bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
CONFLITS MILITARO POLITIQUES ET RECHERCHE DE LA PAIX PAR VOIE DIPLOMATIQUE: L’EXEMPLE DE L’ACCORD DE BANGUI (REPUBLIQUE CENTRAFRICAINE)
Authors: KEVIS KOSSI Narcisse Landry
Published: July 2020

Diplomatic Military-Political Conflicts and Peace Keeping: The Example of the Bangui Agreement (Central African Republic). The Central African Republic and since 2013, the theater of many conflicts military political. Poverty, nepotism, clientelism, ethnocentrism, bad governance is indexed as determining factors of theses recurring military political conflicts in Central African Republic. In the face of these shortcomings, the predominantly Muslim- dominated séléka rebel groups and the predominantly Christian Anti balaka are in perpetual confrontation. Threats have been made to split the country. Conflicts ended in a coup d’état against former President Francois Bozizé&, who was ousted by the leader of the séléka rebellion, Niche Djotodja, the first Muslim Central African President. However, to this day, the consequences of these conflicts continue to cause serious harm to the civilian population. Women have been raped houses, mosques and churches looted and ransacked, and so on. The objective of this article is to highlight the diplomatic channels used by the CAR to manage conflicts, in this case the Karthoum agreement signed in Bangui on February 6, 2019. Based on a “bottom-up” systemic approach, this study has shown that the perceptions of Central Africans related to the peace agreement signed in Bangui vary from one individual to another and according to socio-professional category as a “tool for peace“ or not.
Actualization of the Invariant Semantics of the STAR Symbol in Texts of Russian Rock Poetry
Authors: Avdeenko Ivan A.
Published: July 2020

The questions of the invariant semantics of the symbol and its actualization in the texts of Russian rock poetry are considered. Attention is paid to the studies of the symbol, concept and image of the star in Russian poetry and rock poetry. The author notes that these studies do not present the correlation of individually authored imaginative worldview with the worldview of the subculture reflected in the text. A review of the work of linguistic poetics and anthropocentric linguistics is performed. The definitions of a symbol within the framework of these paradigms are given. It is concluded that the understanding of a symbol as a carrier of the worldview of culture changes the idea of the connection between the signifier and the signified and the “reference point” of the aesthetic. The author proceeds from the fact that the aesthetic image is built on the basis of the invariant semantics of a symbol in the language of subculture. The results of a comparative analysis of the symbolic semantics of the star nomination in the language of Russian rock poetry and other subsystems of the Russian national language, including aesthetically oriented ones, are presented. It is shown that the invariant semantics of the STAR symbol, relevant for Russian rock poetry, lies at the heart of the star’s images, which are identical, connected and contrasted with the author’s image. It is proved that the actualization of the semantics of the STAR symbol does not depend on the specific author and the text of Russian rock poetry, reproduces general ideas about the world.
The Problem of the Preservation and Dissemination of Domestic Musical and Educational Traditions in the United States during the First Wave of Russian Emigration in the Works of Modern Researchers
Authors: Suetin Ilya N.
Published: July 2020

The purpose of the study is to update and historiographically summarize publications devoted to the study of the characteristics of the pedagogical and educational activities of Russian emigrant musicians in the United States during the first wave of Russian emigration (1918 - late 1930s), as well as its consequences. The sources of this work were a variety of scientific publications - dissertations, monographs, articles, essays. The scientific novelty of this article lies in the fact that, to date, no attempt has been made in the domestic and foreign science of their historiographic generalization. In the course of the study, the following scientific methods were used: theoretical interdisciplinary analysis and synthesis, systemic and structural-functional analysis, comparative-historical, comparative historiographic analysis, historical-typological, etc. In the work, a historiographic generalization of publications by domestic and foreign authors on the problem of the preservation and dissemination of Russian (Soviet) musical and educational traditions in the United States during the first wave of Russian emigration was carried out. As a result of the study, the following modern scientific trends on this topic were highlighted: publications affecting the problem of preserving and disseminating domestic traditions of church singing education; works devoted to the development of Russian traditions of musical enlightenment and general musical education; studies aimed at studying the pedagogical heritage of graduates of domestic conservatories (violinists, composers, pianists).
Luminescence Chronology of the Yellow River Terraces in the Heiyukou Area, China, and Its Implication for the Uplift Rate of the Ordos Plateau
Authors: Yan Yan-Yan , Zhang Jia-Fu , Hu Gang , Zhou Li-Ping
Published: July 2020

The precise chronology of the fluvial terraces of the Yellow River in China is essential to understand its geomorphological evolution history. More terrace ages are needed for the correlation of the terraces along the river and the construction of the longitudinal profile. In this study, seven terraces (T1–T7) in the Heiyukou area of the Jinshaan Canyon of the river were identified and were sampled for optical dating. The reliability of the ages was evaluated on the bases of bleachability, comparison of optical ages on fine and coarse grains, stratigraphic consistency of OSL ages, age distribution and geomorphological setting. The results show that the paired T2 terrace was formed at 72 ± 3 ka, and the T4, T5 strath terraces were dated to 108 ± 4 and >141 ± 4 ka, respectively. The ages for the samples from T6 and T7 were significantly underestimated, and the ‘infinitely old’ pre-Quaternary Red-Clay sample on the T7 terrace was dated to 134 ± 6 ka. The long-term river incision rates were calculated to be <0.36, 0.34 and 0.18 mm/a for at least the past 141, 108 and 72 ka, respectively, which also reflect the uplift rates of the Ordos plateau. The implication for dating terrace deposits is that terraces should be systemically sampled and dated using both fine and coarse grain fractions. The reliability of the ages obtained for high terraces should be evaluated using a relative chronology of dated samples on a case-by-case basis, if no independent numerical age controls are available.
Poverty and labor informality in Colombia
Authors: Torres Roberto Mauricio Sánchez
Published: July 2020

Labor informality and poverty are at high levels in Latin America. In developing countries, poverty and the labor market are related not through unemployment but through employment. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the link between labor informality and poverty in Colombia. To do so, earnings gaps associated with labor informality are estimated; then, the effect of formalization on poverty is calculated, as the influence of changes in labor informality on Colombia’s poverty reduction from 2002 to 2013. The findings show that the earnings gap between formal and informal workers is 37–44%, and if informality were eliminated, poverty would decrease by approximately 40%. However, even though informality has great potential to reduce poverty, its actual effect on Colombia’s poverty reduction in the years analyzed was low.
Proposed methodology and tools of econophysics to analyze mesodynamics of economic sectors in Russian regions
Authors: Semenychev V.K. , Khmeleva G.A. , Korobetskaya A.A.
Published: July 2020

Subject. The article analyzes the mesodynamics of economic sectors in Russian regions.
Objectives. The aim of the study is to undertake quantitative and qualitative monitoring of the components' evolution in twelve basic economic sectors from 2005 to 2017, to describe the regions' homogeneity, stability and balance, and their prospects for investment.
Methods. We employ methods of identification, lowess smoothing, and the bootstrap approach to identify models of mesodynamics on 30–50-value samples, without a priori knowledge about the stochastic component distribution law.
Results. The findings confirmed the possibility and adequacy of the econophysics paradigm for mesodynamic analysis. We justified and tested methods for general mesodynamic models' identification, using the R programming language.
Conclusions. The offered methodology and tools will enable to develop a knowledge base for fundamental laws of mesodynamics. They will also help reveal spatial and temporal features of cyclical development of Russian regions; assess the level of balance and sustainability of regional development in the medium term period; group the regions by their cycle length and define the most promising ones for investment.
Modernizing the lending facility under concession agreements
Authors: Rakhaev V.A.
Published: July 2020

Subject. The article addresses modernization of lending facilities under concession agreements. It is important for evaluating the terms of credit transactions, effectiveness of credit projects, and the concessionaire's ability to repay the loan.
Objectives. The purpose is to review the current financing mechanism and underpin approaches to improving the credit facilities within concession agreements.
Methods. The study rests on general scientific methods, like the systems and logical analysis and synthesis, principles of induction and deduction, financial calculation techniques. The analytical part employs the balance method, methods of financial coefficients and the method of technical and economic estimates.
Results. I analyzed the financial structure and special characteristics of concession agreements, parameters of concessionaires’ activities; considered the types of risks inherent in bank lending under concession agreements, methods for their identification and mitigation; offered a mechanism of lending, including the structure of credit transactions, restrictions for the financial condition of concessionaires, additional requirements and penalties for their non-fulfillment. The findings can help banks define lending parameters for concession agreements. The provided recommendations may be useful for consideration by the authorities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation.
Conclusions. It is possible to reduce the risks of lending under concession contracts, if their terms and conditions are stable, and if the lost income of concessionaires is compensated in the event of early termination. Reasonable tariffs for works and services and increased revenue collection will promote this type of lending.
İç Anadolu Bölgesinin Organik Koyunculuk Potansiyelinin Değerlendirilmesi
Authors: Tüfekci Hacer , Boz Mehmet Akif
Published: July 2020

Organik hayvancılık; çiftlik hayvanlarına doğal davranışlarının tüm hallerini göstermelerine izin veren, organik yemlerle beslenen, kontrol ve sertifika kuruluşları tarafından denetlenen, tüketicilere daha sağlıklı ürünler sunan, çevre dostu bir üretim şeklidir. Organik üretim, tarımda daha çok bitkisel üretim dallarında ortaya çıkmış, giderek yaygınlaşmaya başlamıştır. Ancak, gelişmiş ülkelerde tüketicilerin bitkisel ürünlerde olduğu gibi besin güvenilirliği yüksek hayvansal ürünleri tercih etmeye yönelmeleri, çevre bilinci ve hayvan haklarına duyarlılığın artması nedeniyle organik tarımda organik hayvancılık süreci başlamıştır. Türkiye coğrafik ve üretim özellikleri bakımından organik tarım uygulamalarına uyum göstermektedir. İç Anadolu Bölgesi yoğun tarım ve sanayi nedeniyle kirlenmemiş bölgeler arasında yer alması, sahip olduğu hayvan sayısı ve çayır-mera alanları bakımından organik hayvancılık açısından da önem taşımaktadır. Bu araştırmanın amacı; İç Anadolu Bölgesi‘nin bitkisel ve hayvansal üretiminin genel durumu, yıllara göre değişimi incelenerek bölgenin organik koyunculuk yönünden potansiyelini saptamak ve genel bir bakış açısı sunmaktır.
Data Protection Maturity: an analysis of methodological tools and frameworks
Authors: Laposa Tamás , Frivaldszky Gáspár
Published: July 2020

This paper discusses the maturity of data protection and privacy measures in order to develop a better understanding of the importance and impacts of this domain.
The practical relevance of this topic is that the General Data Protection Regulation provides that data controllers in EU Member States shall comply with uniform data protection rules. Even though European legislation sets detailed requirements for data controllers, the implementation of appropriate technical and organisational measures can be realised at different levels of maturity. Based on the analysis of the pertinent literature, various maturity models are available to assess privacy policies, but GDPR requirements are addressed just partially. The exploration of the issue of maturity offers a new relevant research opportunity to assist data controllers in finding the appropriate methodology for the assessment and further development of their data protection measures.
This paper has three main objectives. First, to systematically review the relevant literature on the issue of maturity. Second, to analyse the relevant maturity models and their main methodological elements. Third, to make suggestions for a new specific model focusing on GDPR requirements.
Privacy challenges in children's online presence - from the developers' perspective
Authors: Krasznay Csaba , Rácz-Nagy Judit , Dóra László
Published: July 2020

Parents nowadays are facing with the fact that their children are using apps like TikTok or Instagram, and have the same question as millions of other dads and moms: how can they protect their beloved from the dark side of internet? Most parents are anxious about their kids’ online presence, but they don’t have the right tools to protect them. Teens feel that they neither can find useful information, nor turn to their parents for advices to protect themselves. There are two options: parental control and educational software. For the first one, there are nearly 140 software for parents. Mostly they offer the same: filtering, banning, spying. These solutions are not just ineffective, because the kids can circumvent the solutions, but usually deepen the issue between the teenagers and their parents. The latter one is too generic, and do not provide hands-on tips. Mongu for Teen is an educational app designed for 9-13-year-old kids and their parents that gives a solution for this problem. In our paper, we highlight the current threats to children’s online privacy, the European legislation, that aims to protect them and as a case study, our experiences how a developer should follow this privacy regulation and how effective can be an eduware to improve the privacy awareness of digital families.
Put your money where your mouth is - participatory budgeting in Romanian cities
Authors: Urs Nicolae
Published: July 2020

Almost 40 years ago, New Public Management theorists reserved an increasingly important role for citizens and civil society in the policy making process. This trend continued afterwards with proponents of Digital Era Governance or New Public Service theories. But without the opportunity of taking decisions on how to spend at least some parts of the government money, the influence of citizens and NGOs is fairly limited.
Local governments, as the institutions closer to the needs and wishes of the communities, have gradually taken note of the increasing clamor for more power and transparency. Participatory budgeting processes have sprung up all over the world in the last years. Romania is no exception; a number of cities have implemented platforms that allow their citizens to propose and vote on projects to improve the quality of life in their communities.
Our research will try to ascertain the level of success such initiatives have in Romania, a country with a generally low level of civic engagement. For this, we will use questionnaires and interviews with public servants in charge of these platforms.
Social media use to enable better research visibility
Authors: Cojocaru Irina , Cojocaru Igor
Published: July 2020

Research visibility is a synthetic characteristic, defining the level of dissemination, accessibility, recognition and impact of the scientific output of a community. It has been influenced tremendouslyby the rapid development of ICT and took full advantage of the plethora of ICT tools. The paradigm of Open Science has organically emerged during the last years, advocating for extending the principles of openness to the whole research cycle, fostering sharing and collaboration as early as possible. The use of various ICT-based tools enables the entire research cycle - from literature search and review, reference management, research data processing, publication and peer-review to dissemination of results and outreach within the global academic community. The availability of various customisable online services for researchers, especially social media, contributes significantly to the increase of their presence and visibility in the scientific communities at national, regional and global levels. This paper aims to present an overview of the possibilities afforded to researchers by social media and social networking, its benefits and potential drawbacks, as well as its implications for the future of scholarly communication and research evaluation, the reasons and motivations why researchers are engaging in social media or not.
Ten years of liquid democracy research
Authors: Paulin Alois
Published: July 2020

Ten years have passed since in 2009 two independent technical systems pioneered liquid democracy (LD): Župa, a system developed for the Student Organisation of FIS in Slovenia, followed closely by LiquidFeedback, which served the Pirate Party in Berlin, Germany. First academic papers appeared in 2010 targeting the e-democracy research community, and later followed by researchers from artificial intelligence. This paper provides an overview of the scholarly discussions that developed in the past decade, and the technical implementations and initiatives that emerged.
Comparative analysis of evidence based policies in the era of digitalization
Authors: Bojtor András , Bozsó Gábor
Published: July 2020

A well-functioning administration with embedded institutions enables the formulation of a competitive environment which propitiously effects the country’s economic growth. In case of an intervention, the results and impacts should be measured and continuously monitored in a strategic policy cycle. These activities can be done on project and national levels and at the same time there could be a legitimate claim for carrying out international comparative analysis of results. The majority of public administration developments belongs to the scope of e-government. The evidencebased policy making is a component of good governance next to transparency, sustainability, efficiency, integrity and people centricity. Government obligations and responsibilities in evaluations vary from country to country. Digitalization brings new challenges for public service and governments are taking various measures in response to them. Evaluation can fulfil its role in the strategic policy cycle only if it can meet the political conditions with attention to ethical and methodological standards; can adapt to the digitalized circumstances. The paper aims a deeper analysis of evaluation phase, and to summarize the possible new methods reaching better results in public services and public administration services. In this paper we are going to conduct an international comparative analysis with a special attention given to a public administration development program in Hungary.
Environmental impact of shopping via the internet
Authors: Sievering Oliver
Published: July 2020

Shopping via the internet is booming. High growth figures can still be expected in the future. More and more customers buy their goods online; the goods are then delivered to their home. Online customers especially love convenience. On the Internet, the large assortment is at a glance, the selection is independent of time and place, furthermore many products are cheaper. In this way, the customer can save money, save time and avoid ways to the city center. But is online shopping also climate-friendly? Climate-conscious behavior is an aspect that is currently being discussed a lot. The rapidly growing e-commerce is publicly criticized in many places for not being sustainable. Reference is made in particular to increase packaging waste, high return rates (and presumably destruction of returned goods) as well as longer distances that have to be covered for items in e-commerce on the way to the customer. Studies come to very different assessments of the environmental impact of ecommerce compared to traditional retail. This paper focuses on traffic-related environmental impacts when evaluating e-commerce.
E-Government, transparency and personal data protection.
Authors: Ricci Annarita
Published: July 2020

In recent years, many governments increased transparency, publicity and free access in their activities. Information and communication technologies (ICTs) are seen as a powerful tool to reduce “public diseases” such as low citizen trust, bad performance, low accountability and corruption. While some of these efforts have received a considerable attention, the balance between the value of transparency and the necessity of protecting individual’s personal rights has not been widely considered. It is an obvious fact that administrative records and documents may contain personal data, so it has become necessary to guarantee citizens’ privacy and respect the principles set forth in the European legislation. Information can indeed become more damaging if spread on the web rather than through conventional channels. Therefore, personal identity has to be protected through the removal of information which it is no longer necessary to process.
In this scenario, the present work analyses the main measures public administrative bodies are required to implement, regardless of the purposes for which the information is posted online.
The analysis conducted will be a scholar reflection based on Directive 95/46/EC and recent “Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament ad of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation)”. The paper will introduce a perspective concerning three different topics, namely the right to personal data protection, the data quality and the principle of proportionality. The road map will be as follows: to clarify the notion of data quality, to analyze the link between this principle and the value of transparency of public administrative activities and finally to introduce the dimension of the protection of personal data as a relative and not as an absolute right.
How to succeed with digital transformation projects in public sector with focus on municipalities (research in progress)
Authors: Ruud Odd
Published: July 2020

Public sector must undergo radical changes in the years ahead to cope with demographic and financial challenges. The use of technology, building innovation capabilities and digitalization through digital transformation projects are key factors to succeed with change in order to realize expected benefits. Public sector has deep cultural and legacy roots where culture is the hardest part to change, which makes it complex to succeed with digital transformation projects. There are only a few references of relevant frameworks for digital transformation projects in the literature that can be applied directly to public sector. In this paper three hypothesizes for future research are identified.
May the advanced biometric electronic signature be applicable in public administration?
Authors: Bartók Sándor P. , Erdősi Péter Máté
Published: July 2020

Electronic signature is a technology-neutral collective noun. Therefore, several different implementations compose the known types of electronic signatures. Many classifications may be defined, for instance from technological and legal aspects. In reference to acceptability, legal status of a given signature seems to be the most important attribute for transaction partners in the e-Administration. Full probative force is usually required by Public Administration and it is also a need for building trust between untrusted partners. It can be achieved by the well-known qualified electronic signature. The qualified signature creation method requires a secure qualified electronic signature creation device and qualified certificate, although in many cases a simpler but still secure signature is also able to fulfil legal requirements ensuring the validity of transactions. On the citizen side, device dependency and relating costs were considered the major obstacles against overall usage of electronic signature technology between 2005 and 2015. Our paper intends to argue that creating advanced electronic signature is not impossible by using the signatory's biometric data and it may also be an optionally client-friendly, but not a device-free part of the e-Administration, beside the citizen card.
eIdentification - Renewable regulated electronic administration services
Authors: Orbán Anna , Beláz Annamária
Published: July 2020

Since 2005, Hungary has a comprehensive central identification solution. The Client Gate is capable of identifying citizens for any public authority that connects to it. The Client Gate is very popular and useful tool for identification among citizens for electronic transaction. Today approximately 2.4 million clients have a Client Gate account. However, many have an aversion towards the online administration. They can choose the personal administration or they can use their mobile phone for administration.
Since the beginning of 2016, the new electronic ID card integrates personal identification, social security and tax identification information which is also suitable for providing an electronic signature. These two new identification options are available to citizens, including the newly introduced national eID card, as well as the Partial Code Telephone Authentication. A half years about a million new eID card has been claimed for the citizens. However, the telephone authentication is less popular.
In Hungary, the new electronic administration is based on the "Regulated Electronic Administrative Services” (Hungarian short name SZEÜSZ) since 2012. The new central identification solution, the Central Authentication Agent as one of the Regulated Electronic Administrative Service has been launched that supports the use of different electronic identification and authentication services. Now the usual Client Gate has been changed to the Central Authentication Agent in Web Assistant application to implement full electronic administration procedures.
The aim of the study is to present the experience of the various methods of identification by comparative analysis.
A new revolution: Data revolution (the first steps of Moldova)
Authors: Cojocaru Igor , Cosuleanu Ion , Stefanita Anastasia , Cojocaru Irina , Todor Costel
Published: July 2020

The new Agenda 2030 for sustainable development universally adopted by the UN in 2015 with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) aims to fight poverty, inequality and climate change. It requires collective action at all levels, more evidence-based development policy-making, better availability of quality data and statistics, and strengthened accountability of development stakeholders, requiring in other words a “Data Revolution for Sustainable Development”. At the moment, Republic of Moldova is in process of nationalizing the SDGs with the support of UNDP.
Since data revolution represents the process of monitoring the progress and response to SDG challenges, Moldova was part of a global initiative undertaken in 7 different countries, for mapping and inventory of the data system in each country, required for measuring the sustainable development progress. Its overall objective was to assess the availability of data and institutional modernization capacity needed to implement the post-2015 development agenda. The paper presents the steps undertaken in Moldova for mapping the situation for future localization/adaptation of SDGs to ensure their monitoring in order to achieve the post-2015 Agenda using ICT tools.
Economic effects of the digital divide on pensioners in Germany regarding retail banking services
Authors: Sievering Oliver
Published: July 2020

In the recent two decades, many service sector companies like banks altered their services and fees towards a regime whereby customers either bank online on their own or face comparatively high fees. The current phase of interest rates close to zero or even below - due to the euro crisis - enhances this trend. Many commercial banks in Germany have increased their fees for current accounts significantly, the common "free current account" policy has come more or less to an end. Many of the pensioners - in Germany there are more than 20 million retirees - are affected, because their pensions are quite low and they are not familiar with doing their banking the online way. This paper analyzes the situation based upon statistical data and develops other fee structures which are more just, from a social point of view, than burdening the elderly with low incomes.
The Puzzle of ICT Driven Innovation in the Public Sector: Hungary's Case
Authors: Nemeslaki András
Published: July 2020

Public ICT (Information Communication Technologies) investments do not necessarily result in improvement of effectiveness or efficiency regarding public services. Hungary has been spending around 1,2 billion Euros using funds from the European Social Cohesion and Structural Funds during the period of 2007-2018 for modernizing its public administration. Taking the investments into other sectors as a comparison, this means that more than 25% of ICT development projects go to the public sector, which is in the magnitude of the financial, commercial and media sectors of Hungary. While the effects of digital transformation are unquestionable in these latter sectors, effectiveness of public ICT spending is problematic. When we look at the measurement scoreboards used in the EU and UN, we find Hungary not even improved its position, but in some areas has lost competiveness and fell behind. In this paper we show using some elements of earlier findings in digital innovation studies on public administration, that four key factors should be analysed in detail to find out reasons behind this phenomenon, Infrastructural questions, although need constant development and improvement, do not seem to be key explaining factors of lack of productivity improvement. Nor the techno-legislative institutions seem to be obstacles in Hungary´s case, but rather some alignment in policy objectives and consistency.
Digital Government as Service Delivery Solution for Difficult Territory
Authors: Kudo Hiroko
Published: July 2020

The paper analyses the potential of digital technology to deliver public services in difficult places to discuss the equity and equality issues of public services, through a case of Bonin Islands in Japan.It examines and discusses the issues of these difficult areas in terms of public service delivery from theoretical as well as practical aspects, and to explore the potential of digital technology, which has enabled various services and has created new opportunities.
How to Stop Digitalization - An E-Government Pilot Project Case Study
Authors: Schenk Birgit , Giesebrecht Tobias
Published: July 2020

Pilot projects are a means of learning whether the promises of an E-Government-innovation hold true. We analyze the case of an unsuccessful E-Government pilot projects for patterns of obstructive behaviour and their justifications. The identified patterns can serve as early warning signs for endangered pilot projects. Furthermore we use them to deduce recommendations for improving the innovation-readiness of public administrations.
Big Data and Algorithms in the Public Sector and Their Impact on the Transparency of Decision-Making
Authors: Szὄke Gergely László
Published: July 2020

Big Data is clearly one of the most used buzzwords nowadays, but it really seems that the phenomenon of Big Data will have a huge effect on many different fields, and may be regarded as the new wave of the information revolution started in the 60s of the last century. The potential of exploiting Big Data promises significant benefits (and also new challenges) both in the private and the public sector – this essay will focus on this latter.
After a short introduction about Big Data, this paper will first sum up the potential use of Big Data analytics in the public sector. Then I will focus on a specific issue within this scope, namely, how the use of Big Data and algorithm-based decision-making may affect transparency and access to these data. I will focus on the question why the transparency of the algorithms is raised at all, and what the current legal framework for the potential accessibility to them is.
Improving distributed vulnerability assessment model of cybersecurity
Authors: Hadarics Kálmán , Leitold Ferenc
Published: July 2020

In the digital age more and more services and data are available over the Internet. Companies and public organizations becoming increasingly vulnerable related to hacks and cyberattacks. In order to provide successful online services, effective security initiatives and targeted protections are necessary to mitigate security risks. Effective cybersecurity more than deploying firewalls and other security software (e.g. antivirus, intrusion detection/prevention systems.). Through risk assessment and risk management practices we can identify critical parts of information systems and can transform them into security tactics. Furthermore in the Distributed Vulnerability Assessment (DVA) model three factors are identified: (1) characteristics and prevalence of cyber-threats, (2) vulnerabilities of IT infrastructure and its components and processes, (3) vulnerabilities deriving from users’ behavior.
In this paper, we examine and improve our mathematical model of Distributed Vulnerability Assessment. This model can be extended for using additional information and considerations. This paper also presents a practical method which can be applied to eGovernment infrastructure and services also to reduce the impact of malware attacks of the information system.
ECDL - A basic tool for Smart Cities
Authors: Bieber Ronald
Published: July 2020

Digital Transformation is changing our society as a whole. New digital skills are required in order to be able to participate in the daily life and work. The OCG has designed a concept “Education 4.0” which enables digital basic skills to everyone. The ECDL – a longstanding worldwide accepted IT certificate – plays an important role within this concept.
Biological Activities of Iraqi Fig (Ficuscarica) CrudeEthanolic and Total Flavonoids Extracts
Authors: Al-Halbosiy Mohammad Mahmoud Farhan , Hasan Zainab Yaseen Mohammed , Mohammad Farooq Ibrahem , Abdulhameed Baraa Abdulhadi
Published: July 2020

The present study focuses on the biological strategy for treating cancer and parasitic infections, such as leishmaniasis antiparasitic activity, forthe crude alcoholic extract ofFicus leaves and their extracted total flavonoids with a comparison between their effects.The flavonoids were extracted from the leaves of the mature Ficuscaricausing the reflux extraction method. Total flavonoids were detected qualitatively by TLC techniquewhich demonstratedthat the plant was rich indifferent flavonoids, especially Rutin, Quercetin, Kaempferol, luteolin and others. Quantitatively, the plant total flavonoids content was 337.3 mg / 100 g fig leaves calculated as rutin.The biologicaleffects of the crude and purified total flavonoid on cell lines (L-20B and MCF7) and two parasites (Leishmaniatropica ,Leishmaniadonvani) were investigated. Maximum growthinhibition rates forthe total flavonoids onthe cell linesL20B andMCF7 reached 43 % at the concentration of 0.169 mg/ml and 28% at the concentration of 2.7 mg/ml, respectively, in comparison with the negative control. The ethanoliccrude extract had a low effect on L20-B cell line, while the inhibition rate forMCF-7 cell linereached 34% at a concentration of 0.084 mg/ml. For Leishmaniatropica,the total flavonoid and crude plant extractcaused maximum inhibition rates of 48% and 56%, respectively,at a concentration of 2.7 mg/ml for both. Cytotoxicity valueon Leshmaniadonovani was 20% for the crude extract at 1.35 mg/ml concentration, whereas it was11% for the total flavonoids  at a concentration of 0.169 mg/ml. In conclusion, the differences in anticancer and anti-parasitic  activitiesareattributed to differentcompounds present in each extract.
Fies e Prouni na expansão da educação superior brasileira
Authors: Miranda Paula Roberta , Azevedo Mário Luiz Neves de
Published: July 2020

O artigo propõe analisar as políticas públicas de expansão da educação superior no Brasil no período de (1990-2015), especialmente por intermédio do Fies e Prouni (2003-2015), e sua relação com o setor privado na formação de um mercado educacional lucrativo, a fim de identificar as implicações desses programas no processo de democratização da educação superior. As análises mostraram a prevalência do setor privado na oferta da educação superior em relação ao setor público. A expansão ocorrida no período de 1990 a 2015 concorreu para o processo de democratização da educação superior, porém, ocorreu pela oferta privada, o que leva a concluir que o atual panorama da qual se encontra a educação superior pode ser tipificado como expansão da mercadorização ou de sua financeirização, deixando a educação de ser um direito social para se tornar uma mercadoria.
DIE ONTWIKKELING VAN HULPMIDDELS VIR DIE ONDERRIG VAN KINDER- EN JEUGLITERATUUR IN AFRIKAANS HUISTAAL VIR DIE GRONDSLAG- EN INTERMEDIÃŠRE FASE
Authors: Marais Elma , Nel Carisma , Du Toit Christine
Published: July 2020

Die onderrig van kinder- en jeugliteratuur (KJL) is Å‰ integrale deel van die nuwe Nasionale Kurrikulum en Assesseringsverklaring (NKABV) wat vanaf die begin van 2012 in die land se nasionale skole geÃ¯mplementeer is. In die NKABV word daar egter min leiding aan onderwysers gegee oor watter konsepte deel van letterkunde onderrig op skool uitmaak en daarom is dit nodig om goeie hulpmiddels te ontwikkel om onderwysers te ondersteun wanneer hulle kinder- en jeugliteratuur onderrig. Die doel van hierdie artikel is om die belangrikheid van hulpmiddels in die klaskamer te bespreek en tot watter mate dit onderwysers en selfs leerders kan ondersteun in die onderrig- en leerproses. In die artikel sal daar gefokus word op wat in die NKABV as rigtinggewende dokument ten opsigte van letterkunde en poÃ«sie onderrig in die Afrikaanse kurrikulum uiteengesit word, en laastens sal daar gekyk word na die gebruik van die voorgestelde hulpmiddels in die klaskamer.
RISKING MASCULINITY: PLAYING FAST AND LOOSE WITH HEGEMONIC MASCULINITY IN THE HEROâ€™S GUIDE TO SAVING YOUR KINGDOM
Authors: Robertson Janice
Published: July 2020

In Christopher Healyâ€™s (2012) childrenâ€™s book, The heroâ€™s guide to saving your kingdom, the idea of hegemonic masculinity is subverted in various ways. In this reinvention of four fairy tales â€“ â€˜Cinderellaâ€™, â€˜Sleeping Beautyâ€™, â€˜Snow Whiteâ€™ and â€˜Rapunzelâ€™ â€“ the author seems consciously to subvert the prevalent stereotypes surrounding traditional representations of the idealised, yet largely uninterrogated image of â€˜Prince Charmingâ€™. All four of the princes who feature as protagonists in the book express their dissatisfaction at the prescriptive expectations that govern every aspect of their lived realities. Healy explores alternative ways of representing this type of character to modern child readers, in many cases testing the boundaries that dictate which physical characteristics and behavioural patterns are allowable in such characters. This article explores Healyâ€™s negotiation of masculinity in the context of its intended 21st century child audience
Effect of exercise on glycaemic control and pregnancy outcomes in women with gestational diabetes mellitus: A review
Authors: AlSheikh Mona Hmoud
Published: July 2020

The prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is increasing and is known for its adverse effects on maternal and neonatal health. Physical exercise during pregnancy has been demonstrated to be useful for women without diabetes. However, it is unclear whether exercise can improve glycaemic control, and thereby prevents the unwanted effects of GDM. This review examines the evidence from recent literature, in which various exercise interventions were used to improve glycaemic control and the pregnancy outcomes of women with GDM. For this purpose, literature was searched through Medline, PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and Scopus, and relevant studies published between 2009 and 2019 were retrieved. In total, 11 studies met the inclusion criteria and were reviewed. The findings collated consistently suggest that exercise in women with GDM is not only safe but also is strongly recommended, providing there are no other complications. Exercise for 15–30 min in low to moderate intensity improves glycaemic control and reduces maternal or neonatal complications. However, despite its reported benefits, it is advisable to perform exercises under supervision. In addition, certain intense exercises should be avoided as they can create complications for the mother and/or the foetus.
Boosting Algal Bloom by Five-Fold with AIEgens: Towards the Development of Biofactory
Authors: Liu Haixiang , Bai Haotian , Yan Neng , Wong Tin-Yan , Dang Dongfeng , Ni Jen-Shyang , Tsz Kin Kwok Ryan , Wang Wen-Xiong , Tang Ben Zhong
Published: July 2020

Human population is now faced with grand challenges such as global warming, food shortage and energy sustainability, which could be partially solved by massively increasing the growth and yield of photosynthetic organisms which capture the light energy to convert carbon dioxide and water into usable chemical energy. Cyanobacteria and eukaryotic microalgae are considered as attractive targets to be exploited by the algal factory because of their fast growth, low cost cultivation, less arable land and the diversity of high-value chemical substances produced. Many optical approaches have been introduced to increase the efficiency in artificial culturing systems, such as adding a luminescent layer that absorbs ultraviolet light and emits photosynthetic active radiation for cyanobacteria. In this work, we introduced luminogens with aggregation-induced emission characteristics (AIEgens) into the growth medium of a marine cyanobacteria. These hydrophobic AIEgens formed highly emissive luminogenic aggregates in the aqueous medium and dispersed around the cyanobacteria. Remarkedly, the number of cyanobacteria incubated in the medium with AIE aggregates was 5-fold more than the control group after 14-day culturing. The increased photosynthetic active radiation and the change of cyanobacteria protein expression in photosynthesis and metabolism might be the reason. Our study is the first using organic luminogenic aggregates as optical engineering inside the growth medium to dramatically increase the growth of cyanobacteria and demonstrated that AIEgens is promising technologies in the development of algal factories.
The UV light effects on pectinase production of Pantoea sp. bacteria
Authors: Mohmmed Lefta Atala
Published: July 2020

The highest pectinase producing isolate A3 out of forty isolates of Pantoea sp. bacteria was subjected to physical effects by using UV light to change in their ability for producing of pectinase, the results appeared increasing their activity and production in some of the mutants more than wild type bacteria, the increase was ranged between 14 to 20% in specific activity between bacterial mutants compared with wild type bacteria. Also, the two highest enzyme-producing isolates were tested for their susceptibility against a group of antibiotics (Rifampin 50mcg, Imipenem 10mcg, Vancomycin 30mcg, Amoxicillin 25mcg, Chloramphenicol 30mcg, Trimethoprim 5mcg, Nitrofurantoin 100mcg, Nalidixic acid 30mcg), results appeared different susceptibilities ranged between resist for amoxicillin,and Nalidixic acid, and sensitive for other antibiotics. The susceptibilities of studied bacteria to some antibiotics were different between resist and sensitive, which considered an indicator of dangerous to human life. The study was aimed to increase the ability of these isolate in producing this enzyme which plays an essential role in different industries in food, cosmetics manufacturing and scientific research, besides, their ability in resisting some of the common antibiotics to confirm the transferring of genetic materials between bacteria that isolated from soil samples, which is considered crucial in the microbial genetics. The study appeared there were apparent effects on the genes that responsible for enzyme production either for increase or decrease their activity and creation of an enzyme, which belong to using physical effects to improvement these feature in bacteria.
Effectiveness of vitamin D3 in improving sperm count, motility and morphology in subfertile men
Authors: Padmapriya D  , Archana R  , Nidhi Sharma  , Kalabharathi S
Published: July 2020

The effect of vitamin D3 in improving sperm count, motility and morphology of men was assessed using design. All men who attended OPD at a selected hospital were screened with Male Fertility Profile. Forty-six men among them were diagnosed as were chosen as study participants. A detailed explanation of the study was given to the selected participants, and the written consent was received from each study participant. They were given treatment under the guidance of our fertility experts, the oral administration of vitamin D3 supplements per oral twice a day for 72 days and the post-test semen analysis was done on 73rd day. The findings of the study revealed that there is an improvement in the semen quality (counts in the sperm /ml, progressive motility level, total progressive motility level P<0.00001 and morphology P <0.00007). In contrast, there were no changes revealed in the level of volume, and PH was slightly alkaline. Vitamin D enhances . Therefore, vitamin D supplements can be administered in men.
Profiles of histidine-rich glycoprotein associate with age and risk of all-cause mortality
Authors: Hong Mun-Gwan , Dodig-Crnković Tea , Chen Xu , Drobin Kimi , Lee Woojoo , Wang Yunzhang , Edfors Fredrik , Kotol David , Thomas Cecilia Engel , Sjöberg Ronald , Odeberg Jacob , Hamsten Anders , Silveira Angela , Hall Per , Nilsson Peter , Pawitan Yudi , Uhlén Mathias , Pedersen Nancy L , Hägg Sara , Magnusson Patrik KE , Schwenk Jochen M
Published: July 2020

Despite recognizing aging as a common risk factor of many human diseases, little is known about its molecular traits. To identify age-associated proteins circulating in human blood, we screened 156 individuals aged 50–92 using exploratory and multiplexed affinity proteomics assays. Profiling eight additional study sets (N = 3,987), performing antibody validation, and conducting a meta-analysis revealed a consistent age association (P = 6.61 × 10−6) for circulating histidine-rich glycoprotein (HRG). Sequence variants of HRG influenced how the protein was recognized in the immunoassays. Indeed, only the HRG profiles affected by rs9898 were associated with age and predicted the risk of mortality (HR = 1.25 per SD; 95% CI = 1.12–1.39; P = 6.45 × 10−5) during a follow-up period of 8.5 yr after blood sampling (IQR = 7.7–9.3 yr). Our affinity proteomics analysis found associations between the particular molecular traits of circulating HRG with age and all-cause mortality. The distinct profiles of this multipurpose protein could serve as an accessible and informative indicator of the physiological processes related to biological aging.