bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Exaggerated Misperceptions of Police, not Exaggerated Claims of Harmful Drug Effects on the Brain, is Killing Black People and Police: Reply to “Exaggerating Harmful Drug Effects on the Brain Is Killing Black People”
Authors: Pantazatos Spiro
Published: October 2020

In a recent Neuron NeuroView article, Dr. Carl Hart raises concerns that drug research exaggerates detrimental effects on the brain, which contributes towards harmful stereotypes or toxicology reports being used to justify and legitimize police brutality and killing of black people. In Part 1, I review the cases that Hart mentions to support his central claim. I find they do not provide sufficient evidence that drugs play a systematic role in motivating, justifying or legitimizing police brutality or deadly force. Future studies of police-civilian interactions are required to prove or disprove the hypothesis. Hart uses the term ‘massacre’ to refer to police killings of black people, but offers little to no evidence that police are massacring black people. In Part 2, I review two large national officer-involved fatality databases and summarize studies of racial bias and policing. To date, there is very little to no systematic evidence for anti-black bias in police shootings or killings. In Part 3, I delineate a causal pathway and cite evidence to describe how widespread, distorted perceptions of police may paradoxically contribute towards hundreds of excess homicides and thousands of felonious crimes per year in the US. These violent crimes are committed against mostly black victims, thus exacerbating the cycles of violence and structural disadvantages of socioeconomically distressed minority communities. Hart also states recreational drugs have overwhelmingly positive effects and pose less danger than police, yet black people are ~400x more likely to die by drug overdose than by an unarmed encounter with police, which is comparable to the odds of being struck by lightning. Mass protests sparked by the death of George Floyd at the hands of police have raised awareness about police brutality and the need for police reform, but distorted perceptions of police, amplified by media bias and misinformation, have also led to mass rioting, looting, and the destruction of thousands of small businesses (many of which were black-owned). They have also fueled ambush revenge killings of more than 20 officers since 2014 and have increased officers’ concerns over their safety. I propose a systems level, causal network as an approach to model the public and mental health outcomes of high profile police brutality videos that includes complex interactions among psychosocial factors and the influences of misinformation and racial, media and political bias. The model may inform evidence-based strategies to ameliorate health inequities attributed to structural racism and suggests new avenues for research in these areas.
Political bullshit receptivity and its correlates: a cross-country validation of the concept
Authors: Gligorić Vukašin , Feddes Allard , Doosje Bertjan
Published: October 2020

Frankfurt defined persuasive communication that has no regard for truth, knowledge, or evidence as bullshit. Although there has been a lot of psychological research on pseudo-profound bullshit, no study examined this type of communication in politics. In the present research, we operationalize political bullshit receptivity as endorsing vague political statements, slogans, and political bullshit programs. We investigated the relationship of these three measures with pseudo-profound bullshit, ideology (political ideology, support for neoliberalism), populism, and voting behavior. Three pre-registered studies in different cultural settings (the United States, Serbia, The Netherlands; total N = 534) yielded medium to high intercorrelations between political bullshit measures and pseudo-profound bullshit, and good construct validity (hypothesized one-factor solution). A Bayesian meta-analysis showed that all political bullshit measures positively correlated with support for the free market, while only some positively correlated with social (political statements and programs) and economic conservatism (programs), and populism (programs). In the U.S., higher receptivity to political bullshit was associated with a higher probability that one voted for Trump (vs Clinton) in the past and higher intentions to vote for Trump (vs Biden and Sanders). In the Netherlands, higher receptivity to political bullshit predicted the intention to vote for the conservative-liberal People's Party for Freedom and Democracy. Exploratory analyses on merged datasets showed that higher receptivity to political bullshit was associated with a higher probability to vote for right-wing candidates/parties and lower probability for the left-wing ones. Overall, political bullshit endorsement showed good validity, opening avenues for research in political communication, especially when this communication is broad and meaningless.
Branding Spin-Off Scholarly Journals: Transmuting Symbolic Capital into Economic Capital
Authors: Khelfaoui Mahdi , Gingras Yves
Published: October 2020

In this article, we analyse a relatively recent commercial strategy used by large academic publishers to capitalize on the brand names of their most prestigious scientific journals. Using Pierre Bourdieu’s model of capital conversion, we explain how publishers transfer the symbolic capital of an already prestigious journal to derivative journals that share in the prestige of the original brand and transform it into new economic capital. As shown by their high impact factors, these newly created journals benefit from the name recognition and reputation of the originals after which they are named. Plus, through a manuscript routing mechanism, the publishers recycle some of the submissions rejected by their highly selective flagship journal by redirecting those manuscripts, along with their reviews, to derivative journals or to one of the lower-impact journals on their list, which may require an article processing charge for publication.
HOLISTIC MARKETING IN THE FASHION INDUSTRY OF UKRAINE
Authors: ILCHENKO Nataliia , VOYNILOVYCH Vita
Published: October 2020

The problems of the fashion industry development in the context of the recognition of the pandemic throughout the world are identified. An empirical study of the imple­mentation of holistic marketing by national and international retail chains of the fashion industry in Ukraine, associated with medium-sized businesses, has been carried out. It has been proven that for Ukrainian consumers the most important characteristic of social responsibility in a trading company is the quality of goods and the level of service that create a business reputation. The results of the study of the impact of quarantine on the development of retail chains in the Ukrainian fashion industry are presented.
RETAIL BUSINESS MODELS: ADAPTATION TO NEW CHALLENGES
Authors: GANECHKO Iryna , TRUBEI Oksana
Published: October 2020

Background. The retail sector in Ukraine is in crisis due to COVID-19. New risks and challenges have emerged that have put at risk the functioning of the trading industry. Therefore, there is a need to find ways to adapt and transform business models in retail to new, crisis conditions. Analysis of recent researches and publications. Peculiarities of trade business functio­ning in conditions of uncertainty, risks, and crises are actively studied by many scientists and practitioners. However, the issue of changing retail business models in the face of instability, which would allow companies to adapt to today’s challenges, remains insufficiently studied. The aim of the article is to study the process of transformation and adaptation of business models in retail to new economic realities, challenges, and threats associated with the situation around COVID-19. Materials and methods. The information base of this study was scientific work on the adaptation of business to modern conditions of instability and rapid change. The research methodology is based on a system of general scientific and special methods, in particular: analy­sis and synthesis; systematic and integrated approach. Results. The peculiarities of the instability of the modern world according to the VUCA concept, in particular its manifestations related to the COVID-19 pandemic, have been studied. The main threats to business development in the field of retail trade in the current crisis situation have been identified. Changes in business models in retail are proposed, which will help in adapting to difficult economic conditions and maintaining the competitiveness of retail enterprises in the consumer goods market. Conclusion. The necessity of transformational changes of business models in retail in order to adapt them to crisis conditions and ensure the survival of retail enterprises in today’s unstable world is proved.
Socio-Economic Correlates of Children's Nutritional Status: Evidence from Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey 2017-18
Authors: Shahid Muhammad , Leghari Inam Ullah , Ahmed Farooq
Published: October 2020

Nutrition status is an important indicator of child health. This study estimates the effect of socioeconomic determinants on children's nutritional status of under five years of age. We apply the Composite Index of Anthropometric Failure (CIAF) in our empirical analysis as a proxy measure to denote the malnutrition measurement index, and a binary logistic regression model using PDHS dataset for 2017-18. The logistic regression model inspects the probability of malnutrition among children. The result demonstrates that the age of children, education and employment status of mothers, BMI of mothers, assets owned by mothers, tetanus vaccination of mothers, the incidence of diarrhea in children, and household wealth has a significant impact on malnutrition in children. The study concludes that socioeconomic deprivations and inequalities in society play a significant role in determining the health and nutrition of pre-school children.
An Investigation into the Effectiveness of MALL during COVID-19 at the Higher Education in Pakistani EFL Classrooms
Authors: Yasmin Khan Mamona , Tufail Huda
Published: October 2020

The main aim and objective of this study is to understand the effectiveness of MALL during Covid-19 in the Pakistani context through the insights gathered from the views of EFL learners at the higher education level. The theoretical framework employed in the research is the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) proposed by Davis (1986). The framework employed in the study is of TAM; its two factors were mainly focused, which are perceived usefulness (PU) and perceived ease of use (PEOU). The purpose of this model in the paper is to understand the behavior and attitude of the learners towards mobile technology. This research is mixed in its nature as it encompasses both qualitative and quantitative research designs. The data have been gathered from fifty students of the undergraduate and postgraduate level of English Department at the Women University Multan. The results of the study have revealed that the factors of PEOU and PU have been found to be working in this study as the learners’ views about the smartphones indicate it.
The Journey of PSL Brand (PSL's Marketing Case Study)
Authors: Malik Haider Ali , Khan Haroon , Haider Ghazala
Published: October 2020

Back in 2014, Najam Sethi was pondering over the dilapidated situation of International cricket in Pakistan. He felt dismayed at the prospects of inviting international players after the country's track record of security and terrorism. Feeling nostalgic about the cricket in Pakistan, Sethi went through the PCB's documents and shockingly discovered that PCB is generating no revenue like it used to do until 2009. He was well aware of the fact cricket is the sport that is Pakistan's blood, and every nook and cranny is yearning for live cricket in Pakistan.comparing it with other countries like India, where IPL generates staggering revenues and proved the bordering country with amazement and thrill every year.
PROBLEMS AND PROSPECTS OF TRANSFORMATION OF NATURAL RENT DISTRIBUTION ACCORDING TO THE PROVISIONS OF THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT CONCEPT
Authors: Sergiy Bardash  , Tatiana Osadcha
Published: October 2020

The urgency of the research consists in the imperfection of the mechanism of allocation and redistribution of natural rent, which significantly slows down the process of implementation of the sustainable development concept in Ukraine, both at the macroeconomic and microeconomic levels. The purpose and the objective of the research are to identify causes of unfair withdrawal and distribution of rental payments and the search for approaches to solve them considering the interests of the state, business entities that carry out economic activities using natural resources generating rent, and citizens of the country. To solve the research tasks and achieve the set purpose, the dialectical approach was used to assess the level of development of the formation, distribution and redistribution of natural rent; the system analysis was used to identify problems and substantiate measures of the state regulatory policy as to the redistribution of natural rent among entities of rental relations, as well as to determine areas for further use of rental income by business entities; the comparative analysis was applied to study the experience of using instruments, methods and levers of distribution and redistribution of rent;  the statistical methods was used to analyse the main indicators of distribution and redistribution of natural rent in the national economy; the abstract-logical method was applied to substantiate the basic theoretical provisions, formulation of conclusions. It is proved that the existing distribution of natural rent in Ukraine is imperfect due to the existence of a number of legal and fiscal-distributive issues. The model of the regulation mechanism of rental relations, which considers all entities of such relations, as well as requirements, the implementation of which brings the national economy essentially closer to the desired parameters of sustainable development, is proposed. The primary measures for transformation of the regulation mechanism of rental relations and directions of use of rental income by the business entity are determined. The practical significance of the research is to determine the necessary conditions and limitations of functioning of implementation mechanism of rental relations, as well as to determine the priorities of development of economic entities receiving natural rent. The obtained results will form the prospects for further research, which will consist of recommendations for practical implementation of the proposed regulation mechanism of rental relations.
CONCEPTUAL FOUNDATIONS OF CUSTOMS CONTROL RESEARCH
Authors: Yuri Kostyshyn
Published: October 2020

Based on the analysis of predecessors’ research, the article identifies four prevailing conceptual approaches to the disclosure of the essence of the category "customs control" (functional, procedural, methodological and financial), which allowed to conclude the complex nature of the latter. The following features of customs control are highlighted: 1) customs control is an integral part of financial control, since its purpose is to assess financial flows caused by the movement of goods and other objects abroad 2) customs control is an integral part of state control, which is due to the presence of authority in its subjects and the procedural and procedural form of implementation of customs control; 3) the preliminary-prohibiting nature of customs control; 4) features of the implementation of forms of customs control (can be carried out exclusively in areas of customs control, outside the relevant customs zones) 5) features of the principles of implementation of customs control, due to its specifics; 6) the specifics of controlled objects (currency values, accompanied and unaccompanied baggage, vehicles, goods or freight, goods containing intellectual property, international mail, etc.) 7) the specificity of methods and techniques of customs control (verification of documents, current customs audit, audits, oral questioning, inspection of customs facilities, etc.) 8) preventive, since the target orientation of customs control is to prevent customs violations regulations and smuggling. The proposed clarified interpretation of this category as a special type of state financial control, carried out in the zones of customs control by authorized entities when moving goods and other items across the country’s border by methods established by law, is aimed at observance of customs legislation by controlled entities.
INTEGRATED RENTAL CLASSIFICATION OF SUBJECTS OF ECONOMIC RELATIONS
Authors: Sergiy Bardash  , Tatiana Osadcha
Published: October 2020

The authors of the article have found that the vast majority of scientists, who study the rental relation problems in the economies of the post-Soviet countries adhere to the opinion on the validity of combining existing types of rent into two large groups by resources: natural and economic rents. Based on the results of the study, it is proposed to consider natural rent as a form of economic rent. Given the essence and economic nature of rent, and considering the need for its accounting representation, it is established that economic rent should be classified with a division into forms (absolute, differential of the 1st and 2nd kind, monopoly), types (natural and other resource rents) and subtypes based on the “way of using the rental resource”, “industry of formation”. The obtained scientific results will allow to consider the main provisions of the sustainable development concept and can be used as a basis for improving the theory and methodology, as well as the development of the organization and accounting methods for economic rent. The regulation of rental relations in the business sector determines the search for ways to reflect rent in accounting and management reporting, however, the solution to this problem is significantly hindered by the complexity of identifying and evaluating rent. Another problem is that today there is some inconsistency between the concept of "rent" and other derivative concepts, in particular, such as: "ground rent", "economic rent". Against the background of the existing scientific discussion on streamlining the essential differences between these concepts, the debate continues and the validity of the allocation of other types of rent, as well as the feasibility of introducing into the scientific circulation such concepts as “quasi-rent” and “anti-rent”. The authors have proposed to reflect in the enterprise accounting the economic rent according to its forms and types based on the resources used in economic activity. The proposed classification allows to consider the main provisions of the sustainable development concept and can be used as a basis for improving the theory and methodology, as well as the development of the organization and accounting methods for economic rent
SOCIO-ECONOMIC AND OTHER FEATURES OF CRIMINALIZATION OF ENCROACHMENTS ON OBJECTS OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS
Authors: Oksana Korotiuk
Published: October 2020

The article analyzes and proves the existence of public need for criminal law protection of objects of intellectual property rights. According to the special importance of intellectual property, which is based directly on its social value (significance) and is associated with the satisfaction of the mental, cultural, economic and other needs of society, it is proved that full and effective legal protection of the rights, freedoms and interests of the subjects of intellectual property rights is possibly solely through measures of criminal law influence. The fact that the economic and social value of intellectual property forms the intellectual capital of the country and society is extremely important. It needs state support, and in the absence of it - undergoes qualitative changes that cause the fall of all spheres of the economy, an increase in unemployment, backwardness of technologies etc. Thus, it has been established that the factors that predetermined the social necessity to criminalize encroachments on objects of intellectual property rights include the following: a) the economic and social value of intellectual property that forms the intellectual capital of the country and society; b) informational nature and ethical essence of intellectual property, allowing to consider it as one of the fundamental values ​​of society; c) the public danger of these encroachments; d) the criminal law provisions concerning violation of the right of intellectual property are a guarantee of protection of constitutional rights and interests of the person; e) international legal obligations of Ukraine affect the introduction of standards for the legal protection of intellectual property rights, including criminal law protection. Thus, the author concludes that the criminalization of encroachments on objects of intellectual property right is justified and meets the interests of society and the state.
ENTERPRISE INFORMATION SECURITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM BASED ON THE MODERN OBFUSCATION TECHNIQUE FOR MOBILE NETWORK OPERATORS
Authors: Oleh Polihenko  , Roman Odarchenko  , Sergiy Gnatyuk
Published: October 2020

In today's realities, with constantly developing information technologies (IoT, 5G, Big Data, Cloud technologies, etc.), software protection is an urgent issue in the field of information security for each small, medium, or big enterprise. Also, software protection is a very important task for such enterprises, as mobile network operators, which, in order to ensure leadership in the market, produce a large number of modern unique software products for their own needs. Moreover, the software is the intellectual property of the enterprises, which developed it. The software is the intellectual property of both large corporations and small companies. The low reliability of software protection for enterprises is associated with a rather complex and time-consuming process, as well as with a number of technical limitations, which contributes to the thriving of computer piracy, inflicts colossal losses on IT companies and, of course, the state as a whole. Therefore, the development of a new effective method of software protection, for the moment, is a priority in the field of information security, and new methods and techniques of software protection are needed for all specialized companies, which develop paid software. Nowadays there are many different approaches to solving this problem. These are encryption, watermarking, etc., but no one gives guaranteed results. That's why modern companies engaged in software development, should provide their customers with a more secure information product. In this paper, the authors have provided the improved, more effective obfuscation method, based on a new sequence of obfuscation transformations. This method allows providing software protection of the enterprises from reverse engineering. To ensure the effectiveness of the proposed method, the authors have developed a special software product, based on cycles of operation and the creation of pseudocode to protect other software products. In the process of writing this article, studies were conducted that showed the following results. The product has become approximately 1.4 times more secure, and the obfuscation rate has increased by 10 percent. Based on the foregoing, the developed method can be followed to complicate the decoding process of existing software products used in various enterprises. In the future, it is planned to implement additional obfuscation transformations, as well as a comparative analysis with existing obfuscation programs.
FEATURES OF CRIMINAL AND LEGAL PROTECTION OF ECONOMIC AND OTHER INTERESTS OF SUBJECTS OF THE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS ON UKRAINIAN LANDS UNDER THE CRIMINAL PROVISIONS OF 1903
Authors: Oksana Korotiuk
Published: October 2020

The article analyzes the criminal law provisions of the Criminal Code of 1903, which provided the responsibility for encroachments on objects of intellectual property rights, and defined the peculiarities of criminal legal protection of economic and other interests of subjects of intellectual property rights in Ukrainian lands according to these criminal legal norms. The Criminal Code of 1903 was marked by a significant difference from the Criminal Code of 1845, expressed as a significant reduction in the number of criminal acts, the general humanization of criminal punishment, and in a more progressive approach to the design of criminal law. For example, in Art. 1, the principle of "nullum crimen sine lege" was directly affirmed for the first time, while in criminal laws of earlier times it was laid down but only proceeded from the general content of the articles. Analysis of the criminal law of the Criminal Code of 1903 provisions allowed to conclude that the criminal legal protection of objects of intellectual property rights was carried out at the expense of: 1) criminal law, which provided for liability for attacks on objects of copyright and patent law. In this case, the legal protection of copyright objects was closely linked to the censorship and, in fact, was inseparable from it; 2) the provisions establishing criminal liability for actions related to the disclosure of secrets; 3) provisions relating to the introduction of goods into the market and their circulation there, as well as the importation of goods into the territory of the Russian Empire, which provided for liability for the following acts: a) acts related to the illegal manufacture of works and their introduction into circulation, in including the illegal circulation of equipment that may be used for the illicit manufacture of works; b) acts related to the illicit sale or other distribution of works; c) other acts related to the illegal circulation of objects of intellectual property rights.
LEGISLATIVE BASES OF PROFESSIONAL-QUALIFICATION COMPLEX FORMATION OF HUMAN POTENTIAL IN THE SYSTEM OF CIVIL SERVICE OF UKRAINE
Authors: Yevhen Grebonozhko
Published: October 2020

The article shows the legislative framework of the professional qualification component of human potential formation in the system of civil service of Ukraine. In particular, the laws of Ukraine on public service, decrees of the President of Ukraine, subordinate legal acts, which created conditions for the development of the national civil service system in 1991-2018, were analyzed. The analysis of Ukraine legislation about government service gives an opportunity to find out not only the conditions of development of national government service system in 1991-2017, but also conceptualize an experience of human potential formation in the system of government service of Ukraine. The author showed the transition from the labor to the public concept of relations in the civil service system of Ukraine, which implies a different view of the identification of workers and employees. This was typical of the countries with the socialist system of law, according to the doctrine of which, every person participates in society, regardless of the scope of his/her work. It was justified that the process of further development of the civil service in Ukraine requires the attention of scientists and legislators on such issues, as strengthening legal guarantees, social and moral protection of civil servants in their professional duties, improving the mechanism of accountability of civil servants, consistent with the rules of administrative, civil, financial, labor and criminal law. The next reform tasks are to improve the system of criteria for evaluating the activities of civil servants. The author also analyzes the means and capabilities of reports on the civil service system in Ukraine. This allows to get statistics and conduct quality analytics. The article contains statistical data on the number of civil servants
INTERNAL CONTROL SYSTEM: STRUCTURE, SELF-DEVELOPMENT AND SELF-CONTROL
Authors: Yurii Kiiko
Published: October 2020

Without a coordinated, limited control risk resources cannot be effectively used, and significant risks cannot be identified and properly managed. Internal control is clearly structured and has a vertical hierarchy. The system of internal control consists of three levels and each of them inherent function of improvement of the previous one. The lowest level of control is the control of managers departments as well as primary control during operations with production department. The second level of internal control is the specialized control departments, such as: financial control, security, compliance, risk management, quality management of service or manufactured products, and so on. The functions of these divisions are the development of activities methods in their working area and control implementation of this methods, or compliance with external / legal regulations. Within the limits of their authority, the subjects of control at this level of internal control also develop / propose changes to the control methods (within their competences) which are applied to the first level. The third level is the level of internal audit. The function of internal audit is directed at two main lines: control of operations and settlements; assessment and improvement of the internal control system. Therefore, internal audit, has one of the main tasks, it is the improvement and control of the subjects of the first and second levels of the internal control system. Improvement and development of internal audit is carried out through self-assessment and external evaluation of internal audit (commissioned by the Supervisory Board).
Foundations for Ontology of Persistence: Beyond Talk of Temporal Parts
Authors: Toyoshima Fumiaki
Published: October 2020

Persistence is about how things behave across time. It is generally discussed in terms of endurantism (three-dimensionalism) and perdurantism (four-dimensionalism). Despite the relevance of persistence to ontological modeling, however, there is no clear consensus over how to characterize precisely those two theories of persistence. This paper takes the initial steps towards a foundation for ontology of persistence. In particular, I examine by employing recent findings from philosophy of persistence how some major upper ontologies conceptualize endurantism and perdurantism. My resulting modest suggestion is that formal-ontological discussion on persistence should be updated by expanding its perspective beyond the topic of whether objects have proper temporal parts or not.
Embodied Functional Relations: A Formal Account Combining Abstract Logical Theory with Grounding in Simulation
Authors: Pomarlan Mihai , Bateman John A.
Published: October 2020

Functional relations such as containment or support have proven difficult to formalize. Although previous efforts have attempted this using hybrids of several theories, from mereology to temporal logic, we find that such purely symbolic approaches do not account for the embodied nature of functional relations, i.e. that they are used by embodied agents to describe fragments of a physical world. We propose a formalism that combines descriptions of a high level of abstraction with generative models that can be used to instantiate or recognize arrangements of objects and trajectories conforming to qualitative descriptions. The formalism gives an account of how a qualitative description of a scene or arrangement of objects can be converted into a quantitative description amenable to simulation, and how simulation results can be qualitatively interpreted. We use this to describe functional relations between objects in terms of spatial arrangements, expectations on behavior, and counterfactual expectations for when one of the participants is absent. Our method is able to tackle important questions facing an agent operating in the world, such as what would happen if an arrangement of objects is created and why. This gives the agent a deeper understanding of functional relations, including what role background objects, not explicitly asserted to participate in a functional relation such as containment, play in enabling or hindering the relation from holding.
Health literacy: Global advances with a focus upon the Shanghai Declaration on promoting health in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
Authors: Pleasant Andrew , O’Leary Catina , Carmona Richard
Published: October 2020

In a steadily growing effort, the world has witnessed more than three decades of effort in research, practice, and policy to socially construct what has been identified as ‘health literacy. While much of the earlier work in health literacy was in the United States, the extent of scholars and practitioners is now truly global. To advance international health literacy, the chapter highlights the role of the World Health Organization (WHO) and a series of international conferences that began in 1980s. More specifically, the chapter outlines World Health Organization’s overarching health literacy efforts, notes the importance of health literacy within WHO’s new organization structure, briefly describes how the concept of health literacy emerged throughout a generation of the WHO’s international conferences, suggests an ethical foundation for the WHO’s health literacy work, and explains how the groundwork set by the WHO provides some challenges and foundations for future health literacy research and practice.
Effect of vitamin D treatment on VDR expression in primary cerebral cortical cells in induced oxidative stress
Authors: Alsulami Ebtesam , Alokail Majed , Alghamedi Amani , Alamro Abir , Haq Samina
Published: October 2020

BACKGROUND: In addition to calcium and phosphate homeostasis in peripheral tissues; vitamin D performs a neuroprotection role in the nervous system. The neuroprotective actions of vitamin D include: increasing vitamin D receptor (VDR) expression, control glutathione synthesis and nitric oxide synthase activity and induce neurotrophins such as nerve growth factor (NGF). VDR mediates cellular actions, and biological responses of the vitamin D. OBJECTIVE: To study the effect of VDR and NGF expression levels by vitamin D3 treatment in induced oxidative stress in primary cortical neuronal cultures. METHOD: Primary neuronal cultures were set up from the cortex region of neonatal rat’s brain. They were cultured for up to 72 h in the presence of 0.25μg/ml vitamin D3. These cells were exposed to 0.5 mM H2O2 for two hours before collecting cell pellet and medium for biochemical assays. Control and H2O2 treated cells were cultured in the absence of vitamin D3 treatment. Sandwich ELISA was used to study NGF expression. Western blotting and immunofluorescence of cultured cells were used to estimate the expression of VDR. RESULTS: Vitamin D3 treatment increased more significantly (P < 0.001) NGF levels with and without induced oxidative stress. Protein expression studies confirmed the positive correlation between VDR expression and vitamin D3 treatment after 72 h in culture. Moreover, pre-treating the cells with vitamin D3 before H2O2 exposure significantly increase (P < 0.05) VDR expression in comparison with the cells exposed to H2O2 alone. CONCLUSION: The neuroprotective effect of vitamin D3 against oxidative stress could be through up-regulating VDR and NGF levels.
Link optimization of the new generation instant messaging network based on artificial intelligence technology
Authors: Xu Xia
Published: October 2020

The current network environment is dynamic, open and extensible. In order to better ensure the needs of users, higher requirements are placed on link resource allocation. Based on the research and analysis of the instant communication protocol, this paper studies an intelligent routing evolution algorithm and related fault recovery strategy for the instant communication network. Research on instant messaging intelligent algorithms for routing evolution is mainly based on routing algorithms and artificial intelligence intelligent algorithms. When a link failure occurs in the communication network, the routing algorithm performs route reconstruction and optimization on the entire instant communication network. Considering that there may be evolutionary needs of large-scale routing networks in practical applications, this paper introduces artificial intelligence intelligent algorithms to optimize intelligent algorithms to improve efficiency. A cognitive routing protocol based on MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) technology is proposed. By using MIMO technology, a lot of gain is brought to the communication link under multiple antennas. These gains correspond to different link types. The protocol realizes cognition through intelligent routing evolution algorithm and predicts the state of the network. Setting the routing life and hello period according to the perceived network status can optimize the performance of the network.
On fault-tolerant partition dimension of graphs
Authors: Azhar Kamran , Zafar Sohail , Kashif Agha , Zahid Zohaib
Published: October 2020

Fault-tolerant resolving partition is natural extension of resolving partitions which have many applications in different areas of computer sciences for example sensor networking, intelligent systems, optimization and robot navigation. For a nontrivial connected graph G (V (G) , E (G)), the partition representation of vertex v with respect to an ordered partition Π = {Si : 1 ≤ i ≤ k} of V (G) is the k-vector r ( v | Π ) = ( d ( v , S i ) ) i = 1 k , where, d (v, Si) = min {d (v, x) |x ∈ Si}, for i ∈ {1, 2, …, k}. A partition Π is said to be fault-tolerant partition resolving set of G if r (u|Π) and r (v|Π) differ by at least two places for all u ≠ v ∈ V (G). A fault-tolerant partition resolving set of minimum cardinality is called the fault-tolerant partition basis of G and its cardinality the fault-tolerant partition dimension of G denoted by P ( G ) . In this article, we will compute fault-tolerant partition dimension of families of tadpole and necklace graphs.
Censuses of agriculture and COVID-19: Global situation and lessons
Authors: Castano Jairo
Published: October 2020

A review of the status of censuses of agriculture in 150 countries and territories shows that the impact of COVID-19 has not discriminated between developed and developing countries. However, some countries have fared better than others when faced with the challenges posed by the pandemic. Earlier improvements in national statistical systems, a wide range of ICT solutions and the sourcing of census data from administrative registers have enabled these countries to significantly reduce their reliance on physical contact for tasks such as final preparation of field activities, training and data collection. The experience has confirmed the usefulness of these efforts and will likely further accelerate the pace of innovation, even though most of these countries expect that farmers’ non-response rates will be higher than in the past. At the same time, the COVID-19 crisis has been a lesson to other countries on the need to improve the working environment, diversify census data collection and training methods, and make use of administrative registers in future census rounds.
Knowledge and Practices Regarding Infant and Young Child Feeding among Mothers’ Children 0-23 Months of Matli, District Badin, Sindh
Authors: Haq Mazhar Ul , Khan Rukhsana , Bilal Arshia , . Lajpat , Almas Saira , Balouch Muhammad Ali , Khan Shahida
Published: October 2020

Background: Lack of proper practices account for the deaths of 1.4 million children of <5 years globally. Optimal Infant and Young Child Feeding practices are recognized as the most valuable approach for improving child survival and development. We aimed to assess the knowledge and practices and to determine the factors affecting Infant and Young Child Feeding practices among mothers of children 0-23 months of Taluka Hospital Matli, Badin District, Sindh
Methods: A descriptive hospital-based cross-sectional study was conducted with the sample of 279 mothers visiting pediatric OPD of Taluka Hospital Matli, Badin District, Sindh-Pakistan from 1st October to 31st December 2016. The sample was collected by using non probability consecutive sampling technique and structured pretested questionnaire.
Results: 94% of women had the knowledge of when to start breastfeeding after delivery. There is a strong association between maternal education and 0-23 month’s children receiving bottle feed and also a strong association between the information providers and bottle feeding practice.
Conclusion: We have found a good dependence of birth weight of the newborn with the monthly income of the household. LHWs and nurses were main sources of information provider about breastfeeding.
Trend of Medical Research Journal and Article Reading among Medical Students – An Experimental Approach
Authors: Haider Ayesha , Maken Zafar Hayat , Junaid Nadia , Naqvi Agha Syed Ali Haider , Ramzan Muhammad Haris , Naqvi Syeda Zuha , Mustafa Umar , Basit Muhammad Abdul
Published: October 2020

Background: We conducted this study to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice of medical research journals and article reading among medical students, to point out factors contributing to perceived barriers towards this activity and to investigate the effect of research seminars, workshops, motivation and mentorship of medical students.
Methods: A medical college based experimental study was carried out in two phases, in which second, third- and fourth-year medical students attending the lectures of community medicine were enrolled. A well-structured questionnaire was used to assess the attitude of students, towards research-based activities. Based on the results, the students who showed lack of interest towards research were divided into two groups, experimental and control for the second phase of the study and were subjected to the final questionnaire, the results were then recorded and the data was analyzed using statistical techniques.
Results: 226 students recruited for the first part of the study, showed lack of motivation, guidance, mentorship, and curriculum overload as significant factors affecting their research activities. Whereas in second part of the study, the experimental group showed an increase of 23 – 35 % in research activities after research mentorship programs as compared to the control group.
Conclusion: The proper understanding of research was generally low among medical students. Lack of motivation, mentorship, and curriculum overload were among the leading factors affecting their attitude towards research. The motivational lectures, and mentorship programs proved very successful in improving student's knowledge about research and research-based activities.
Antibiotic Resistance: KAP Study on Medical and Non-Medical Students of Lahore, Pakistan
Authors: Iqbal Muhammad Talha , Ahmed Maryam Habib , Omar Naureen , Ahmed Muhammad Raza , Fahad Muhammad , Ali Muhammad , Kaukab Maryam
Published: October 2020

Background: Antibiotics are believed to be safe drugs implying unawareness of people regarding implications of their unchecked overuse, health care professionals being no exception attributed to their attitude and differential practices. Objective was to assess knowledge, attitude and practices regarding antibiotic resistance among medical and non-medical students.
Methods: Descriptive study was conducted in Lahore from March to August 2018. A total of 384 first and second year medical and bachelor students of Fatima Memorial medical college and Nur university were enrolled. Validated questionnaire adopted from WHO survey was used to interview students. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 23. Individual and institutional ethical considerations were fulfilled.
Results: Mean age was 19.89±1.4. 94 medical (49%) and 77 (40.1%) non-medical students claimed to have taken antibiotics in the previous month, 63.6% using a prescription, 76% buying from medical store. Majority 91.7% (176) medical students were aware of the term “Antibiotic Resistance” compared to 64.1% (123) non-medical. Antibiotics becomes less effective once resistance develops leading to difficulty in treatment of infections; medical 145(76%) and nonmedical 137 (71.4%). Commonest treated diseases sore throat 102(53.1%) medical and fever 89(46.4%) non-medical students. Antibiotic resistance is a global issue; 77.6% (149) medical and 75% (144) non-medical students.
Conclusion: Majority of students were aware of antibiotics and resistance developing against them with a minimal difference between medical and non-medical.
Los precios ante la moral
Authors: Solozábal Jose María
Published: October 2020

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Las sociedades de establecimiento y de migraciones rurales
Authors: Brugarola Martín
Published: October 2020

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Synthesis of gold nanostar using chitosan as reductive agent by the seedless reduction method
Authors: Vo Khuong Quoc , Tong Thi Hong , Nguyen Phuong Phong Thi , Hoàng Phuc Thanh
Published: October 2020

The gold nanostars (AuNS) were prepared through seedless reductive method by using the natural biodegradable polymer chitosan acting both as the stabilizing and shape-directing agent, ascorbic acid as a reducting agent. This reaction synthesis was carried out at room temperature and facile conditions. In an effort to control the size and shape of AuNS, many experimental parameters were investigated for the thorough understanding the role of chitosan in the formation of gold nanostar. In this novel method, the pH condition and appropriate stabilizer concentration were crucial factors to prepare the well-defined AuNS. The obtained AuNS were characterized by many physical-chemistry analysis method such as transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), UV-Vis spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering (DLS), and X-Ray diffraction (XRD). The AuNS have an average size of about 55 nm and narrow size distribution when characterized by TEM images. UV-Vis spectroscopy of the gold nanoparticles colloidal solution showed the characteristic peaks at 587-700 nm, corresponding to the surface plasmon resonance of star-shaped nanostructure. The specific interactions between the functional groups of chitosan chain and the as-prepared gold nanostars are analyzed by the FT-IR spectroscopy technique. These results provided insight into the role of biopolymer as both a protecting agent and structure-directing agent. This novel method can overcome previous limitations in controlled synthesis of star-shaped gold nanoparticles such as surfactant use and complex implementation. Besides, the gold nanostars stabilized by chitosan could be a potential material in many applications in the field of biomedical medicine.
Promising molecular targets for pharmacological therapy of neurodegenerative pathologies
Authors: Neganova Margarita E. , Aleksandrova Yulia R. , Nebogatikov Vladimir O. , Klochkov Sergey , Ustyugov Aleksey A.
Published: October 2020

Drug development for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases has to confront numerous problems occurring, in particular, because of attempts to address only one of the causes of the pathogenesis of neurological disorders. Recent advances in multitarget therapy research are gaining momentum by utilizing pharmacophores that simultaneously affect different pathological pathways in the neurodegeneration process. The application of such a therapeutic strategy not only involves the treatment of symptoms, but also mainly addresses prevention of the fundamental pathological processes of neurodegenerative diseases and the reduction of cognitive abilities. Neuroinflammation and oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, dysregulation of the expression of histone deacetylases, and aggregation of pathogenic forms of proteins are among the most common and significant pathological features of neurodegenerative diseases. In this review, we focus on the molecular mechanisms and highlight the main aspects, including reactive oxygen species, the cell endogenous antioxidant system, neuroinflammation triggers, metalloproteinases, -synuclein, tau proteins, neuromelanin, histone deacetylases, presenilins, etc. The processes and molecular targets discussed in this review could serve as a starting point for screening leader compounds that could help prevent or slow down the development of neurodegenerative diseases.