bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Serum 25(OH) vitamin D level in Relapsing-Remitting Multiple Sclerosis and clinically isolated syndrome groups
Authors: Küçük Ahmet , Bir Levent Sinan , Tekin Selma , Demir Süleyman
Published: April 2022

Objectives

Vitamin D is an important regulator of the immune system, and it has been shown that deficiency of vitamin D is significant environmental factor in some immune-mediated diseases such as Multiple Sclerosis (MS). In this study, we have compared serum 25 hydroxyvitamin (OH) D levels in Relapsing-Remitting Multiple Sclerosis (RRMS), clinically isolated syndrome (CIS), and control groups.

Methods

Forty patients with CIS and 60 patients who have been diagnosed RRMS between age 18–45, respectively, and followed up at Pamukkale University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Neurology, and 60 healthy individuals have been included in this study. Serum 25(OH) vitamin D, calcium, phosphorus, alkaline phosphatase, parathormone, insulin, and fasting blood glucose levels were studied for all three groups.

Results

A statistically significant difference was determined in the comparison of three groups for mean 25(OH) vitamin D levels. In the intergroup comparison of mean 25(OH) vitamin D; mean 25(OH) vitamin D level was determined to be statistically significantly lower in both RRMS and CIS groups compared to control group (p<0.05).

Conclusions

Since vitamin D deficiency poses a problem from the early stage of disease spectrum in both CIS patients and MS patients, 25(OH) vitamin D level should be routinely controlled, and replacement should be administered upon any deficiency state.
An update of the mutation spectrum of phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH) gene in the population of Turkey
Authors: Ozturk Fatma Nihal , Akin Duman Tugba
Published: April 2022

Phenylketonuria (PKU) is an autosomal recessive disorder of phenylalanine metabolism, mostly caused by PAH gene variants. The aim of this study was to identify the frequency of PAH gene variants in Turkish population with PKU. In 433 patients with PKU, PAH gene was examined using next generation sequencing (NGS) method. IVS10- 11G>A, p.R261Q, p.A300S, p.A403V, and p.T380 variants, which are the most common variants in this study, constituted 45,9% of the variants in our study. Nine novel variants p.A34V, K73Qfs*4, R157H, R261S, p.T266I, p.S310P, T328A, p.F351I, and K363N were identified. This study determines the most common PAH variants in Turkey and shows that PKU can be screened before marriage with the screening kits. Identification of the PAH gene variant spectrum is important for early diagnosis, understanding molecular mechanisms, clinical follow-up, treatment, and genetic counseling. And the novel variants found this study are important for further studies.
Applikationsorientierte Optimierung von Technologieentwicklungspfaden
Authors: Trapp Stefan , Warschat Joachim
Published: April 2022

Die applikationsorientierte Planung der Technologieentwicklung in Form eines Entwicklungspfades ist für Technologieunternehmen und anwendungsnahe Forschungseinrichtungen von großer Bedeutung. Eine intuitiv gewählte Abfolge von Realisierungsprojekten wird dem Problem bei der typischerweise mehrperiodischen Betrachtung sowie der Vielzahl von Leistungsparametern und möglichen Applikationen oft nicht gerecht. In diesem Beitrag wird ein in der Literatur bereits verfügbares Entscheidungsmodell aufgegriffen, kritisch analysiert, verbessert und um einen Optimierungsansatz ergänzt. Schließlich wird die Anwendbarkeit mit einem Software-Prototyp gezeigt.
Bewertung von Automatisierungslösungen im Büro
Authors: Axmann Bernhard , Fariwar Fassih , Harmoko Harmoko
Published: April 2022

Bei RPA (Robotic Pocess Automation) handelt es sich um eine Technologie zur Automatisierung von Abläufen im Büro. Derzeit gibt es kaum wissenschaftliche Veröffentlichungen zur Rentabilität von RPA-Projekten und keine speziellen Richtlinien für die Definition von Kostenkomponenten. Um diese Lücke zu schließen, wurde von Axmann et al. [1] eine Methode auf der Basis einer Literaturrecherche entwickelt, die bei ersten einfachen RPA-Projekten einen geringen Aufwand in der Bewertung hat und dann bei komplexeren Projekten erweitert werden kann. In dieser Arbeit wird diese Methode an realen einfachen Anwendungsfällen aus der Praxis im Detail verifiziert. Außerdem werden für diese Anwendungsfälle die Prozessgeschwindigkeit, die Prozessgenauigkeit und die Zeit bis zur Amortisation angegeben, um die Transparenz zur Leistungsfähigkeit von RPA-Lösungen zu erhöhen.
Hochgeschwindigkeits-Fräsbearbeitung durch variabelaxiale FKV-Leichtbauweise
Authors: Klotzsche Marlon , Mixner Marcus , Kochan Detlef
Published: April 2022

Im Gegensatz zu klassischen Anwendungsfeldern der Automobil-, Luft- und Raumfahrtindustrie kommt dem Leichtbau im Bereich des Maschinen- und Anlagenbaus bisher eine untergeordnete Position zu. Demgegenüber stehen hervorragende Materialeigenschaften der Faserkunststoffverbunde als Wandlungstreiber. Unter Anwendung des Tailored Fiber Placement (TFP) werden neuartige Bauweisen realisierbar, die eine Beherrschung der hohen physikalischen Anforderungen von Hochgeschwindigkeitswerkzeugmaschinen bei drastisch reduzierten Bauteilmassen zulassen.
Robust Coding of Eye Position in Posterior Parietal Cortex despite Context-Dependent Tuning
Authors: McFadyen Jamie R. , Heider Barbara , Karkhanis Anushree N. , Cloherty Shaun L. , Muñoz Fabian , Siegel Ralph M. , Morris Adam P.
Published: April 2022

Neurons in posterior parietal cortex (PPC) encode many aspects of the sensory world (e.g., scene structure), the posture of the body, and plans for action. For a downstream computation, however, only some of these dimensions are relevant; the rest are “nuisance variables” because their influence on neural activity changes with sensory and behavioral context, potentially corrupting the read-out of relevant information. Here we show that a key postural variable for vision (eye position) is represented robustly in male macaque PPC across a range of contexts, although the tuning of single neurons depended strongly on context. Contexts were defined by different stages of a visually guided reaching task, including (1) a visually sparse epoch, (2) a visually rich epoch, (3) a “go” epoch in which the reach was cued, and (4) during the reach itself. Eye position was constant within trials but varied across trials in a 3 × 3 grid spanning 24° × 24°. Using demixed principal component analysis of neural spike-counts, we found that the subspace of the population response encoding eye position is orthogonal to that encoding task context. Accordingly, a context-naive (fixed-parameter) decoder was nevertheless able to estimate eye position reliably across contexts. Errors were small given the sample size (∼1.78°) and would likely be even smaller with larger populations. Moreover, they were comparable to that of decoders that were optimized for each context. Our results suggest that population codes in PPC shield encoded signals from crosstalk to support robust sensorimotor transformations across contexts.

SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENTNeurons in posterior parietal cortex (PPC) which are sensitive to gaze direction are thought to play a key role in spatial perception and behavior (e.g., reaching, navigation), and provide a potential substrate for brain-controlled prosthetics. Many, however, change their tuning under different sensory and behavioral contexts, raising the prospect that they provide unreliable representations of egocentric space. Here, we analyze the structure of encoding dimensions for gaze direction and context in PPC during different stages of a visually guided reaching task. We use demixed dimensionality reduction and decoding techniques to show that the coding of gaze direction in PPC is mostly invariant to context. This suggests that PPC can provide reliable spatial information across sensory and behavioral contexts.
EVALUATION OF QUALITY AND STORAGE STABILITY OF BEEF PATTIES CONTAINING DIFFERENT LEVELS OF PEANUT (Arachis hypogaea L.) SKIN
Authors: BIYIK Şule , TURHAN Sadettin
Published: April 2022

The present study was conducted to evaluate the quality and storage stability of beef patties containing different levels of peanut skin (PS) during cold storage. The PS showed a high phenolic content and antioxidant capacity. The addition of PS enhanced the water holding capacity of patties while negatively affected the protein content, hardness, and chewiness. The treatment of PS decreased appearance, juiciness, and overall acceptability scores, but overall acceptability scores of beef patties containing up to 4.5% PS were similar to the negative control without PS. The incorporation of PS to beef patties at high levels (3.0, 4.5, and 6.0%) stabilized the pH, lipid oxidation, color differences, and microbial growth during the storage period. Thus, the inclusion of 4.5% PS could be recommended to prolong the shelf life of beef patties with minimal compositional and sensory changes.
INVESTIGATION OF FLAVOUR PERMANENCE OF STRAWBERRY AND WATERMELON FLAVOURED CHEWING GUMS BY USING RETRONASAL AROMA TRAPPING DEVICE AND SENSORY ANALYSIS TECHNIQUES
Authors: UZUN Pinar , ÖZÜNAL Ahmet Emir , BAŞKAYA Hakan , DOĞAN Nuray , GÜLAY Sonay Merve , HANTAL Büşra , BARLA DEMİRKOZ Aslı
Published: April 2022

Combining in vivo instrumental analysis with sensory evaluation techniques to analyze the release of volatile components from the gum matrix is gaining importance due to the flavour expectations of consumers. Besides consumers’ preferences and quality of flavourings determine the market value of chewing gums. In this study, strawberry and watermelon flavoured chewing gums were prepared and evaluated with both sensory evaluation and analytical techniques by using retronasal aroma trapping device and dynamic headspace analysis - DHA-GC/MS. Ethyl hexanoate and isoamyl acetate were chosen as flavour compounds for strawberry and watermelon flavoured gums to monitor in the study. The in vivo experiment with retronasal aroma trapping device showed that selected compounds were quite intense in the first 5 min of breath, and they were also detected in the 45th min of chewing. The flavour stability of the chewing gums was also monitored for 3 months. According to all sensory and instrumental analyzes, watermelon flavour was perceived as watermelon taste both at the 45th min and at the end of shelf life (equal to 12 months).
ANTİMİKROBİYEL AKTİVİTEYE SAHİP PEDIOCOCCUS ACIDILACTICI VE PEDIOCOCCUS PENTOSACEUS SUŞLARININ PROBİYOTİK ÖZELLİKLERİNİN BELİRLENMESİ
Authors: YILDIRIM Nazife , ÖZDEN TUNCER Banu
Published: April 2022

Bu çalışmada, starter kullanılmadan üretilen sucuklardan izole edilmiş Pediococcus acidilactici ve P. pentosaceus suşlarının safra tuzuna tolerans, düşük pH ve fenol varlığında hayatta kalma, yapay mide özsuyuna tolerans, lizozime karşı direnç, hidrofobisite ve otoagregasyon yetenekleri gibi bazı probiyotik özellikleri incelenmiştir. İzolatların tamamının pH 1’de ilk ölçümlerinde, pH 3’te ise birinci saatin sonunda inaktive olduğu saptanmıştır. pH 5’te ise tüm Pediococcus suşları 4 saat inkübasyon süresi boyunca %67.02-95.42 oranında canlılıklarını korumuşlardır. %0.4 fenol uygulamasında P. acidilactici OBS62 suşu %2.32 oranında gelişim gösterirken diğer suşların %69.94-99.89 oranında canlılıklarını koruduğu tespit edilmiştir. 100 ppm lizozim uygulamasında suşların % canlılıkları 90.90 ve 107.40 arasında bulunmuştur. %0.3 pepsin içeren yapay mide suyu denemelerinde tüm Pediococcus suşları inaktive olmuştur. %0.3 ve %0.5 safra tuzu uygulamasında suşların tamamında hücre sayısında artış olduğu belirlenmiştir. %1 safra tuzu uygulamasında ise P. acidilacticis OBS54 ve P. pentasaceus OBS56 suşları canlılığını korumuş, diğer suşlarda ise hücre sayısında artış olduğu tespit edilmiştir. Pediococcus suşlarının hidrofobisite oranları %61.42-%97.40 arasında, otoagregasyon yetenekleri ise %17.3-%64.78 arasında bulunmuştur. Sonuç olarak, izolatların mikroenkapsülasyon yolu ile midenin oluşturduğu sert çevresel koşullara dayanımlarının arttırılması sayesinde probiyotik kültür olarak kullanılabilecekleri düşünülmektedir.
Antimicrobial and therapeutic effect of probiotics in cases of experimental purulent wounds
Authors: Babenko L. P. , Tymoshok N. O. , Safronova L. A. , Demchenko O. M. , Zaitseva G. M. , Lazarenko L. M. , Spivak M. J.
Published: April 2022

Probiotics based on bacteria of the genus Bacillus with a multifactorial mechanism of action are considered as a possible alternative to antibiotics in the treatment of purulent wounds. The aim of the study was to determine the antimicrobial and therapeutic effect of the Arederma probiotic preparation containing probiotic strains of the genus Bacillus in an experimental model of a purulent wound in animals. The antimicrobial efficacy of the probiotic against test strains and clinical isolates of pathogenic and opportunistic microorganisms was studied using the method of delayed antagonism. Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 6538 and Streptococcus pyogenes K-7 were used to model a purulent wound. From the surface of the wounds, bacteria of Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, Enterobacteriaceae, Pseudomonas genera and Enterobacteriaceae family were sown on appropriate selective media for the cultivation and enumeration of different groups of microorganisms by generally accepted microbiological research methods. The formation of a purulent wound in rabbits caused by mechanical skin damage and subsequent double infection with Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 6538 and Streptococcus pyogenes K-7 strains was accompanied with a pronounced inflammatory process, necrosis, the formation of purulent exudate and general intoxication. Representatives of the genera Staphylococcus and Streptococcus, microscopic fungi and, to a lesser extent, members of the family Enterobacteriaceae and Pseudomonas were found on the surface of purulent wounds, which confirmed the development of the infectious-inflammatory process. Treatment of purulent wounds with a suspension of probiotic preparation once a day for 4 days led to their faster healing (gradual attenuation of the inflammatory process, reduction of edema and discharge, as well as their disappearance) compared with untreated purulent wounds (control). Representatives of the Staphylococcus and Streptococcus genera, as well as microscopic fungi, presented in purulent wounds treated with probiotic preparation in much smaller numbers than in the control, and bacteria of the Pseudomonas genus and the Enterobacteriaceae family were not detected at all. The effective antimicrobial effect of this probiotic preparation against opportunistic and pathogenic microorganisms was confirmed by in vitro studies. Therefore, the Arederma probiotic preparation showed an effective therapeutic and antimicrobial effect in the experimental model of a purulent wound in animals, so it can be recommended for further preclinical and clinical studies.
Influence of cobalt chloride and ferric citrate on purple non-sulfur bacteria Rhodopseudomonas yavorovii
Authors: Hnatush S. O. , Maslovska O. D. , Komplikevych S. Y. , Kovbasa I. V.
Published: April 2022

Heavy metals that enter the environment due to natural processes or industrial activities, when accumulated, have a negative impact on organisms, including microorganisms. Microorganisms have developed various adaptations to heavy metal compounds. The aim of our work was to investigate the influence of ferric citrate and cobalt (II) chloride on biomass accumulation, indicators of free radical damage and activity of enzymes of the antioxidant defense system of bacteria Rhodopseudomonas yavorovii IMV B-7620, that were isolated from the water of Yavorivske Lake (Ukraine, Lviv region), which was formed as a result of flooding of a sulfur quarry. We used cultural, photometric methods, and statistical processing of the results was performed using two-way ANOVA and factor analysis. It was found that ferric citrate at a concentration of 1–12 mM causes inhibition of the accumulation of biomass of bacteria Rh. yavorovii IMV B-7620 up to 44.7%, and cobalt (II) chloride at a concentration of 1–15 mM – up to 70.4%, compared with the control. The studied concentrations of ferric citrate and cobalt (II) chloride cause free radical damage to lipids and proteins of Rh. yavorovii IMV B-7620. As a result of two-way ANOVA we found that under the influence of ferric citrate statistically significant changes in biomass accumulation, lipid hydroperoxides and thiobarbiturate reactive species content, superoxide dismutase activity were predetermined by increasing the concentration of metal salts as well as increasing the duration of cultivation of bacteria, while the content of diene conjugates and catalase activity changed with increasing duration of cultivation. Under the influence of cobalt (II) chloride, statistically significant changes in all studied indicators were found both due to the increase in the concentration of metal salts and with increasing duration of bacterial cultivation. The studied parameters of Rh. yavorovii IMV B-7620 cells under the influence of ferric citrate and cobalt (II) chloride are combined into two factors, that explain 95.4% and 99.2% of the total data variance, respectively. Under the influence of ferric citrate, the first latent factor included diene conjugates, thiobarbiturate reactive species, carbonyl groups in proteins, which are closely linked by a direct bond and inversely related to the content of lipid hydroperoxides and catalase activity. The second latent factor included duration of cultivation of bacteria, biomass accumulation, and superoxide dismutase activity, which are inversely related to lipid hydroperoxide content and catalase activity. Under the influence of cobalt (II) chloride, the first latent factor included the content of lipid hydroperoxides, carbonyl groups in proteins, as well as catalase and superoxide dismutase activities, which are inversely related to bacterial biomass.
Phytochemical profiles, antioxidant and antimicrobial activity of Actinidia polygama and A. arguta fruits and leaves
Authors: Khromykh N. O. , Lykholat Y. V. , Didur O. O. , Sklyar T. V. , Davydov V. R. , Lavrentievа K. V. , Lykholat T. Y.
Published: April 2022

Plants of two species of Actinidia genus grown in an adverse steppe climate were examined in terms of secondary metabolites’ accumulation, antioxidant potential, and antimicrobial ability. The aim of the work was to reveal whether the introduced plants A. arguta and A. polygama retain their well-known health benefits. Total content of polyphenols (549.2 and 428.1 mg GAE/100 g FW, respectively), flavonoids, and phenolic acids as well as total antioxidant activity and reducing power of the fruit isopropanol extracts were found to be equal or even higher than the reported data on kiwifruit varieties cultivated in China and other regions. Antioxidant potential and phenolic compounds’ content in the fruit peel of both species were higher when compared to pulp, while corresponding indices of leaves exceeded those of the fruit. Disc-diffusion assays showed low to moderate antibacterial activity of A. arguta and A. polygama fruit and leaf extracts against collection Gram-negative and Gram-positive strains. Clinical strains of P. aeruginosa and E. coli resistant to the action of ofloxacin were notably inhibited by A. arguta and A. polygama fruit and leaf crude extracts. Inhibiting effects of plant extracts on clinical strains of K. pneumoniae and A. baumannii were comparable with the effect of ofloxacin. GC-MS assays identified 23 and 36 chemical constituents, respectively in A. arguta and A. polygama fruit isopropanol extracts. The main compounds in both extracts were 2-propenoic acid, pentadecyl ester followed by squalene, 7,9-di-tert-butyl-1-oxaspiro(4,5)deca-6,9-dien-2,8-dione, octadecanoic acid, 2-oxo-methyl ester, ethyl-isoallocholate, and phytol having known bioactivities. Our findings confirmed the preservation of useful properties by the introduced plants and also indicated the rich health-promoting abilities and expedience of cultivating A. arguta and A. polygama in a steppe climate.
Retrospective analysis of the spread of bacterial poultry diseases on the territory of Ukraine for the period 2012–2020
Authors: Chechet O. M. , Ukhovskyi V. V. , Korniienko L. Y. , Pyskun A. V. , Kovalenko V. L. , Haidei O. S. , Gorbatiuk O. I. , Moroz O. A.
Published: April 2022

One of the most important livestock industries in the world is poultry breeding, which meets human needs for high-quality protein products (poultry meat, eggs) and is characterized by rapid return on investment. Bacterial infectious diseases of poultry are a major problem for the poultry industry and its strategic future. Given the relevance of bacterial diseases of poultry in the world and in Ukraine in particular, the authors conducted a retrospective analysis of the spread of these diseases in Ukraine for the period 2012–2020 by analyzing and systematizing the results of bacteriological investigations. In order to analyze the spread of bacterial diseases of poultry in terms of regions in Ukraine, we analyzed data on 20 diseases of poultry, namely: hemophilosis, infectious enterotoxemia, yersiniosis, campylobacteriosis, colibacteriosis, coligranulomatosis, klebsiella, listeriosis, mycoplasmosis, neisseriosis, pasteurellosis, pathogenic proteus, pneumococcosis, pseudomonosis, pullorosis, erysipelas septicemia, salmonellosis, staphylococcosis, streptococcosis and tuberculosis. According to the results of research, it is found that bacterial diseases of poultry are significantly common in Ukraine, the average infection of poultry with bacterial diseases for the period from 2012 to 2020 was 0.8%. The leading role in the etiological structure of pathogens of bacterial diseases of poultry was played by colibacillosis – 56.9% of the total number of all positive samples. Also, the dominant bacterial diseases of poultry in Ukraine during the analyzed period are: salmonellosis (13.5%), staphylococcosis (7.8%), pasteurellosis (7.0%), pseudomonosis (6.8%), pullorosis (3.6%) and streptococcus (2.6%). Significantly fewer positive samples were registered in the bacteriological investigations of other diseases: pneumococcosis 0.5%, tuberculosis 0.4%, infectious enterotoxemia 0.3%, pathogenic proteus 0.2%, erysipelas septicemia 0.1%, klebsiellosis 0.1%, listeriosis 0.1%, neisseriosis 0.08%, coligranulomatosis 0.05% and hemophilosis 0.02%. According to the results of bacteriological research of poultry for such diseases as yersiniosis, campylobacteriosis and mycoplasmosis – no positive test was found for the entire analyzed period. According to the results of ecological and geographical analysis, the heterogeneity of the nosological profile of bacterial diseases of poultry in different regions of Ukraine was established.
Watching the Watchmen: Assessment-Biases in Waiting List Prioritization for the Delivery of Mental Health Services
Authors: Kreiseder Fabian , Mosenhauer Moritz
Published: April 2022

Purpose: While the demand for mental health services increases, supply often stagnates. Providing treatment to those most in need is an important factor in its efficient distribution. We propose and conduct a statistical procedure for detecting rater-biases in patient prioritization tools.

Design / Method / Approach: We gather real-life data from 266 illness severity assessments in an Austrian publicly funded mental health service provider, including a rich set of covariates. To ensure robustness, we merge this data with determinants of mental health and assessment identified by previous research, such as weather or seasonal indicators.

Findings: We find statistically significant effects of rater-biases. These effects are robust to a large array of controls.

Practical Implications: A back-of-the-envelope calculation reveals that the identified rater effects can translate to large changes in the waiting times for patients. Misspecified treatment allocations may lead to worsened symptoms and potentially fatal outcomes.

Originality / Value: Although a growing literature focuses on patient prioritization tools, many articles study these in synthetic contexts using “vignettes”. In comparison, our study adds external validity by considering real-life treatments in the field.

Research Limitations / Future Research: This study can be used as a starting point for deeper, causally focused studies.

Disclaimer: In accordance with publisher policies and our ethical obligations as researchers, we report that one of the authors is employed at a company that may be affected by the research reported in the enclosed paper. We have disclosed those interests fully.

Paper type: Empirical
Strategy for Improving Crowdfunding Investments in Startup Business
Authors: Pasmawati Yanti , Tontowi Alva Edy , Hartono Budi , Wijayanto Titis
Published: April 2022

Purpose: This research was conducted to analyze the extent to which online customer reviews (OCRs) can stimulate investment backers as a strategy to increase crowdfunding investment.

Design / Method / Approach: This research is quantitative. Natural language processing (NLP) processes review text documents based on linguistic study, a lexicon-based method is used for sentiment analysis classification based on polarity score (pros and cons), while Multiple linear regression forms a model or relationship between online customer reviews and crowdfunding investments. OCRs consisting of numeric and text features were collected from one hundred technology products (3D printing, drones, cameras, wearables) on Kickstarter.com.

Findings: The study results show that, in addition to positive reviews, the number of comments and the number of sentiment reviews can increase consumer interest in investing in technology products on the crowdfunding platform. Moreover, positive reviews have the most positive effect on crowdfunding investments.

Practical Implications: The study results are expected to be used for startup business, especially technology products as a strategy to increase funding investment on a reward-based crowdfunding platform. Startups can take advantage of online customer reviews as one of important factors in stimulating potential backers and backers to invest.

Social implications: The strategy of utilizing online customer reviews can be used especially for technology product-based startup business to get funding support as a resource in completing a product development stage.

Originality / Value: The novelty of this research is that it focuses on a technological product development stage, product campaigns on a reward-based crowdfunding platform, considering online customer reviews through sentimental (online reviews) and numerical characteristics (number of comments, number of sentiment reviews) simultaneously as a strategy to increase investment.

Research Limitations / Future Research: This study has some limitations as it used only online customer reviews as an attribute that affects crowdfunding investment. Future research is expected to explore online customer reviews to determine important attributes (unique words) as consideration for strategies to increase crowdfunding investment.

Paper type: Empirical
Appendix: Section Properties of Standard Precast Concrete Girders
Authors: Brice Richard , Pickings Richard
Published: April 2022

This online appendix provides an extensive catalog of geometric properties for the girder sections considered in the study "Saint-Venant Torsion Constant of Modern Precast Concrete Bridge Girders” in PCI Journal 66 (3): 23-31, https://doi.org/10.15554/pcij66.3-01. This appendix is online only.
At the Eleventh Hour. The Principles of Folklore Collection in the Scholarly Oeuvre of Lajos Katona and in Hungarian Folklore Studies at the Turn of the 20th Century
Authors: Landgraf Ildikó
Published: April 2022

In Hungary, the academic study of folklore started at the turn of the 20th century. In the period between 1889 and 1920, institutions for the study of folklore and ethnography were established. The author points out that ethnographic collections in this era were motivated by concern about the loss of folk culture phenomena owing to changes brought by modernisation. Major arguments for the establishment of the Hungarian Ethnographic Society as well as the Museum of Ethnography referred to the need to salvage endangered items of folk culture from vanishing. Folklore collections were interpreted as rescue missions aiming to save material in the penultimate moment. The author of this paper investigates the way in which an outstanding folklorist of the period, Lajos Katona (1862–1910), professor of comparative literary studies, defined the essence, purpose, and method of ethnographic/folklore collections. Katona urged on several occasions that collectors of folklore be equipped with professional guidebooks and other auxiliary materials. He played a role in the popularisation of the activities of the Folklore Fellows, furthering the establishment of a network of voluntary collectors. Empirical data collection in the field is a central notion of folklore studies, one of the most important methodological and epistemological categories of the discipline, which functions as a distinctive feature differentiating it from other fields of study. Therefore, it is of central importance to shed light upon how and why the principles of the collection and recording of folklore phenomena in oral culture have changed.
Gas reserves calculation based on the results of reservoir pressure distribution modeling
Authors: Zakharchuk Oksana
Published: April 2022

The object of this study is the gas-bearing layer B-26 of the Zakhidne-Radchenkivsʹke gas condensate field (Ukraine). A bottleneck in the process of exploration and experimental and industrial operation of the Zakhidne-Radchenkivsʹke gas condensate field was the ambiguous data on extractive reserves (values that were calculated by different authors range from 14 thousand to 424 million m3). At present, the field is mothballed, which is why the use of a new approach to calculating the initial gas reserves could be useful for deciding to start developing a single productive layer B-26.
During the study, such theoretical research methods were used as the system analysis of the information used, numerical modeling based on the combined finite-element-difference method, the methods of visual representation of the information received, as well as analytical methods. The method of calculating gas reserves proposed in this work combines a volumetric method and the simulation of filtration processes using a combined finite-element-difference method. The latter makes it possible to take into consideration the structure of the reservoir, which is heterogeneous in terms of permeability, and to adequately, at the quantitative level, to describe the distribution of non-stationary reservoir pressure around the extractive well. By applying an analytical formula based on the values of average reservoir and downhole pressures, the radii of the well's feed circuit at different stages of the reservoir development have been calculated. Thus, the active area (and volume) of the reservoir can be determined, according to which the extractive reserves of the deposit are calculated. The mining reserves of the Zakhidne-Radchenkivsʹke field, estimated in this way, amount to 174 million m3 of gas.
The method for calculating reserves proposed in this study could prove useful for deciding on the further development of the Zakhidne-Radchenkivsʹke gas condensate field. Combining the volumetric method with the results of modeling filtration processes is an operational method for calculating the reserves of the reservoir, opened by one mining well. In this case, the application of the combined finite-element-difference method makes it possible to take into consideration the complex heterogeneous structure of the reservoir and predict the distribution of reservoir nonstationary pressures around the extractive well.
The current study that used the Zakhidne-Radchenkivsʹke gas condensate field in Ukraine as an example is interesting when calculating the reserves of layers of complex structure all over the world, whereby the productive reservoir is opened by a single mining well.
Aesthetics as a Human Science in the Situation of Culturological Reflection Becoming
Authors:   State Institute for Arts Studies, Khrenov Nikolay A.
Published: April 2022

The article aims to correlate aesthetics with the science of culture, which is increasingly attracting attention at the turn of the XX–XXI centuries. This correlation can give rise to a whole scientific direction, which could be called cultural aesthetics. In this case, arguments are needed. The fact is that the science of culture today attracts other humanities with its universality and ability to integrate knowledge existing in other sciences. It would seem that this trend in integration does not correspond to the processes of modern science, in which, at the later stages of history, the emphasis was placed not on integration but differentiation. Aesthetics is no exception here. Both philosophy and aesthetics of the twentieth century fragmented into several directions. Nevertheless, as the article proves, in the history of aesthetics and, more precisely, at its early stages, there was an aesthetic system that defined all kinds of aesthetics. This is an ontological aesthetic that excludes the separation of the aesthetic into a separate sphere. Having arisen in antiquity, ontological aesthetics became the aesthetics of being. The aesthetic did not have independence, as it would be in the aesthetics of the New Time, and was a sign of being itself. It was this aesthetic system that had an exceptional universalism. In the history of culture, such a manifestation of the aesthetic constantly returned but still did not become decisive. However, the closer to the twentieth century, the more evident the need for the integration of isolated trends becomes. Having an advantage in integration processes, ontological aesthetics becomes consonant with the science of culture, or rather, with the integrative potential that this science contains. It is this circumstance that should be taken into account by enthusiasts who develop the problems of cultural aesthetics.
Project-Based Training in the System of Professional Training of Students: Goals and Problems of Implementation
Authors:   Kurgan State University, Bryzgalova Olga N.
Published: April 2022

In this article, the author conducts a theoretical analysis of the concepts of “vocational training” and “project training”, and also addresses the consideration of project training as a modern technology in the professional training of students. At the present stage of professional training of future specialists, new technologies of professional training are being actively introduced. One of such effective technologies is project-based learning. This technology of training specialists differs significantly from traditional educational forms but it also has both positive and negative characteristics. Despite the existing negative aspects, domestic authors engaged in the study of project-based learning, note the prospects and effectiveness of the use of project-based learning in the system of vocational training. The effectiveness of the application of project training resides in the preparation of specialists for real professional activity. The project approach in teaching allows students to plunge into the practical sphere of their future specialty, perform practical tasks and gain real experience, form professional competencies and personal qualities necessary for further professional activity.
COVID‑19: The Advertising Confrotation in Different Countries
Authors: Nefedova Liliya , Sotnikova Elizaveta
Published: April 2022

This article examines the peculiarities of the public advertising discourse of five cultures (Russia, the USA, the UK, France, and Australia) based on advertising campaigns concerning the COVID‑19 pandemic. The main object of the research is poly-code structures that contain the interaction of multilevel and multidimensional components that appeared as a result of an interaction of elements belonging to different semiotic systems, both verbal and visual. The authors carry out complex multilevel discourse analysis, paying close attention to structural, semantic, communicative, and pragmatic features, including conceptual space. The article explores factors that ensure the efficiency of such influence on the mass addressee due to existing social procurement, taking a closer look at the pragmatics of lexical and grammatical means in the chosen interaction strategy of verbal and visual components in Russian and non-Russian social advertising texts. The author also studies the mechanisms of influence in various cognitive processes that are part of information perception and processing and analyses linguo-creative parameters of such texts, such as pragmatic aspects of the use of wordplay and its influence on the semantic structure of an advertising text. The research makes it possible to detect the semantic mechanisms of the increasing communicative effectiveness of public advertising. The structural and semantic compression that plays an important role in it is possible thanks to the use of nonverbal expressive means: print text features (size, colour, and other features of the font, kerning, and typography), expressive images, and their interaction with the printed text. The functioning of advertising texts is connected with a whole series of basic concepts that appear in advertising space, get into the public and personal mentality, and modify it. On the other hand, to increase their impact, advertisements use a range of pervasive stereotypes that can be observed in the way brands react to social changes in their logos and slogans.
Alternative Opinions about Vaccination in Religious Discourse
Authors: Dyachkova Natalia
Published: April 2022

This article examines speech strategies and tactics in religious communication in the context of the coronavirus pandemic. The purpose of the work is to consider the features of the speech behaviour of communicants during the pandemic crisis. The research methodology is based on the theory of speech communication to some extent present in modern works on the study of discourses of various types, the study of the peculiarities of religious communication, communicative/speech strategies, and tactics applied to different speech material. The researcher refers to texts published in Orthodox media and on Orthodox websites: sermons, comments in Orthodox forums, and posts in social networks. As a result, the author reveals the polemical nature of this segment of religious discourse. For instance, it contains neologisms with evaluative connotations, such as цифровой концлагерь (digital concentration camp), псевдопандемия (pseudo-pandemic), коронобесие (corona-frenzy), коронокризис (corona-crisis), ковид-диссиденты (covid-dissidents), антипрививочники (anti-vaccinators), антиваксеры (antivaxers), ковидиоты (covidiots), антивакс-сектанты (anti-vax sectarians), ковидофобы (covidophobes), вакциноборцы (vaccine fighters), вакцина каннибала (cannibal vaccine), вакциноскептики (vaccine sceptics), etc. The author characterises two types of addressees: 1) those denying the existence of the pandemic and/or the need for preventive measures and/or vaccination; 2) those recognising the fact of the pandemic and/or the need for preventive measures and/or vaccination. The former are characterised by a confrontational type of communication, as they choose strategies of discrediting and manipulation by means of accusations, insults, slander, sarcasm, appeals to “authority”, etc. They violate the principles of cooperative communication and show verbal aggression. The various phobias that the communicants of this group demonstrate are due to a misunderstanding of the soteriological and eschatological teachings of the Church. The addressees of the second group use a speech strategy of persuasion through interpretation, explanation, references to their own experience, and the authority of the Church. The communicants of this group obviously aim for conflict-free communication.
A Christmas Pastoral Visit during the Pandemic in Poland: Changing Discursive Strategies and Communicative Scripts
Authors: Wojtak Maria
Published: April 2022

The aim of this article is to present changes in the Catholic religious discourse in the pandemic. The author carries out a detailed analysis of pastoral visits to parishioners. The article’s topicality is justified by the analysis of issues within discourse studies and genology. This study of religious discourse focuses on a set of communication practices typical of Polish Catholics making a discourse community united by a vision of the world created in this case by the Catholic Church. The parameters of the religious discourse presented in the article include ritualised communication scenarios, dynamically configured discursive roles and its immersion in both tradition and contemporary culture. The author refers to selected dialogue and monologue prayers promoted and recommended in parishes as a form of home prayer replacing pastoral visits forbidden during the pandemic. The event whose scenario is preserved in liturgy agendas provided for Polish dioceses, assuming contact between the rector of a parish church and specific home churches, changed both discursive and generic formulas. In 2020, this became a home prayer performed according to the scenario recommended to believers prepared in particular parishes. The genological analysis of selected prayers, including their structure, intentions, their vision of the world, and style, demonstrates the inclination of the institutional Church to promote and preserve traditional prayer formulas.
COVID‑19 and a Greek Catholic Hierarch’s Experience of Virtual Communication with Parishioners
Authors: Petrikova Anna
Published: April 2022

In this article, the author carries out a communicative and pragmatic analysis of texts and a stylistic analysis of the keywords of religious discourse. The object of the research is the discourse of the Greek Catholic Church in Slovakia. The subject of the research is the keywords and main topics in the corpus of Archbishop Milan Chautur’s publications on social networks. The research methodology is based on the principles of discourse analysis, computational linguistics, linguistics 2.0, and quantitative linguistics. To realise the purpose of the research, the author uses the linguistic tool Sketch Engine, a fourth-generation concordancer, which provides quick search and statistical processing of data. For the corpus, the author refers to material from Chautur’s Internet messages in the profile named “Vladyka Milan odpovedá” (Vladyka Chautur responds) over one year of the pandemic, i. e., between 2020 and 2021. Using the Simple Maths method, the author extracts keywords based on two corpora – the main one (created by the user) and the background one (built into the system). Vladyka’s web-communication fits the modern trend of active communication through social networks, where it is not only used by representatives of the secular world, but also by the clergy. Considering the fact that the background corpus of Slovak Web 2011 (skTenTen11) is a language model, the author singles out the following keywords: isus (Jesus), Christ (Christ), pandémia (pandemic), kovid (Covid), bohorodička (Virgin Mary), cerkov (Church), vakcinácium (vaccinacium), and eparchia (diocese). These words have the highest coefficient of semantic similarity (Score) of words from the studied and background corpora. Using the linguistic criterion for isolating keywords, it is possible to single out the cognitive components of the archbishop’s discursive field, such as discursive dominants: human life, the Church on earth and in heaven, family.
Karion Istomin’s Bestiary and the Upbringing of Tsarevich Alexei
Authors: Bragone Maria Cristina
Published: April 2022

Published in 1694 and intended for the young Tsarevich Aleksei Petrovich, Karion Istomin’s Litsevoy Bukvar’ differs from traditional primers in its content and, in particular, didactic approach, which combines text and illustrations. Each sheet of the Bukvar’, dedicated to one letter of the alphabet, contains syllabic verses and various depictions of animals, human beings, plants, and objects whose names begin with the corresponding letter of the alphabet. Taking into consideration manuscript drafts of the Bukvar’, the analysis tries to identify the selection criterion for the animal species depicted in the manual. The author puts forward a hypothesis that one of the criteria for the selection of at least some species was the intention to familiarise the tsarevich with the images and appearance of animals present in the coats of arms of Russian lands listed in the Titulyarnik (1672), such as the asp, the serpent, the bear, and the gamayun. In this way, the tsarevich could gradually acquire knowledge of coats of arms. The hypothesis is confirmed by a gold plate engraved with eight coats of arms of territories subject to the tsar, a gift given to Aleksei by his grandmother Natalya Kirillovna in 1694. The analysis reveals that while creating his Bukvar’, Istomin referred to images of animals in the coats of arms of Smolensk, Kazan, Georgia, and Perm. This didactic principle is in line with the general “craze for coats of arms” that spread in Russian society after the appearance of the Titulyarnik.
Heavenly and Earthly Princes in Old Rus’: From Theological Reflection to Practice
Authors: Kostromin Konstantin
Published: April 2022

The system of punishment in medieval Russian law cannot be considered sufficiently studied. Researchers single out types of punishments that are not found in legal documents, but, obviously, were applied in practice. Punishments can be divided, with some degree of conventionality, into judicial and extrajudicial. However, God can also punish, both in this life and at the Last Judgment. This article is devoted to the problem of “rivalry” between the earthly and heavenly courts in the ideas of the people of pre-Mongol Rus’. The article resolves the issue of the applicability of the non bis in idem principle within the framework of the problem posed and considers key plots from The Tale of Bygone Years and The Kievan Caves Patericon. This analysis makes it possible to single out issues that were decided by an earthly court and those disasters that befell society and individuals which contemporaries saw as punishment. Among the legal sources, the author refers to the Russian Pravda and the Сharters of princes Vladimir, Yaroslav, and Vsevolod. The author also compares different methods of punishment with the way they are reflected in the sources. Since the imposition of fines prescribed by legal documents is not reflected in the narrative sources, an emphasis is made on extrajudicial punishment (the surviving practices of blood vengeance or “potok i razgrablenie”). An attempt is made to determine the line after which the imposition of punishment for this or that injustice (and, more often, for the totality of acts) was beyond the rights and opportunities of the princes. This is when the chronicler saw an intervention of God, which could be qualified as “revenge” or “punishment”. In addition, the author reveals a connection with the punishments of the penitentiary discipline of the sacrament of confession. However, it is impossible to completely abstract the earthly court and the punishment it imposes from the punishment imposed by God in medieval Rus’.