bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Modeling of Social Welfare Functions in J. Rawls’s Theory of Justice
Authors: PATAPAS Aleksandras
Published: June 2019

Public policy is directly related to the formulation of social goals. Social welfare functions can be modeled in two ways: (a) as a derivative of the social status ordering mechanisms applied in public policy; or (b) as norms, which must be further strengthened by solid theoretical foundation. Normative SWF modeling variants, which include Rawls’s theory of justice, are characterized by simplicity and deductive power. This article examines how Rawls’s critique of utilitarianism and intuitionism doctrines allowed changing the axis of political decision-making, reinforcing the priority of the idea of justice. It is also argued that the internal structural logic of this new priority better suits social minorities and that under its banner they are more active and successful in representing their interests in the political arena than the majorities of the same societies.
Fundamentals of Nuclear Safety State Management in Ukraine
Authors: PETROVSKA Iryna I. , ROZVADOVSKY Volodymyr I. , PTASHNYK Iryna R. , GRYTSAN Olga A.
Published: June 2019

The object of the research is the relationships ensuring nuclear safety in Ukraine. The methodological basis of this study is modern general scientific methods and techniques of cognition, scientific theories about the state and law, the organization of public administration, development in the field of philosophy of law, public administration, administrative law and process, sociology. The work uses dialectical, structural-functional, historical, comparative-legal, system-structural and other methods. The purpose of this research is to characterize the measures provided by the national legislation of Ukraine for ensuring nuclear safety, which are carried out by authorized state bodies and officials. To achieve this purpose, the following tasks are set: to define the content of the concepts of ‘national security’ and ‘nuclear safety’, elements of the mechanism of management in the nuclear sphere; to allocate legal bases for ensuring nuclear safety and authorized entities; to carry out an analysis of the control system for nuclear safety in Ukraine; to characterize the research activity and international cooperation of Ukraine in the nuclear sphere; to characterize administrative services in the nuclear sphere; to investigate the activities of the governing body on the management of nuclear power plants in Ukraine – the State Enterprise National Nuclear Energy Generating Company ‘Energoatom’
Criminalistic Registration: Features and Prospects for Developing Kazakh and Foreign Practices
Authors: SADYRBEKOVA Gulnur Khasenovna
Published: June 2019

This article examines the features of criminalistic registration in the Republic of Kazakhstan. Criminalistic activities play a significant role in fighting against crime and aim to uncover and investigate offences, to create the evidence base which is necessary for exposing and convicting criminals. Criminalistic registration is an integral part of these activities and their informational component, the use of which is fundamental for successful crime investigation in modern conditions. The article aims to analyze the current state of criminalistic registration in the Republic of Kazakhstan, to study foreign experience and present prospects for the formation and use of criminalistic registration data. The author of the article searches historical background of the modern criminalistic registration system, its organization and legal framework in the Republic of Kazakhstan, the global experience of combining and using different information databases to investigate crimes, assess the possibilities of advanced information technologies and international information bases to fight against crimes. As a result, the author has evaluated the criminalistic registration in Kazakhstan, its organizational and legal foundations, and prospects for its further development. The article suggests creating unified information system at the global level which will provide more opportunities for the use of forensic information. The novelty of the article lies in the fact that it proposes ways of international information interaction in order to fight against crime based on a deep analysis of the global use of forensic information bases.
Legal Construction of the ‘Municipal Filter’ for Developing Local Self-Government in Russia
Authors: SOLOVEV Sergey Gennadevich , MAYOROV Vladimir Ivanovich , PETROV Andrey Yuryevich
Published: June 2019

This article analyzes the potential of the legal structure supporting municipal candidates for the post of a governor of some federal subject of the Russian Federation (known as the ‘municipal filter’) for the development of the Russian local self-government. The authors consider the key theoretical and practical problems associated with substantive and procedural aspects of the existing support mechanism of candidates for the post of the highest official of a federal subject of the Russian Federation. The authors also propose a set of legal measures aimed at improving the legal structure under study.
Improving the Mechanism of Countering Certain Types of Fraud in the Republic of Kazakhstan
Authors: TEMIRZHANOVA Lyazzat А. , IMANGALIEV Nurtai K. , SYZDYKOV Almaz Zh. , ESHNAZAROV Almaz A. , SAGYMBEKOV Bakhytzhan Zh.
Published: June 2019

The urgency of the problem stated in the article is due to the fact that the widespread digitalization of the economy leads to the fact that crimes such as theft and fraud are committed using computer tools and systems. According to statistics from Kazakhstan, as a result of fraud using computer technology, damage in the amount of more than 28 billion tenge was caused, of which individuals - 24.7 billion tenge, legal entities - 1.8 billion tenge and the state - more than 1 billion tenge. In this regard, the study touched upon issues of ensuring information security and countering cyber threats. The purpose of the article is to develop effective measures to prevent the commission of fraud with the use of information technology, since theft begins from cyber attacks on information systems. In this study, methods such as comparative legal analysis and expert evaluation were used. Amendments are proposed to the criminal legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan regarding the jurisdiction of crimes, on the addition of qualifying signs, and on the need to adopt a new Law on real estate activity in the Republic of Kazakhstan. Amendments to the criminal law will have a positive effect on the ‘unloading’ of investigators of the internal affairs bodies, since the number of ordinary crimes related to their competence significantly exceeds the number of crimes in the sphere of economic activity. The adoption of a new law on real estate activity in the Republic of Kazakhstan will avoid the facts of re-registration of apartments for criminal purposes, the commission of fraud by realtors.
Comparison of single and double stage regenerative organic rankine cycle for medium grade heat source through energy and exergy estimation
Authors: Pikra Ghalya , Rohmah Nur
Published: June 2019

Regenerative organic Rankine cycle (RORC) can be used to improve organic Rankine cycle (ORC) performance. This paper presents a comparison of a single (SSRORC) and double stage regenerative organic Rankine cycle (DSRORC) using a medium grade heat source. Performance for each system is estimated using the law of thermodynamics I and II through energy and exergy balance. Solar thermal is used as the heat source using therminol 55 as a working fluid, and R141b is used as the organic working fluid. The initial data for the analysis are heat source with 200°C of temperature, and 100 L/min of volume flow rate. Analysis begins by calculating energy input to determine organic working fluid mass flow rate, and continued by calculating energy loss, turbine power and pump power consumption to determine net power output and thermal efficiency. Exergy analysis begins by calculating exergy input to determine exergy efficiency. Exergy loss, exergy destruction at the turbine, pump and feed heater is calculated to complete the calculation. Energy estimation result shows that DSRORC determines better net power output and thermal efficiency for 7.9% than SSRORC, as well as exergy estimation, DSRORC determines higher exergy efficiency for 7.69%. ©2019. CBIORE-IJRED. All rights reserved
Simulation of biogas utilization effect on the economic efficiency and greenhouse gas emission: a case study in Isfahan, Iran
Authors: Rahimi Ariae Afrooz , Jahangiri Mehdi , Haghgo Fakhr Mehdi , Alidadi Shamsabadi Akbar
Published: June 2019

Biomass is a type of renewable energy that, in despite of its potentials and advantages including simple production technology, decreasing environmental issues, and energy generation capacity at the consumption site, has not been sufficiently utilized in Iran. Since, due to statistics, Isfahan enjoys remarkable prospects in terms of wind, solar and biomass energies, a combined system of indigenous energy sources for powering a cattle farm has been investigated and evaluated in this study. To evaluate the possibility of the optimal system for comparative reasons, the HOMER software was used. The designed hybrid system was a wind-solar-biomass generator that used a battery saver as backup. Although it seems that wind and solar energies have the highest potential for energy generation in Isfahan, the results showed that biomass, by itself, can provide the required power for a cattle farm. In fact, biomass energy was more economically efficient than wind and solar energies. Owing to the low electricity cost, generated from fossil fuels, in Iran, relative to a large number of countries, the findings revealed that using biomass for generating the electricity of a cattle farm will compensate the expenses by the mid-15th year and will generate profit for 9.5 years later. The results also showed that the solar cell-based hybrid system is cheaper than the wind turbine-based one. Regarding the price of per kWh of electricity produced, the results showed that the biomass generator system with the price 0.12 $/kWh is the cheapest, and the solar cell-based and wind turbine-based hybrid systems are 3.33% and 10.83% more expensive, respectively. The results can be used for electricity generation with minimum pollution and expenses in the same regions. ©2019. CBIORE-IJRED. All rights reserved
Ethylene Hydrogenation in Pellets with Different Pore Structures, Measured in a One-Sided Single-Pellet Reactor
Authors: Argönül Aykut , Keil Frerich J.
Published: June 2019

The ethylene hydrogenation reaction was investigated in a kinetic turbo reactor and a one-sided single-pellet reactor. An empirical kinetic expression was fitted to experimental results taken from the turbo reactor, and the gas compositions at the catalyst centers were measured for three different pore structures by means of the single-pellet reactor. A bimodal pore model was developed and applied to the computation of the gas composition profiles inside the three pore structures. The calculated results were compared to the measurements. A distinct influence of the pore structures on the gas fluxes and concentration profiles inside the pores could be detected which demonstrates that the proper choice of the pellet pore structure is of importance for a high conversion.
Geometric and statistical interpretation of correlation between fault tests in integrated GPS/INS systems
Authors: Almagbile Ali
Published: June 2019

Fault detection and identification (FDI) in either a stand-alone GPS or in integrated GPS/INS systems is essential for improving the quality of positioning, navigation, and many other applications. The assumption that the observations include a single fault has been considered intensively in literature. However, this assumption may not necessarily be valid due to the fact that multiple faults may exist simultaneously. In this study, separability of multiple faults in GPS/INS integration systems has been analysed geometrically and statistically. This has been achieved through testing how large correlation coefficient between any pair of fault tests statistics increases the probability of faults misidentification. In addition, a new calculation procedure of correlation coefficient when four faults appear in the observations has been developed. This procedure considers calculation the correlation between a single and a punch of measurements combined together. The results show that there is a strong relationship between the value of correlation coefficient and the probability of misidentification. Furthermore, a significant relationship between the correlation and the fault test values can be found when splitting the measurements combinations into groups based on the combination similarity. Nevertheless, this relationship can be defined without splitting the measurements into groups when using a new correlation procedure for four faults case. The geometric representation shows that large correlation coefficient reflects small angle between the correlation and the x-axis; whereas the angle between the fault-test vectors and the x-axis becomes wider when a tiny correlation exist.
Patent Law and Innovation in Europe during the Industrial Revolution
Authors: Donges Alexander , Selgert Felix
Published: June 2019

Human capital, access to markets, and innovation-friendly institutions were important preconditions for the acceleration of technological change during the industrial revolution. In this context, the recent literature discusses the role of patents. Given their dual nature, patents may have either stimulated innovation through the creation of financial incentives for inventors or they may have hampered innovation, because they created monopolies that restricted the free flow of knowledge. For this reason, the overall effects of patents on innovation and, eventually, long-run economic growth are not clear. In order to develop a better understanding of the determinants of innovation, this special issue of the Economic History Yearbook therefore focuses on the causes and consequences of patent laws and patent law reforms in the nineteenth and early twentieth century in different European countries.
Ideologiepolizei und Auftragsverwaltung
Authors: Schiefer Mark
Published: June 2019

The Stasi, the secret police in the GDR, was an integral part of the planned economy. Over time, Stasi officers took on tasks related to economic planning and adopted the mentality and behaviour typical of the field. This paper takes a closer look at their aims and the ensuing consequences as illustrated by the GDR chemical industry. It focuses on a contradictory phenomenon: the co-existence of growth and inefficiency. Although the secret police enjoyed growing responsibilities, resources and partners, they were surprisingly inept at achieving their own economic and security targets. This phenomenon can be explained in two ways: Historically, by identifying the Stasi as the profiteer of economic crisis, or in terms of organization theory, by revealing some typical bureaucratic characteristics of the secret service (MfS).
The Thermocouple Revisited: The Thomson Effect
Authors: Jacovelli Paul B. , Norris Ronald C. , Canada Chester E. , Zinke Otto H.
Published: June 2019

Measurements of Thomson (later Lord Kelvin) coefficients are made in an evacuated region on a silver sample with a novel transducer in temperature intervals

T

A

±
20

K

{T_{A}}\pm 20\hspace{0.1667em}\text{K}

, where the

T

A

{T_{A}}

are very carefully controlled ambient temperatures. This is the first systematic examination of Thomson coefficients in these temperature intervals. The Thomson coefficients when plotted against T, the temperature of measurement, are found to be discontinuous precisely at

T

A

{T_{A}}

. When the Thomson coefficients are multiplied by a transformation involving T and

T

A

{T_{A}}

, a linear curve in T results. Examinations here of measurements of Thomson coefficients produced by others show multiple values at T in some cases and odd behavior in other cases. Multiplying the results of others by the transformation discovered here almost always produces linear curves. The conclusions are the following. (1) Thomson’s explicit assumption that the Thomson effect involves no energy exchange with surroundings was wrong. (2) Any non-equilibrium thermodynamic approach to deriving the Thomson effect must take into account the energy exchange with the surroundings and consequently must be made in three dimensions. (3) From the work here and that of others, the energy exchange with the environment is probably mostly thermal radiation.
Auditory event-related potentials demonstrate early cognitive impairment in children with subclinical hypothyroidism
Authors: Kocaaslan Atli Sibel , Olgaç Dündar Nihal , Bayazit Onur , Evirgen Esin Nur , Erdoğan Uğraş , Çatli Gönül , Kahya Mehmet Cemal , Dündar Bumin Nuri
Published: June 2019

Background

The aim of this study was to examine the cognitive functions of children with subclinical hypothyroidism (SH) and healthy children with the use of auditory event-related potentials (AERPs) and neuropsychological tests.

Methods

Twenty children aged between 8 and 17 years, diagnosed with SH, and 20 age-matched healthy controls were included in this study. A classical auditory oddball paradigm was applied during the electroencephalography (EEG) recordings, and event-related potentials (ERPs) were evaluated between the 0.5- and 20-Hz frequency intervals. P1, N1, P2, N2 and P3 amplitudes and latencies were measured in Fz, FCz, Cz, CPz, Pz and Oz electrodes. Additionally, a number of neuropsychological tests evaluating the reaction time and various cognitive functions were carried out.

Results

In children with SH, P3 amplitudes in FCz, Cz and CPz electrodes were significantly lower than those in controls (p < 0.05). In addition to this, the P1N1 and N1P2 peak-to-peak amplitude values were also found to be smaller for children with SH than controls (p < 0.05). With regard to the neuropsychological tests, no significant difference was observed between the SH and control groups on any of the cognitive test parameters, reaction time or correct response rates.

Conclusions

In the present study, while children with SH did not differ from controls with respect to their cognitive functions evaluated via neuropsychological tests, cognitive differences were detected via electrophysiological investigations. This result implies that implicit changes in cognition which are not yet overtly reflected on neuropsychological tests may be detected at an early stage in children with SH.
Replacement of breastfeeding with medical food for the treatment of galactosemia and phenylketonuria: maternal stress
Authors: Schulpis Kleopatra , Iakovou Kostas Konstantinos
Published: June 2019

Breastfeeding replacement is the only treatment for galactosemia (GAL) and phenylketonuria (PKU) during infancy. We aimed to evaluate the stress degree in mothers who were obliged to replace breastfeeding with special formulas as the only treatment for the diseased newborns. Thirty-two mothers with GAL newborns, 19 on breastfeeding only and 13 on breastfeeding plus formula, participated in this study. Additionally, 54 mothers with PKU infants, 32 offered breastfeeding only and 22 breastfeeding plus formula, participated in the study. Stress degree was evaluated in both groups: GAL and PKU. Mothers on breastfeeding only experienced the highest degree of stress than those who were on breastfeeding plus formula. After 1 month of psychological support, most mothers were ameliorated: mothers on breastfeeding only felt better as compared to those on breastfeeding plus formula. Conversely, in mothers on breastfeeding plus formulas, symptoms and signs of stress almost disappeared. In conclusion, GAL or PKU mothers with breastfeeding only experienced the highest degree of stress when asked for breastfeeding replacement. Psychological support made all the studied groups to feel better or free of symptoms and signs of stress.
Phreatto – Ein Gerichtsverfahren zwischen Land und Meer für Athener mit ‚Vorstrafe‘
Authors: Shahin Tino
Published: June 2019

Demosthenes, Aristoteles und Pausanias berichten von demDikasterionin Phreatto, zu dem ein außer Landes gegangener Athener auf einem Boot heranfährt, dieses unmittelbar an der Küste festmacht und sich dann in einem Prozess verteidigt. Er betritt zu keinem Zeitpunkt athenischen Boden, sondern bleibt auf dem Boot und vernimmt dort das Urteil, ob er vorsätzlich getötet hat oder nicht. Diese Verhandlungsform zwischen Land und Meer kann – so aufwendig und eigentümlich sie auch anmutet – durchaus historisch sein, ist aber nur zu begreifen, wenn man von Drakons Gesetz über die Tötung ausgeht. Der Gesetzgeber hat 621/620 v. Chr. den Vollzug der Blutrache unter die Kontrolle der athenischen Gemeinschaft gestellt und damit einen wichtigen Schritt zur Eindämmung von Konflikten in der Polis geleistet. Das Verfahren in Phreatto ist im Kontext dieser Verordnung zu betrachten.
Circuli – Statuen – Funera. ‚Unverfasste‘ Partizipationsformen der spätrepublikanischen Plebs
Authors: Knopf Fabian
Published: June 2019

In der Forschung zum politischen System des spätrepublikanischen Roms werden besonders Comitien, Contiones und Spiele als Gelegenheiten untersucht, bei denen das römische Volk seine politische Meinung äußern konnte. Die drei Gelegenheiten waren allerdings elitendominiert, was eine unabhängige politische Meinungsäußerung seitens der Nicht-Elite zwar nicht unmöglich machte, doch aber erschwerte. Im folgenden Aufsatz sollen dagegen mitcirculi, Statuensetzungen undfunera populariaPlattformen untersucht werden, die von der Elite nicht einfach kontrolliert werden konnten. Eine elitenunabhängige Meinung, so die These, konnte insbesondere in diesen Foren ausgebildet und gezeigt werden. Zum besseren Verständnis wird der Gegenstand anhand des politologischen Konzepts der ‚unverfassten‘ Partizipationsformen untersucht.
Credit-Money in the Roman Economy
Authors: Harris William V.
Published: June 2019

This article, in order to advance the debate about the nature of Roman money, sets out the strongest arguments in favour of the crucial importance of credit-money in the Roman economy (carefully distinguishing the use of credit-money from merely buying on credit). It invokes some texts that were not employed in previous discussions. The article also replies to the chief arguments of those scholars who have more or less maintained the traditional view that all, or almost all, Roman money consisted of coins. The most important question here concerns trust and information: to what extent did Romans know enough about those who owed them money to accept payment in documentary form? On this question, the author takes the ‘optimistic’ view.
Southern extension of the geographic range of black-and-gold howler monkeys (Alouatta caraya)
Authors: Jardim Márcia M.A. , Queirolo Diego , Peters Felipe B. , Mazim Fábio D. , Favarini Marina O. , Tirelli Flávia P. , Trindade Rhaysa A. , Bonatto Sandro L. , Bicca-Marques Júlio César , Mourthe Italo
Published: June 2019

The black-and-gold howler monkey (Alouatta caraya) is widely distributed in Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, and northeastern Argentina. Despite this wide distribution, it is locally threatened in some parts of its southern range by forest loss and fragmentation, and yellow fever outbreaks. We present 14 new localities ofA. carayaoccurrence in the Pampa biome of southern Brazil, extending its range southwards by approximately 100 km.
Digitale Vorwärtspanik
Authors: Struck Jens
Published: June 2019

Auf digitalen Netzwerkplattformen kommt es insbesondere bei Themen wie Asyl, Flucht und Migration oftmals zu Unmutsäußerungen, welche in Äußerungen gruppenbezogener Menschenfeindlichkeit umschlagen, beispielsweise in Form von beleidigender oder auch zu Gewalt aufhetzender oder bedrohender Rede. Im vorliegenden Beitrag wird der Vorschlag gemacht, diese Äußerungen mithilfe von Randall Collins’ Konzept der Vorwärtspanik als sich situativ ereignende Akte von (sprachlicher) Gewalt zu verstehen. Hierfür wird nicht auf eine mögliche Persönlichkeitsstruktur, das Bildungsniveau oder auch auf den sozialen Status der Äußernden Bezug genommen, sondern es werden vielmehr typische, aggressive deutschsprachige Diskussionsverläufe zum Themenkomplex Asyl, Flucht und Migration auf Facebook herangezogen, um nachzuzeichnen, welche situativen Faktoren innerhalb der Online-Interaktion zu einer gewalthaltigen Äußerung gruppenbezogener Menschenfeindlichkeit führen.
Adaptation of the Idea of Phronesis in Contemporary Approach to Innovation
Authors: Kuzior Aleksandra , Zozuľak Ján
Published: June 2019

The article is devoted to the importance of the virtue of prudence and attempts to adapt it in the contemporary discourse on innovation and sustainable development. The authors come from ancient roots, recalling the positions of Socrates, Plato and, above all, Aristotle. They point to the renewed interest of contemporary researchers in the ethics of virtues and point to the important roles of prudence, prudence and responsibility in the approach to innovation. Innovations are captured as an instrumental value and a tool to shape better living conditions, work, study, rest, all forms of human activity and environmental protection. Therefore, their positive character has been exposed, although the authors also pay attention to the risk and possibility of negative effects if the virtues of nature, such as prudence, caution and responsibility are not well-formed. The authors point out that this is particularly important in the education of engineers who shape the innovative landscape of the present, and prove that this applies to mechatronics or robotics specialists, as well as production engineering specialists, because the ethical approach allows for the appropriate design of the entire team of activities from recognizing the need to satisfy it through an efficient, well-prepared, organized and properly managed production process, taking into account the basic principles of sustainable development.
Improvement in selectivity of ozone bleaching using DTPA as carbohydrate protector for wheat straw pulp
Authors: Tripathi Sandeep Kumar , Bhardwaj Nishi Kant , Ghatak Himadri Roy
Published: June 2019

Effect of using diethylenetriamine pentaaceticacid (DTPA) as carbohydrate protector in ozone stage on delignification efficiency, bleaching efficiency, selectivity, metal ions, strength, morphological properties and effluent properties of wheat straw pulp was studied. Using DTPA during ozone treatment viscosity of pulp was improved by 1.1 units, delignification efficiency improved by 13.8 % and pulp brightness improved by 2.5 units compared to that of control. Most importantly the selectivity of ozone treatment was improved by 124 %. Ozone treatment along with DTPA reduced the Fe, Cu and Mn content in the pulp by 52 %, 27 % and 70 %, respectively. Use of DTPA in ozone stage improved the bleached pulp viscosity by 9 %, post colour number by 27 % and reduced the pulp shrinkage by 5 % compared to control pulp. DTPA treated and control pulps have comparable physical strength and morphological properties.
Novel Lead-free biocompatible piezoelectric Hydroxyapatite (HA) – BCZT (Ba0.85Ca0.15Zr0.1Ti0.9O3) nanocrystal composites for bone regeneration
Authors: Manohar Chelli Sai , Kumar B Siva , Sadhu Sai Pavan Prashanth , Srimadh Sai Krishna , Muthukumar V Sai , Venketesh S. , Varma K. B. R.
Published: June 2019

BCZT (Ba0.85Ca0.15Zr0.1Ti0.9O3) is a recent class of lead-free ferroelectric material associated with high piezoelectric coefficient, making it suitable to inspire hydroxyapatite (HA)-BCZT ceramics for bone materials. Nano-crystalline hydroxyapatite (HA) synthesized using the hydrothermal route was characterized via FT-IR, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). We also rationalized its formation as a function of operating conditions such as dwell time and temperature in this route. The nano-crystalline BCZT powder was synthesized via a sol-gel technique and its structural and morphological characterization were carried out using Raman Spectroscopy, XRD and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). These investigations facilitated the optimization of HA-BCZT compositions and their electrical poling conditions to achieve enhanced piezoelectric effect. The composites (HA-BCZT) sintered at 1350∘C exhibited promising piezoelectric properties. We report the enhanced piezoelectric coefficient (d33) of 7±1 pC/N for 50% HA-BCZT which is significant as compared to that reported in the literature for ~98% BT (barium titanate) -HA composites. We highlight the role of Simulated Body Fluid (SBF) on the intriguing phase-change of Tricalcium Phosphate (TCP) obtained at this sintering temperature, to hydroxyapatite for its essential contribution to promote bone growth. We theoretically support the confirmed in vitro biocompatibility of these composites.

Graphical abstract: Novel lead-free biocompatible piezoelectric HA-BCZT nanocrystal composites for accelerated Bone regeneration
Evaluation of claws as an alternative route of mercury elimination from the herring gull (Larus argentatus)
Authors: Grajewska Agnieszka , Falkowska Lucyna , Reindl Andrzej
Published: June 2019

Mercury enters the body of seabirds in its most toxic organic form, i.e. methylmercury, mainly via the alimentary tract. Inside the body, mercury is transformed into less toxic forms and accumulates in the internal organs. The process of mercury removal from the body, most effective during the formation of new feathers and claws, is beneficial for the bird. The presented research was undertaken on account of the high affinity of mercury to keratin – a protein that forms feathers and claws – to compare the concentration levels (HgTOT) in these structures and to assess their contribution to the purification of the body of herring gulls (Larus argentatus) Bird feathers are the only epidermal structure that is extensively described in the literature, whereas the claws have so far been poorly researched.

The study has shown that mercury in claws is built in as effectively as in feathers, and the obtained concentrations were within a wide range of 127.2–5341.5 ng HgTOT g–1 of dry weight. In addition, the concentrations of total mercury accumulated in the claws were a better reflection of Hg levels in internal organs compared to feathers.
Dual Anthropology as the Imago Dei in Edith Stein
Authors: Ales Bello Angela
Published: June 2019

This essay consists of two parts. The first part deals with the birth of a dual anthropology in Edith Stein’s thought, whereas the second part treats the teleological origin of this duality. In order to explain how she elaborated her dual anthropology two themes become intertwined in my investigation: the question of the feminine in western culture and the teleological question of the human being as an image of God. In my discussion of the first theme, I examine both the historical development of the feminist movement, maintaining that the birth of the feminist movement in the West has its roots in Christianity, as well as the theoretical reflection of Edith Stein on a dual anthropology, which becomes ultimately linked to a theological framework and, hence, to the idea of “image.” Here, we have to ask: What is the meaning of “image”? In what sense is the human being an image of God? Following the foregoing claim, I argue that Stein’s dual anthropology is very helpful in our time to clarify some questions that arise in connection with “gender theory”.
High performance liquid chromatographic profiling of antioxidant and antidiabetic flavonoids purified from Azadirachta indica (neem) leaf ethanolic extract
Authors: Vergallo Cristian , Panzarini Elisa , Dini Luciana
Published: June 2019

Azadirachta indica (neem) is a tropical and semi-tropical tree native to the whole Indian subcontinent. Neem leaves are rich in flavonoids, which exhibit important pharmacological activities targeting almost all human organs. In order to produce a purified extract of neem leaves enriched of antioxidant and antidiabetic flavonoids, the ethanolic extract of neem leaves has been further undergone to liquid-liquid extractions by using three different organic solvents, i.e. dichloromethane, n-butanol and ethyl acetate. Qualitative and quantitative analyses were performed on the extracts obtained by thin layer chromatography (TLC) and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Astragalin, quercitrin, isoquercitrin, nicotiflorin and rutin were the only flavonoids found among those screened. By comparing all HPLC chromatograms of purified extracts as obtained with different solvents, it was found that the qualitative-quantitative composition of flavonoids depends upon the extraction solvent used; in particular, dichloromethane allows extraction of 89.5 % quercitrin, 5.3 % isoquercitrin, 5.2 % rutin; n-butanol allows extraction of 6.0 % isoquercitrin, 6.2 % nicotiflorin, 87.8 % rutin; ethyl acetate allows extraction of 4.2 % astragalin, 12.0 % quercitrin, 50.3 % isoquercitrin, 6.7 % nicotiflorin, 26.9 % rutin. Thus, depending on the specific purposes and needs, each of these three extraction solvents has the potential to prepare formulations enriched with the most suitable flavonoids composition.
Two variants of Monte Carlo projection method for numerical solution of nonlinear Boltzmann equation
Authors: Rogasinsky Sergey V.
Published: June 2019

The paper is focused on justification of a statistical modelling algorithm for solution of the nonlinear kinetic Boltzmann equation on the base of a projection method. Hermite functions are used as an orthonormal basis. The error of approximation of a function by a partial sum of Hermite functions series is estimated in theL2norm. The estimates are compared for two variants of the projection method in the case of solutions to the homogeneous gas relaxation problem with a known solution.
Subgrid modelling of convective diffusion in a multiscale random medium
Authors: Soboleva Olga N. , Kurochkina Ekaterina P.
Published: June 2019

Effective coefficients for convective diffusion equations are obtained. Correlated random fields of conductivity and porosity are approximated by multiplicative cascades with log-normal distributions of probabilities. The theoretical result is checked numerically for the case of 3D plane flow of an incompressible fluid.
Abstentionism, Voting Advice Applications and Voting Activation
Authors: Ramos Javier , Padilla Javier , Chueca Enrique
Published: June 2019

Voting Advice Applications (VAAs) have proliferated in the last decade as part of electoral campaigns in Europe. Several studies have linked the usage of the applications to an increase in voting intention, yet the literature on the factors that make people more likely to be influenced by VAAs is not really developed. This paper tries to contribute to this literature by addressing two key questions: first, how non-institutional forms of political participation influence abstentionism among VAA users and second, how VAA encourages voting intention among these politically engaged abstentionists (activation effect). We first examine (a) whether being engaged in non-institutional forms of participation increases the likelihood of a VAA user declaring him/herself to be a voter and (b) whether being engaged in non-institutional forms of political participation has an effect on the probability of becoming a “voter” after filling in the VAA questionnaire. Our results suggest that the VAA “activation effect” nexus exists and it affects a significant percentage of abstentionist. Those users that have participated in non-institutional forms of participation – such as demonstrations or online petitions – are more likely to declare being voters before filling in the VAA. Among the abstentionists, once they answered the set of 30 key questions, a considerable percent (between 14 and 22 percent depending on the threshold used) declared to have the intention to vote (activation effect). The prevailing profile of the activated user is a young man with tertiary education. The motivational reason for voting a party also matter in increasing the probability that an “activation effect” happens. The competency of the party, its ideology, the candidate presented by the party and the users’ self-interest are also good predictors of the “activation effect.”
Association between serum vitamin D level and liver MRI T2 star in patients with β-thalassemia major
Authors: Kurtoğlu Erdal , Uğur Kurtoğlu Ayşegül , Koçtekin Belkıs , Uğur Sevcan , Bozkurt Selen
Published: June 2019

Background

Iron overloaded Beta Thalassemia major (β-TM) patients have a high risk of liver problems. In recent years studies revealed that vitamin D level is decreased in chronic liver diseases. The present study was designed to find the association between the serum vitamin D levels and the liver iron deposition in patients with β-TM.

Materials and methods

A total of 101 patients with a diagnosis of β-TM were included into this study. The patients were divided into four groups according to liver T2* MRI scores (group 1: normal, group 2: mild iron load, group 3: moderate iron load and group 4: severe iron load). Serum vitamin D was measured by chemiluminescence immunoassay method.

Results

The vitamin D level was median 14 (4–91) ng/mL. There was a positive correlation between vitamin D levels and liver T2* MRI scores (r = 0.31, p < 0.05). There is a significant difference between groups 1 and 4 for vitamin D level (p < 0.05). Vitamin D deficiency (<20 ng/mL) was observed 71% in group 1, 67% in group 2, 80% in group 3 and 100% in group 4.

Conclusions

Vitamin D monitorization and supplementation should be routine in β-TM patients to prevent both skeletal and non-skeletal complications.
Discordant troponin I value in a young woman: a case report with review of literature
Authors: Barlak Keti Didem , Muhtaroğlu Sabahattin , Öz Leyla , Ekici Günay Nahide
Published: June 2019

Objective

We reported a young woman who had false high troponin value due to antibody interference. Our aim is to look at the approaches to be taken into consideration in determining troponin (Tn) assay interference.

Patients and methods

A 36-year-old woman presented to the emergency department with chest pain. At presentation, TnI value was found 2.26 ng/mL (99th percentile <0.01 ng/mL). Troponin measurements were repeated with alternative platforms. Serum sample of the patient was treated with heterophile antibody blocking tube (HBT). In addition, polyethylene glycol (PEG) precipitation and serial dilutions were applied to serum.

Results

All of the Tn results in alternative platforms were found under cut off value and serial dilutions of patient serum did not show linearity. After PEG precipitation, TnI value was decreased from 2.34 ng/mL to 0.01 ng/mL (recovery: 0.85%), suggesting antibody interference. Incubation of the patient sample with HBT showed 93.1% of recovery.

Conclusion

To investigate the presence of interference, use of multiple methods that can be applied in the clinical laboratories is more reliable than a single method.
Numerical Simulation of Supersonic Jet Control by Tabs with Slanted Perforation
Authors: Ezhilmaran G. , Khandai Suresh Chandra , Sinha Yogesh Kumar , Thanigaiarasu S.
Published: June 2019

This paper presents the numerical simulation of Mach 1.5 supersonic jet with perforated tabs. The jet with straight perforation tab was compared with jets having slanted perforated tabs of different diameters. The perforation angles were kept as 0° and 10° with respect to the axis of the nozzle. The blockage areas of the tabs were 4.9 %, 4.9 % and 2.4 % for straight perforation, 10° slanted perforation (

Φ

 

{{{\Phi }}_{\ }}

 = 1.3 mm) and 10° slanted perforation (

Φ

 

{{{\Phi }}_{\ }}

 = 1.65 mm) respectively. The 3-D numerical simulations were carried out using the software. The mixing enhancements caused by these tabs were studied in the presence of adverse and favourable pressure gradients, corresponding to nozzle pressure ratio (NPR) of 3, 3.7 and 5. For Mach number 1.5 jet, NPR 3 corresponds to 18.92 % adverse pressure gradients and NPR 5 corresponds to 35.13 % favourable pressure gradients. The centerline Mach number of the jet with slanted perforations is found to decay at a faster rate than uncontrolled nozzle and jet with straight perforation tab. Mach number plots were obtained at both near-field and far field downstream locations. There is 25 % and 65 % reduction in jet core length were observed for the 0° and 10° perforated tabs respectively in comparison to uncontrolled jet.
Aesthetic Cognition
Authors: Zöller Günter
Published: June 2019

The contribution examines the aesthetic aspect of cognition in Kant by exploring the central function of the power of the imagination (Einbildungskraft) in Kant’s critical epistemology, first featured in the Critique of Pure Reason (1781; 1787) and revisited in the Critique of the Power of Judgment (1790). First, the focus will be on the relationship between the power of the imagination and the two main sources of (theoretical) cognition in Kant, viz., sensibility and the understanding. Second, special attention will be devoted to the distinction between schema and symbol, as alternative products of the power of the imagination in the service of rendering discursive concepts intuitive – with schemata serving to make sensible the concepts of the understanding (Verstand) and symbols suited to provide intuitional counterparts to the concepts of reason (Vernunft).
Aesthetic Education in Confucius, Xunzi, and Kant
Authors: Helmut Wenzel Christian
Published: June 2019

This essay introduces ideas from Confucius, Xunzi, the Six Dynasties, and Kant about beauty, music, morality, and what we might today call “aesthetic education.” It asks how beauty and morality are related and how they ideally should be related to each other. We know that beauty and morality can drift apart, and we may wonder how aesthetic education might work best. Should the arts be a means for developing morality? Or should it be the other way around? These questions are still relevant today. But our world has changed, not only since Confucius, but also since Kant. We may ask what to make of their ideas in our present time. I argue that there are good reasons for keeping morality and aesthetics apart, somewhat in the spirit of Kant, and in opposition to the idea of “fusing” the two.
The Love of Beauty for the Good Life
Authors: Keping Wang
Published: June 2019

Plato’s analogy of the ladder in the Symposium involves an inquiry into the love of beauty that pertains to a spiritual phenomenology of love. It is reconsidered in this discussion from both an aesthetic and teleological perspectives, and thus construed as a process of philosophical learning and virtuous cultivation. In the final analysis, this paper argues that it is intended to direct the love of beauty along with wisdom as virtue towards the Platonic ideal of human fulfillment and true happiness for the good life qua its ultimate telos. On this account, both the value of knowledge and the cultivation of personality are emphasized for inter-connected reasons, and meanwhile a pragmatic stance is proposed on the kinds-of-life option in the light of the kinds-of-wisdom stratification.
The Rhythm of Action
Authors: Wenning Mario
Published: June 2019

Classical Chinese philosophy, and Daoism in particular, has emphasized the importance of rhythm for performing actions well. Drawing on this insight, the paper argues that rhythm is an essential element of nourishing life. A focus on the relationship between rhythm, action, and life becomes necessary in societies that are experiencing a crisis of temporal relationships. Modern agents are pressured to adapt to accelerating speeds that are increasingly experienced as undermining the conditions necessary for human flourishing. A critical theory of temporal relationships is committed to (1) revealing and explaining the increase of rhythmic pathologies and to (2) recovering “eurhythms” that enable exemplary action and human flourishing.
Information, Communication and Art
Authors: Xilin You
Published: June 2019

From Karl Marx to Martin Heidegger, the dialectical relationship between technology and art has become an ontological question of social reality. Marshall McLuhan’s theory of cool-hot media provides an analytical framework for the information age. “Cool-hot media” is McLuhan’s truly original concept. However, while McLuhan determined electronic media to embrace printing media which was regarded as a typical representative of hot media, he could not foresee that electronic media is properly speaking the latest representative of the split type of hot media. Through Gödel’s Incompleteness Theorems which underlies formalization and Embodied Cognition Theory, this article argues that there exists an ontological difference between computers and human existence and explores the position of art from the contemporary cool media perspective. This contribution is not only intended to be a philosophical critique of the philosophy of technology of the media age, but also a repositioning of contemporary art and its function from the media perspective. The technological division and abstraction represented in hot media becomes the basic premise for a holistic approach to computer science and artificial intelligence. Their rich information context leads to multiple interpretations of meaning instead of a one-dimensional definition; the everyday actions of cold media have become a type of life art in a broad sense, and manifest their social function as an art of the information age, i.e. to balance the cognitive narrative of hot media and to ensure that its communication does not suppress the audience’s individual creativity, so that they can maintain their subjectivity by tracing the source of information. Art facilitates active audience participation and so allows participants to overcome a one dimensional way of thinking and promotes imagination and creativity in liberal arts education. Following the rules of art, cold media obtains its greatest significance as the guardian of the free subjectivity of all humans, which is alien to modern technology. Cold media and hot media balance each other to create a new way of producing and living that not only discovers but also safeguards the world.
Techné, Life-world, and Art
Authors: Wang Wen-Sheng
Published: June 2019

The notion of techné in Husserl’s phenomenology is related to his treatment of the three layers of the “teaching of craft” and the two layers of the science of “life-world.” The superior layer of both is of philosophical significance. Aristotle’s statement in ethics and metaphysics: techné is man-made, but can transit to spontaneity, and then to natural becoming, which manifests physis as the ultimate aim of his philosophical system, enlightens us to notice the following aspects in Husserl’s phenomenology. 1. Pure or formal ethics is of a high-level téchne in the philosophical sense. 2. The concept of life-world leads to transcendental phenomenology. 3. What Ideas II implies – as a technique the method of phenomenology tends to let the pure I and spiritual I as matters appear themselves by the natural attitude – could conduct us to understand the artistic aspect of Husserl’s philosophical theory.