bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Pendidikan Islam Dan Tantangan Modernitas (Input, Proses Dan Output Pendidikan Di Madrasah)
Authors: Ma`arif Muhammad Anas
Published: August 2018

Discussing education is never finished, there is always something new in the world of education. Education today has the challenge of modernity that makes education must innovate even more Islamic education. Education is not just looking for input is good for the process be graduates (output) is good but how a quality process that makes the product (graduates) were good. Therefore, to answer the challenges of modernity, education must have a strategy to develop education as an input, education as a process and education as a superior product.
Partisipasi Masjid Dalam Mendorong Tata Kelola Sampah Pedesaan Di Desa Genteng Kulon Kecamatan Genteng Kabupaten Banyuwangi
Authors: Muttaqin Ahmad Izza
Published: August 2018

The discourse about Ahlu al-Sunnah wa al-Jamaah is still very interesting among academics. This term becomes an idol for every stream and is raised within the scope affirming its status as a surviving stream of the world and the hereafter (firqah al-Najiah). Ahlu al-Sunnah wa al-Jamaah became fertile because it is supported by the hadith of the Prophet who indeed came from 73 groups of Islam only one who survived the Ahlu al-Sunnah wa al-Jamaah group. Ahlu al-Sunnah wa al-Jamaah by Said Aqil as People who have a method of religious thinking that covers all aspects of life based on the foundations of moderation, maintaining balance and tolerance. Ahlu al-Sunnah wa al-Jamaah is a school that will become a Manhaj al-Fikr, as it is only an attempt to find a middle ground between the various streams. Ahlu al-Sunnah wa al-Jamaah there is no limitations and provisions that should be the same as Imam Abu Hasan al-Asy'ari or al-Maturidi but the pillars of Ahlu al-Sunnah wa al-Jamaah understand this must-have differences and opinions in interpreting the source of religion not become the gulf as long as still holding pillars (rukn) Ahlu al-Sunnah wa al-Jamaah namely the divinity (uluhiyah), apostles (Nubuwah) and the end (al-Ma'd).
Bibliometrics in a Digital Age: Help or Hindrance
Authors: Blakeman Karen
Published: August 2018

Bibliometrics are a range of techniques and quantitative measures that provide an analysis of written publications such as books and articles, and which assess the impact of research outputs. They are commonly applied to individual authors in the form of citation metrics but can also be used to assess the influence of research groups or even entire institutions. With the increased importance of social media as a means of communicating and publicising research findings, additional alternative measures of impact (altmetrics) are now being used. In addition to analysing the reach of a research output, bibliometrics can also be used as search tools to identify related and updated research, author networks and connections between institutions. This review summarises the range of tools and services that are available, their advantages and disadvantages, and some of the challenges and issues presented by the existence of multiple digital versions of research outputs.
Wirtschaft, Wissenschaft und Politik: Die sozialwissenschaftliche Bedingtheit linker Reformpolitik
Authors: Mader Katharina , Schultheiss Jana
Published: August 2018

Leonhard Dobusch, Jakob Kapeller: Economy, Economics and Politics: On the SocioscientificConditionality of Progressivism. Neoliberal hegemony in politics and neoclassicaldominance in economics are closely intertwined. For a comeback of reform-oriented progressivism,which is dependent upon reliable and pluralistic socio-scientific research, overcomingthis neoclassical dominance is a conditio sine qua non. Paradigmatic change in economics is,however, unlikely to happen even after neoclassical deficiencies have become obvious in thecourse of the financial crisis, due to several reciprocally enforcing institutional factors such ascareer opportunities, disciplinary discourse culture, and citation-based research evaluation.Based on this analysis, we sketch inner- and extradisciplinary avenues for (re-)pluralizingeconomics as a discipline.
Zur symbolischen Rückeroberung und Politisierung des öffentlichen Raums
Authors: Janoschka Michael , Sequera Jorge
Published: August 2018

The radical conquest of public space and its transformation into political spacehave introduced major alterations of the Spanish public sphere after the outbreak of the 15-Mmovement. Such modifications refer also to a topic of symbolical interest, which is the conceptionand configuration of urban space – a space that in the course of neoliberal urbanproduction has been characterized as a residual category and a place of controlled and profitorientedactivities. By analysing key practices of the protest movement, the article brings togetherdebates from critical urban geography and political theory. In a first step, it develops aconceptual perspective towards the multiple logics of neoliberal urbanism and the transformationof public space. Subsequently, counter-hegemonic spatial politics and urban demandswill be discussed through the conceptualization of protest as acts of citizenship, proclaimingthe construction of the public sphere and public space via strategic disobedience and thetransgression of rules and laws. Protest camps, public political assemblies and recent squattingcan be analysed as newly created spaces of citizenship that reconstruct the meaning of publicspace and of a political and politicised public sphere, claiming different ways of policy making.
Hardware - Hard Work
Authors: Bormann Sarah
Published: August 2018

In the past, anti-sweatshop campaigns have often focused on the apparel sector. More recently, these campaigns have broadened their spectrum as European NGOs increasingly begin to target technology companies producing smartphones and tablet computers, for example. This process comes with ambivalences, however: In the apparel sector, the importance of the local scale had been often unacknowledged. Within current campaigns targeting the ICT industries we can observe a decoupling of NGO driven activities on the consumer markets in the global north on one hand and labor struggles in the global south on the other. This does not only result in ineffective CSR-strategies, but it can also lead to a double victimization of female assembly line workers. The author discusses these contradictions and its implications for consumer focused tactics and coalitions between NGOs and trade unions. The article is based on the authors’ work with an NGO focusing on issues of labor in the ICT industry.
Editorial: Religion, Politik und Ökonomie
Authors: Redaktion PROKLA
Published: August 2018

Editorial: Religion, Politik und Ökonomie
Zur politischen Ökonomie des Helfens.
Authors: Van Dyk Silke , Misbach Elène
Published: August 2018

Starting out from the huge movement of aid to refugees in Germany, the article deals with the political economy of volunteering within its wider socio-economic and political context. The authors ask in how far civic engagement and volunteer involvement are not just appreciated as part of the new “Willkommenskultur” (‘welcome culture’), but explicitely exploited and co-opted as a productive resource in the context of welfare state cutbacks. The social and economic implications of the political economy of volunteering are discussed, i.e. the status of social rights in contrast to charitable help, the professionality and quality of services being provided by (non-trained) volunteers as well as the hierarchical interdependence between volunteers and refugees. At the same time, we take the specifics of the field “aid to refugees” into account since the anti-racist appeal of volunteers’ engagement should not be underestimated in times of new right-wing populist forces. The article finally deals with the question in how far practices of politically explicit “recalcitrant civic engagement” might prevent the co-optation and exploitation of volunteer involvement in contemporary capitalism with its restrictive border regime.
Hilfe zwischen Abschreckung und Profit.
Authors: Muy Sebastian
Published: August 2018

With the recent influx of asylum seekers, also the number of refugee shelters in Berlin has risen over the past year. On the one hand, the installation of new facilities was a necessary measure to avoid homelessness. On the other hand, putting refugees into camps and group facilities has been an integral part of the restrictive asylum policy aiming at deterrence. Many of these refugee camps are run as a lucrative business by private companies . Social workers working in these camps, employed by the enterprises and paid by the state, act in an institutional context that is full of contradictions and conflicting interests. Their own aspiration to ‘help’ and serve the idea of ‘human rights’ can clash with requirements of control and restriction. Social Workers’ possibilities to reject such unwanted functionalization are limited, because of their institutional dependence, the prevailing legal regulations and their weak representation of interests, among other factors.
Konfrontation, Kooperation oder Kooptation.
Authors: Brunnengräber Achim , Syrovatka Felix
Published: August 2018

The establishment of a Commission for the Disposal of High-Level Radioactive Waste by the state puts the anti-nuclear movement into a new situation. In the past, the relationship between the movement and the institutions of the state was mainly characterized by confrontation. But the establishment of a Repository Search Committee changed the situation and raised the question of cooperation. Using the hegemony theory, the article analyses the developments and conflicts between the movement and the state in the case of the search process for a nuclear waste repository. Thereby the article mainly focuses on dynamics inside the anti-nuclear movement and the relationship between the different fraction of the movement and the state.
Die Selbstreflexion des Marxismus.
Authors: Demirović Alex
Published: August 2018

The article argues that Adorno’s book Negative Dialectics is a major contribution to the Marxist debate. Adorno’s starting point is a critique of Marx’ eleventh Feuerbach-thesis that the world should not be longer interpreted but changed. After all the defeats that the left and Marxist theory had to experience since the middle of the 19th century Adorno argues for a renewal of theory by a self-reflexive turn of Marxism. As an important moment of this self-reflection a critical assessment of dialectics itself is necessary. Adorno criticized the traditional idea of the negation of negation and the expectation of a positive result as well as the notion of totality. Critically approaching Hegel, he sees him as the affirmative theorist of the tendency of the bourgeois society to totalize itself. In opposition to this – and in difference to any Hegel-Marxism – Adorno conceive of dialectics as negative i.e. it has itself a temporal index and is a form of intellectual appropriation of the world only under conditions of domination. To think in an emancipatory way then has as a consequence to develop a non-systematic theory and to be sensitive for the movements and contradictions of concepts that attract themselves and form constellations.
Über die Ursprünge unserer ökologischen Krise
Authors: Moore Jason
Published: August 2018

The Anthropocene has become the most important environmentalist concept of our times. In contrast to this I argue that we have to speak instead of the Capitalocene. I want to address three questions: 1) What is the character of 21st century ecological crisis? 2) When did that crisis originate? and 3) What forces drive that crisis? Therefore, I analyze the revolutions in the technics of appropriating Cheap Natures, especially the Four Cheaps of food, labor, energy, and raw materials in Europe as well as via imperialistic dominance in overseas territories since the 15th century. Cheap Nature reveals as a system of domination, appropriation, and exploitation. Capital, power, and nature entwine, and this development started much sooner than with the Industrial Revolution in Europe. We have to conceptualize the global transformations of human and extra-human natures, enabled by the emergence of new ways of seeing and organizing the unpaid work of humans and the rest of nature over the past five centuries.
Die Plattform als Fabrik
Authors: Altenried Moritz
Published: August 2018

The article analyses digital labour on crowdwork platforms as paradigmatic example of an emerging digital Taylorism. The characteristics of this tendency comprise elements of classical Taylorist forms of rationalisation now enabled and reconfigured by digital technology. The algorithmic architecture of digital platforms can include distributed and diverse workers in front of their computers and smartphones into highly standardised labour processes. This allows tapping into new labour resources, both in temporal and spatial dimensions. In this respect crowdwork is finally situated in the context of the multiplication of labour, understood as a heterogenization of the division and composition of labour of which digital labour such as crowdwork is part and parcel
Digitale Prekarisierung
Authors: Martin Ehrlich , Engel Thomas , Füchtenkötter Manfred , Ibrahim Walid
Published: August 2018

The diffusion of digital technologies into industrial working relations results in new developments in professional qualifications as well as an altered health situation of workers. We assume that current tendencies in the organization of employment and work - flexibilization, rationalization and precarization - are being continued and further intensified. Our findings show that technology-driven performance pressures and a growing scope for action of employees do not coincide with a healthy improvement of worker activities and advances in professional qualifications.
Marktkopplung und Ablaufdeterminismus
Authors: Jobst Gaus , Christopher Knop , David Wandjo
Published: August 2018

Through the ongoing debate different positions support the hypothesis that Industry 4.0 evokes decentralization in everyday works. In this article we argue that the technological premises of Industry 4.0 lead to the contrary: centralized planning ensuing from optimized adaptation to the imperatives of the market. We exemplify this pattern, that we named ‘determinated procedure’, through exemplary cases from different industrial branches. Furthermore, we argue that (indeed) existing decentral moments neither amount to structural decentralization nor to humanizing and empowering concessions to employees, but rather primarily serve to their integration into the enterprise and mobilization of their production intelligence.
Krise der Faktizität?
Authors: Van Dyk Silke
Published: August 2018

Trump‘s electoral victory, Brexit, the emergence of the AfD or the strength of right-wing politics in France and Austria indicate a new era of the political in which neoliberal hegemony is being increasingly challenged from the right. The current shift to the far right goes hand in hand with a new quantity and quality of lies and falsehoods. Consequently, many commentators have diagnosed the emergence of a ‘post truth society’. Beginning with an overview of this debate, this article assesses the ‘post truth’ diagnosis and challenges not only the new dimension of lies but also the truth claims of critics. The article argues that we will not be able to understand the characteristics and perils of the post truth society if we do not address the anti-pluralist and elitist neoliberal technocracy of the recent past. The critique of the liberal critique of Trump & Co. raises the question of what an emancipatory social criticism of far-right falsehoods might look like that does not reaffirm liberal dominance on one side and the resurgence of powerful positivist truth claims on the other.
Gesellschaftskritik und Gerechtigkeit
Authors: Demirović Alex
Published: August 2018

Political parties and social movements activists refere to the notion of justice as founding principle of critism. Demirovi? argues that the norm of justice is not able to motivate criticism and action. The norm of justice plays an important role in professional moral philosophy as is the case in the approaches of Martha Nussbaum or John Rawls. The offer arguments for their claims to give people and states a moral perspective. But the claim of universality that is inherent in moral discourses, always fail. The implication is that people who expect moral philosophy to be an advising knowledge become disappointed and perplexed. This is confirmed by the outcome of empirical research on justice among workers. To explain the dilemma of justice – claiming for universality and being particularistic and part of historical state form – the article takes up arguments developed by Marx and Horkheimer on justice as an ideological form.
Kämpfe um Bergbau und die Möglichkeiten demokratischer Transformation
Authors: Dietz Kristina
Published: August 2018

The article explores the political effects of popular consultations as a means of direct democracy in struggles over mining. Building on concepts from participatory and materialist democracy theory, it shows the transformative potentials of processes of direct democracy towards democratization and emancipation under, and beyond, capitalist and liberal democratic conditions. Empirically the analysis is based on a case study on the protests against the La Colosa gold mining project in Colombia. The analysis reveals that although processes of direct democracy in conflicts over mining cannot transform existing class inequalities and social power relations fundamentally, they can nevertheless alter elements thereof. These are for example the relationship between local and national governments, changes of the political agenda of mining and the opening of new spaces for political participation, where previously there were none. It is here where it’s emancipatory potential can be found.
Neoliberale Kontinuität im politischen Wechselwind
Authors: Landherr Anna , Graf Jakob
Published: August 2018

The article focuses on the question why Chile’s extractivist accumulation model is so stable despite ongoing protest, many years of a political left turn in Latin America and wide-ranging ecological damages caused by the extractive industries. It does not only take into account the appropriation of nature but analyses the appropriation of power by a small Chilean class of big company owners. The huge inequality which characterizes Chile’s society also shapes political power. The article distinguishes different power resources of Chile’s big business class and explains how these explain the surprising continuity of Chile’s extractivist economy in a socio-ecological deadlock.
Revolutionen und Revolten in Nordafrika revisited
Authors: Scheiterbauer Tanja
Published: August 2018

The article analyses the revolts in North Africa, namely Tunisia and Egypt. It contradicts the thesis, which is spread above all by the western media, that this is a “Facebook revolution”, which is supported by urban youths of the middle class, who knew how to use the possibilities of new social media. Rather, it deals with the economic background and shows that the connection between the protests in urban centers and those in structurally marginalized rural areas needs to be investigated. The thesis: Without the processes of valorization of land and water, the social struggles before and after the revolts in North Africa in 2011 cannot be understood.
Politik und Angst
Authors: Bargetz Brigitte
Published: August 2018

What are the contemporary conditions of Western modern democracies that make a politics of fear so successful at this present moment? In this article, the author analyzes the relationship between politics and fear in order to move beyond a simple instrumentalization thesis. Focusing on two perspectives: the view of state sovereignty and the phenomenon of neurosis, the author argues that the contemporary Western modern politics of fear can be understood as an expression of a crisis of state sovereignty, which becomes apparent in the nation state as well as in a new mode of political subjectivation. It is a ghostly sovereignty that finds both a form and an addressee in a neurotic subject.
Auf den Schultern des EU-Projektes gegen den „Status Quo“
Authors: Gehring Axel
Published: August 2018

The article discusses the rise of authoritarian populism in the context of Turkeys neoliberalisation experience since 1980. For long time, populist politics in Turkey successfully claimed to be the voice of the suppressed against the ruling. In fact, they used an oppositional political language meanwhile processing the material interests of the hegemonic forces. Despite receiving considerable support, particularly from the European public, authoritarian populism fell into an deep crises throughout the recent years – the result is it radicalisation which is often mistakenly debated as the start of populism in Turkey.
New effects of the electron–phonon interaction in dielectrics: (50th anniversary of the Institute of Spectroscopy, Russian Academy of Sciences)
Authors: Popova M N , Boldyrev K N
Published: August 2018

We have studied the electron–phonon interaction (EPI) in multiferroic PrFe3(BO3)4 applying reflection methods in far-infrared (terahertz) spectral range and theoretical simulations. A specific feature of PrFe3(BO3)4 is that the 4f-electron excitation of the Pr3+ ion falls into a range between the longitudinal (LO) and transverse (TO) phonon mode frequencies. Simultaneously, inversion of the electronic oscillator occurs: its LO frequency becomes smaller than the TO frequency. With lowering temperature, a coupled electron–phonon mode emerges, and a new effect is observed: the reststrahlen band corresponding to a nondegenerate phonon mode splits. Yet another effect caused by the EPI is the appearance of a gap in the spectrum of electronic excitations of a stoichiometric rare-earth easy-axis antiferromagnet placed into an arbitrarily weak external magnetic field directed along the easy magnetization axis.
Weak General but No Specific Habituation in Anticipating Stimuli of Presumed Negative and Positive Valence by Weaned Piglets
Authors: Henzen Angela , Gygax Lorenz
Published: August 2018

Positive and negative stimuli have asymmetric fitness consequences. Whereas, a missed opportunity may be compensated, an unattended threat can be fatal. This is why it has been hypothesised that habituation to positive stimuli is fast while it may be difficult to habituate to negative stimuli, at least for primary (innate) stimuli. However, learning of secondary stimuli may delay the process of habituation. Here, we tested 64 weaned piglets in pairs. In three phases, lasting one week each, piglets were exposed five times to a stimulus of presumed negative, intermediate, or positive valence. Etho-physiological measurements of heart rate, heart rate variability, and general movement activity were collected during the last 4 min before the confrontation with the stimulus (anticipation phase). We found no consistent effect of the interaction between the valence of the stimuli and the repetition and a main effect of valence on our outcome variables. Therefore, we could neither support the hypothesis that piglets habituate more slowly to secondary positive stimuli than to primary negative stimuli nor that they habituate less to primary negative stimuli when compared with other stimuli. These results could have been caused because stimuli may not have differed in the presumed way, the experimental design may not have been adequate, or the measures were not suitable for detecting habituation to the stimuli. Based on the stimuli used here and their valence that was only presumed, we could not support the hypothesis that the habituation process differs according to the valence of the stimuli.
The Anime Industry, Networks of Participation, and Environments for the Management of Content in Japan
Authors: Hernández Álvaro David Hernández
Published: August 2018

Video-sharing sites like YouTube and streaming services like Amazon Prime Video and Netflix, along with unlawful platforms such as Anitube, are environments of consumption enabled by increasing transnational consumption that are pushing for transformations in the Japanese animation industry. Among these platforms, the Kadokawa Dwango Corporation is known to rely on the integration of consumers’ practices and the needs of the animation industry in a changing and challenging era of transnational content flows. In this paper, I focus on the Kadokawa Dwango Corporation, a major player in the contemporary media mix, and its pushing forward of the creation of an environment that integrates two different stances on cultural content: one which represents the industry’s needs regarding cultural content as intellectual property, and another that represents consumers’ practices and which regards content as a common or free resource for enabling participation in digital networks. I argue that rather than the production of content, it is the production of value through the management of fictional worlds and user’s participation in media platforms that lies at the core of the Kadokawa Dwango Corporation’s self-proclaimed ‘ecosystem’. This case represents the transformations in the Japanese content industry to survive the increasing transnationalisation of consumption and production.
Photocatalytic Activity of TiO2/AuNRs–SiO2 Nanocomposites Applied to Building Materials
Authors: Truppi Alessandra , Luna Manuel , Petronella Francesca , Falcicchio Aurelia , Giannini Cinzia , Comparelli Roberto , Mosquera Maria J.
Published: August 2018

In this work, the self-cleaning and photocatalytic properties of mesoporous TiO2/AuNRs-SiO2 composites (namely UCA–TiO2Au) prepared by a simple and low-cost technique were investigated toward application in building materials. Mesoporous photocatalytic nanocomposites coating the surface of stone and other building materials are a very promising approach to address relevant questions connected with the increasing atmospheric pollution. We tested three types of preformed TiO2/AuNRs nanostructures in order to evaluate the effect of AuNRs on the photocatalytic activity of resulting coatings deposited on the surface of a popular building limestone. The resulting nanocomposites provide crack-free surface coatings on limestone, effective adhesion, improve the stone mechanical properties and impart hydrophobic and self-cleaning properties. Photocatalytic characterization involved the degradation of a target compound (Methylene blue; MB) under direct exposure to simulated solar light using TiO2 P25 Evonik (TiO2 P25) as a reference material. Moreover, these coatings upon irradiation by simulated solar light were successfully employed for the photocatalytic oxidation of carbon soot. The experimental results revealed that UCA–TiO2Au samples are the best performing coating in both MB bleaching and soot degradation.
Scrotal Pyoderma Gangrenosum Associated with Evans Syndrome
Authors: Yang Deng-Ho , Yang Meng-Yin
Published: August 2018

Evans syndrome is a rare disorder with presentations of autoimmune hemolytic anemia and immune thrombocytopenia, in the absence of any underlying cause. Here, we reported a case with a history of Evans syndrome for seven years. A persistent scrotal ulcer with severe pain occurred for two weeks. He called at our emergency room because of a painful, necrolytic cutaneous ulcer over the scrotal region. A biopsy showed sterile dermal neutrophilia with lymphocytic vasculitis, and pyoderma gangrenosum was impressed. The patient received steroid treatment and recovery after one month.
Effects of Deformation Parameters on Microstructural Evolution of 2219 Aluminum Alloy during Intermediate Thermo-Mechanical Treatment Process
Authors: Liu Lei , Wu Yunxin , Gong Hai
Published: August 2018

To explore the effective way of grain refinement for 2219 aluminum alloy, the approach of ‘thermal compression tests + solid solution treatment experiments’ was applied to simulate the process of intermediate thermo-mechanical treatment. The effects of deformation parameters (i.e., temperature, strain, and strain rate) on microstructural evolution were also studied. The results show that the main softening mechanism of 2219 aluminum alloy during warm deformation process is dynamic recovery, during which the distribution of CuAl2 phase changes and the substructure content increases. Moreover, the storage energy is found to be decreased with the increase in temperature and/or the decrease in strain rate. In addition, complete static recrystallization occurs and substructures almost disappear during the solid solution treatment process. The average grain size obtained decreases with the decrease in deforming temperature, the increase in strain rate, and/or the increase in strain. The grain refinement mechanism is related to the amount of storage energy and the distribution of precipitated particles in the whole process of intermediate thermal-mechanical treatment. The previously existing dispersed fine precipitates are all redissolved into the matrix, however, the remaining precipitates exist mainly by the form of polymerization.
Heat Treatment of In Situ Laser-Fabricated Titanium Aluminide
Authors: Hoosain Shaik E. , Pityana Sisa , Freemantle Christopher S. , Tlotleng Monnamme
Published: August 2018

Direct energy deposition (DED) via laser processing, operated under standard conditions with a localised shielding gas, is a potential method for the manufacture of the γ-TiAl alloy. The freedom of operation, which includes the production of components via in situ melting of elemental powders, makes this method economically attractive. The goal of this study was to optimise the mass flow rates that lead to gamma phase formation during laser in situ melting of Ti and Al. A 3 kW Nd:YAG laser was used to melt Ti and Al elemental powders. Single clads were produced on Ti6Al4V substrates under localised argon shielding. The samples were heat-treated to promote microstructural homogenization and to provide thermal stress relief, after which they were characterized. Lamellar and duplex microstructures were obtained; depending on the Al feed rate and heat treatment temperatures. The Vickers microhardness was found to be predominantly dependent on Al content and the amount of twinning present. X-ray diffraction detected a proportional increase in the intensity of the γ phase peak with an increase in Al content, while α2 peaks were dissolved and the twin γ-Ti3Al5 peaks diminished slightly. An alloy produced in this work achieved the target microstructure and properties associated with superior ductility and tensile strength in these materials, indicating that the technology has future potential in the production of Ti-Al materials for applications such as structural components or thermal barrier coatings.
Protective Effect of Cyclically Pressurized Solid–Liquid Extraction Polyphenols from Cagnulari Grape Pomace on Oxidative Endothelial Cell Death
Authors: Posadino Anna Maria , Biosa Grazia , Zayed Hatem , Abou-Saleh Haissam , Cossu Annalisa , Nasrallah Gheyath K. , Giordo Roberta , Pagnozzi Daniela , Porcu Maria Cristina , Pretti Luca , Pintus Gianfranco
Published: August 2018

The aim of this work is the evaluation of a green extraction technology to exploit winery waste byproducts. Specifically, a solid–liquid extraction technology (Naviglio Extractor®) was used to obtain polyphenolic antioxidants from the Cagnulari grape marc. The extract was then chemically characterized by spectrophotometric analysis, high-performance liquid chromatography, and mass spectrometry, revealing a total polyphenol content of 4.00 g/L ± 0.05, and the presence of anthocyanins, one of the most representative groups among the total polyphenols in grapes. To investigate potential biological activities of the extract, its ability to counteract hydrogen peroxide-induced oxidative stress and cell death was assessed in primary human endothelial cells. The 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) test, used to assess potential extract cytotoxicity, failed to show any deleterious effect on cultured cells. Fluorescence measurements, attained with the intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) probe 2′,7′-dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate (H2DCF-DA), revealed a strong antioxidant potential of the marc extract on the used cells, as indicated by the inhibition of the hydrogen peroxide-induced ROS generation and the counteraction of the oxidative-induced cell death. Our results indicate the Naviglio extraction, as a green technology process, can be used to exploit wine waste to obtain antioxidants which can be used to produce enriched foods and nutraceuticals high in antioxidants.
Identification of Nucleophilic Probes for Protease-Mediated Transpeptidation
Authors: Eom Ga-eul , Kim Seokhee
Published: August 2018

Proteases have evolved to mediate the hydrolysis of peptide bonds but may perform transpeptidation in the presence of a proper nucleophilic molecule that can effectively compete with water to react with the acyl-enzyme intermediate. There have been several examples of protease-mediated transpeptidation, but they are generally inefficient, and little effort has been made to systematically control the transpeptidation activity of other proteases with good nucleophiles. Here, we developed an on-bead screening approach to find a probe that functions efficiently as a nucleophile in the protease-mediated transpeptidation reaction, and we identified good probes for a model protease DegP. These probes were covalently linked to the C-termini of the cleaved peptides in a mild condition and made the selective enrichment of ligated peptides possible. We suggest that good nucleophilic probes can be found for many other proteases that act via acyl-enzyme intermediates, and these probes will help characterize their substrates.
Operational Evaluation of a Small Hydropower Plant in the Context of Sustainable Development
Authors: Walczak Natalia
Published: August 2018

Proper design of hydrotechnical structures should meet the basic principles of sustainable development, i.e., the investment should be designed and made in technical terms, in accordance with the applicable standards and regulations, provide certain economic benefits and guarantee the absence of environmental hazards. The article examines the work of a Small Hydropower Plant (SHP) in Jaracz in technical and hydraulic terms. It also provides the analysis of the effect of changes in parameters such as water head, flow rate velocity, and shape of trash rack bars on expected SHP profits. The assessment of hydraulic performance consisted of investigating the impact of reduced flow rate and water head on power output and energy production. The analyses were carried out for the Francis turbine installed in the facility. Since the loss of channel capacity is shaped by plant debris accumulated on trash racks, the hydraulic performance assessment was extended to include the analysis of the species and weight composition of such accumulation on fine trash racks located in the inlet channel. Field research involved collecting organic material from the growing season (spring, summer) and post-growing season (autumn). Technical conditions were developed on the basis of the current technical condition of the inlet channel; there were also made simulations of its deteriorating state, as well as its impact on the received energy and economic benefits.
MicroRNA-152 Acts as a Tumor Suppressor MicroRNA by Inhibiting Krüppel-Like Factor 5 in Human Cervical Cancer
Authors: Zhang Haiyan , Lu Yanxia , Wang Surong , Sheng Xiugui , Zhang Shiqian
Published: August 2018

Aberrant expression of microRNA-152 (miR-152) is frequently observed in human cancers including ovarian cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, and gastric cancer. However, its expression and functional role in cervical cancer (CC) are poorly understood. Also, the association between
miR-152 and Krüppel-like factor 5 (KLF5) expression in CC remains unclear. In this study, analyzing the expression of miR-152 by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) revealed it was sharply reduced in CC tissues and cell lines. In addition, the negative correlation of miR-152 expression
and KLF5 expression was observed. The dual-luciferase reporter assay validated that KLF5 was a target of miR-152. In vitro functional assays revealed that miR-152 could inhibit cell proliferation and cell cycle progression through regulating the expression of KLF5. Taken together, our study
suggested that miR-152 functions as a tumor suppressor in CC, and the miR-152/KLF5 axis may provide novel therapeutic targets for CC treatment.
Clinical Characteristics and Molecular Patterns of RET-Rearranged Lung Cancer in Chinese Patients
Authors: Zhang Kai , Chen Huajun , Wang Ye , Yang Lin , Zhou Chengzhi , Yin Weiqiang , Wang Guangsuo , Mao Xinru , Xiang Jianxing , Li Bing , Zhang Tengfei , Fei Shihong
Published: August 2018

RET rearrangement has been proven as an oncogenic driver in patients with lung cancer. However, the prevalence, clinical characteristics, molecular features, and therapeutic options in RET-rearranged patients remain unclear, especially in Chinese lung cancer patients.
We retrospectively collected 6,125 Chinese lung cancer patients who have been profiled using next-generation sequencing (NGS). The clinical demographics and molecular features of RET rearrangement-positive patients were analyzed. RET rearrangements were identified in 84 patients
with a proportion of 1.4% in our cohort. The median age at diagnosis was 58 years, and it mainly occurred in females with adenocarcinoma histology. KIF5B-RET was the most frequent fusion type and accounted for 53.8% (57/106) of all RET fusions identified, with K15-R12 as the
most frequent variant (71.9%). Among 47 RET+ patients profiled with larger panels, 72.3% (34/47) harbored concurrent alterations. TP53 ranked as the most common concurrent alteration, and concomitant EGFR oncogenic alterations were identified in seven patients.
Moreover, an adenocarcinoma patient harboring concurrent RET fusion and EGFR L858R responded to combinatorial treatment of cabozantinib and osimertinib, with a progression-free survival of 5 months. Our study improved knowledge of clinical characteristics and molecular features
of RET-rearranged lung cancers in China. It might be helpful to guide clinicians for more effective personalized diagnostic and therapeutic approaches.
Bi-mediated allylation of aldehydes in [bmim][Br]: a mechanistic investigation
Authors: Koli Mrunesh , Chatterjee Sucheta , Chattopadhyay Subrata , Goswami Dibakar
Published: August 2018

The inexpensive room temperature ionic liquid (RTIL), [bmim][Br] has been found to be a superior medium for the Bi-mediated Barbier-type allylation of aldehydes compared to other conventional solvents. It plays the dual role of a solvent and a metal activator enabling higher yields of the products in a shorter reaction time using stoichiometric/near-stoichiometric amounts of reagents. Plausibly, [bmim][Br] activates Bi metal by a charge transfer mechanism. The 1H VT-NMR studies suggested that both the allylating species, allylbismuth dibromide and diallylbismuth bromide, are generated in situ.
Adults Researching Pre-Schoolers in More-Than-Human Contexts
Authors: Scott Fiona , Bird Jo
Published: August 2018

Drawing on their reflective conversations, the authors argue that existing educational research paradigms may be insufficient for understanding how researchers are mutually affecting, and affected by, encounters with both the human and more-than-human, as spoken of in Rautio and Jokinen, whilst engaging in ethnographic research with pre-school children. Through empirically grounded reflections in the social and material spaces of kindergartens and family homes, we aim to reflect and raise critical questions about existing educational research paradigms, focusing on: 1. The intrinsic tensions between child-centered and post-human paradigms. 2. The (in)stability of researcher identity in the Anthropocene. 3. The unique research context(s) of early childhood play. The chapter concludes by proposing for debate several new norms for the kind of ‘identity work' in which researchers grappling with the emergent post-human and Anthropocentric traditions might consider engaging.
Is Complexity Thinking a Useful Frame for Change-Oriented Educational Research?
Authors: Gilbert Jane
Published: August 2018

This chapter explores the extent to which complexity thinking is useful for framing change-oriented educational research - particularly research with a focus on education's future. Its starting point is that the advent of the Anthropocene challenges some of education's foundational concepts, so much so that, if we want to continue to have an education system, substantial re-thinking is required. The chapter reviews the literature on future-focused education. It then looks at complexity thinking in general, and at how it is being used in educational contexts. Using this, it explores the issues this raises for how we think about research in general, and education in particular, and suggests some strategies for framing the kind of research that will be needed to support education's re-development for the age of the Anthropocene.
The Transformation of the Public Administration in the Multi-Level Governance Era
Authors: Yucebas Elif
Published: August 2018

The speed of transformation and development in information and communication technologies is an important fact triggering the restructuring process of public administration. The developing countries have become integrated into this process through public administration reform methods presented by international institutions. Transfer of information and communication technologies have become important for modernizing public administration organizations of developing countries and adapting them to the global system. In multilevel governance, use and implementation of the information technologies enabling network structuring between institutions have a particular importance. In this sense, the purpose of this study is to present the process followed by Turkey for adapting information and communication technologies to public administration organization and provision of public services in the frame of a multilevel governance approach.
Reflections of the Multi-Level Governance Approach on the Turkish Metropolitan Municipality System
Authors: Duran Deniz Şahin
Published: August 2018

This chapter is conducted according to the descriptive survey model in order to analyze within the framework of the multi-level governance approach the new metropolitan model created and the changes introduced by the Law No 6360 with their positive and negative aspects. Based on the recent related theoretical and empirical literature, the study addresses three issues in a comprehensive and systematic way: concept of multi-level governance, the reflections of the multi-level governance approach in the field of metropolitans in Turkey, the new metropolitan model brought by the Law No 6360 will be analyzed together with all the innovations it has introduced. Changes created by the new metropolitan model (representation and participation, local democracy, administrative structure, fiscal decentralization service provision, etc.) are evaluated along both their positive and negative dimensions.
Sustainability Reporting and Multilevel Governance
Authors: Gokten Pınar Okan , Gokten Soner
Published: August 2018

Providing transparency and accountability can be achieved by efficient governance mechanisms, which need interactive participation of stakeholders in the decision-making process. On the other hand, it is fair to say that traditional reporting is inadequate to inform stakeholders of an organization's activities. Therefore, sustainability accounting has become more popular among authorities and organizations in order to provide comprehensive information which concentrates on value creation and sustainable development. In this chapter, the authors aim to touch on the need of sustainability accounting to support multilevel governance mechanisms by describing the main dimensions of sustainability accounting and integrated reporting.
Documenting Nigeria's Social and Cultural History Through Cinema
Authors: Endong Floribert Patrick C.
Published: August 2018

In recent times, cinema has emerged as an alternative technology to document reality. This could be seen in the fact that both fictional and non-fictional films are increasingly deployed to chronicle various aspects of history. In the Nigerian moving pictures industry (Nollywood), this paradigm could be illustrated by the recent release of historical epic movies such as Lancelot Imasuen's Invasion 1897, Jeta Amata's Black November, Biyi Bandele's Half of a Yellow Sun, and Kunle Afolayan's October 1, among others. Drawing on this relatively old trend, this chapter examines the extent to which some of Nollywood epic films are “trustworthy” records of Nigerian history. The chapter begins by examining the controversy over the nature of film as a historical document in its own right. It goes further to exploring the issue of historical film making in Nollywood and ends with a reading of Biyi Bandele's Half of a Yellow Sun and Kunle Afolayan's October 1 as forms of historical films.
Analysis of the Strongly Coupled Magnetic Resonant Technology for Wireless Power Transfer
Authors: Triviño-Cabrera Alicia , Aguado José A.
Published: August 2018

Wireless power transfer (WPT) systems are involved in multiple and heterogeneous applications. This diversity is reflected in several factors such as the amount of power that is transferred or the distance separating the energy source and the receiver. In the current research work, the authors find several groups of technologies that try to adapt the process to the particularities of the application. In this way, wireless power transfer can be achieved with an inductive technology, with a resonant-inductive approach, or with a strongly coupled magnetic resonant configuration. This chapter focuses on strongly coupled magnetic resonant technology, which is appropriate for home applications.
Efficiency Improvement in Wireless Power System
Authors: Jorge Luis Romba , Baikova Elena , Valtchev Stanimir , Melício Rui
Published: August 2018

This chapter focuses on mid-range wireless power transfer (WPT) systems applied to electric vehicle (EV) battery chargers. The WPT is recently considered as an efficient electric energy transfer process between two or more points in space, without wiring. The technology associated with each specific process of WPT differs from case to case depending on the distance between those points and the power to be transferred between them. The widely adopted distance categories are named short-range, mid-range, and long-range. The short-range is normally defined as up to a few millimeters range. The mid-range is between a few millimeters and a few meters. The long-range distance is defined as a longer than that of the previous category, stretching up to a few kilometers.
Electromagnetic Influence of WPT on Human's Health
Authors: Baikova Elena , Romba Luis , Valtchev Stanimir , Melicio Rui , Pires Vitor Fernão
Published: August 2018

The focus of this chapter is the electromagnetic interference (EMI) and the electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) that the wireless power transfer (WPT) systems reveal as problems. The wireless power transfer (WPT) was introduced by Nikola Tesla more than one hundred years ago, and only recently it attracted the attention of specialists, due to the improved technical means. The WPT technology now has many applications, especially for charging of various electronic devices (i.e., mobile phones, laptops, implants, and home appliances), informatics, and electronics equipment. The high-power equipment and installations (e.g., intelligent machining systems, robots, forklift trucks, and electric cars) are also getting wireless. Moreover, much attention has been focused on the electric transportation system for improving the safe and convenient charging of electric vehicle (EV) batteries.