bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Malaria in Burkina Faso: A comprehensive analysis of spatiotemporal distribution of incidence and environmental drivers, and implications for control strategies
Authors: Bationo Cédric , Cissoko Mady , Katilé Abdoulaye , Sylla Bry , Ouédraogo Ambroise , Ouedraogo Jean Baptiste , Tougri Gauthier , Kompaoré Sidzabda C. B. , Moiroux Nicolas , Gaudart Jean
Published: September 2023

Background

The number of malaria cases worldwide has increased, with over 241 million cases and 69,000 more deaths in 2020 compared to 2019. Burkina Faso recorded over 11 million malaria cases in 2020, resulting in nearly 4,000 deaths. The overall incidence of malaria in Burkina Faso has been steadily increasing since 2016. This study investigates the spatiotemporal pattern and environmental and meteorological determinants of malaria incidence in Burkina Faso.

Methods

We described the temporal dynamics of malaria cases by detecting the transmission periods and the evolution trend from 2013 to 2018. We detected hotspots using spatial scan statistics. We assessed different environmental zones through a hierarchical clustering and analyzed the environmental and climatic data to identify their association with malaria incidence at the national and at the district’s levels through generalized additive models. We also assessed the time lag between malaria peaks onset and the rainfall at the district level. The environmental and climatic data were synthetized into indicators.

Results

The study found that malaria incidence had a seasonal pattern, with high transmission occurring during the rainy seasons. We also found an increasing trend in the incidence. The highest-risk districts for malaria incidence were identified, with a significant expansion of high-risk areas from less than half of the districts in 2013–2014 to nearly 90% of the districts in 2017–2018. We identified three classes of health districts based on environmental and climatic data, with the northern, south-western, and western districts forming separate clusters. Additionally, we found that the time lag between malaria peaks onset and the rainfall at the district level varied from 7 weeks to 17 weeks with a median at 10 weeks. Environmental and climatic factors have been found to be associated with the number of cases both at global and districts levels.

Conclusion

The study provides important insights into the environmental and spatiotemporal patterns of malaria in Burkina Faso by assessing the spatio temporal dynamics of Malaria cases but also linking those dynamics to the environmental and climatic factors. The findings highlight the importance of targeted control strategies to reduce the burden of malaria in high-risk areas as we found that Malaria epidemiology is complex and linked to many factors that make some regions more at risk than others.
Rush hour-and-a-half: Traffic is spreading out post-lockdown
Authors: Bhagat-Conway Matthew Wigginton , Zhang Sam
Published: September 2023

Traffic congestion is ubiquitous in major cities around the world. Congestion is associated with a slew of negative effects, including delays and local air pollution. Because of the negative effects of congestion, governments invest billions of dollars into the highway system to try to reduce congestion and accommodate peak-hour automobile travel demand. The COVID-19 pandemic presented a significant disruption to transportation systems globally. One impact was a drastic reduction in travel, leading to free-flowing traffic conditions in many previously-congested cities. As lockdowns eased, traffic volumes returned to near-normal levels. However, the temporal pattern of demand may differ, due to increased remote work or other factors. In this article, we examine the temporal distribution of highway demand in California, using data from over 3,500 traffic sensors. We find that peak-hour automobile travel is spreading in the post-lockdown period. In addition to decreased traffic congestion, this finding also has implications for infrastructure investment. Roadways are generally sized based on peak-hour demand. As the peaks spread, some highway construction project may prove unnecessary. It may be possible to reallocate road space to other uses with fewer tradeoffs in terms of traffic congestion.
COVID-19 and visitation to Central Park, New York City
Authors: Weng Weizhe , Yan Lingxiao , Boyle Kevin J. , Parsons George
Published: September 2023

Central Park is an iconic feature of New York City, which was the first and one of the hardest hit cities in the United States by the Coronavirus. State-level stay-at-home order, raising COVID-19 cases, as well as the public’s personal concerns regarding exposure to the virus, led to a significant reduction of Central Park visitation. We utilized extensive cellphone tracking data to conduct one of the pioneering empirical studies assessing the economic impact of COVID-19 on urban parks. We integrated the difference-in-difference (DID) design with the recreation-demand model. The DID design aids in identifying the causal impacts, controlling for unobservable factors that might confound the treatment effects of interest. Concurrently, the recreational demand model examines the driving factors of visitation changes and enables us to estimate the welfare changes experienced by New York City’s residents. Our findings shine a light on the substantial, yet often overlooked, welfare loss triggered by the pandemic. The analysis indicates that the pandemic resulted in a 94% reduction in visitation, corresponding to an annual consumer surplus loss of $450 million. We noted a rebound in visitation following the initial outbreak, influenced by shifts in government policy, weather conditions, holiday periods, and personal characteristics.
Use of a scent-detection dog for sea turtle nest monitoring of three sea turtle species in Florida
Authors: Lindborg Rebekah J. , Peruyero Pepe , Witherington Blair E.
Published: September 2023

Sea turtles are threatened with extinction around the world and rely on sandy beaches for laying their eggs. To protect eggs and locate them for calculation of reproductive success, beach surveyors must find the exact placement of each clutch. Eggs may be buried up to one meter deep under a nest mound several square meters in area. To locate sea turtle eggs, beach surveyors might spend hours searching for these eggs hidden in the sand, especially for difficult-to-locate leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea) and green turtle (Chelonia mydas) eggs. Scent-detection dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) are a novel tool that could provide a means to more accurately identify nests and efficiently locate eggs that need assessment, protection, or relocation. We assessed the effectiveness and feasibility of using a detection dog to locate sea turtle eggs buried in beach sand as compared to the traditional method using human beach surveyors. The detection dog was significantly more accurate in detecting loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) eggs and more efficient (less time spent and fewer holes dug) in assisting with locating the eggs. This case study presents results on the performance of one detection dog only, and additional research is needed with multiple detection dogs and handlers.
Changes in immunization coverage and contributing factors among children aged 12–23 months from 2000 to 2019, Ethiopia: Multivariate decomposition analysis
Authors: Asresie Melash Belachew , Dagnew Gizachew Worku , Bekele Yibeltal Alemu
Published: September 2023

Background

Immunization has been promoted as a global strategy aimed at improving child survival. The World Health Organization strives to make immunization services available to everyone, everywhere to save over 50 million lives by 2030. Monitoring the change and identifying the factors contributing to the change in immunization coverage over time and across the nations is imperative for continuing global success in increasing immunization coverage. In this study, we examined the changes and factors that contributed to the change in full immunization coverage over time in Ethiopia (2000 to 2019).

Methods

We analyzed data on children aged 12–23 months, extracted from the 2000 and 2019 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS) datasets. A total of 3,072 weighted samples (2,076 in 2000 and 966 in 2019) were included in the analysis. A multivariate decomposition analysis technique was used to determine change and identify factors that contributed to the change over time. Statistical significance was defined at a 95% confidence interval with a p-value of less than 0.05.

Results

There was a 29.56% (95% CI: 24.84, 34.28) change in full immunization coverage between the two surveys. It increased from 14.62% (95% CI: 12.43, 17.11) in 2000 to 44.18% (95% CI: 37.19, 51.41) in 2019. The decomposition analysis showed that about 75% of explained change was attributed to the differences in the composition of explanatory variables (the endowment effect). Particularly, women aged 35–49 years (-2.11%), those who attended four or more antenatal care visits (17.06%), individual who had postnatal care visits (16.90%), households with two or more under-five children (2.50%), and those with a history of child mortality (17.80%) were significantly attributed to the change. The rest, 25% of the explained change was attributed to the difference in the effects of explanatory variables (coefficient). The change in the coefficient for women who had experienced child death (-20.40%) was statistically significant to the change in full immunization coverage over time.

Conclusion

The finding of this study revealed that there was a statistically significant change in full immunization coverage over time. The majority of the change was attributed to the differences in the composition of explanatory variables such as antenatal care and postnatal care visits, age of the mother, and number of living children in the household. Therefore, strengthening maternal health services utilization may enhance immunization coverage in Ethiopia. Furthermore, the difference in coefficient of mothers with a history of child death had a substantial counteracting effect on the change, emphasizing the importance of raising awareness and delivering vaccine education to them and the larger community.
Phage-antibiotic synergy: Cell filamentation is a key driver of successful phage predation
Authors: Bulssico Julián , PapukashvilI Irina , Espinosa Leon , Gandon Sylvain , Ansaldi Mireille
Published: September 2023

Phages are promising tools to fight antibiotic-resistant bacteria, and as for now, phage therapy is essentially performed in combination with antibiotics. Interestingly, combined treatments including phages and a wide range of antibiotics lead to an increased bacterial killing, a phenomenon called phage-antibiotic synergy (PAS), suggesting that antibiotic-induced changes in bacterial physiology alter the dynamics of phage propagation. Using single-phage and single-cell techniques, each step of the lytic cycle of phage HK620 was studied in E. coli cultures treated with either ceftazidime, cephalexin or ciprofloxacin, three filamentation-inducing antibiotics. In the presence of sublethal doses of antibiotics, multiple stress tolerance and DNA repair pathways are triggered following activation of the SOS response. One of the most notable effects is the inhibition of bacterial division. As a result, a significant fraction of cells forms filaments that stop dividing but have higher rates of mutagenesis. Antibiotic-induced filaments become easy targets for phages due to their enlarged surface areas, as demonstrated by fluorescence microscopy and flow cytometry techniques. Adsorption, infection and lysis occur more often in filamentous cells compared to regular-sized bacteria. In addition, the reduction in bacterial numbers caused by impaired cell division may account for the faster elimination of bacteria during PAS. We developed a mathematical model to capture the interaction between sublethal doses of antibiotics and exposition to phages. This model shows that the induction of filamentation by sublethal doses of antibiotics can amplify the replication of phages and therefore yield PAS. We also use this model to study the consequences of PAS on the emergence of antibiotic resistance. A significant percentage of hyper-mutagenic filamentous bacteria are effectively killed by phages due to their increased susceptibility to infection. As a result, the addition of even a very low number of bacteriophages produced a strong reduction of the mutagenesis rate of the entire bacterial population. We confirm this prediction experimentally using reporters for bacterial DNA repair. Our work highlights the multiple benefits associated with the combination of sublethal doses of antibiotics with bacteriophages.
Adenovirus protein VII binds the A-box of HMGB1 to repress interferon responses
Authors: Arnold Edward A. , Kaai Robin J. , Leung Katie , Brinkley Mia R. , Kelnhofer-Millevolte Laurel E. , Guo Monica S. , Avgousti Daphne C.
Published: September 2023

Viruses hijack host proteins to promote infection and dampen host defenses. Adenovirus encodes the multifunctional protein VII that serves both to compact viral genomes inside the virion and disrupt host chromatin. Protein VII binds the abundant nuclear protein high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) and sequesters HMGB1 in chromatin. HMGB1 is an abundant host nuclear protein that can also be released from infected cells as an alarmin to amplify inflammatory responses. By sequestering HMGB1, protein VII prevents its release, thus inhibiting downstream inflammatory signaling. However, the consequences of this chromatin sequestration on host transcription are unknown. Here, we employ bacterial two-hybrid interaction assays and human cell culture to interrogate the mechanism of the protein VII-HMGB1 interaction. HMGB1 contains two DNA binding domains, the A- and B-boxes, that bend DNA to promote transcription factor binding while the C-terminal tail regulates this interaction. We demonstrate that protein VII interacts directly with the A-box of HMGB1, an interaction that is inhibited by the HMGB1 C-terminal tail. By cellular fractionation, we show that protein VII renders A-box containing constructs insoluble, thereby acting to prevent their release from cells. This sequestration is not dependent on HMGB1’s ability to bind DNA but does require post-translational modifications on protein VII. Importantly, we demonstrate that protein VII inhibits expression of interferon β, in an HMGB1-dependent manner, but does not affect transcription of downstream interferon-stimulated genes. Together, our results demonstrate that protein VII specifically harnesses HMGB1 through its A-box domain to depress the innate immune response and promote infection.
The transformable canon
Authors: Hardin Carolyn
Published: September 2023

Studies of the reasons fans transform texts for the most part leave unanswered the question of why particular kinds of texts are transformed by fans more frequently than others. All texts are technically available for fan transformation. However, not all texts are equally transformed. It is an objective fact that some TV shows attract more transformative fan engagement than others. In this article, I argue that formal properties of texts make them more likely to be subject to transformative fan works, i.e. more transformable. Shows that (1) posit a plastic universe that more easily accommodates ‘play’ than realism, (2) involve stories that follow some of the narrative conventions of melodrama and (3) display main characters with ‘ship’ – especially homoerotic ‘slash’ – potential have transformable canons. To prove this thesis, I examine two of the shows – and their respective fanfiction – that have the most fanfiction on FanFiction.net and ArchiveOfOurOwn.org: Supernatural and Sherlock.
Ms. Marvel’s America: No Normal, Jessica Baldanzi and Hussein Rashid (eds) (2020)
Authors: Chung Erika
Published: September 2023

Review of: Ms. Marvel’s America: No Normal, Jessica Baldanzi and Hussein Rashid (eds) (2020)

Jackson, MS: University Press of Mississippi, 262 pp.,

ISBN 978-1-49682-701-2, p/bk, $35.00
A Kossuth-díj mint esztétikai tárgy
Authors: Szirmai Éva
Published: September 2023

A jelen esszében vázolt gondolattöredékek mindegyike kötődik Újvári Edithez, az ünnepelthez; azokhoz a folyamatokhoz, amelyeknek közösen voltunk részesei; a tudományterületekhez, amelyekre ugyan máshonnan, más utakon érkeztünk, de együttműködésünket ez nem befolyásolta; a közéleti kérdésekhez, amelyekről hasonlóan gondolkodtunk, és ki-ki vérmérséklete, stílusa szerint adott hangot a gondolatainak. „Mindezt majd megírom még pontosabban is”
Milyen a jó vezető?
Authors: Keczer Gabriella
Published: September 2023

A vezetővel kapcsolatos elvárások, az ideális vezető képe folyamatosan változott a közgondolkodás, a társadalmi, gazdasági körülmények és kihívások függvényében. Tanulmányomban a vezetői tulajdonságok, a vezetővel szembeni elvárások alakulását mutatom be dióhéjban a 19. század közepére jellemző “nagy ember” eszmétől a klasszikus és modern vezetési modelleken át a legfrissebb, már a pandémiára is reflektáló elképzelésekig.
Pandemic Pedagogy in Higher Education: Exploring Theories With Experiential Learning
Authors: Boschetto Lacee R.
Published: September 2023

March 2020 will be etched in time as a significant pivot in the landscape of education. For many educators, transitioning to remote learning initiated a survival mode in which previously unutilized strategies were implemented to salvage curriculum. The lack of in-person interaction
halted traditional instruction methods, altering opportunities to incorporate sufficient rigor. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, online learning in higher education increased in popularity, despite perceptions of inconsistent online design and implementation (Meyer, 2002). The sudden shift
to a remote learning environment sparked a return of student concern toward online learning. Shortly after the spring 2020 semester, 72.5% of students reported the online format required “more effort to complete my coursework” (Motz et al., 2021). The lack of proper training
in online instruction often resulted in educators—unfamiliar with online tools designed for student engagement—who associated rigor with a robust amount of coursework (Tobin, 2020). As observed in the Motz et al. (2020) study, the intent to supplement in-person lectures with additional
resources did not lead to learning. Recent research indicated that increased coursework with more time spent on assignments resulted in lower grades and decreased students' perceived success (Motz et al., 2021).
Professional Accountability via Professional Imperatives
Authors: McGregor Sue L.T.
Published: September 2023

Addressing practical, perennial problems with no discernible solutions (e.g., income insecurity, food insecurity, housing insecurity, health inequality, unsustainability) generates moral fallout–people could be harmed. As a profession, family and consumer sciences/home economics
mandates that its practitioners hold deep obligations to the public they serve. Thus, morally- bound practice cannot go unchecked. Family and consumer sciences (FCS) professionals can bolster their professional accountability if they embrace eight professional imperatives, which range from
the abstract and the theoretical to the concrete. These include being philosophically grounded, ethically compelled, morally obligated, values oriented, ideologically aware, theoretically mature, intellectually savvy, and competent and skilled. When embraced, these imperatives will better
ensure professional accountability by FCS practitioners.
Comparative Study of Philosophical Poetics of T. S. Eliot’s Finite Center and Wallace Stevens’ Supreme Fiction: From the Perspective of Sociology of Knowledge
Authors:   The T. S. Eliot Society Of Korea, KIM Sunghyun
Published: September 2023

It is widely known that T. S. Eliot’s poetics and philosophy are grounded on the epistemology of F. H. Bradley. Wallace Stevens, who played another significant role in the modernist poetics during a similar period, presented his unique philosophy on reality and phenomena in “Notes Toward a Supreme Fiction.” According to Stevens, humans inevitably need the concept of the “supreme fiction” to grasp reality. This paper aims to examine the roles played by Bradley’s concept of the “finite center,” which Eliot employed as a poetic or philosophical concept, and Stevens’ concept of the “supreme fiction” in understanding phenomena and reality, and how these conceptions formed the basis of their respective poetic systems. In the process of such comparative analysis, we will explore how closely Eliot’s adoption of Bradley’s “finite center” aligns with the concept of the “supreme fiction” and examine the significance of these two concepts used by the two poets in terms of the sociology of knowledge.
T. S. Eliot’s “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” and Shakespeare’s Hamlet: Soliloquy in “Self—Telling”
Authors:   The T. S. Eliot Society Of Korea, HWANG Inkyung
Published: September 2023

Prufrock compares himself to Hamlet, and then denies his importance for himself (“No! I am not a Prince, Hamlet”) and returns to his usual self-deprecation, announcing that he is not an important person through self-telling. In his own opinion, he would be a merely minor character in a play, not a protagonist, being faithful to his soliloquy. Prufrock and Hamlet inhabit a world in which something seems identical and time seems to be each common character. It seems they have the lifeless aspect of their dialogues with each monologue, developing the poetic drama. In other words, T. S. Eliot describes Prufrock’s speech as the drama like the poem and the poem like the drama. Each dialogue with the self relies on the reader’s imagination and decision to make decisions that are faithful to him, portraying the voice as a linguistic text in Hamlet of Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Prufrock from “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” two voices between ego and the split-ego which may be post-ego. The voice of self-telling expressed in these conversations is a dramatic monologue made of linguistic texts that form Hamlet’s self-image, and this is a conversation with himself that preserves tradition and individuality. In a nut shell, the monologue of self-telling is a more powerful image than anything else.
Use of Mother Tongue and Gender as Determinants of Students’ Attitudes Towards Entrepreneurship Education
Authors: Mezieobi Kelechi Chinemerem , Okobia Ayodele Onyeatoelu , Ossai Juliet Nkonyeasua
Published: September 2023

The study investigated the use of mother tongue and gender as determinants of students' attitudes towards entrepreneurship education (EE) in higher education institutions (HEIs) using the Faculty of Education, Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu-Alike, Ebonyi State, Nigeria as a case study. The objective was to determine the relationship between the use of the mother tongue, gender, and students' attitude toward entrepreneurship education. Two hypotheses were formulated to serve as a guide to the study. Three hundred (300) Alex Ekwueme Federal University students were randomly selected for the study. A questionnaire titled ‘“Use of mother tongue scale and students’ attitude towards entrepreneurship education”’ questionnaire was administered and used for data collection. The hypotheses were tested using multiple regression tested at a 0.05 level of significance. Findings revealed that the criterion variable (students' attitude towards entrepreneurship education correlated positively and low towards the use of the mother tongue. Also, gender was not a determinant factor in both students' attitudes towards entrepreneurship educationand the use of the mother tongue. The results also showed that only students with knowledge of the use of the mother tongue with the regressional coefficient (b) of .258, and a beta weight of .592 significantly have a good attitude towards entrepreneurship education, while gender was not a significant factor in predicting students’ attitude towards entrepreneurship education. Based on these findings, some recommendations were made which include, but are not limited to, that students should be encouraged to be knowledgeable on the use of their mother tongue, understand, speak, and use their mother tongue, irrespective of gender. The university should encourage the use of the mother tongue in entrepreneurship education.
A system of equations involving the fractional p-Laplacian and doubly critical nonlinearities
Authors: Bhakta Mousomi , Perera Kanishka , Sk Firoj
Published: September 2023

This article deals with existence of solutions to the following fractional

p

p

-Laplacian system of equations:

(

−

Δ

p

)

s

u
=

∣
u
∣

p

s

*

−
2

u
+

γ
α

p

s

*

∣
u
∣

α
−
2

u

∣
v
∣

β

in

Ω
,

(

−

Δ

p

)

s

v
=

∣
v
∣

p

s

*

−
2

v
+

γ
β

p

s

*

∣
v
∣

β
−
2

v

∣
u
∣

α

in

Ω
,

\left\{\begin{array}{l}{\left(-{\Delta }_{p})}^{s}u={| u| }^{{p}_{s}^{* }-2}u+\frac{\gamma \alpha }{{p}_{s}^{* }}{| u| }^{\alpha -2}u{| v| }^{\beta }\hspace{0.33em}\hspace{0.33em}\hspace{0.1em}\text{in}\hspace{0.1em}\hspace{0.33em}\Omega ,\hspace{1.0em}\\ {\left(-{\Delta }_{p})}^{s}v={| v| }^{{p}_{s}^{* }-2}v+\frac{\gamma \beta }{{p}_{s}^{* }}{| v| }^{\beta -2}v{| u| }^{\alpha }\hspace{0.33em}\hspace{0.33em}\hspace{0.1em}\text{in}\hspace{0.1em}\hspace{0.33em}\Omega ,\hspace{1.0em}\end{array}\right.

where

s
∈

(

0
,
1

)

s\in \left(0,1)

,

p
∈

(

1
,
∞

)

p\in \left(1,\infty )

with

N
>
s
p

N\gt sp

,

α
,
β
>
1

\alpha ,\beta \gt 1

such that

α
+
β
=

p

s

*

≔

N
p

N
−
s
p

\alpha +\beta ={p}_{s}^{* }:= \frac{Np}{N-sp}

and

Ω
=

R

N

\Omega ={{\mathbb{R}}}^{N}

or smooth bounded domains in

R

N

{{\mathbb{R}}}^{N}

. When

Ω
=

R

N

\Omega ={{\mathbb{R}}}^{N}

and

γ
=
1

\gamma =1

, we show that any ground state solution of the aforementioned system has the form

(

λ
U
,
τ
λ
V

)

\left(\lambda U,\tau \lambda V)

for certain

τ
>
0

\tau \gt 0

and

U

U

and

V

V

are two positive ground state solutions of

(

−

Δ

p

)

s

u
=

∣
u
∣

p

s

*

−
2

u

{\left(-{\Delta }_{p})}^{s}u={| u| }^{{p}_{s}^{* }-2}u

in

R

N

{{\mathbb{R}}}^{N}

. For all

γ
>
0

\gamma \gt 0

, we establish existence of a positive radial solution to the aforementioned system in balls. When

Ω
=

R

N

\Omega ={{\mathbb{R}}}^{N}

, we also establish existence of positive radial solutions to the aforementioned system in various ranges of

γ

\gamma

.
Diversity of marine fungi in Pondicherry mangroves, east coast of India and systematic placement of Rhizophila marina
Authors: Devadatha Bandarupalli , Pallam Revanth Babu , Vemuri Sarma Venkateswara
Published: September 2023

Although many novel marine fungi have been described from Indian mangroves, a significant number of mangroves in India have not been thoroughly investigated for marine fungi. This study highlights the diversity of marine fungi inhabiting dead and decaying wood of Avicennia marina and Rhizophora mucronata, collected from Thengaithittu and Veerampattinam mangroves of Pondicherry, Puducherry State, India. Through microscopic examination, a total of 52 species (in 48 genera) of marine fungi were identified, with 50 species (in 46 genera) belonging to the Ascomycota and 2 species (in 2 genera) belonging to the Basidiomycota. Previous studies recorded 69 marine fungi from Ariyankuppam and Mahé mangroves of Puducherry, and this study contributes 22 new records of marine fungi to this region. In this study, the phylogenetic placement of Rhizophila marina was determined, and this fungus was found to belong to the family Diatrypaceae.
Novel green synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles using Salvia rosmarinus extract for treatment of human lung cancer
Authors: Xue Yang , bin Ismail Abdul Jabbar , Lansing Meryl Grace , bin Mohd Hayati Mohd Firdaus
Published: September 2023

A green and low-cost approach was run to synthesize zinc nanoparticles (NPs) using rosemary extract. The NPs were identified by various methods, i.e., ultraviolet-visible and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, FE-scanning electron microscope imaging, X-ray diffraction, and energy-dispersive X-ray analysis. The radical scavenging activity and MTT assays were used to evaluate the biological activity of ZnO-NPs@Rosemary. The results revealed a spherical shape for ZnO-NPs@Rosemary with a crystal size of 30.74 nm. ZnO-NPs@Rosemary could scavenge the free radicals of DPPH with an IC50 of 87.62 ± 0.47 μg/mL. An MTT assay was run to investigate the anti-cancer activity of ZnO-NPs@Rosemary against PC-14, LC-2/ad, and HLC-1 as the selected lung cancer cell lines. The highest sensitivity of NPs was found against PC-14 with IC50 of 178.84 ± 2.13. A dose-dependent activity was observed for ZnO-NPs@Rosemary against the chosen cell lines. The outcomes of the present study revealed an acceptable anti-lung cancer activity of ZnO-NPs@Rosemary.
3-Day food record: efficacy in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus
Authors: Pasquale Auletta , Raffaele D’Arco , Gerardo Corigliano , Marisa Conte , Silvestre Pagano , Valentina Genovese , Umberto De Fortuna , Michele Modestino , Stefano Palermi , Mariarosaria De Luca , Vincenzo Guardasole
Published: September 2023

Objectives

This study aimed to assess the efficacy of the 3-day food records in monitoring and enhancing dietary habits among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Methods

A total of 49 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus were enrolled, with 38 completing the study. Participants were instructed to record their food intake over 3 consecutive days every 2 months. Key anthropometric and glycometabolic parameters, including body weight, abdominal circumference, glycated hemoglobin, and fasting blood sugar, were evaluated at baseline and after 6 months.

Results

The introduction of the 3-day food records led to significant improvements in body weight, abdominal circumference, glycated hemoglobin, and fasting blood sugar. Additionally, there was a notable increase in the percentage of patients adhering to the LARN nutritional recommendations, especially concerning the intake of carbohydrates, simple sugars, proteins, fiber, and water. However, adherence to lipid and saturated fat recommendations remained a challenge.

Conclusions

The 3-day food records emerges as a valuable tool in the dietary management of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. By facilitating real-time monitoring and feedback, it holds promise in enhancing patient adherence to nutritional guidelines, thereby improving key health outcomes.
Antibiotics therapy combined with probiotics administered intravaginally for the treatment of bacterial vaginosis: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Ma Siyu , Wang Wei , Su Yanli , Sun Wei , Ma Liyan
Published: September 2023

The objective was to examine the pooled effects of antibiotic–probiotic combinations by examining the cure rate and recurrence rate for bacterial vaginosis (BV). A systematic literature search was conducted from electronic databases. All parallel randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that focused on the effects of antibiotics combined with intravaginal probiotics were included. Cure rate and recurrence rate were the primary and secondary outcomes to be analyzed. Meta-analysis was conducted following the Cochrane handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions. As a result, of 923 studies identified, 11 articles involving 1,493 BV patients met the inclusion criteria and nine were available for meta-analysis. A meta-analysis of two studies evaluated the recurrence rate 12–16 weeks after treatment. Results showed a statistically significant difference favoring the antibiotics plus probiotics group vs the antibiotics plus placebo group (relative risk 0.62, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.45–0.85). The narrative review in one study indicated that the cure rate was higher in the antibiotics plus probiotics group, giving a significant HR ratio of 0.73 (95% CI 0.54–0.98) (p = 0.042). In conclusion, vaginal application of Lactobacillus in combination with antibiotics for the treatment of BV could be a promising method for both reducing the recurrence rate and relieving symptoms of BV.
Silk Road and Trade of the Mongol Empire
Authors: Nyamdaa Otgonsaikhan
Published: September 2023

Our ancestors once said, “A person who does not know his history is like a monkey lost in the forest.” In the framework of this work, it was intended to study the historical development of the Silk Road and the characteristics of trade during the Mongol Empire in comparison with the principles of modern trade. According to the findings, ancient nations traded with each other to satisfy their unlimited needs with limited resources and laid the foundations of the Silk Road. On the other hand, the country that dominated the road became the most powerful country at that time, fighting with each other through geopolitical policies to maintain its influence in the area along this road. It can be said that the idea of logistics supply chain and the concept of free trade was created during the time of the powerful Mongolian empire, one of the strongest empire in the history of Mongolia as well as the world.
How to hedge extreme risk of natural gas in multivariate semiparametric value-at-risk portfolio?
Authors: Živkov Dejan , Kuzman Boris , Subić Jonel
Published: September 2023

The COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine have caused huge price changes in the natural gas market. This paper tries to minimise the extreme risk of natural gas, making two sixasset portfolios, where gas is combined with five developed and emerging European stock indices. We observe extreme risk from the aspect of classical parametric Value-at-Risk measure, but we also propose a new approach and optimise portfolios with semiparametric VaR as a target. Estimating the equicorrelation of the two portfolios, we determine that the emerging indices portfolio has a much lower level of integration, which is good for portfolio construction. Additionally, we divide the full sample into the pre-crisis and crisis periods to assess how portfolios look in the two intrinsically different subsamples. According to the results, both portfolios with the developed and emerging stock indices minimise extreme risk very well, but the latter portfolio is better. In the pre-crisis period, this advantage amounts to around 6% in the min-VaR portfolio and 3.5% in the min-mVaR portfolio. However, in the crisis period, the third and fourth moments come to the fore, meaning that hedging results increase significantly in favour of the emerging indices portfolios. In other words, the min-VaR and min-mVaR results of the emerging indices portfolio are better in amounts of more than 14% and 17%, respectively, vis-à-vis portfolios with the developed stock indices. We recommend using the semiparametric VaR metric because it is far more accurate and unbiased compared to the classical VaR since it considers all the key features of portfolio distribution.
Kenji Yanobe, Atom Suit, and Chornobyl
Authors: Kozak Nazar
Published: September 2023

This article examines the Atom Suit Project carried out by Japanese artist Kenji Yanobe in the Chornobyl zone in 1997. Employing an ecocritical theoretical lens, I focus on the relationship between the artwork and the place of its stage—a site of a nuclear disaster—in order to better understand art’s agency in the face of the ecological emergencies caused by the nuclear industry’s impact on the planet’s environment locally and globally. In brief, the main claim of the article is this: if the Chornobyl disaster endangered the basic biological need of staying alive, the Atom Suit Project surpassed trivializing survival as an art theme and instead enacted it as an aspect of the disaster’s reality. In the main body of the article, I support this claim by detailing the project’s survival strategies ranging from radiation shielding, body mobility, and the danger detection system to evoking hope and interfering with the politics of nuclear denial. The article’s concluding section discusses the Atom Suit Project’s potential to survive into the deep future.
Social Sciences in Brazil: From a Broad Interdisciplinarity to a Restricted Interdisciplinarity
Authors: Oliveira Amurabi
Published: September 2023

In this work, we will analyze how the transition from an expanded conception of social sciences to a more restricted notion of social sciences, centered on the disciplines of anthropology, political science, and sociology, took place in Brazil. In the first part of this article, we will contextualize the creation process of the first undergraduate courses of social sciences in Brazil in the 1930s, as well as their transformations over time; in the second part, we will carry out an analysis of the social sciences programs existing in Brazil, starting from the courses that are currently in operation and grant master’s and/or doctoral degrees in this area. Finally, we demonstrate how the creation of the national graduate system between the 1960s and 1970s was essential to consolidate this institutional arrangement and the creation of the National Association for Research and Graduate Studies in Social Sciences in the 1970s.
Quality of life and sociodemographic and clinical profile of breast and prostate cancer patients
Authors: Viana Lia Raquel de Carvalho , Ferreira Gerlania Rodrigues Salviano , Silva Cleane Rosa Ribeiro da , Freitas Sthephanie de Abreu , Frazão Maria Cristina Lins Oliveira , Costa Tatiana Ferreira da , Costa Kátia Neyla de Freitas Macedo
Published: September 2023

Objective: to assess the association between health-related quality of life and sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of breast and prostate cancer patients. Methods: a cross-sectional study of 305 patients was performed. The European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core 30, the Quality of Life Questionnaire Breast Cancer, and a structured instrument were used. Descriptive and inferential statistical analyses were performed. Results: the study revealed a prevalence of patients aged 50-69 years, married, with 13 or more years of education, retired, with an income of up to two minimum wages, and receiving radiotherapy for breast cancer. Significant associations were observed between the Global Health Scale and gender and marital status, the Functional Scale and age group and family income, the Symptom Scale and gender, age group, cancer type, and current treatment, and between the Global Health Scale and cancer type, current treatment, treatment duration, lack of companion, and number of comorbidities. Conclusions: health-related quality of life in breast and prostate cancer patients is negatively influenced by sociodemographic and clinical characteristics. Contributions to practice: the data provide insights for designing individualized care plans.
Vaccine hesitancy in families of children during the COVID-19 pandemic
Authors: Viana Izabella da Silva , Cursino Emília Gallindo , Silva Liliane Faria da , Machado Maria Estela Diniz , Vaz Elenice Maria Cecchetti
Published: September 2023

Objective: to identify the reasons that led families of children to vaccine hesitancy during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: qualitative study with semi-structured interviews carried out with 20 children's relatives, all of which were mothers of hospitalized children. Data was submitted to lexicographical analysis in the software Interface de R pour les Analyses Multidimensionnelles de Textes et de Questionnaires, using descending hierarchical classification. Results: the fear of leaving one’s house during the pandemic and the lack of vaccine supplies were the reasons found for vaccine hesitancy in the family of children during the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusion: the reasons for vaccine hesitancy in the families of children found in this study threaten advancements in the struggle against vaccine-preventable diseases.  Contributions to the practice: government bodies, managers, and health unit nurses should be co-responsible for efficient measures to implement health education in this public, creating a bond of trust to reduce the risks from the increase in vaccine hesitancy and reduction in vaccine coverage in the country.
Representation in a Reflective Culture of Landscape Architecture: Observation and Critical Thinking
Authors:   Sapienza University of Rome, Italy, Stefàno Daniele
Published: September 2023

Representation is more than a way to inform and design; it is a personal opportunity to think, which involves the whole mental and emotional activity. Considering that the interest in representation in the overall education system seems to be declining, the exposition has the intention to reflect on drawing as a tool for observation, interpretation, and critical thinking. All the more so in a period of significant social and environmental changes. Why is representation a unique opportunity to reflect? How does it make landscape architects particular observers of reality?
Ranking de escolas em Portugal: um estudo exploratório
Authors: Neto-Mendes António , Costa Jorge Adelino , Ventura Alexandre
Published: September 2023

Os autores propõem-se fazer uma abordagem exploratória da problemática do ranking de escolas, sem preocupações de generalização das conclusões. A emergência do tema, em Portugal, assumiu outra substância a partir da publicação pelo Ministério da Educação, em 2001 e 2002, de uma seriação das escolas secundárias construída com base nos resultados alcançados pelos alunos nos exames nacionais do 12º ano, os quais assumem a dupla condição de certificação da conclusão do Ensino Secundário e de selecção dos alunos que irão frequentar o Ensino Superior. Utilizando uma metodologia que passa pelo inquérito por questionário distribuído a todos os alunos que frequentam o 12º ano em todas as escolas secundárias (quatro) de um dado concelho, pretende-se com esta pesquisa confirmar ou infirmar a hipótese da existência de relações significativas entre os resultados alcançados pelos alunos nos referidos exames e a origem sócio-cultural e a frequência de explicações. Esta hipótese assenta no pressuposto da necessidade de contextualização dos resultados.Descritpores: logro de los estudiantes, eficacia escolar, ranking de escuelas, educación secundaria, acceso a la universidad. Schools ranking in Portugal: an exploratory studyThe authors present an exploratory study about the subject of school rankings with no intention of generalisation of considerations. The rising of this subject, in Portugal, has occurred after the publication by the Ministry of Education, in 2001 and 2002, of one kind of secondary schools league tables based on students results at the national exams of the twelve year of schooling. Those exams assume a double role of secondary education conclusion certificate and selection of the students that will be able to attend higher education. The intention of this research, using a questionnaire to obtain information about twelve year of schooling students' characteristics in a sample of four secondary schools of the same municipality, is to confirm (or not) the hypothesis of significant relations existence between students' achievement at the above-mentioned exams and both socio-cultural origin and private tuition attendance. The confirmation of this hypothesis stresses the need of results contextualisation.Keywords: students' achievement - school effectiveness - school ranking - secondary education - access to university.
Evaluación del aprendizaje: Una propuesta de evaluación basada en productos académicos
Authors: Eli Rizo Moreno Héctor
Published: September 2023

En el marco de los actuales desarrollos mundiales, se requiere que los modelos pedagógicos implementados en las instituciones educativas privilegien el trabajo autónomo de los estudiantes sobre el tradicional y único protagonismo del docente. De un modelo esencialmente transmisionista debe pasarse a uno en donde el profesor debe enfocarse en la creación de escenarios en los cuales el alumno pueda encontrar y generar condiciones para crecer intelectual, emocional y físicamente.Las nuevas tendencias pedagógicas son ricas en la realización de actividades por parte del alumno, las cuales impactan y son impactadas por la concepción que se tenga de la evaluación del aprendizaje. En el presente trabajo se tienen presentes los elementos anteriormente planteados y bajo la consigna de que la evaluación no es el fin de la educación ni tampoco es un fin en si misma, propone que esta se centre en la producción académica de los estudiantes.La propuesta que se describe incorpora el análisis de los llamados momentos evaluativos, la importancia de las evaluaciones de tipo comprehensivos y abordando la relación medición-evaluación-calificación señala la necesidad de dar sentido al significado del número como elemento de certificación de los conocimientos adquiridos.Descriptores: evaluación - aprendizaje - universidad - productos académicos - cocimiento Learning Evaluation: A proposal of evaluation based on academics productsIn the context of current worldwide developments, pedagogic models implemented in schools are expected to favor individual autonomy of students against the traditional central role of teachers. A model centered in the transmission of knowledge is to be replaced by one in which the teacher focuses in creating scenarios in which the student is able to find and generate adequate conditions for his own intellectual, emotional and physical development.New pedagogic trends are rich in activities by students which affect and are affected by the way in which learning evaluation is conceived. The current work takes into account all the previous arguments and, considering that evaluation does not constitute either an educational goal or a goal in itself, it proposes that learning evaluation should be based on academic production by students.The described proposal includes an analysis of the so called "evaluation moments", the significance of comprehensive evaluations and, regarding the score-evaluation-grading relationship, it stresses out the need to provide numerical grading with a relevant meaning as a certification of acquired knowledge.Keywords: evaluation - learning - university - academic production - knowledge
Desarrollo de capacidades para comunidades de aprendizaje: escuelas que funcionan.
Authors: Sackney Larry , Walker Keith , Mitchell Coral
Published: September 2023

Mucho se ha escrito recientemente sobre la necesidad de que las escuelas sean diferentes de lo que han sido si han de enfrentar los desafíos de la sociedad del conocimiento (por ejemplo, Hargreaves y Evans, 1997; Hargreaves, 2003; Mitchell y Sackney, 2000). Los llamados persistentes a la reforma escolar han llevado a un creciente apoyo para que las escuelas sean vistas como comunidades de aprendizaje (DuFour & Eaker; 1998; Harris, 2002; Huffman & Hipp, 2003; 1998; Mitchell & Sackney, 2000; Sergiovanni, 2000; Stoll, Fink & Earl, 2003). Las ideas que sustentan la construcción de la comunidad de aprendizaje "son de integridad y conexiones, diversidad y complejidad, relaciones y significados, reflexión e indagación, y colaboración y colegialidad" (Mitchell & Sackney, p. 5).
Golpear con tiza y hablar. Un enfoque de tres niveles de educación adaptativa en las escuelas primarias de Hungría.
Authors: Bognár Mari , Oomen Annemarie
Published: September 2023

MAG (abreviatura húngara de las palabras "Prevención - Adaptación - Cuidado") es un programa de desarrollo pedagógico implementado con fondos recibidos en el marco del Programa Matra del Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores de los Países Bajos y del Ministerio de Educación de Hungría. El objetivo general del proyecto MAG es desarrollar escuelas primarias como lugares efectivos de aprendizaje para todos los niños, especialmente para los estudiantes en riesgo, socialmente excluidos, de tal manera que los maestros, directores y oficiales de educación locales participen cada uno según sus profesionales. y obligaciones formales. En Hungría, participan en el programa 13 escuelas de 4 regiones pequeñas, por lo que 26 jefes y diputados, 13 miembros del personal de Autoridades de Educación Local y 85 maestros de las escuelas participantes.