks were directed at both major and minor urban and fortified centres in Central Anatolia, as the Byzantine and Arab sources mention. Although the main centres such as Ancyra and Dorylaion were affected by the attacks, these and most other major cities continued to exist throughout the period in question. In this regard, the continued existence of such centres determined the ways in which the major routes of communication were used. A study of the changes in the role and functions of the cities in central Anatolia may thus help to understand the use of the main routes, based on the archaeological, i.e. building structures, ceramics, etc., and textual evidence, including that from narrative sources.
The Family Strategy for Purple – Comparing the Methods of Andronikos I and Alexios I Komnenos of Constructing Imperial Power
Authors: Lachowicz Paweł
Published: April 2020

In this paper I would like to concentrate on strategies and methods that were guiding Alexios I and Andronikos I of the Komnenos dynasty during the process of gaining and consolidating their power in the Byzantine Empire. Between these two emperors, who belonged to the same family, there exist many analogies in the way of carrying out a coup and constructing the authority based on a group of faithful aristocrats. It is crucial to highlight the active family politics which characterized both the emperors, as it was the main strategy aimed at ensuring the durability of the freshly acquired power. Between Andronikos’ and his grandfather’s coups passed almost exactly one hundred years. The completely different social and political situation of the Byzantine Empire in the late 12th century forced Andronikos to take a different approach. The most striking change was in the way of eliminating potential threats from the circles of Constantinopolitan aristocracy, especially when it comes to his relatives. Such a comparative analysis leads to some important observations concerning the social changes in the late 11th and 12th centuries, as well as mechanisms of seniority and precedence of power in the Komnenos family.
The History of the Remains of the Roman Emperor, Julian the Apostate
Authors: Pająkowska-Bouallegui Anna
Published: April 2020

Julian (Flavius Claudius Iulianus), called the Apostate, Roman emperor in the years 361–363, was one of the most intriguing rulers. From antiquity to the present day he invariably aroused great interest, both during his life and after his death. He was a just emperor, a wise commander, and a very talented writer. On 26 June 363 Julian the Apostate was mortally wounded during a battle with the Persians. He spent the last moments of his life discussing with philosophers Priskus and Maksimus the nobility of the soul, as we learn from the historian Ammianus Marcellinus. The ruler then showed, perhaps too ostentatiously, his greatest passion: love of virtue and fame. Julian the Apostate died at the age of thirty-two after only twenty months of his rule. Julian’s body, as Gregory of Nazianzus recalls, was transported from Nisibis to Tarsus in Cilicia, which took fifteen days. The subjects greeted the arrival of the body with a mournful lament or contemptuous insults, as the Father of the Church adds. Julian wanted to rest after death in Tarsus, in a mausoleum next to a small temple on the banks of the Cydnus River. Then, at an unspecified time, as the chronicler Zonaras recalls, the body of Emperor Julian the Apostate was transferred to Constantinople and buried in the Church of the Holy Apostles. Constantine Porphyrogenitus in his collection On the ceremonies of the imperial court (book II, chapter 42) mentions the grave of Julian. Today one of the porphyry sarcophagi, kept in the Archaeological Museum in Istanbul, is sometimes considered the Julian sarcophagus. The theme of this article is an attempt to determine the posthumous fate of Emperor Julian the Apostate’s body, i.e. when and in what circumstances it was transferred to Constantinople.
Exploring Biologic Predictors of Response Disparities to Atypical Antipsychotics among Blacks: A Quasi-Systematic Review
Authors: Jerome Rebecca N. , Pulley Jill M. , Sathe Nila A. , Krishnaswami Shanthi , Dickerson Alyssa B. , Worley Katherine J. , Wilkins Consuelo H.
Published: April 2020

Purpose: Management of schizophrenia among Blacks in the United States is af­fected by persistent disparities. This review explored response to atypical antipsychotics among Blacks compared with other groups to assess systematic variation that may con­tribute to disparities.Methods: We conducted a quasi-systematic review of studies reporting response to atypical antipsychotics among Blacks com­pared with other groups, including effects of genetic variation.Results: Of 48 identified research articles, 29 assessed differences in outcomes without inclusion of genetic variation and 20 ex­plored effects of genetic variation; of note: one article included both types of data. Analysis of the 29 papers with clinical out­comes only suggests that while data on ef­ficacy and risk of movement disorders were heterogeneous, findings indicate increased risk of metabolic effects and neutropenia among Blacks. Of the 20 articles exploring effects of genetic variation, allelic or geno­typic variations involving several genes were associated with altered efficacy or safety among Blacks but not Whites, including risk of decreased response involving variation in DRD4 and DRD1, and improved efficacy as­sociated with variants in DRD2, COMT, and RGS4. Others showed significant improve­ment in treatment response only among Whites, including variation in DTNBP1, DRD4, and GNB3.Conclusions: The current analysis can help tailor management among Blacks using an atypical antipsychotic. Heterogeneity in genetic variation effects and response allele frequency suggests that pharmacogenetics approaches for atypical antipsychotics will need to explicitly incorporate race and eth­nicity.Ethn Dis. 2020;30(Suppl 1):229-240; doi:10.18865/ed.30.S1.229
El lento despegue industrial de Bucaramanga, Colombia (1857-1929)
Authors: Acevedo Tarazona Álvaro , Espinosa Suárez Carlos Humberto
Published: April 2020

Este artículo analiza las condiciones que hicieron posible un incipiente proceso de industrialización en Bucaramanga, Colombia, durante siete décadas, cinco correspondientes al siglo XIX y dos al siglo XX. El origen y monto de los capitales, las profesiones y ocupaciones de los actores económicos, el nivel de riesgo empleado, el sentido de asociación, la conducta empresarial, la tenencia y el uso de la tierra y los diversos sectores de inversión son algunos de los factores que se examinan para comprender por qué la región santandereana no logró consolidar un proceso industrial y comercial similar al experimentado en los departamentos de Antioquia y Valle del Cauca. A partir del concepto de negociante y su desempeño en sectores económicos de producción y comercialización, su vinculación en la industria cultural, la banca, las finanzas y la construcción, se analizarán las políticas y estrategias estatales para incentivar la industrialización en el ámbito nacional con el objetivo de mostrar el avance que hubo en Bucaramanga con referencia a contextos similares. El análisis de archivos notariales y de la prensa local como fuente primaria permite comprender el proceso económico de la región santandereana entre 1857 y 1929; para ello fue fundamental la consulta de protocolos notariales, evidencia de la constitución de empresas y de la transformación de capitales en la región bumanguesa. Este artículo abre una perspectiva para la realización de nuevos estudios que muestren el proceso de desarrollo económico en Santander y descubran las razones de su estancamiento en comparación con otros departamentos colombianos.
Generation of 3D Tumor Models from DICOM Images for Virtual Planning of its Recession
Authors: Rodríguez-Bastidas Oscar , Vargas-Rosero Hermes Fabián
Published: April 2020

Medical images are essential for diagnosis, planning of surgery and evolution of pathology. The advances in technology have developed new techniques to obtain digital images with more details, in return this has also led to disadvantages, such as: the analysis of large volumes of information, long time to determine an affected region and difficulty in defining the malignant tissue for its later extirpation, among the most relevant. This article presents an image segmentation strategy and the optimization of a method for generating three-dimensional models. A prototype was implemented in which it was possible to evaluate the segmentation algorithms and 3D reconstruction technique, allowing to visualize the tumor model from different points of view through virtual reality. In this investigation, we evaluate the computational cost and user experience, the parameters selected in terms of computational cost are the time and consumption of RAM, we used 140 MRI images each with dimensions 260x320 pixel, and as a result, we obtained an approximate time of 37.16s and consumption in RAM of 1.3GB. Another experiment carried out is the segmentation and reconstruction of a tumor, this model is formed by a three-dimensional mesh made up of 151 vertices and 318 faces. Finally, we evaluate the application, with a usability test applied to a sample of 20 people with different areas of knowledge. The results show that the graphics presented by the software are pleasant, they also show that the application is intuitive and easy to use. Additionally, it is mentioned that it helps improve the understanding of medical images.
ATP-Hypothesis: A New Conceptual Framework for the Origins of Genetic Codes
Authors: Xie Ping
Published: April 2020

The origin of genetic codes is the key to reveal life’s origin on the earth as it is a prerequisite for the existence of life. More than half a century has passed since the discovery of genetic codes, while their origin is still one of the greatest mysteries. Are the origins of genetic codes really unknowable? Do they really require external design? Here, I present an ATP-hypothesis that explains how the genetic codes came into being with the coevolution of biochemical system. ATP has several properties that make it suitable as the initiator of the origin of genetic codes. First, ATP is the only energetic product of photosynthesis. Second, ATP is at the heart of the extant biochemical systems. Third, ATP serves as carriers of both energy and information. Fourth, ATP could energetically elongate chains of both polynucleotides and polypeptides, thus providing a bridge between them, and eventually mediating prebiotic biochemical transaction from energy to information. This hypothesis shows how primitive life emerged through a series of processes from energy to information mediated by ATP. Informatization (processes of creating and managing information) was inevitably coupled with structuralization (processes of organizing or incorporating into a cellular structure), making polynucleotides and polypeptides be cyclized into a system of reciprocal causation. The triplet codon might just be for stereo-chemical handing of amino acid through e.g. Watson–Crick pairing interactions. It is an evolutionary completion for genetic codes from RNA to DNA, only which, a reverse to the Central Dogma, marked the dawn of cellular life when Darwinian evolution began to operate. ATP-hypothesis shades lights on the origin of life, together with the formations of both photosynthesis and biochemical systems, which have been largely unknown so far.
Power Spectral Analysis upon Disfluent Utterance in Adults Who Stutter; a qEEG-based Investigation
Authors: Bayat Masoumeh , Boostani Reza , Sabeti Malihe , Yadegari Fariba , Pirmoradi Mohammadreza , KS Rao , Nami Mohammad
Published: April 2020

Purpose: The present study which addressed adults who stutter (AWS), has been an attempt to investigate power spectral dynamics in stuttering state through answering the written questions using quantitative electroencephalography (qEEG).Materials and Methods: A 64-channel EEG setup was used for data acquisition in 9 AWS. Since speech, and especially stuttering, causes significant noise in the EEG, the three conditions of speech preparation (SP), imagined speech (IS), and simulated speech (SS) in a 7-band format were chosen to source localize the signals using the standard low-resolution electromagnetic tomography (sLORETA) tool in fluent and disfluent states. Results: Having extracted enough fluent and disfluent utterances, significant differences were noted. Consistent with previous studies, the lack of beta suppression in SP, especially in beta2 and beta3 and somewhat in gamma band, was localized in supplementary motor area (SMA) and pre motor area in disfluent state. Delta band frequency was the best marker of stuttering shared in all 3 experimental conditions. Decreased delta power in SMA of both hemispheres and right premotor area through SP, in fronto-central and right angular gyrus through IS, and in SMA of both hemispheres through SS were a notable qEEG features of disfluent speech. Conclusion: The dynamics of beta and delta frequency bands may potentially explain the neural networks involved in stuttering. Based on the above, neurorehabilitation may better be formulated in the treatment of speech disfluency, namely stuttering.
COVID-19 Pandemic: Can Maintaining Optimal Zinc Balance Enhance Host Resistance?
Authors: Razzaque Mohammed S.
Published: April 2020

The novel coronavirus, COVID-19 is now officially declared as a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO), and most parts of the world are taking drastic measures to restrict human movements to contain the infection. Like millions of others around the world, I am wondering, is there anything that could be done, other than keeping high personal hygiene, and be vigilant of symptoms, to reduce the chances of infection, or at least to reduce the burden of the disease. So far, the National and International health agencies, including the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the WHO have provided clear guidelines for both preventive and treatment suggestions. In this opinion-based article, I want to discuss, why keeping the adequate micronutrient balance might enhance the host response and be protective of viral infections. A detailed in-depth discussion of various micronutrients is not the purpose of this article, I will mostly emphasize on the role of zinc in viral infection.
A Flexible Genome-Scale Resource of SARS-CoV-2 Coding Sequence Clones
Authors: Kim Dae-Kyum , Knapp Jennifer J. , Kuang Da , Cassonnet Patricia , Samavarchi-Tehrani Payman , Abdouni Hala , Rayhan Ashyad , Sheykhkarimli Dayag , Coyaud Etienne , van der Werf Sylvie , Demeret Caroline , Gingras Anne-Claude , Raught Brian , Jacob Yves , Roth Frederick P.
Published: April 2020

The world is facing a major health crisis, the global pandemic of COVID-19 caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, for which no approved antiviral agents or vaccines are currently available. Here we describe a collection of codon-optimized coding sequences for SARS-CoV-2 cloned into Gateway-compatible entry vectors, which enable rapid transfer into a variety of expression and tagging vectors. The collection is freely available via Addgene. We hope that widespread availability of this SARS-CoV-2 resource will enable many subsequent molecular studies to better understand the viral life cycle and how to block it.
Karakterisasi Genotipe F1 dan F2 Jagung Varietas Srikandi Putih dan Lokal Pulut Pada Jarak Tanam yang Berbeda
Authors: Edy Edy
Published: April 2020

The crossing between Srikandi Putih corn varieties which have high production potential and protein content with local pulut corn which has high amylopectin levels is expected to produce superior offspring. This study aimed to determine the character of F1 and F2 results of crossing of Srikandi Putih variety with local Pulut corn (waxy corn) at different planting distance. This research was conducted in the Experimental Farm of the Bajeng Cereals Crop Research Institute, South Sulawesi Province, from May-August 2018. This method used was Split Plot Design, consisting of Main Plots, namely planting distance (70 cm x 20 cm and 70 cm x 30 cm) and Sub Plots, namely Varieties (Srikandi Putih, Local Pulut, F1 and F2). The results showed that genotype significantly affected plant height, seed production per hectare, amylopectin content and seed protein content, and genotype had very significant effect on number of leaves, ear length, ear diameter, seed weight per plant and seed weight per plot. Planting distance has a very significant effect on seed weight per plot and the best was 70 cm x 20 cm. This is due to the number of populations at 70 cm x 20 cm planting distance more than 70 cm x 30 cm. Genotype interaction and planting distance have a very significant effect on seed weight per plant. Srikandi Putih variety was the best genotype for growth, production and protein content parameters while the best amylopectin content parameter was local Pulut. Srikandi Putih variety was potential for growth and production as well as high protein content, but low amylopectin levels while local Pulut has high potential for amylopectin levels but low growth and production potential. The best combination of growth, production, protein and amylopectin content was in F1 and F2 genotypes.
Desempeño laboral de los docentes de la Institución Universitaria ITSA
Authors: Rodríguez-Marulanda Karina Patricia , Lechuga-Cardozo Jorge Isaac
Published: April 2020

Rev.esc.adm.neg

El estudio se propuso mostrar evidencia de los factores y los niveles de desempeño laboral de los docentes de la Institución Universitaria ITSA. Se enmarcó en una metodología positivista, con un tipo de investigación descriptiva y un diseño de campo no experimental y transeccional. Se diseñó un instrumento de 26 ítems con una versión de escala tipo Likert, y se aplicó a una muestra de 79 docentes y cinco directivos docentes, para un total de 84 sujetos. Si bien se encontró que los factores de desempeño son frecuentes y los niveles de desempeño son destacados en los directivos docentes, no son tan frecuentes y destacados en los docentes. Se identificó como problema una debilidad en el desempeño laboral generada por la falta de comunicación interna, lo cual genera inconformidades en el cuerpo docente y se explica por un proceso fallido de retroalimentación. Por lo tanto, se concluye que, a fin de aumentar la frecuencia en los factores de desempeño docente y alcanzar niveles más altos de este en los docentes, se requiere de una mayor motivación, teniendo en cuenta la importancia de la comunicación organizacional en tanto que se presenta como el mecanismo propicio para crear un clima organizacional óptimo.
A Comparison of Contiguous Two-level Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion using a Structural Allograft versus a Polyetheretherketone (PEEK) Cage: The Results of a Three-Year Follow-up
Authors: MOO ING HOW , Kam Carmen Jia Wen , Lai Maksim Wen Sheng , Yeo William , Soh Reuben Chee Cheong
Published: April 2020

Background: Allografts and polyetheretherketone (PEEK) cages are the two most commonly used material in anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF). However, their effectiveness in in two-level ACDF remains controversial. The primary aim of this retrospective study is to compare the clinical and radiological outcomes of two-level ACDF with plate fixation using either a structural allograft or a PEEK cage.
Methods: From 2010 to 2015, 88 consecutive patients underwent a two-level ACDF of which 53 used an allograft and 35 patients with a PEEK cage. All PEEK cages were filled with local autografts. All clinical outcomes were prospectively collected preoperatively, at six months and at two years after surgery. Clinical efficacy was evaluated using visual analogue scale for neck pain and limb pain, the Neck Pain and Disability Score, Neck Disability Index, Neurogenic Symptom Score, and the Japan Orthopedic Association score. Radiological outcomes were assessed preoperatively, immediately after surgery, and at the final follow-up.

Results: A preoperative comparison revealed no difference between the two patient groups in terms of age, gender, body mass index, smoking status, preoperative symptoms, operated levels, and follow-up (mean= 42.8 months). No difference in improvements in the clinical outcome between the two groups was observed. Both groups showed significant improvement in mean disc height, segmental height, and segmental lordosis postoperatively. The fusion rates for PEEK cage was 100% at both levels while the fusion rates for allograft group was 98.1% at cephalad level and 94.2% at caudad level (p>0.05). Subsidence at the cephalad level occurred in 22.9% (8/35) segments in the PEEK group and 7.7% (4/52) segments in the allograft group (p=0.057). At the caudal level, a higher cage subsidence was noted in the PEEK group compared to the allograft group [37.1% (13/35) versus 15.4% (8/52)] (p=0.02). Overall, subsidence was noted in 30% (21/70) of the PEEK group and in 11% (12/104) of the allograft group (p<0.05).
Conclusion: The use of PEEK cages resulted in a higher rate of subsidence in two-level ACDF as compared to allograft. Two-level ACDF using either allografts or PEEK cages resulted in similar clinical outcomes, radiological improvements in alignment and fusion rates.
Community perceptions about dementia in southwestern Uganda
Authors: Owokuhaisa Judith , Rukundo Godfrey Zari , Wakida Edith , Obua Celestino , Buss Stephanie S.
Published: April 2020

Background: With the increasing number of people surviving into older age in Africa, dementia is becoming a public health concern. Understanding the social dynamics of dementia in resource-limited settings is critical for developing effective interventions. We explored community perceptions about people with dementia in southwestern Uganda.Methods: Fifty-nine individuals (aged 19-85 years, 56% female) participated in seven focus group discussions. In addition, 22 individual in-depth interviews were conducted among individuals (aged 22-84 years, 36% female). Both interviews and focus group discussions were audio recorded, transcribed verbatim, and evaluated using a quantitative content analysis approach.Results: Five themes were generated during content analysis: i) Labeling of the illness, ii) Presentation of the person with dementia, iii) Causation, iv) Impact of the disease on people with dementia and their caregivers and v) Views on how to address unmet needs in dementia care. Dementia was commonly referred to as “okuhuga” or “okwebwayebwa” (also, oruhuzyo/ empugye / akahuriko) which translates as “mental disorientation”. The participants reported that most people with dementia presented with forgetfulness, defecating and urinating on themselves, wandering away from home, going out naked, and picking up garbage. Some participants perceived memory problems as a normal part of the aging process, while others attributed the cause of dementia to syphilis, cancer, allergy, old age, satanic powers, witchcraft, poor nutrition, or life stress. Participants reported multiple sources of stress for caregivers of people with dementia, including financial, social, and emotional burdens. Finally, participants suggested that community and governmental organizations should be involved in meeting the needs of people with dementia and their caregivers.Conclusions: Community members in southwestern Uganda largely identified dementia as a problem that comes with older age, and can identify key features of dementia presentation. Participants identified significant stressors affecting people with dementia and their caregivers, and reported that families and caregivers would benefit from education on the management of symptoms of dementia, and assistance in overcoming associated financial, social, and emotional burdens related to caretaking.
Development of thermo-photo sensitive genic male sterile lines in wheat using doubled haploid breeding
Authors: Li Hongsheng , Li Shaoxiang , Abdelkhalik Sedhom , Shahzad Armaghan , Gu Jian , Yang Zhonghui , Ding Mingliang , Liu Kun , Zhao Hong , Yang Mujun
Published: April 2020

Background: Two-line hybrid wheat system using thermo-photo sensitive genic male sterility (TPSGMS) is currently the most promising approach for wheat heterosis utilization in China. However, during past twenty years only few TPSGMS lines were developed in hybrid wheat breeding, which has been the main limiting factor to create heterotic hybrids. Application of doubled haploid (DH) breeding provides a useful strategy to efficiently develop practically usable TPSGMS lines. Results: F1s and selected F2 and F3 sterile plants of eight crosses made from two commercial TPSGMS lines were used to produce DH lines. We developed a total of 24 elite DH sterile lines with stable sterility, good outcrossing and yield potential, resistance to yellow rust and powdery mildew, as well as desirable plant height (50-60 cm). These DH lines were developed within 4 years through at least one year of evaluation. The stability of male sterility was confirmed for most (20/24) of these elite DH sterile lines by multiple tests in two or three years. These lines are expected to be used in hybrid wheat breeding. The percentage of elite lines developed from the tested DH lines produced from filial generations was in the order of F2 > F3 > F1. Conclusions: We demonstrate that coupling DH techniques with conventional breeding is an efficient strategy for accelerating the development of more practical wheat TPSGMS lines. Generation of DHs from F2 generation appeared to be the better choice considering the balance of shortening breeding time and overall breeding efficiency.