bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Cultural Humility- Experience of a Nutrition Student at an African Clinic
Authors: Elshaarawi Youssef , Metersky Kateryna
Published: February 2024

Background Demonstrating cultural humility is crucial in healthcare as it helps build bridges between healthcare practitioners and patients receiving care to understand their needs and tailor interventions. International placements are one of the best ways to enhance cultural humility.Methods This study investigated the externship experience of one Canadian undergraduate nutrition student at a North African clinic, utilizing Narrative Inquiry. Data were collected using the Narrative Reflective Process, specifically using drawings, proverbs, and mementos to share the participant’s story of experience. The reflection process was conducted in Ontario, Canada post arrival from the externship experience that took place one summer during the COVID-19 pandemic.Results The findings depict how student gained a deeper understanding of cultural humility, became aware of their own biases, and was able to comprehend and discover different perspectives to care delivery. Furthermore, diversifying their interactions and being immersed in different cultural situations opened their perspectives and enhanced their appreciation, nurturing their personal and professional development. The two main themes that emerged were self-reflection and care delivery constituents.Conclusion The study emphasizes the benefits of international placements for future development of healthcare practitioners, particularly in cultural humility. The student was able to gain a deeper insight into what cultural humility is in a relatively short period of time through this transcultural collaboration.
The burden attributable to primary headache disorders in children and adolescents in Ethiopia: estimates from a national schools- based study
Authors: Zewde Yared Z. , Zebenigus Mehila , Belay Hanna , Tekle-Haimanot Redda , Uluduz Derya , Şaşmaz Tayyar , Bozdag Fatma , Steiner Timothy J
Published: February 2024

Background
We previously reported high prevalences of headache disorders among children (6–11 years) and adolescents (12–17 years) in Ethiopia. Here we provide data on headache-attributed burden collected contemporaneously from the same study participants. Part of the global schools-based programme within the Global Campaign against Headache, the study is the first to present such data from sub-Saharan Africa.
Methods
A cross-sectional survey following the generic protocol for the global study was conducted in six schools (urban and rural), in Addis Ababa city and three regions of Ethiopia. The child or adolescent versions of the Headache-Attributed Restriction, Disability, Social Handicap and Impaired Participation (HARDSHIP) structured questionnaires were self-completed under supervision by pupils in class. Headache diagnostic questions were based on ICHD-3 beta but for the inclusion of undifferentiated headache (UdH).
Results
Of 2,349 eligible participants, 2,344 completed the questionnaires (1,011 children [43.1%], 1,333 adolescents [56.9%]; 1,157 males [49.4%], 1,187 females [50.6%]; participating proportion 99.8%). Gender- and age-adjusted 1-year prevalence of headache, reported previously, was 72.8% (migraine: 38.6%; tension-type headache [TTH]: 19.9%; UdH: 12.3%; headache on ≥ 15 days/month (H15+): 1.2%). Mean headache frequency was 2.6 days/4 weeks but, with mean duration of 2.7 hours, mean proportion of time with headache was only 1.0% (migraine: 1.4%; TTH: 0.7%; H15+: 9.1%). Mean intensity was 1.8 on a scale of 1–3. Symptomatic medication was consumed on about one third of headache days across headache types. Lost school time reportedly averaged 0.7 days over the preceding 4 weeks, representing 3.5% of school time, but was 2.4 days/4 weeks (12.0%) in the important small minority with H15+. However, actual absences with headache the day before indicated averages overall of 9.7% of school time lost, and 13.3% among those with migraine. Emotional impact and quality-of-life scores reflected other measures of burden, with clear adverse impact gradients (H15 + > migraine > TTH > UdH).
Conclusions
The high prevalence of headache among children and adolescents in Ethiopia, who represent half its population, is associated with substantial burden. Lost school time is probably the most important consequence. Estimates suggest a quite deleterious effect, likely to be reflected in both individual prospects and the prosperity of society.
Investigation and analysis of current situation of rehabilitation therapists in Hunan province after the COVID-19 epidemic: a cross-sectional study
Authors: Deng Na , Yang Jiachun , Duan zhiyong , Huang Yue , Wang Jun
Published: February 2024

Background
This study aims to comprehend the prevailing circumstances of rehabilitation therapists in the aftermath of the COVID-19 outbreak and to analysis the variables that affect the job satisfaction of these therapists who volunteered to take part in this study. In total, 769 rehabilitation were enrolled in the study.
Method
Based on the experts' discussions and revisions at the Xiangya Boai Rehabilitation Hospital, this questionnaire was subsequently distributed to rehabilitation therapists via WeChat. rehabilitation were sampled using a cross-sectional approach on Wenjuanxing through the WeChat APP.
Results
Based on an analysis of data distribution and composition ratio, it is evident that there have been significant transformations in multiple data dimensions between pre-pandemic therapy and the current era. Comparative analyses revealed statistically significant differences in age (H = 32.90, P < 0.001), years of working experience (H = 32.14, P < 0.001), job title (H = 29.93, P < 0.001), and monthly salary level (H = 114.81, P < 0.001). Further analyses using multiple factor regression indicated that monthly income significantly influenced the outcome measure. Participants with a monthly income below 3,000 yuan had a significantly higher Odds Ratio (OR) of 17.9 (OR = 17.95, 95%CI 8.49–38.29, P < 0.001) for experiencing job dissatisfaction compared to those with a monthly income exceeding 10,000 yuan. Similarly, therapists earning between 3,000 and 5,000 yuan monthly had an OR of 5.3 (OR = 5.32, 95%CI 2.91–9.83, P < 0.001) for job dissatisfaction, while those in the 5,001–7,000 yuan income range had an OR of 2.46 (OR = 2.46, 95%CI 1.36–4.49, P < 0.05).
Conclusion
After the epidemic, the distribution of age, gender, hospital type, and job title among rehabilitation therapists has changed. The job classification of therapists has become more refined, and the monthly income level has become an important factor affecting job satisfaction. The forefront of this academic endeavor lies in carefully investigate the existing landscape that defines rehabilitation therapists in Hunan, which will provide a deeper insight into whole China's community of therapists.
AFIRE: Adaptive FusionNet for Illumination-Robust Feature Extraction in Heterogeneous Imaging Environments
Authors: Yu Mingxin , Miao Xufan , Sun Yichen , Bai Yuchen
Published: February 2024

The fusion of infrared and visible images aims to synthesize a fused image that incorporates richer information by leveraging the distinct characteristics of each modality. However, the disparate quality of input images in terms of infrared and visible light significantly impacts fusion performance. Addressing this issue, we propose a deep adaptive fusion method in this paper, termed Adaptive FusionNet for Illumination-Robust Feature Extraction (AFIRE), which involves interactive processing of two input features and dynamically adjusts fusion weights under varying illumination conditions. Specifically, we introduce a novel interactive extraction structure during the feature extraction stage for both infrared and visible light, enabling the capture of more complementary information. Additionally, we design a Deep Adaptive Fusion module to assess the quality of input features and perform weighted fusion through a channel attention mechanism. Finally, a new loss function is formulated by incorporating the entropy and median of input images to guide the training of the fusion network. Extensive experiments demonstrate that AFIRE outperforms state-of-the-art methods in preserving pixel intensity distribution and texture details. Source code is available in GitHub https://github.com/ISCLab-Bistu/AFIRE.
Comparative Analysis of Whole Chloroplast Genomes of Three Common Species of Nekemias from Vine Tea
Authors: Yang Feng , Wu Shaoxiong , Yu Zhengwen
Published: February 2024

Nekemias grossedentata is a plant species that has been utilized for centuries as both a traditional medicine and food source due to its high levels of bioactive compounds. Specifically, the plant's young stems and leaves are used to make vine tea, which has been used to treat various ailments. While Nekemias cantoniensis and Nekemias megalophylla are also utilized for similar purposes in various regions, limited research on their chloroplast genomes and chromatography has significantly hindered the study of their evolutionary and phylogenetic relationships, as well as the market supply of these materials. In order to address these gaps in knowledge, this study used the Illumina sequencing platform to sequence the complete chloroplast (cp) genomes of three Nekemias species, which were then compared to that of Nekemias grossedentata. Additionally, high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was utilized to construct chromatographic fingerprints of the three plants. The annotation results demonstrated that the three chloroplast genomes were typical quadripartite structures, with lengths of 162,147 bp (N. grossedentata), 161,981 bp (N. megalophylla), and 162,500 bp (N. cantoniensis), respectively. A total of 89 (N. grossedentata)/86 (N. megalophylla,N. cantoniensis) protein-coding genes, 37 tRNA genes, and 8 rRNA genes were annotated. The IR/SC boundary regions were relatively conserved across the three species, although three regions (rps19-rpl2, rpl32-trnL-UAG, ccsA-ndhD) exhibited nucleotide diversity values (Pi) of variable sites higher than 1%. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that N. grossedentata had a closer genetic relationship with N. megalophylla than N. cantoniensis. Moreover, the chromatographic fingerprints revealed that the functional components were highly similar to the genetic relatedness of the species. Overall, this study provides valuable information for species identification, phylogeny, quality assessment, and rational use of three medicinal plants of the genus Nekemias. Furthermore, the findings of this study will contribute to the standardization of vine tea raw materials and the optimization of product efficacy.
Influence of Covid 19 on the Level of Internet Addiction and its Impacts Among High School Students in a Selected School at Kottayam District
Authors: Abraham Jessy , Therese Maria
Published: February 2024

Background: Internet addiction is the term used to describe the obsessive need to spend a lot of time online. Internet addiction has become a widespread issue in the twenty-first century, affecting people of all ages and in all sectors, in particular after the COVID-19 outbreak. Addiction of this type causes numerous mental and physical health issues. This study aims to assess the level of internet addiction and its impacts among high school students.
Methods: A convenient sampling technique used to select 60 high school students. Internet addiction questionnaire and a rating scale to assess the impacts of internet addiction were used collect the data. The results were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics.
Results: Showed that 45% of the students have moderate level of internet addiction and 1.6% of them have severe addiction. There is a moderate positive co-relation exists between the level of internet addiction and its impacts. There was no association found between internet addiction and baseline variables of students.
Conclusion: Internet adaptability has become a crucial tool in these modern times due to the advantages associated with internet usage, such as access to timely and necessary information, international access to news, events, and interpersonal connection through email. Scholars are concerned about the risks associated with excessive internet use, despite the internet's phenomenal growth and usage. It is advised that the administration of the school increase awareness of internet addiction and the risks that it poses to students. Support programs for the students could be incorporated into the curriculum.
Research on Business English Translation Teaching in the Context of Economic Integration
Authors: Bian Ruirui
Published: February 2024

In the stage of business English translation teaching, the lack of integration of objective needs leads to the difficulty in achieving the ideal teaching effect. Therefore, the research on business English translation teaching under the situation of economic integration is proposed. For the teaching preparation, the requirements of the actual situation of business English translation for specific translation and the way of creating the situation are fully considered in the form of economic integration. The situational construction of the teaching process is realized from the perspectives of teachers' ideology and classroom situation materials; For the links in the teaching course, the situational teaching method with the attribute of "knowledge and action interaction" is constructed. By guiding students to gradually participate in the real situational activities with the characteristics of economic integration, the progressive teaching method from the periphery to the core is designed according to the three measures of new course introduction, active atmosphere and cognitive strengthening. In the test results, students' academic level and learning investment are at a high level, and good teaching results have been achieved.
Algorithmic trading on financial time series using Deep Reinforcement Learning
Authors: Asghari Alireza , Mozayani Nasser
Published: February 2024

The use of technology in financial markets has led to extensive changes in conventional trading structures.Today, most orders that reach exchanges are created by algorithmic trading agents.
Today, machine learning-based methods play an important role in building automated trading systems. The increasing complexity and dynamism of financial markets are among the key challenges of these methods. The most widely used machine learning approach is supervised learning, but in interactive environments, the use of supervised learning alone has limitations such as difficulty in defining appropriate labels and lack of modeling of the dynamic nature of the market. Due to the good performance of deep reinforcement learning-based approaches, we will use these approaches to solve the mentioned problems.
In this paper, we presented a deep reinforcement learning framework for trading in the financial market, a set of input features and indicators selected and tailored to the purpose of the problem, reward function, appropriate models based on fully connected, convolutional and hybrid networks. The proposed top models traded under real market conditions such as transaction costs and then were evaluated. In addition to outperforming the buy and hold strategy, these models achieved excellent cumulative returns while having appropriate risk metrics.
My-This-Your-That - Interpretable Identification of Systematic Bias in Federated Learning for Biomedical Images
Authors: Hartley Mary-Anne , Naumova Klavdiia , Devos Arnout , Karimireddy Sai , Jaggi Martin
Published: February 2024

Deep learning has the potential to improve and even automate the interpretation of biomedical images, making it more accessible, particularly in low-resource settings where human experts are often lacking. The privacy concerns of these images necessitate innovative approaches to model building, such as DIStributed COllaborative learning (DISCO), which allows several data owners (clients) to learn a joint model without sharing the original images. However, this black-box data can conceal systematic bias, compromising model performance and fairness. This work adapts an interpretable prototypical part learning network to a DISCO setting enabling each client to visualize the differences in features learned by other clients on its own image: comparing one client’s 'This' with others’ 'That'. We present a setting where four clients collaborate to train two diagnostic classifiers on a benchmark chest X-ray dataset. In an unbiased setting, the global model reaches 74.14 % balanced accuracy for cardiomegaly and 74.08 % for pleural effusion. We then compare performance under the strain of systematic visual bias, where a confounding feature is associated with the label in one client. In this setting, global models drop to near-random when used on unbiased data. We demonstrate how differences between local and global prototypes can indicate the presence of bias and allow it to be visualized on each client's data without compromising privacy. We further show how these differences can guide model personalization.
Stool as a novel biomarker for arsenic exposure through diet: a case-control study in a West Bengal population
Authors: Ghosh Soma , Chakraborty Arijit , Bhowmick Subhamoy , Joardar Madhurima , Das Antara , Roychowdhury Tarit , Bhunia Sangita , Majumdar Kunal Kanti , Pramanik Sreemanta
Published: February 2024

Geogenic groundwater arsenic (As) contamination is a persistent health threat in the district of Nadia, West Bengal India. Despite provision of safe piped water, local populations in these areas are still exposed to As through diet as the cultivation is majorly dependent on As contaminated shallow groundwater causing significant As accumulation in agricultural foodstuffs. Although urine is an established biomarker for As exposure through drinking water yet, it does not reflect the actual exposure through diet. Hence, stool-As concentration of exposed population should be evaluated to assess the true exposure through diet. The present case-control study evaluates As concentration in stool samples of exposed (n = 24) and unexposed (n = 36) populations. Average stool-As concentration found was 234 ± 207 µg/kg in exposed population while only 66 ± 22 µg/kg in control samples; comparable to those of urine samples of case and control; respectively. Positive Pearson correlation and a significant difference of variance through ANOVA (p = 0.01; Fcrit= 1.65) among stool-As, urine-As, groundwater-As, age and BMI found for case samples indicate that stool also presents comparable and measurable As concentrations upon exposure. Mann-Whitney U test confirms that random values of stool-As in case samples varied significantly (p < 0.001) than those of control samples. Besides, multi-metal analysis of stool digest indicated that stool-As correlated negatively with most of the metals in case and positively with control samples. These observations along with ease of collection and detection due to higher concentration in the matrix, suggest that stool may act as a decisive biomarker of As exposure through diet. To the best of our knowledge, this is a pioneering study to establish stool as a reliable and significant biomarker for assessing As exposure as limited investigations exist focused on human faecal samples on long term naturally exposed adult human population.
Party Composition of Regional Authorities in the First Year of the Soviet Era
Authors:   HSE University, Kontsevoy Ilya A.
Published: February 2024

The article examines the problem of reconstruction of the party composition of the regional authorities of the RSFSR in March — July 1918. The source base of the work is statistical data collected by Soviet researchers, periodical press materials, as well as documents from the State Archive of the Russian Federation. The author studies the party composition of the Soviet authorities at two institutional levels: regional and provincial. The territorial scope of the article is limited to the regions of the European part of Russia (including most of the Urals), where the Soviet power existed in the first half of 1918. This article makes quantitative calculations of delegates of regional congresses of councils and members of executive committees. Based on the analysis of data on the party membership of congresses of Soviets and executive committees, the author comes to the conclusion about the formation of the dual party system in regional and provincial authorities by the time of the convocation of the V All-Russian Congress of Soviets. This process was characterized by a significant reduction in the representation of socialist parties other than the Bolsheviks and their temporary allies from the party of the Left Socialist Revolutionaries. The author of the article analyzes the dynamics of the representation of political parties at the provincial institutional levels of the Soviet state in the first half of 1918. Changes in the party composition of regional Soviet authorities consisted in increasing the share of the Left socialist revolutionaries in provincial executive committees and reducing the representation of the Bolshevik party.
The Problem of Elections to the Crimean Regional Sejm during the Civil War
Authors:   St. Petersburg State University, Chemakin Anton A.
Published: February 2024

The article is devoted to the failed elections to the Crimean Regional Sejm — the regional parliament of Crimea, which was to have been elected on April 6–8, 1919. The paper analyzes the course of the campaign, the features of the electoral law, and lists candidates from various political parties and national groups. The elections to the Sejm were a result of the compromise between the Constitutional Democrats and the Socialist Revolutionaries during the formation of the second Crimean regional government in the autumn of 1918. By the beginning of 1919, when the Red Army had approached the borders of Crimea, it became clear that it would be difficult to hold elections in the existing conditions. The issue of elections became one of the main factors of internal political instability in Crimea and caused the conflict between the liberal government, the socialist opposition, and the leadership of the White Movement. The election campaign was sluggish; absenteeism was predominant among most of the electorate (with the exception of Crimean Tatars), which was fueled by underground Bolshevik organizations actively campaigning for a boycott of the vote. Both the Constitutional Democrats, the Social Revolutionaries, and the Mensheviks understood all the risks associated with holding the elections under martial law, but they did not dare cancel them and deviate from democratic principles, although it was quite clear that the workers’ and peasants’ masses of Crimea did not need any Sejm. The vote was postponed (and actually canceled) only on April 1, 1919, after the Soviet military units reached Perekop.
Nationalization and Denationalization of Ownership of the Means of Production in Soviet Russia
Authors:   Vologda State University, Beznin Mikhail A. , Dimoni Tatiana M. ,   Vologda State University
Published: February 2024

The article analyzes the dynamics of the role of the Soviet state in the most important institutional changes in the economic life of the country — property relations in the Soviet period. The article identifies the periods of trends in the nationalization and denationalization of ownership of the production capital of Soviet Russia, the most significant of which were the late 1920s — mid-1950s (the functioning of the state-dominated “Stalinist economic model”) and the second half of the 1950s–1980s (the period of the decline of the role of the state in the economy and the growth of the “privatization” potential). In addition to these trends, the article describes the most important aspects of the formation of a new class — the owner of the means of production. According to the authors of the article, this class initially emerged on the historical arena of Soviet Russia in the 1930s. At the time, it was characterized by a small differentiation of titles of the owner, the “collective nature” of actions in the implementation of property rights, depersonalization of proprietary rights. During the period of denationalization of economic life in the mid-1950s–1980s private interests of different groups leaders — economic, party, Soviet and others — intensified as did the desire for the fullness of proprietary rights by certain categories of owners and for personification of proprietary claims.
Certain Problems of Researches of Caucasus Slavery as Holistic Phenomenon in Modern Russian-Speaking Historiography. Part II
Authors:   Volgograd State University, Peretyatko Artyom Yu.
Published: February 2024

The article is devoted to the analysis of modern Russian historiography of slavery in the Caucasus. The author comes to conclusion that the works describing Caucasian slavery in general are rather few, and they began to appear relatively recently (although there are many on private and local subjects of Caucasian slavery). Therefore, there is no unified picture of slavery in the Caucasus, and even assessments of its cruelty can differ dramatically. The second part of the article concerns social practices and periodization of Caucasian slavery. The article reveals that the spread of slavery and slave trade, perceived as a moral norm, formed new social practices, such as upbringing of beautiful girls as slaves, formation of a special institution of intermediaries in the exchange or ransom of captives, etc. Today such practices may seem noble or monstrous, but in reality, they have always been socio-economically justified. As for the periodization of the Caucasian slavery, the author clarified the concept of A. A. Cherkasov, V. G. Ivantsov, M. Shmigel and S. N. Bratanovskii, in accordance with which three periods of development of slavery in the Caucasus are distinguished: “insignificant development” (4th–15th centuries), “flourishing” (16th–18th centuries) and “fading” (19th century). This concept stands out for its objectivity and lack of politicization, but lacks clear criteria for identifying periods. The article shows that Caucasian slaves were a majority in some significant markets (Trebizond, Genoa) already in the 15th century, and prerequisites for the extinction of slavery in the Caucasus in its previous forms began to take shape from the 18th century.
A Comparative Approach to Belarusian Ethnicity
Authors:   St. Petersburg State University, Egorova Ksenia B.
Published: February 2024

The article is a scholarly review of the monograph “Faces of the Other in the Multilingual Belarusian Literature of the 19th Century” written by N. L. Bakhanovich. The book examines the image of “The Other” in Belarusian literature of the 19th century. Bakhanovich refers both to Polish-speaking romanticists (for example, A. Mickiewicz) and to some Russian-speaking authors to illustrate the main message of the book. From a methodological point of view, Bakhanovich follows the traditions of the Russian school of comparative literature and develops the thoughts of A. N. Veselovskii, Yu. M. Lotman, and others about the importance of describing the perception of “the other”, i.e., of a different cultural, religious, and ritual space reflected in literary works, for a more accurate understanding of the Belarusian culture and ethnicity. Although the book attempts to use the methodological framework of “imagined communities”, as presented by the British political scientist and sociologist B. Anderson, it is not convincingly justified. The book touches upon the difficult issue of cultural self-identification of the lands of modern Belarus; a number of the conclusions made by the author are controversial and in need of additional commentary, as is the terminological apparatus chosen to represent several political issues (for example, an attempt to consider the inclusion of the territories of the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania into the Russian Empire as an act of colonization). Such a publication is undoubtedly a significant contribution to the development of scholarly ideas about the formation of the Belarusian literary tradition in the 19th century.
The Swedish Origin of the Russian Naval Artillery Drill Regulations during the Time of Peter the Great
Authors:   St. Petersburg State University, Nazarenko Kirill B.
Published: February 2024

The article is devoted to the study of the origin of the Russian Naval artillery drill regulations (so called exercise) of the era of Peter the Great. Previously only one Russian Naval artillery exercise of the 18th century, introduced by F. M. Apraksin in 1718, was known. The comparison of two printed treatises of D. Grundell (the head of the Swedish Naval artillery in 1712–1716) with the exercise of Apraksin has revealed their obvious similarity. The author has discovered the Russian exercise of the late 1740s. Its analysis enables to prove that in the Russian Navy (at least from 1717 to the middle of the 18th century) there existed one exercise, and this exercise was a translation and adaptation of the Swedish one. Russian and Swedish exercises were totally different compared to the French and English ones. The study confirms that two articles of the Russian Naval Charter of 1720 are a translation of the two passages of D. Grundell’s treatise of 1705, and this treatise itself was in circulation in Russia and, possibly, was known to Peter I. The biography of D. Grundell, who joined the Russian service in 1698 but did not actually serve, has been clarified. The current research raises questions of the dissemination of scientific, technical, and regulatory information of the 18th century. This process could take a variety of forms (oral, written, printed) — from the transfer of information by the teacher to the student to publications that referred to their approval by the relevant authorities or officials.
The Concepts, Chronology and Dispersal Routes of the Initial Upper Paleolithic of South Siberia and Central Asia
Authors:   Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Rybin Evgeny P. , Khatsenovich Arina M. ,   Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Published: February 2024

The article considers the chronology and distribution of the earliest blade of the Initial Upper Paleolithic in Central and Eastern Eurasia. Based on a review of the available evidence, it is concluded that the spread of the Initial Upper Paleolithic tradition is relatively rapid, with the difference between the older dates from the Altai Upper Paleolithic laminar assemblages (ca 45–49 ka BP, Kara-Bom UP2 level), and the younger dates from the industries east of Altai is minimal, and most often does not exceed one-two thousand years. Initial Upper Paleolithic industries replace Late Middle Paleolithic complexes on their way from the Altai. The early Initial Upper Paleolithic assemblages from Central Eurasia, being close in age, show a significant degree of technological and typological similarity, which may indicate the transfer of the tradition in its entirety. The earliest Initial Upper Paleolithic assemblages of Central Eurasia are synchronous, or slightly younger than the early Emiran Upper Paleolithic industries from the Boker Tachtit site in the Levant. The Initial Upper Paleolithic industries on the assumed route of dispersal between the Levant and Central Asia are unknown. At the same time, the earliest European Initial Upper Paleolithic can also be seen as an example of a rapid and directed transfer of Initial Upper Paleolithic cultural traditions from the Levant to the Balkans and to Central and Western Europe. The article suggests that the same scenario of the spread of the Initial Upper Paleolithic tradition, supposedly associated with the dispersal of the anthropologically modern type of humans, could also take place in the central part of Eurasia, where the territory of the mountains and foothills of Central Asia and South Siberia could become the center of Initial Upper Paleolithic formation.
Deposition of Base Ore and Alloy Elements in the Bronze Age Metal in the Trans-Urals
Authors:   Institute of the Steppe, Orenburg Federal Research Center, Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Bogdanov Sergey V. , Bulatov Vladislav A. ,   Institute of Geology and Geochemistry of Academician A. N. Zavaritsky of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Кorochkova Olga N. ,   Ural Federal University, Spiridonov Ivan A. ,   Ural Federal University named after the first President of Russia B. N. Yeltsin, Tkachev Vitaly V. ,   Institute of the Steppe, Orenburg Federal Research Center, Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Published: February 2024

The paper studies the problems of the geochemical specialization of the Bronze Age metal items from the eastern flank of the Ural mining and metallurgical province produced at the end of the third millennium BC — the middle of the second millennium BC in the Abashevo, Sintashta, Koptyakov-Seimino and the Alakul centers. The metal geochemical markers determination was performed by means of a local quantitative chemical composition analysis of 101 solid samples with an electron X-ray microanalyzer. The selection consisted of a representative series of copper and bronze items corresponding to various stages of metallurgical conversion process from the classic archaeological sites of the Trans-Urals. Systematization of the analytical data on the chemistry of items from each metal production center made it possible to identify stable compositions of micro-impurities associated with the base ores and alloys. The Abashevo and the Sintashta culture metal demonstrated a stable correlation of excess arsenic and nickel concentrations, which was partly due to the use of the Trans-Urals ores with a high content of these elements, however, the most significant concentration of arsenic (from 2 to 5 %) was observed in the finished items rather than in refined copper ingots or semi-finished products, which may indicate intentional alloying. Tin alloys in the Sintashta culture were quite rare; they demonstrated the same chemistry as the Seimin-Turbino metallurgical traditions. Large-scale use of tin for refined copper alloying was observed only in the Koptyakov-Seimino and the Alakul series. The Alakul series contained some high-tin alloying compositions close to the ideal tin bronzes (18 % Sn). It is possible that the sources of tin for them were the Kazakhstan and the Central Asia deposits. The only impurity integrating the entire ancient metal series, according to microprobe analysis, was sulfur, due to the sulfide feed stock. Sulfur was deposited in blister from the high-copper (above 20 % Cu) sulfide-silica-carbonate mineral blends that met the Bronze Age metal production criteria. The sources of raw materials were associated with the secondary sulfides of the ophiolite deposits hypergenesis zones in the Trans-Urals.
Social control of the activities of children’s organizations in the context of modern security challenges
Authors:   St. Petersburg State University, Tkach Sergey , Sennikova Maria A. ,   Regional Public Organization of Social Projects in Sphere of Population’s Wellbeing “Stellit”, Rusakova Maya M. ,   St. Petersburg State University
Published: February 2024

Children, as the target audience, require a special approach in the provision of services. This determines the psychological aspects of the activities of children’s organizations. The purpose of such organizations is to focus on the most significant risks and concerns associated with children. The definition of such risks becomes a non-trivial task, which is formed from two boundaries of understanding the danger: public opinion and personal experience. These two boundaries represent the foundations of social control and the implementation of social control measures in real situations of risk. For the analysis of the first boundary, the contour of the most acute fears and fears of the inhabitants of St. Petersburg in the plane of the public safety of children was identified. A population study was conducted in St. Petersburg, which analyzed the perception of residents about possible threats to children in various organizations — about their significance and prevalence. Among the most acute fears, residents single out unfamiliar adults and teenagers, objects on the street and the Internet. The further steps of the research involved the analysis of the second frontier — the identification of specific risk situations that children encountered in these organizations, as well as how social control was implemented through the actions of employees working with risk situations. Within this boundary, situations of psychological and physical violence against children were analyzed. For this task, focused group interviews were conducted with adolescents and students of higher educational institutions to analyze their interaction with organizations providing services to children (schools, children’s circles, etc.). The data obtained in them made it possible to formulate a number of general recommendations that are designed to reduce the risks for children in organizations of this kind.
Application of the institution of prejudice as a means of proof in criminal proceedings
Authors:   Privolzhsky Branch of the Russian State University of Justice, Klokov Sergey N. , Ignatyeva Arina V. ,   Privolzhsky Branch of the Russian State University of Justice
Published: February 2024

This paper presents a retrospective analysis of the development of the institution of prejudice in criminal proceedings in Russia, which is disclosed in a relationship with the achievement of objective truth in a criminal case. The features and problems of legal regulation of the institution of prejudice in the pre-revolutionary, post-Soviet and current legislation were revealed. In particular, the key problem of the Criminal Procedural Code of the RSFSR of 1923 was the lack of concrete limits of inter-branch prejudice that led to the for-mal resolution of criminal cases. Despite the resolution of this conflict when the USSR CPC was adopted in 1960, the search for objective truth was hampered by the high role of the judge’s subjective opinion in deciding questions about the possibility of using and limiting the limits of the application of prejudicial decisions. In addition, the paper reflects the modern legislator’s views on the achievement of objective truth in sentencing with the use of prejudicial circumstances as evidence. The authors present their own vision of the main trends in the development of the institution of prejudice and their proposals to reform not only inter-branch criminal procedural legislation but also inter-branch legislation, namely: Federal Law “On Operational Investigative Activity”. On the basis of the conducted analysis the necessity of changing the legal regulation of the institute of inter-branch prejudice and of introducing a new version of Article 90 of the CPC of the RF suggesting preservation of the non-controversial nature of intra-branch prejudice and revival of inter-branch prejudice of rebuttable nature was proved. In addition, in order to optimise criminal proceedings, the paper proposes to give prejudicial effect to the circumstance of a surgical experiment by legally changing the procedure for obtaining it in court.
The role of the judiciary in the transformation of the ratio of public and private interests in criminal proceedings in Russia
Authors:   Southwest State University, Ryabinina Tatiana K.
Published: February 2024

The article analyzes the genesis, current state and prospects in the legal regulation of the ratio of public and private principles in criminal proceedings. The author substantiates that, despite the fact that criminal procedural activity has a public character, nevertheless, this activity is intended primarily to protect the private interests’ victims of crimes and persons subjected to criminal prosecution, as follows from Part 1 of Article 6 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation. The historical pattern of the development of Russian statehood indicates an inevitable conflict between by the state in the person of its officials carrying out criminal prosecution, and by a person in such a public sphere of legal relations as criminal proceedings. The problem of the correlation of public and private interests needs serious research. The author comes to the conclusion that the legislator is currently making successful attempts to expand the dispositive principles in criminal proceedings by creating the necessary conditions for the parties to exercise the rights granted to them to defend their legitimate interests during criminal proceedings. The result of theoretical studies of this problem is also seen as the improvement of the legal regulation of judicial activity, due to the need to strengthen the judiciary as an important factor, influencing the provision of the parties with real and equal rights to participate in the resolution of legal issues, disputes or conflicts in criminal proceedings, for which it is necessary to endow the court with a broader set of decision-making powers that guarantee the protection of human and civil rights and freedoms, as well as their equality before the law and the court. In this regard, the article considers the problem of filling public criminal procedural activity with dispositive principles through the prism of strengthening the judiciary.
Infodemic: The formation of a new Media-concept
Authors:   Kemerovo State University, Kondratyeva Olga N. , Ignatova Yulia S. ,   Kemerovo State University
Published: February 2024

COVID-19 pandemic and the virus spread of hoax information which accompanied this disease encouraged the World Health Organization to use the word infodemic which was actively employed by the foreign and Russian mass-media. The redoubled attention of the mass-media to the problem of infodemic led to the growth of its social importance, to the increase of the word infodemic frequency which made it order of the day. The semantics of the word infodemic was sophisticated, new meanings in the mass-media definitions appeared, the former demanding meta-language reflection, a new media-concept was formed. The aim of the article is to explore infodemic as the key media-concept of the present time. The main stages of the media-concept’s life cycle are revealed, the peculiarities of its functioning at each stage are described. The research bank was formed with the help of the corpus method. The following methods were employed in the process of the language material scrutiny: definition analysis, component and conceptual analysis, the method of metaphoric modelling, discourseanalysis and content-analysis. The infodemic rapidly turned into a concept due to the highprofile nature, the importance and the ingenuity of the pandemic itself and its reflection in the traditional and social mass-media. The media-concept infodemic went through several stages: onset, growth and maturity. It acquired three lavish and highly-structured layers: notional, figurative and evaluative. The information in each of these layers is distributed according to three conceptual segments: “information — spread — consequences”. In the process of the media-concept’s evolution its initial connection with the medical sphere was weakened. The infodemic was interpreted as a flow of copious and false information which appears and spreads in the mass-media and the Internet in the periods of crucial social periods. The mediaconcept “infodemic” functions as an indicator of a wide variety of social problems connected with the media-consuming.
Communicative and pragmatic originality, and linguistic and stylistic resources of the television educational program (on the example of the project “Transfer of knowledge”)
Authors:   Tomsk State University, Nesterov Natalia G.
Published: February 2024

The article is devoted to the identification and description of the communicative and pragmatic specifics of the television discourse of the cognitive program and its linguistic and stylistic originality. The study is based on the material of an intellectual and entertaining quiz, the participants of which were the finalists of the regional competitions “Teacher of the Year”. It is substantiated that the communicative-pragmatic specificity of the program under study is determined by its genre (intellectual quiz), the category of participants (school teachers) and the educational strategy aimed at popularizing knowledge and sharing knowledge. These factors determine the nature of the linguistic representation of the discourse under study. The vocabulary of general education occupies a key position in the discourse under study. The genre of the quiz involves assessing the performance of tasks, which leads to an abundance of evaluative statements. It is revealed that they are represented by speech acts of approval, praise, compliment; in many cases they are used as a manifestation of politeness, as a kind of etiquette formula and create a harmonious atmosphere of communication. The communicative space of the program is characterized by emotionality, expressiveness, figurative speech of the presenters and participants. The noted features are formed through a variety of figurative and expressive means of the language: metaphors, phraseologically related combinations, precedent units. The polyphony of linguistic and stylistic resources of the cognitive program is noted. The basis of speech communication is the neutral style of the literary language in combination with elements of colloquial style. Among the colloquial elements, emotionally expressive vocabulary, elements of general, professional and youth jargon stand out.
Machine voice-over translation in social media: Perceived quality of translation of YouTube travel vlogs
Authors:   Lomonosov Moscow State University, Kalinin Andrei Y.
Published: February 2024

One of the challenges of social media as a means of interaction is to ensure media accessibility, i. e. to provide users with a free and unhindered access to the content of computer-mediated communication platforms. In the context of global networking, linguistic constraints due to the use of a verbal code different from the language of the potential user while creating media content, are not the least of the obstacles to such access. Given the obvious dominance of English in the online space, this is mainly a matter of expanding the audience by engaging individuals whose source language proficiency is not sufficient for unimpeded use of social media, in particular for viewing, listening and understanding video content uploaded on video hosting sites and other digital platforms. Since user-generated video content is generally characterised by individual and independent production, free accessibility and target audiences sharing a common interest for a specific subject matter, regardless of their residence area and language affiliation, human audio-visual translation is not considerable in such circumstances. For this reason, as a way to overcome language barriers and ensure media accessibility, the most advanced Internet portals are beginning to implement Web-based online machine translation solutions, made possible by the development of linguistic digital technologies. The survey conducted as a part of this study has shed light on the users’ perception of machine voice-over translation of English-language travel vlogs into Russian, and formulated some hypotheses regarding the ways to further improve its quality. The empirical evidence for this study was obtained from a two-step survey involving users and experts (audiovisual translators) who assessed the quality of machine voice translation of English-language travel vlog into Russian. According to the results ontained machine translation seems to be conceptually acceptable as a means of enabling language media accessibility in social media.