bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Evolving Efficiency of Cryptocurrency Market: Evidence from Leading Cryptocurrencies
Authors: Mallesha L , Archana H. N.
Published: September 2024

The article investigated the efficiency of the cryptocurrency market, with a focus on Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Tether (USDT), and Binance Coin (BNB-USD), based on their substantial market capitalization. For this purpose, we observed the daily closing prices spanning from January 2018 to December 2023 and employed a set of robust tests, including the generalized spectral test, automatic portmanteau test, and automatic variance ratio test. The findings of the study reveal a random pattern in price fluctuations, indicating weak form efficiency. Furthermore, we adopted the rolling window approach to investigate whether market efficiency is dynamic or static over time. The empirical result illustrated that the crypto market efficiency remains static over time, except for USDT. In conclusion, the overall empirical results support the notion of the random walk hypothesis, indicating that past price movements offer no predictive insight into future prices. These findings have significant implications for investors, emphasizing the lack of predictive insight from past price movements. Policymakers are urged to establish a robust framework for market integrity and reliable price discovery.
Spain in a State of Uncertainty
Authors: Baranov A. V.
Published: September 2024

Book Review: Khenkin S. 2023. Spain. Modern unstable society. Moscow. Aspect Press.Book Review: Khenkin S. 2023. Spain. Modern unstable society. Moscow. Aspect Press.
Movilización y participación ciudadana en la defensa del río Santa Catarina en Nuevo León, México
Authors:   Investigador Independiente, México, Osorno-Córdova Cuauhtémoc
Published: September 2024

En los últimos años, la gestión de los recursos hídricos ha detonado un mayor involucramiento político de diversos actores que buscan democratizar las decisiones de gobierno. Este artículo tiene el objetivo de describir los factores y mecanismos de movilización y participación ciudadana impulsados por el movimiento socioambiental #UnRíoEnElRío desde julio a diciembre del 2023, en torno a la deforestación del río Santa Catarina, en Nuevo León, México. Se utilizó la Teoría del Proceso Político y el concepto de Participación Ciudadana, y metodológicamente, se desarrolló un caso de estudio, una entrevista grupal, observación participante y revisión bibliográfica para saturar de información las variables de acuerdo a esta teoría y concepto, así como a la Escalera de Participación y el Acuerdo de Escazú. Los resultados muestran que la movilización y participación ciudadana inició a partir de una amenaza ambiental, derivada del daño ecológico al río, mientras que las oportunidades políticas existieron especialmente a causa del conflicto político entre las élites del gobierno estatal. Los principales espacios de participación ciudadana fueron, tanto informales: la protesta, la petición change.org, el activismo digital y el festival ‘Río Fest’; como mecanismos formales: la solicitud de audiencia pública, la solicitud de petición y el amparo legal (los cuales fueron los de mayor nivel de participación). El caso expone cómo se puede favorecer la democratización y gobernanza de los recursos hídricos desde la sociedad civil, y que es fundamental que las autoridades de gobierno promuevan procesos participativos proactivos, para lograr políticas públicas legítimas, eficaces e integrales.
Optimizing Prehospital Stroke Diagnosis: Integrating Machine Learning with the FAST Scoring System
Authors: Linhares-Huang Will , Yousefi Nasrin , Leung Ben
Published: September 2024

Strokes are a leading cause of disability and death worldwide, and timely diagnosis is critical for effective treatment. Prehospital stroke diagnosis by emergency medical services (EMS) is essential for ensuring prompt care. The FAST (Face, Arms, Speech, and Time) scoring system is a common tool used to identify stroke symptoms quickly. However, the traditional FAST system has limitations, including reliance on subjective assessments and potential misdiagnoses due to symptom variability. This study aims to optimize the FAST scoring system and compare its performance with various machine learning models to enhance stroke prediction accuracy. A dataset from an ambulance service, including prehospital data such as age, sex, and FAST test results, was used. Data preprocessing involved handling missing values, encoding categorical variables, and applying the Synthetic Minority Over-sampling Technique (SMOTE) to balance the dataset. A grid search was conducted to test different weighting schemes for the FAST system. Machine learning models, including Logistic Regression, Random Forest, Support Vector Machine (SVM), XGBoost, and Decision Tree, were trained and evaluated using cross-validation on the training set and tested on a separate test set. The traditional FAST system showed an accuracy of 62.95%. Optimizing the FAST system through grid search marginally increased accuracy to 64.36%. However, machine learning models, particularly Random Forest, significantly outperformed the FAST system, achieving a test set accuracy of 88.54%. XGBoost also demonstrated strong performance with an accuracy of 77.07%, while Logistic Regression, SVM, and Decision Tree showed lower accuracies. These findings suggest that integrating machine learning models into EMS protocols could substantially improve the accuracy of prehospital stroke diagnosis, leading to quicker and more accurate identification and treatment of stroke patients. Although the optimized FAST system offers slight improvements, machine learning models present a promising avenue for enhancing stroke prediction and improving patient outcomes in emergency settings while acknowledging practicality issues.
Uncovering crosstalk between AMPK and the ATF4-Integrated Stress Response
Authors: Smee Lindsey , Galloro Elise
Published: September 2024

The reprograming of cellular metabolism in cancer cells is directly inter-related to their capacity for uncontrolled growth.  As such, targeting of mitochondrial function has been explored as a therapeutic strategy in cancer.  However, inhibition of mitochondria inevitably leads to activation of cellular stress pathways including the integrated stress response (ISR).  The ISR includes as a key feature, increased activity of activating transcription factor 4 (ATF4), which goes on to up-regulate a range of gene targets to restore cellular homeostasis.  Inhibition of mitochondria also can impair bioenergetic and biosynthetic capacity, which might activate AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), a cellular energy sensor that also orchestrates metabolic homeostasis. While the ISR and AMPK both critically regulate metabolism in cancer cells, the link between these mechanisms remains unclear. To address this gap, we tested effects of various energetic stress conditions in MEF cell systems deficient in AMPK activity.  To comprehensively impair metabolic networks, we used nutrient starvation treatments in combination with silencing of the protein OPA1 which maintains organisational integrity of the mitochondrial cristae.  Our results suggest that AMPK may be involved in suppressing the ISR upon mitochondrial disruption.  To further explore, we took the alternative approach to test a range of mitochondrial targeting drugs in wildtype or AMPK-deficient MEF.  To gain insight into roles of AMPK in the ISR and related adaptive gene responses, we analysed resulting transcriptomes.  These results further revealed a regulatory link between AMPK and the ATF4-ISR, showing that AMPK loss hypersensitizes the cell to energetic stress.  Our work uncovering the crosstalk between AMPK and the ATF4-ISR has potential to reveal novel interactions that could suggest metabolic liabilities that may be relevant for targeting in cancer cells.
Understanding the Contributions of the Hippocampus
Authors: Reid Heather
Published: September 2024

The hippocampus plays an important role in human memory, with its anterior portion contributing to coarse-grained representations and its posterior portion contributing to fine-grained ones (Poppenk et al., 2013). My USRA project is focused on understanding the role of the hippocampus in a potential third type of memory representation; a general synthesis of stimuli.
Beyond memory, the hippocampus has also been hypothesize to influence clinical disorders. For instance, preliminary research in our lab has found meta-cognitive memory abilities to be organized into factors resembling clinical disorders, when organized by variance in brain structure. My USRA project also aims to understand the contribution of the hippocampus to clinical disorders.
My role in this project has been to develop administrative and experimental structure for the protocol, which involves extensive testing. Participants will complete approximately 27 hours of memory tasks, designed to evaluate the nature of their memory, and whether it is oriented towards detail, gist, or a synthesis of all stimuli. To do so, I have developed an extensive task of reading and evaluating reviews, as well as a recall task of lab-generated stories. Participants will also complete approximately 3-4 hours of online questionnaires, administered through Qualtrics. Over the summer, I conducted research to identify validated questionnaires that assess metacognitive abilities, in the domains of memory, attention, language, motor control, social cognition and perception. Results on these questionnaires will be used to validate preliminary findings on the relationship between metacognitive memory, brain variance and sub-threshold levels of clinical disorders, and to investigate whether these findings expand to other forms of metacognition. Finally, participants will complete a number of structural and functional MRI scans (including DTI).
 
This work may help us understand the pure science of the function of human memory, as well as the nature of clinical disorders.
Innate Immune Reprogramming of Macrophages in the Parous Murine Mammary Gland
Authors: Willmott Anna , Ferazzutti Christina
Published: September 2024

Uncomplicated childbirth is associated with an increased risk of developing breast cancer (BC) five-to-ten years postpartum (postpartum breast cancer; PPBC) compared with age-matched nulliparous individuals. PPBC is also associated with a poor prognosis relative to nulliparous individuals with BC. Contrastingly, preeclampsia, an inflammatory pregnancy complication, protects against PPBC development. We hypothesize that differential parity-induced innate immune reprogramming of mammary gland macrophages may be associated with parity-associated increased PPBC risk and preeclampsia-associated protection against PPBC.
Female BALB/c mice were mated with male C57Bl/6 mice to establish allogeneic pregnancies. On gestational day (GD) 10.5, dams were injected with saline (controls) or lipopolysaccharide (LPS; 20 μg/kg) to induce inflammatory pregnancy complications. Age-matched nulliparous controls also received LPS or saline. Following birth, parous mice were force-weaned on postnatal day (PD) 7 to induce synchronous involution. Macrophages were isolated from mammary glands upon euthanasia in pregnancy (GD 14.5), lactation (PD 7), involution (PD 10) and regression (PD 28), plated (4x104 cells/well) and exposed to a 23-hour secondary challenge (LPS; 100 ng/ml; Pam3Cys; 10 µg/ml). Cytokine concentrations in cell culture supernatant were assessed using a multiplex assay (Eve Technologies) and data were analyzed by two-way ANOVA with Tukey’s posthoc test.
During involution, compared with supernatant from mammary gland macrophages of age-matched nulliparous saline-treated mice, supernatant from macrophages from parous saline-treated mice exhibited significantly increased interleukin (IL)-1β and tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and significantly decreased IL-6 following secondary challenge. TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-10 in supernatant from macrophages from parous LPS-treated mice was significantly decreased compared with parous saline-treated controls. Analysis of data collected during pregnancy, lactation and regression is ongoing to temporally evaluate reprogramming.
These preliminary results demonstrate differential reprogramming in mammary gland macrophages relative to parity and inflammatory pregnancy complication status and rationalize understanding contributions of completion of a prior pregnancy on PPBC risk and progression.
A Greener Way of Making Cellulose Clothing
Authors: Van Heusden Kirsten , Jessop Philip , Torres Rocha Olga
Published: September 2024

Cotton is the world's most demanding non-food crop. Cotton grows in arid countries such as India and China. However, its production consumes an enormous 250 billion tons of water annually, amplifying water scarcity. Cellulose, found in plants like wood, bamboo, and mosses, offers a sustainable alternative for textiles. Traditionally, cellulose is processed into textiles using the viscose method, which involves carbon disulfide. This process releases hydrogen sulfide, harmful to aquatic life and human health, and carbon disulfide, a hazardous pollutant affecting the reproductive system and vision. Many research groups have proposed an alternative method, which involves dissolving cellulose in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and Diazabicyclo[5.4.0]undec-7-ene (DBU) under 1 atm of CO2. DBU, with a pKaH ~ 12, deprotonates cellulose’s hydroxyl groups forming a DMSO-soluble cellulose carbonate complex that can be spun into filaments. However, DBU is costly, hazardous, and prone to hydrolysis, leading to byproducts.
The objective of the research was to find a more environmentally friendly, less toxic, and cost-effective base for cellulose dissolution. Two tertiary amines, triethylamine (pKaH~9) and tripropylamine (pKaH~10.7), were tested. Due to its low basicity triethylamine failed to dissolve cellulose even under high CO2 pressure (up to 50 bar), resulting in a cloudy solution. Tripropylamine is insoluble in DMSO, therefore resulting in a phase separation of a tripropylamine layer and cellulose/DMSO layer. Additionally, 2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-piperidine was also tested at high CO2 pressure (up to 50 bar), but a biphasic solution was formed at 10 bar . This indicates that the protonated form of the base does not dissolve in DMSO. Ultimately, no alternative base was found to be sufficiently basic to deprotonate the hydroxyl groups on cellulose and promote dissolution, even at high pressure.
Antagonistic insulin-like signaling influencing glucose regulation in C. elegans
Authors: Wilson Mason
Published: September 2024

The insulin/ IGF-signaling (IIS) is an evolutionary conserved signaling pathway within eukaryotic organisms that regulates glucose metabolism and cell division. The nematode, C. elegans is an excellent model for exploring IIS as they have 40 insulin-like peptides that act on a single receptor, DAF-2. We aim to explore the relationships between IIS and glucose metabolism, focusing on the antagonistic insulin-like peptide, INS-17 and its influence over FDGT-1 (facilitated glucose transporter 1). FDGT-1 is expressed throughout the nematode, including the basolateral membrane of intestinal cells and where it is theorized to export glucose to the surrounding somatic cells rather than absorb it from the intestinal tract. We hypothesize that IIS controls transcription of FDGT-1 and antagonistic peptides should lead to a decrease in FDGT-1 transcription, resulting in the increased lifespan and increased fat accumulation observed in daf-2(lf) loss of function and ins-17(oe) over expressing strains. In this study, survival assays are used to assess the impact which high-glucose content has on lifespan, along with Oil Red O (ORO)  lipid staining to visualize lipid accumulation amongst conditions and protein quantification of FDGT-1:GFP to evaluate FDGT-1 protein levels. Our findings are consistent with the idea of low insulin signaling leading to extended lifespan as daf-2(lf) lived significantly longer than WT in both 0% and 2% glucose conditions and ins-17(oe) living significantly longer than wildtype in 2% glucose conditions. The ORO lipid staining revealed that high glucose conditions and low insulin signaling result in lipid accumulation within the nematode. Using the fdgt-1:gfp strain, we were able to determine an increase in the FDGT-1 in the presence of glucose, suggesting FDGT-1 expression is influenced by glucose. These findings aim to further our understanding of IIS regulating glucose uptake and metabolism, along with the significance of the FDGT-1 glucose transporter.
Fabrication of Magnetic Ferrofluid Microrobot for Tissue Mechanical Measurement
Authors: Najib Amina
Published: September 2024

Ferrofluids are a uniform mixture of magnetic nanoparticles and a carrier liquid, such as water or oil. They have become increasingly popular in the medical field due to their biocompatibility, manipulability, and their wide range of possible medical applications, one of them being mechanical measurement in human tissues. Our goal is to fabricate a bio-compatible ferrofluid droplet to perform these mechanical measurements. To fabricate the ferrofluid, magnetite nanoparticles (Fe3O4) were chosen along with vegetable oil as the carrier liquid due to their biocompatibility. The magnetic nanoparticles were also coated with oleic acid to serve as a lubricant layer to prevent them from agglomerating.
We first coated the magnetic particles (Nanoshel) with oleic acid (Sigma). The magnetic particles were added to distilled water that was heated up to 60oC and mechanically stirred at 500 rpm. For each gram of magnetic nanoparticles used, an equal amount of oleic acid was added into the mixture and stirred for 15 minutes. The coated particles were then rinsed with distilled water followed by ethyl alcohol and dried. To fabricate the ferrofluid, we mixed the vegetable oil with the nanoparticles overnight to ensure uniform mixing with weight rations including 30%wt, 40%wt, and 50%wt, to find the optimal ratio for magnetic control and stability.
To validate the technology using ferrofluid to perform tissue mechanical measurement, a droplet of ferrofluid was injected into the agar gel mimicking the stiffness of tissue and then actuated with a magnet. The ferrofluid showed observable deformation under a microscope after magnetic actuation. Our next steps will include repeating this process under a controlled gradient magnetic field while using a camera to track its deformation and movement and from there the hope is to perform on human tissue.
Effects of ZinT-Mediated Zinc Sequestration on Metallo-β-Lactamase Function in Escherichia coli
Authors: Bhat Shreyas , Jeffs Mitchell
Published: September 2024

β-lactams are the most prescribed antibiotic class, but their clinical utility is threatened by the production of metallo-β-lactamase (MBL) enzymes by resistant bacteria. MBLs such as NDM-1 employ zinc ions as cofactors, allowing them to degrade β-lactams. The zinc chaperone ZinT transports zinc into the cytoplasm for intracellular functions, potentially decreasing the availability of zinc in the periplasm for MBLs. We hypothesize that when zinc is limited, ZinT could impair NDM-1 activity and make bacteria more susceptible to β-lactams. To determine whether ZinT and NDM-1 compete for periplasmic zinc, bacterial growth and NDM-1 activity were tested in zinc-poor M9 minimal media for NDM-1-producing Escherichia coli strains with different levels of zinT expression. In addition to wild-type and ΔzinT knockout strains, a recombinant zinT-containing plasmid was transformed into ΔzinT knockout cells to produce a complementation strain with increased zinT expression. Growth assays were conducted in M9 with various concentrations of the β-lactam antibiotic, meropenem. Under these conditions, the ΔzinT strain grew in significantly higher meropenem concentrations than the other strains tested. NDM-1 activity assays revealed that the ΔzinT strain hydrolyzed meropenem notably faster than wild-type cells, whereas the complementation strain showed almost no hydrolysis. This suggests that the increased ZinT production in the complementation strain effectively sequestered zinc from NDM-1. These differences in meropenem hydrolysis and bacterial growth were absent in zinc-sufficient Cation-Adjusted Mueller-Hinton Broth, providing evidence that ZinT and NDM-1 compete for periplasmic zinc under nutrient deficiency. Overall, our results elucidate the effects of competing zinc requirements under zinc-deficient conditions resembling the host environment during a bacterial infection. In these zinc-deficient environments, ZinT can deprive NDM-1 of zinc, causing impaired enzymatic activity and bacterial survival. By better understanding how MBLs function under physiological conditions, future investigations can more reliably explore countermeasures to the growing threat of antibiotic resistance.
Greenhouse Gas Emissions from a 20-Year-Old Restored Peatland
Authors: Delesalle Amélie
Published: September 2024

Peatlands are ecosystems with unique hydrological and ecological properties that serve as critical carbon reservoirs, helping facilitate the reduction of greenhouse gases (GHG). In Canada, the peat industry uses vacuum harvesting to extract peat for horticultural use. This disturbs the natural ecosystem, increasing CO2 and decreasing CH4 emissions due to complete removal of surface vegetation and lowering of the water table. Following years of extraction, if these peatlands are not properly restored, GHG emissions will increase, negatively impacting the climate.
The moss layer transfer technique (MLTT) is the primary method for restoring peatlands in Canada. The MLTT allows peatlands to regain their natural ecosystem function and to reaccumulate peat. This is done by revegetation of key species including sphagnum moss, and rewetting of the peatland through the blockage of drainage ditches.
My research project investigates a peatland in Pointe-Lebel, Quebec restored in 2004 using MLTT following vacuum extraction. I used the closed chamber method to measure the CO2 and CH4 exchanges at the plant community scale and three repetitions of each of moss, shrubs, and cotton grass communities were followed throughout the summer. Wells at each collar provided the water table depth; a controlling variable for GHG fluxes. I conducted a vegetation survey at peak plant productivity to characterize the proportions of the plant communities and to allow chamber measurements of GHG to be scaled by the contribution of each plant community.
If successful, a restored peatland will be a net sink of carbon. Preliminary data analysis at this 20-year-old restored site indicates a net CO2 sink during the summer of 2024. My data also suggests that the site is a small source of CH4. The results from my project will aid in advancing research on peatlands, stressing the importance of taking the proper steps towards restoration.
MDES and Movie Watching: Examining Thought Patterns During Movie Watching Task
Authors: Greenstein Shira , Ketcheson Sam
Published: September 2024

Multi dimensional experience sampling (MDES) occurs when questions are asked to participants while they are completing a certain task, and to assess and examine various facets and thought processes of participant’s experience while encountering that particular activity (Wallace et al., 2024).  For instance, examining a participant's emotional state. This sampling method was applied to a movie watching study completed over the duration of May to August 2024. The study included 15 participants, who each observed a total of 15 film clips, in person in the lab located in Kingston, Ontario. The clips each ranged from one to three minutes, and comprised of various film genres. Participants would then complete an MDES questionnaire after observing each film clip.
Once the data was obtained, a Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was completed. It was discovered that four components of thought were found including intrusive distraction, sensory engagement, episodic knowledge, and narrative comprehension of the clips. Episodic knowledge highlights the participant’s attention fixating on past events and their emotions and focuses less on current deliberate thoughts, and narrative comprehension concentrates on the participant’s problem-solving skills to understand the content occurring in the clips. Whereas, participant’s sensory engagement features their focus to sounds and images in the clips, and intrusive distraction aids in displaying that their focus is poor while viewing the clips, but their intrusive thoughts are high. 
Using the data it can be assumed that various thought processes can occur while an individual observes movies. It also aided in identifying any factors that could help or hinder participants' ability to focus on the movie clip task. The data can be beneficial in furthering our understanding of an individual's attentional abilities when viewing various genres and pieces of media. 
Works Cited
Wallace, R. S., Mckeown, B., Goodall-Halliwell, I., Chitiz, L., Forest, P., Karapanagiotidis, T., Mulholland, B., Turnbull, A. G., Vanderwal, T., Hardikar, S., Alam, T. G., Bernhardt, B., Wang, H.-T., Strawson, W., Milham, M., Xu, T., Margulies, D., Poerio, G. L., Jefferies, E., … Smallwood, J. (2024). Mapping Patterns of Thought onto Brain Activity during Movie-Watching, 1–38. https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.01.31.578244
Deprivation of citizenship and creation of statelessness: case study of Belarus
Authors: Malinouskaya Sandra
Published: September 2024

This research paper explores the use of citizenship deprivation and trials in absentia as tools of political repression, with a particular focus on Belarus. In Belarus, an amendment to the citizenship law was passed on July 11, 2023 allowing the Belarusian president to revoke Belarusian citizenship of those abroad, even if it would render them stateless. This new amendment would also allow for trials to be conducted in absentia, with a possible sentence being citizenship deprivation. The paper also delves into the bureaucratic tactics used by the Belarusian government to exacerbate statelessness. These include the closure of consulates abroad and the requirement for citizens to be physically present in Belarus to renew their passports, making it nearly impossible for those in exile to maintain their citizenship. This leaves those in exile with minimal, if any, legal protections and access to basic rights.
Additionally, the research looks at the role of international relations in exacerbating the arbitrary use of these practices, particularly in the context of the war in Ukraine. This conflict has intensified political repression in Belarus and prompted neighbouring countries, such as Lithuania and Poland, to introduce humanitarian visas to protect Belarusians who fled the country. By analyzing these developments, the paper highlights the devastating effects of the powers of citizenship deprivation, including the creation of stateless individuals through both legal and administrative means, and emphasizes the need for a coordinated international response to safeguard citizenship rights in these instances.
Metalens Topology Optimization
Authors: Iacobucci Kate , Aliahmadi Hazhir , Babayan Irina
Published: September 2024

Photonic metasurfaces are thin optical elements comprised of structures arranged strategically upon a surface to manipulate electromagnetic waves. To produce metasurfaces at a large scale, it is beneficial to obtain not just an optimal design, but also an understanding of which areas of the metasurface are most influential on the overall performance of the device and require greater manufacturing accuracy. My work consisted of implementing and testing a new physics-based method for identifying the relative importance of different regions of a proposed metasurface design. This method built on an existing topology optimization code, where the designable region of the metasurface was discretized, and the material density of each point in the design was optimized such that incoming light was maximally focussed to a target location. The existing optimization algorithm was then coupled to a molecular dynamics model called a Nosé-Hoover thermostat, by modelling the discrete locations on the design region as particles and their corresponding material densities as their positions. By numerically integrating the equations of motion of the thermostat model, I was able to generate metasurface designs at different thermostat temperatures, and observe how the designs changed with increasing temperature. To determine the most important areas of the metasurface design, I calculated the entropy of each of the "particles" for all temperature samples, and looked for design regions that had low entropy even at high temperatures, indicating strong convergence on an optimal material density value amidst high thermal noise. Once I implemented this design analysis framework, I tested it on both a metalens and a reflector design at multiple wavelengths of incoming light. My results demonstrated that this physics-based method provides easily interpretable information about the relative importance of different elements of a metasurface design.
Characterizing the function and origin of kidney capsule macrophages
Authors: Shibi Rosen Danielle , Politeski Abbey , Shrestha Seily
Published: September 2024

Macrophages are a type of innate immune cell that have roles in pathogen detection, homeostasis, tissue development, and inflammation. These cells can be localized to tissues and self-renewing, or recruited from the bone marrow via a monocyte intermediate. Three main subsets of tissue resident macrophages were previously described with conserved ontogeny and self-renewal capacity across tissues. These subsets include TLF+ (TIMD4+ LYVE1+FOLR2+), MHCIIhi, and CCR2+. The kidney parenchyma is notably lacking the TLF+ macrophages that are present in all other tissues and constitute a yolk-sac derived subset, capable of self-renewal and contributing to wound repair. The kidney capsule is a fibrous tissue that encapsulates the kidney parenchyma, that remains vastly understudied. It was recently shown that the kidney capsule contains TLF+ macrophages, however the function and origin of this population within the capsule remains unknown. Here, with flow cytometry and immunofluorescence staining, we further cement this population as a discrete population independent of kidney parenchymal macrophages. We characterize the self-renewal capacity of kidney capsule macrophages, describe a specific role for fibroblast-derived macrophage colony stimulating factor (mCSF) in the survival of capsule (and not parenchyma) macrophages; and show that they are heavily localized in clusters throughout the capsule based on their origin. Future work will explore the functional role of these cells in the context of acute kidney injury.
Leaps in the dark
Authors: Taylor Madison
Published: September 2024

This study investigates how the desire to ascertain a sense of place for Black, Caribbean diasporic subjects living on Indigenous lands can be pursued through respectful engagement with Indigenous literary art. Although returning to our own ancestral homes may not be possible, I argue, as a diasporic person myself, that it is possible for diasporic subjects to find meaning and belonging on the Indigenous lands of Aotearoa, New Zealand and what is now known as Canada through analysis of works like the bone people by Māori author Keri Hulme and Monkey Beach by Haisla author Eden Robinson. Drawing upon each text’s use of narrative, incorporation of Indigenous language, and depiction of tradition, I develop frameworks towards finding belonging whilst respecting Māori and Haisla lifeways. Both personal experience and textual analysis colour this research, which was spurred by a longing for place as a subject of the Black, Caribbean diaspora. This paper argues that humble engagement with Māori and Haisla knowledges, as elicited by Hulme and Robinson’s novels, can contribute to a greater sense of belonging for such diasporic subjects to decolonizing ends. The paper focuses on place as a fluid concept, the importance of humility when engaging with Indigenous knowledge and practices, and the acceptance of Indigenous education without expectation of mastery. Belonging is not a rigid concept, and this paper is not a guidebook, but a launching pad towards a lifetime of learning, unlearning, change and acceptance.
Edge Detection for Molten Metal Level in Pyrometalurgical Furnaces
Authors: Timpson John
Published: September 2024

This report has found a prospective analytical model for an edge response of a transmit-receive eddy current coil. A probe of this design could be used to determine in real time the molten metal height and remaining wall thickness within a pyrometallurgical furnace.
This work heavily uses previously published methods to find a possible expression for the change in mutual coil impedance resulting from a right-angled edge. An advancement in the method includes using the Lorentz Reciprocity relations for a transmit-receive system to calculate impedance change.
Awaiting the completion of the model, an expected response has also been modelled in a finite element method software, which will be used to verify the analytical model. Also, an experiment has been designed to be able to validate both models.
What remains to be completed is a successful code implementation of the mathematics, to produce results. While analytical solutions to the equations have been obtained, implementation of coded solutions remains incomplete. Some methods for improving the code will be to better condition the matrices described in the linear algebra interface between the three regions, as well as making further improvements on the root-finding code.
Objawy czynnościowych zaburzeń układu ruchowego narządu żucia na podstawie autodiagnozy pacjentów
Authors: Bieniek Krzysztof
Published: September 2024

Na czynnościowe zaburzenia układu ruchowego narządu żucia skarży się coraz więcej osób. Objawy, z jakimi zmagają się pacjenci, mają różny charakter, a w związku z ich lokalizacją (układ stomatognatyczny) może dojść do zaburzeń funkcjonowania jednostki w formie niezaspokojenia podstawowych potrzeb życiowych, np. pobierania pokarmu, swobodnych kontaktów międzyludzkich. Celem artykułu jest prezentacja objawów zaburzeń narządu żucia uświadomionych sobie przez pacjentów.
W badaniu uczestniczyło 75 pacjentów, których zadaniem było wypełnienie formularza osobowego (oś I) Badawczych Kryteriów Diagnostycznych Zaburzeń Czynnościowych Układu Ruchowego Narządu Żucia.
Objawy zaburzeń czynnościowych układu ruchowego narządu żucia manifestowane były u osób biorących udział w badaniu z następującą częstotliwością: bruksizm występował u 28% badanych; na objawy akustyczne w obszarze stawu skroniowo‑żuchwowego uskarżało się 20% badanych; u 13% ankietowanych pojawiał się ból głowy; 12% pacjentów zmagało się ze szmerami lub dzwonieniem w uszach; dyskomfort zgryzowy zgłaszało 10% badanych; 9% ankietowanych zaznaczyło ograniczenie w odwodzeniu żuchwy; ból i drętwienie okolicy twarzy występował u 8% badanych.
Dolegliwości pojawiające się w obrębie głowy i twarzy mogą być dla pacjentów niepokojące oraz wpływać na jakość życia jednostki. Pozytywnym zjawiskiem jest wzrost świadomości osób zmagających się z problemami skroniowo‑żuchwowymi i umiejętność podjęcia decyzji, by udać się do specjalisty, który jest w stanie podjąć najlepszą terapię. Warto uczulać pacjentów, którzy są w grupie ryzyka, by w razie wystąpienia dolegliwości udali się jak najszybciej po pomoc, gdyż przewlekle występujący problem zostanie zmodulowany ośrodkowo, a wówczas terapia tego typu objawów jest trudniejsza.
Studium przypadku czteroletniego chłopca z jąkaniem
Authors: Michalczyk Anna
Published: September 2024

Artykuł opisuje przypadek 4-letniego chłopca z jąkaniem wczesnodziecięcym oraz efekty jego terapii przy użyciu programu Palin PCI. Założenia wykorzystanego programu oscylują wokół zmian w dynamice relacji w najbliższej rodzinie dziecka z jąkaniem, modyfikacji sposobu komunikacji, otwartym mówieniu o jąkaniu, a także zadbaniu o odpowiedni poziom samooceny. W artykule opisano cele terapii, które sformułowano wraz dzieckiem i jego rodzicami, przebieg trwania programu oraz jego efekty końcowe. Wprowadzone oddziaływania terapeutyczne przy użyciu opisywanego programu przyniosły wymierne korzyści nie tylko dla samego chłopca, ale również dla jego najbliższego otoczenia, zaś poziom nasilenia jego jąkania uległ odczuwalnemu zmniejszeniu.
La problemática de los parques eólicos y su solución a través del urbanismo
Authors: Fernández-García José Francisco
Published: September 2024

Objetivos: el presente trabajo aborda el debate jurídico que suscita el encaje de las instalaciones eólicas en el territorio, a fin de identificar mecanismos de ordenación coordinada de esta actividad con otras políticas sectoriales. Metodología: la investigación realizada se orienta a dar solución a los problemas reales que plantea la aplicación del derecho en esta materia, empleando para ello la metodología habitual de las ciencias jurídicas (especialmente, el análisis normativo y doctrinal). Resultados: se ha conseguido precisar la forma en la que los planes urbanísticos han de llevar a cabo esa labor integradora, clarificando previamente los trámites administrativos exigidos para la implantación de este tipo de infraestructuras. Conclusiones: la implantación de un parque eólico debe conllevar un nuevo ordenamiento urbanístico del área en la que se ubica, a fin de que las servidumbres impuestas por la instalación de dichas infraestructuras sean contempladas en los regímenes de uso de los suelos situados en torno a las mismas. Con el fin de acometer esa función, la ordenación del territorio, la zonificación y los planes especiales se erigen en las tres piezas esenciales del sistema.
Peculiarities of the course of chronic kidney disease in patients with arterial hypertension, diabetes and chronic glomerulonephritis
Authors:   Danylo Halytsky Lviv National Medical University, BARDASH V. O. , HELYUTA D. M. ,   Municipal non-profit enterprise. «First Medical Union of Lviv», BOCHAR O. M. ,   Danylo Halytsky Lviv National Medical University, BOCHAR V. T. ,   Danylo Halytsky Lviv National Medical University, SKLYAROV E. Ya. ,   Danylo Halytsky Lviv National Medical University
Published: September 2024

Chronic kidney disease (CKD), especially its terminal stage, is a serious problem in modern medicine. There are certain features of the course of CKD in patients with arterial hypertension (AH), diabetes mellitus (DM), and chronic glomerulonephritis (CGN). The purpose of the study was to study the course of CKD against the background of hypertension, diabetes and chronic hypertension based on clinical and laboratory examination data to assess the severity of the patients' condition. Materials and methods. 86 patients with stage V chronic renal failure (CKD) were examined, who were divided into 3 groups depending on the existing concomitant disease. Group 1 (n – 35) included patients with CKD and hypertension, group 2 (n – 28) – patients with CKD and diabetes, and group 3 (n – 23) – patients with CKD and CGN. Anthropometric, general clinical, laboratory and instrumental research methods were performed on all patients. Research results and their discussion. Analyzing the data of a general blood test, 100 % of patients in all three groups had a decrease in hemoglobin and erythrocyte levels. A significant decrease in the level of albumin (p < 0.05) and an increase in the levels of urea (p < 0.001) and creatinine (p < 0.001) were also found, which indicated a pronounced decrease in kidney function and significant kidney damage. Analyzing the results of the ionic composition of the blood, a significant increase in the levels of phosphorus and parathyroid hormone was found in patients of the III group (CNN and CGN). Conclusions: 1. In all groups of patients with CKD of the V degree in combination with concomitant hypertension, diabetes mellitus or CGN, persistent anemia was noted, which was manifested by a progressive drop in hemoglobin to the levels of 86.22 ± 3.61 g/l, 83.89 ± 3.06 g/l and 83.22 ± 3.49 g/l, respectively. 2. In such patients, a pronounced decrease in kidney function was noted, which was manifested by a delay in the release of the products of protein metabolism from the blood due to a decrease in the levels of albumin (p < 0.05), a significant increase in the levels of urea (p < 0.001), creatinine (p < 0.001) and a decrease glomerular filtration rate. 3. In the group of patients with a combination of CKD stage V and CGN, a significant increase in phosphorus and parathyroid hormone levels was found (p < 0.01). Such an increase in the level of parathyroid hormone in blood serum may be associated with a drop in the level of calcium in the blood of such patients and the subsequent progressive increase in the level of inorganic phosphate and the development of hyperphosphatemia.
Illicit enrichment: a crime or its result
Authors:   Doctor of Juridical Sciences, Professor, Chief of Department for Criminal Law and Criminal Process of the Institute on Law and Human Rights, Suleymanov Javanshir
Published: September 2024

Opponents of the criminalization of illegal enrichment, including a number of Azerbaijani scholars, believe that Article 20 of the UN Convention against Corruption contradicts the canons of law, fundamental rights of the individual, other international treaties, the Constitution and criminal procedure legislation of the Republic of Azerbaijan. Wherein, references are made to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the European Convention for the Protection of Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, the American Convention on Human Rights, the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights, the ASEAN Declaration of Human Rights and other international documents in which the presumption of innocence, freedom of self-incrimination, placing the burden of proof on the prosecution party are indicated as the basic inalienable rights of the individual.
Comparação entre características fonológicas da sílaba em transposições ortográficas na escrita infantil e em metáteses na fala infantil
Authors: Amarante Mirian Verza , Chacon Lourenço , Freitas Maria João dos Reis de , Soncin Geovana
Published: September 2024

Relações entre características fonológicas da fala e características ortográficas da escrita têm se tornado objeto constante de investigação, principalmente entre estudiosos que buscam entender o aparecimento dos chamados erros ortográficos. Assumindo que características da fala e características da escrita, embora relacionadas, não supõem relação de espelhamento, o presente estudo teve como objetivo observar em que medida transposições ortográficas acompanhariam – ou não – metáteses na fala infantil. Tais fenômenos correspondem a deslocamentos de grafemas e de segmentos de sua posição convencional na palavra para outra posição no interior da palavra. Para tanto, analisamos 44 produções textuais e 52 amostras de fala de crianças e verificamos o aparecimento dos deslocamentos conforme ocorressem sob forma de intersilábicos simples, intersilábicos duplos, intrassilábicos simples e intrassilábicos duplos (Amarante; Chacon, 2022). Posteriormente, comparamos características fonológicas do ponto de onde partiam e de onde chegavam os deslocamentos, a fim de observar se eles resultariam em manutenção, aumento ou redução da complexidade silábica. Na ortografia, as transposições intrassilábicas (75,4%) prevaleceram sobre as intersilábicas (24,6%). Diferentemente, na fala, as metáteses intersilábicas (57,2%) prevaleceram sobre as intrassilábicas (42,8%). Em relação à complexidade silábica, na ortografia, os deslocamentos resultaram em aumento (45,2%), seguido da redução (29,2%) e da manutenção (25,6%) da complexidade. Na fala, as metáteses resultaram em manutenção (45,2%), seguida do aumento (31,4%) e da redução (22,7%). Os resultados sugerem que, embora ocorram relações entre aquisição fonológica e aquisição ortográfica, essas relações não se mostraram como diretas.
Semiologia, enunciação e escrita infantil: por um novo discurso teórico sobre a aquisição da escrita
Authors: Oliveira Giovane Fernandes
Published: September 2024

Este artigo relata os principais resultados de uma pesquisa que buscou introduzir um novo discurso teórico sobre a aquisição da escrita. Com base em um aparato conceitual e procedimental fundamentado pela teoria da linguagem de Émile Benveniste, foram analisados dois corpora de escrita infantil, oriundos do acompanhamento naturalístico, durante dois anos e seis meses, de duas crianças. As análises conduziram à caracterização de três macro-operações semiológico-enunciativas de aquisição da escrita. Na operação de deslocamento de lugar enunciativo, ocorre a passagem dos lugares de falante e de ouvinte aos lugares de escrevente e de leitor. Na operação de desdobramento do funcionamento do discurso escrito, ocorrem duas passagens: por um lado, a passagem da enunciação escrita sem implantação de alocutário explícito à enunciação escrita com explicitação de alocutário, real ou imaginado, individual ou coletivo; por outro lado, a passagem do aqui-agora da alocução falada à complexa rede de relações espaço-temporais desdobrada pela alocução escrita na simulação, na retomada e na projeção de acontecimentos. Na operação de discretização do aparelho formal da enunciação escrita, ocorre a passagem do reconhecimento da à ação sobre a escrita como um todo constituído de partes na relação entre o contínuo e o discreto dos níveis e das unidades linguísticas. Os resultados obtidos permitem desenhar os contornos de uma perspectiva semiológico-enunciativa da aquisição da escrita e responder às grandes questões do campo: a questão da relação fala-escrita, a questão do inato e do adquirido, a questão da representação, a questão da consciência metalinguística e a questão da mudança.
Uma história de enunciações sobre a instauração da criança na língua materna
Authors: Silva Carmem Luci da Costa
Published: September 2024

Este artigo apresenta a trajetória de pesquisa de Silva, a partir da sua tese inaugural (2007), que relaciona a Teoria da Linguagem de Émile Benveniste (1995, 1989) e o campo de Aquisição da Linguagem, para produzir uma explicação sobre a instauração da criança na língua materna. O objetivo deste artigo é o de relatar tal história de estudos. Essa história é sintetizada em três momentos: 1) o da reflexão fundadora de uma discussão sobre aquisição como instauração da criança na língua materna; 2) o da reflexão a propósito dos efeitos de problematizações sobre a “voz” na discussão sobre essa instauração e 3) o da reflexão sobre o papel da “escuta” nesse ato de instauração. Em cada um desses três momentos, são apresentados exteriores teóricos que provocam (ré)leituras das obras benvenistianas e promovem reflexões voltadas à explicação da constituição da criança como falante.