bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Progression of chronic kidney disease among black patients attending a tertiary hospital in Johannesburg, South Africa
Authors: Meremo Alfred , Paget Graham , Duarte Raquel , Bintabara Deogratius , Naicker Saraladevi
Published: February 2023

Background

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a major public health issue worldwide and is an important contributor to the overall non-communicable disease burden. Chronic kidney disease is usually asymptomatic, and insidiously and silently progresses to advanced stages in resource limited settings.

Methodology

A prospective longitudinal study was carried out on black patients with CKD attending the kidney outpatient clinic at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital (CMJAH) in South Africa, between September 2019 to March 2022. Demographic and clinical data were extracted from the ongoing continuous clinic records, as well as measurements of vital signs and interviews at baseline and at follow up. Patients provided urine and blood samples for laboratory investigations as standard of care at study entry (0) and at 24 months, and were followed up prospectively for two (2) years. Data were descriptively and inferentially entered into REDcap and analysed using STATA version 17, and multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to identify predictors of CKD progression.

Results

A total of 312 patients were enrolled into the study, 297 (95.2%) patients completed the study, 10 (3.2%) patients were lost to follow and 5 (1.6%) patients died during the study period. The prevalence of CKD progression was 49.5%, while that of CKD remission was 33% and CKD regression was 17.5%. For patients with CKD progression the median age at baseline was 58 (46–67) years, the median eGFR was 37 (32–51) mL/min/1.73 m2, median urine protein creatinine ratio (uPCR) was 0.038 (0.016–0.82) g/mmol and the median haemoglobin (Hb) was 13.1 (11.7–14.4) g/dl; 95.2% had hypertension, 40.1% patients had diabetes mellitus and 39.5% had both hypertension and diabetes mellitus. Almost half (48.3%) of patients with CKD progression had severely increased proteinuria and 45.6% had anaemia. Variables associated with higher odds for CKD progression after multivariable logistic regression analysis were severely increased proteinuria (OR 32.3, 95% CI 2.8–368.6, P = 0.005), moderately increased proteinuria (OR 23.3, 95% CI 2.6–230.1, P = 0.007), hypocalcaemia (OR 3.8, 95% CI 1.0–14.8, P = 0.047), hyponatraemia (OR 4.5, 95% CI 0.8–23.6, P = 0.042), anaemia (OR 2.1, 95% CI 1.0–4.3, P = 0.048), diabetes mellitus (OR 1.8, 95% CI 0.9–3.6, P = 0.047), elevated HbA1c (OR 1.8, 95% CI 1.2–2.8, P = 0.007) and current smoking (OR 2.8, 95% CI 0.9–8.6, P = 0.049).

Conclusion

Our study identified a higher prevalence of CKD progression in a prospective longitudinal study of black patients with CKD compared with literature reports. CKD Progression was associated with proteinuria, diabetes mellitus, elevated HbA1c, anaemia, hypocalcaemia, hyponatraemia and current smoking in a cohort of black patients with CKD who had controlled hypertension and diabetes mellitus at baseline.
Influences of cushion contour on passenger comfort and interface pressure in high-speed train
Authors: Li Juan , Lian Jifeng , Wu Jiujiang
Published: February 2023

In this paper, eight different contoured cushions (S1-S8) in two categories (flat and wrapped) were designed to study the influence of different contoured cushions on passenger comfort in high-speed trains. Meanwhile, subjective data investigation by the comfort Likert Scale questionnaire and objective physical variables collection by the body-cushion contact pressure test was carried out. In addition, one-way ANOVA and Pearson correlation analysis were performed on the subjective survey and objective test data. The results show that the cushion contours had a significant effect on the subjective evaluation of the overall comfort of the participants, in which the overall comfort below the waist of the separated wrapped cushion S8 has the highest subjective comfort score. The overall comfort of the flat-front bulge type cushion S4 and the local comfort of the thighs and the root of the thighs were rated higher than other flat types. Under the flat cushion, the effect of stature characteristics (mainly weight and hip-width) on the overall comfort subjective ratings was insignificant, and the effect on the contact pressure distribution variables was significant, but the contact pressure distribution variables were not correlated with the comfort ratings. Under the wrapped cushion, the effect of stature characteristics on the overall comfort subjective ratings and contact pressure distribution variables was significant. There were positive and negative correlations between the average peak contact pressure and average contact pressure and comfort ratings, respectively.
A novel approach to interrogating the effects of chemical warfare agent exposure using organ-on-a-chip technology and multiomic analysis
Authors: Goralski Tyler D. P. , Jenkins Conor C. , Angelini Daniel J. , Horsmon Jennifer R. , Dhummakupt Elizabeth S. , Rizzo Gabrielle M. , Simmons Brooke L. , Liem Alvin T. , Roth Pierce A. , Karavis Mark A. , Hill Jessica M. , Sekowski Jennifer W. , Glover Kyle P.
Published: February 2023

Organ-on-a-chip platforms are utilized in global bioanalytical and toxicological studies as a way to reduce materials and increase throughput as compared to in vivo based experiments. These platforms bridge the infrastructure and regulatory gaps between in vivo animal work and human systems, with models that exemplify active biological pathways. In conjunction with the advent of increased capabilities associated with next generation sequencing and mass spectrometry based ‘-omic’ technologies, organ-on-a-chip platforms provide an excellent opportunity to investigate the global changes at multiple biological levels, including the transcriptome, proteome and metabolome. When investigated concurrently, a complete profile of cellular and regulatory perturbations can be characterized following treatment with specific agonists. In this study, global effects were observed and analyzed following liver chip exposure to the chemical warfare agent, VX. Even though the primary mechanism of action of VX (i.e. acetylcholinesterase inhibition) is well characterized, recent in vivo studies suggest additional protein binding partners that are implicated in metabolism and cellular energetic pathways. In addition, secondary toxicity associated with peripheral organ systems, especially in human tissues, is not well defined. Our results demonstrate the potential of utilizing an organ-on-a-chip platform as a surrogate system to traditional in vivo studies. This is realized by specifically indicating significant dysregulation of several cellular processes in response to VX exposure including but not limited to amino acid synthesis, drug metabolism, and energetics pathways.
The relationship between rural information consumption and regional economic development with spatial Durbin model—A case study of Zhejiang, China
Authors: Zhong Haidong , Zhang Jinhui , Song Wenlan
Published: February 2023

Information consumption is a kind of economic activity that directly or indirectly takes information products and information services as consumption objects. Most of the existing studies have established the "formula” of rural information consumption in promoting economic and social development, while few efforts have been devoted to study the quantitative reciprocities between them. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the relationship between information consumption in rural areas and regional economic development with a case study of Zhejiang, China. Based on rural information consumption-related indexes, basic geographic data, and other publicly available regional economic development related data, we conduct the exploration with the spatial Durbin model (SDM). The study indicates that (1) from the perspective of spatial analysis, the economic development level of all prefecture-level cities in Zhejiang, China has a significant positive spatial correlation; (2) in rural areas, the network infrastructure improvement, information industry clustering, etc. can accelerate enhancing information consumption and promote regional economic development; and (3) facilitate the development of rural information consumption is conducive to alleviate the imbalance of regional economic development. It is hoped that our study can help understand the current situation of information consumption in rural China and provide a theoretical reference for rural economic and social development.
Gamma oscillations point to the role of primary visual cortex in atypical motion processing in autism
Authors: Orekhova Elena V. , Manyukhina Viktoriya O. , Galuta Ilia A. , Prokofyev Andrey O. , Goiaeva Dzerassa E. , Obukhova Tatiana S. , Fadeev Kirill A. , Schneiderman Justin F. , Stroganova Tatiana A.
Published: February 2023

Neurophysiological studies suggest that abnormal neural inhibition may explain a range of sensory processing differences in autism spectrum disorders (ASD). In particular, the impaired ability of people with ASD to visually discriminate the motion direction of small-size objects and their reduced perceptual suppression of background-like visual motion may stem from deficient surround inhibition within the primary visual cortex (V1) and/or its atypical top-down modulation by higher-tier cortical areas. In this study, we estimate the contribution of abnormal surround inhibition to the motion-processing deficit in ASD. For this purpose, we used a putative correlate of surround inhibition–suppression of the magnetoencephalographic (MEG) gamma response (GR) caused by an increase in the drift rate of a large annular high-contrast grating. The motion direction discrimination thresholds for the gratings of different angular sizes (1° and 12°) were assessed in a separate psychophysical paradigm. The MEG data were collected in 42 boys with ASD and 37 typically developing (TD) boys aged 7–15 years. Psychophysical data were available in 33 and 34 of these participants, respectively. The results showed that the GR suppression in V1 was reduced in boys with ASD, while their ability to detect the direction of motion was compromised only in the case of small stimuli. In TD boys, the GR suppression directly correlated with perceptual suppression caused by increasing stimulus size, thus suggesting the role of the top-down modulations of V1 in surround inhibition. In ASD, weaker GR suppression was associated with the poor directional sensitivity to small stimuli, but not with perceptual suppression. These results strongly suggest that a local inhibitory deficit in V1 plays an important role in the reduction of directional sensitivity in ASD and that this perceptual deficit cannot be explained exclusively by atypical top-down modulation of V1 by higher-tier cortical areas.
Hippo signaling and histone methylation control cardiomyocyte cell cycle re-entry through distinct transcriptional pathways
Authors: Zhang Zhenhe , Freeman Miles , Zhang Yiqiang , El-Nachef Danny , Davenport George , Williams Allison , MacLellan W. Robb
Published: February 2023

Aims

Accumulating data demonstrates that new adult cardiomyocytes (CMs) are generated throughout life from pre-existing CMs, although the absolute magnitude of CM self-renewal is very low. Modifying epigenetic histone modifications or activating the Hippo-Yap pathway have been shown to promote adult CM cycling and proliferation. Whether these interventions work through common pathways or act independently is unknown. For the first time we have determined whether lysine demethylase 4D (KDM4D)-mediated CM-specific H3K9 demethylation and Hippo pathways inhibition have additive or redundant roles in promoting CM cell cycle re-entry.

Methods and results

We found that activating Yap1 in cultured neonatal rat ventricular myocytes (NRVM) through overexpressing Hippo pathway inhibitor, miR-199, preferentially increased S-phase CMs, while H3K9me3 demethylase KDM4D preferentially increased G2/M markers in CMs. Together KDM4D and miR-199 further increased total cell number of NRVMs in culture. Inhibition of Hippo signaling via knock-down of Salvador Family WW Domain Containing Protein 1 (Sav1) also led to S-phase reactivation and additional cell cycle re-entry was seen when combined with KDM4D overexpression. Inducible activating KDM4D (iKDM4D) in adult transgenic mice together with shRNA mediated knock-down of Sav1 (iKDM4D+Sav1-sh) resulted in a significant increase in cycling CMs compared to either intervention alone. KDM4D preferentially induced expression of genes regulating late (G2/M) phases of the cell cycle, while miR-199 and si-Sav1 preferentially up-regulated genes involved in G1/S phase. KDM4D upregulated E2F1 and FoxM1 expression, whereas miR-199 and si-Sav1 induced Myc. Using transgenic mice over-expressing KDM4D together with Myc, we demonstrated that KDM4D/Myc significantly increased CM cell cycling but did not affect cardiac function.

Conclusions

KDM4D effects on CM cell cycle activity are additive with the Hippo-Yap1 pathway and appear to preferentially regulate different cell cycle regulators. This may have important implications for strategies that target cardiac regeneration in treating heart disease
CD8/PD-L1 immunohistochemical reactivity and gene alterations in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma
Authors: Nishida Haruto , Kondo Yoshihiko , Kusaba Takahiro , Kawamura Kazuhiro , Oyama Yuzo , Daa Tsutomu
Published: February 2023

In recent years, several immune checkpoint inhibitors targeting programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) or PD-1 have been developed for cancer therapy. The genetic background of tumors and factors that influence PD-L1 expression in tumor tissues are not yet elucidated in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC). CD8-positive tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) are known to be related to tumor immunity. Here, we aimed to study the relationship between CD8/PD-L1 immunohistochemical reactivity and gene alterations in cSCC. Tumorigenic genes were examined to identify gene alterations using next-generation sequencing (NGS). We collected 27 cSCC tissue samples (from 13 metastatic and 14 non-metastatic patients at primary diagnosis). We performed immunohistochemical staining for CD8 and PD-L1, and NGS using a commercially available sequencing panel (Illumina Cancer Hotspot Panel V2) that targets 50 cancer-associated genes. Immunohistochemically, CD8-positive TILs showed a high positive score in cSCC without metastasis; in these cases, cSCC occurred predominantly in sun-exposed areas, the tumor size was smaller, and the total gene variation numbers were notably low. The tumor depth, PD-L1 positivity, and gene variation number with or without tumor metastasis were not related, but the gene variation number tended to be higher in cSCCs arising in non-sun-exposed areas. Tumor metastasis was more common in cSCC arising in non-sun-exposed areas, which decreased the number of TILs or CD8-positive cells. From a genetic perspective, the total gene alterations were higher in cSCC with metastasis. Among them, ERBB4 and NPM1 are presumably involved in cSCC tumorigenesis; in addition, GNAQ, GNAS, JAK2, NRAS, IDH2, and CTNNB1 may be related to tumor metastasis. These results provide information on potential genes that can be targeted for cSCC therapy and on immune checkpoint inhibitors that may be used for cSCC therapy.
Treatment of tubular damage in high-fat-diet-fed obese mice using sodium-glucose co-transporter inhibitors
Authors: Saitoh Sei , Takaki Takashi , Nakajima Kazuki , Wo Bao , Terashima Hiroshi , Shimo Satoshi , Nguyen Huy Bang , Thai Truc Quynh , Kumamoto Kanako , Kunisawa Kazuo , Nagao Shizuko , Tojo Akihiro , Ohno Nobuhiko , Takahashi Kazuo
Published: February 2023

A long-term high-fat diet (HFD) causes obesity and changes in renal lipid metabolism and lysosomal dysfunction in mice, causing renal damage. Sodium-glucose co-transporter inhibitors, including phlorizin, exert nephroprotective effects in patients with chronic kidney disease, but the underlying mechanism remains unclear. A HFD or standard diet was fed to adult C57BL/6J male mice, and phlorizin was administered. Lamellar body components of the proximal tubular epithelial cells (PTECs) were investigated. After phlorizin administration in HFD-fed mice, sphingomyelin and ceramide in urine and tissues were assessed and label-free quantitative proteomics was performed using kidney tissue samples. Mitochondrial elongation by fusion was effective in the PTECs of HFD-fed obese mice under phlorizin administration, and many lamellar bodies were found in the apical portion of the S2 segment of the proximal tubule. Phlorizin functioned as a diuretic, releasing lamellar bodies from the apical membrane of PTECs and clearing the obstruction in nephrons. The main component of the lamellar bodies was sphingomyelin. On the first day of phlorizin administration in HFD-fed obese mice, the diuretic effect was increased, and more sphingomyelin was excreted through urine than in vehicle-treated mice. The expressions of three peroxisomal β-oxidation proteins involved in fatty acid metabolism were downregulated after phlorizin administration in the kidneys of HFD-fed mice. Fatty acid elongation protein levels increased with phlorizin administration, indicating an increase in long-chain fatty acids. Lamellar bodies accumulated in the proximal renal tubule of the S2 segment of the HFD-fed mice, indicating that the urinary excretion of lamellar bodies has nephroprotective effects.
Impact of usership on bacterial contamination of public latrine surfaces in Kathmandu, Nepal
Authors: Mraz Alexis L. , McGinnis Shannon M. , Marini Dianna , Amatya Prakash , Murphy Heather M.
Published: February 2023

According to the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), community or public toilets shared by more than one household are not considered “safely managed” under SDG 6.2. However, many populations around the globe, particularly in urban settings, lack access to private sanitation facilities. For this reason, there is a need to evaluate the cleanliness of community or public toilets in these settings and examine best practices for maintaining them. This study had three aims: 1) build on previous data collected in March 2018 at public latrines to determine whether cleaning protocols were sustained, 2) examine relationships between latrine cleanliness and usership, and 3) identify latrine surfaces with higher concentrations of bacterial contamination. In March 2018 and December 2019, swab samples were collected from public latrine surfaces in Kathmandu, Nepal. Sampling occurred in “clean” conditions–after cleaning and before the latrine was opened for use–and “dirty” conditions–during operating hours. Samples were analyzed for concentrations of total coliforms (TC) and Escherichia coli (EC). The number of latrine users prior to the “dirty” sample collection was recorded (in December 2019 only). Results found that both TC and EC concentrations were significantly lower during “clean” rather than “dirty” conditions and both TC and EC concentrations increased with the number of users over time. TC and EC concentrations differed by surface type during dirty and clean conditions (p<0.05). Findings suggest cleaning protocols established at this public toilet site were adequately maintained two years later.
The Cinema of the Precariat: The Exploited, Underemployed, and Temp Workers of the World, Tom Zaniello (2020)
Authors: Jansson Katja
Published: February 2023

Review of: The Cinema of the Precariat: The Exploited, Underemployed, and Temp Workers of the World, Tom Zaniello (2020)

New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 204 pp.,

ISBN 978-1-50134-920-1, h/bk, £85.00

ISBN 978-1-50138-584-1, p/bk, £28.99

ISBN 978-1-50134-921-8, e-book, £26.09
La “monarquía del miedo”. El terror gótico y la deslegitimación de la Corona en Los Misterios del Escorial (1845)
Authors: Pajarín Domínguez Jorge
Published: February 2023

El terror se utilizó históricamente para legitimar el poder de la monarquía frente al pueblo. En un contexto liberal, especialmente con el Romanticismo, la literatura recuperó ciertos mitos del pasado que tenían un valor simbólico en el presente para poder afianzar el Estado-nación. A través de géneros como la novela gótica o la narrativa de misterios, aquella idea del terror histórico, cargado de elementos tétricos, fantasmagóricos, sombríos y lúgubres, permitía impresionar, enseñar y/o conmover al lector de su época con una intención claramente política, en consonancia con los intereses del liberalismo. El objetivo de este trabajo es analizar la novela Los Misterios del Escorial (1845), de Gabino Leonor, como ejemplo de literatura política. En una clara línea antiaustracista y vinculada a los intereses ideológicos progresistas y republicanos, esta obra representa la angustia y la opresión de la sociedad decimonónica. La institución regia y su entorno cortesano, ambos encarnados en la idea de la «monarquía del miedo», fueron responsables de ello a partir de la «arquitectura terrorífica», recreada en torno al Real Sitio construido por Felipe II. A partir de la ejemplificación de esta novela –y los recursos estéticos, históricos e ideológicos que utiliza– se pretende estudiar los procesos de deslegitimación que se produjeron durante el periodo de las revoluciones liberales en torno a la Corona como institución válida en los resortes del Estado-nación que se quería construir. Se recupera una obra olvidada por parte del canon que se sitúa dentro de la politización que experimentarían la literatura y determinados géneros literarios durante el siglo XIX, especialmente en el contexto de la Década Moderada, momento de la publicación de la novela.
Poner la realidad entre paréntesis: representación de la función materna en El Dock (1993) de Matilde Sánchez y La casa operativa (2007) de Cristina Feijóo
Authors: Battista Lo Bianco Lucía
Published: February 2023

En el presente trabajo analizamos dos novelas publicadas en el período de «posdictadura» argentino: El Dock de Matilde Sánchez (1993) y La casa operativa de Cristina Feijóo (2007). Centramos nuestra lectura en la representación disímil de los roles maternos y la reconfiguración de los lazos filiales que hacen las novelas a través de sus narradores. En el marco de las relecturas emprendidas durante los años 90 en torno al proceso revolucionario de la Argentina, abierto en 1969 y abortado a sangre y fuego por la última dictadura cívico−militar, de una revisión y reevaluación de la cultura de aquellos años, de las relaciones interpersonales establecidas en las organizaciones políticas y guerrilleras y, en el contexto de aparición de nuevos sujetos víctimas y testimoniantes como fueron los hijos e hijas de desaparecidos, estas novelas ponen foco en aspectos considerados «privados» o «íntimos» que, como veremos, no lo son tanto. Apuntan a rediscutir la complejidad de la función materna intersectada por la política: dos madres que ya no están o que están ausentes (muertas o desaparecidas) son evocadas positiva o negativamente por sus dos hijos huérfanos, y una (tercera) madre comienza a serlo, mientras se debate si debería.
Juan L. Ortiz en la línea del poema celebratorio americano
Authors: Dobry Edgardo
Published: February 2023

El artículo recorre la presencia del simbolismo francés, particularmente de Verlaine y Mallarmé, en la poesía de Juan L. Ortiz. Esa deriva está presente también en algunos de los grandes poetas estadounidenses del siglo XX, como Wallace Stevens, con quien Ortiz tiene varios elementos en común. A la vez, se muestra el modo en que esa raíz simbolista se funde con uno de los rasgos extensos de la poesía americana (en el sentido amplio del término), desde Whitman: el del poema celebratorio, que canta y exalta lo presente.
O konieczności trwania i rozwoju polskiej pedagogiki społecznej
Authors: Weissbrot-Koziarska Anna
Published: February 2023

Współczesna rzeczywistość to czasy wielkich przemian, których z jednej strony jesteśmy obserwatorami, z drugiej  - uczestnikami. Dokonujące się na naszych oczach zmiany prowokują do poszukiwania odpowiedzi na pytanie, jak przekształcać systemy społeczne, aby każdy człowiek zachował pełnię swoich praw bez naruszania praw innych. Jedną z dyscyplin, która podejmuje refleksję naukową i praktyczną nad interpretacją zjawisk społecznych jest pedagogika, w tym pedagogika społeczna. Pedagodzy społeczni dokonując analizy miejsca człowieka we współczesnym świecie, procesów wychowawczych i ich uwarunkowań stale poszukują możliwości stworzenia takiego systemu społecznego, w którym będą przestrzegane prawa człowieka. Aktualnie pedagodzy społeczni stanęli w obliczu konieczności pielęgnowania dotychczasowych osiągnięć z jednoczesną aktualizacją pól badawczych w kierunku lepszego aplikowania ich wyników do działalności praktycznej.

Ostatnie lata są czasem wpływów makrośrodowiskowych i procesów w nich zachodzących, spośród których najwyraźniej ujawniły się tendencje migracyjne, wywołane nie tylko chęcią poprawy warunków ekonomicznych, lecz koniecznością ratowania życia na skutek wojennej agresji. Świat nieustannie walczy z przemocą, nietolerancją, degradacją środowiska naturalnego i z jej konsekwencjami, z pandemią i jej skutkami. Opisywanie tych problemów jest obowiązkiem pedagogów społecznych, w których kręgu zainteresowania jest człowiek. Losy jednostki są dzisiaj bardziej niż kiedykolwiek ściśle związane z losami społeczeństw na całym świecie. Dlatego też zadaniem pedagogiki społecznej jest analizowanie rzeczywistości i wskazywanie na konieczność zmian, które wzbogacą życie człowieka czyniąc go bardziej kreatywnym.
Podmiotowa kompetencja społeczna szansą uczestnictwa jednostki w strukturze społecznej
Authors: Modrzewski Jerzy
Published: February 2023

Fenomen zaistnienia osoby ludzkiej interesował i zaprzątał uwagę myślicieli już w Starożytności i Średniowieczu zyskując swoją eksplikację w kontekstach wiedzy mitologiczno-teologicznej. Dopiero pod koniec XIX wieku E. Durkheim wskazał na jego społeczny aspekt formułując tezę o dwoistości natury ludzkiej (homo duplex). W wieku XX zarówno w socjologii, jak i psychologii społecznej konstruowane są liczne teorie opisujące ów fenomen w kategoriach podmiotowo-przedmiotowych skutkujących sukcesywnym rozwojem interdyscyplinarnej teorii społecznej osoby ludzkiej zyskującej w procesie swojego uspołecznienia cechę rozmaicie określaną, wszakże umożliwiającą jednostce społeczne zaistnienie eksponowane i tym samym postrzegane intersubiektywnie – społecznie. W artykule poświęconym kompetencji społecznej autor nawiązuje do tego nurtu koncepcji ukazujących ów fenomen, w których upatruje się w niej szansy społecznego zaistnienia jednostki w strukturze społecznej, w początkowej, dziecięcej fazie konstytuowania się jej społecznej biografii po spełnieniu wskazywanych w nim warunków.
Wartości między kulturą symboliczną, życiem społecznym i tożsamością ludzką (tropy pedagogiczne z humanistyki stosowanej)
Authors: Witkowski Lech
Published: February 2023

Tekst dotyczy trzech aspektów wartości, traktowanych jako wskazujące wymiary ich obecności w życiu i działalności człowieka: kulturowym, społecznym i indywidualnym. Podstawowe przykłady wiążą się z koncepcjami Heleny Radlińskiej, znanej polskiej pedagog społecznej, a także znanego na całym świecie ojca socjologii edukacji i metod biograficznych Floriana Znanieckiego. Autor uprawia podejście określone w swoich monografiach jako „humanistyka stosowana” i pokazuje szereg implikacji płynących z lektury różnych koncepcji opartych na psychologii, socjologii, literaturoznawstwie, filozofii, m.in. M. Bachtina, Z. Baumana, E.H. Eriksona, J. Habermasa, H. Hesse'ego i innych. Stosuje w szczególności koncepcję „obrotu dualności” i przemian „metawzorców”. Tekst postuluje rewizję podejścia do tradycji humanistyki z troską o luki międzypokoleniowe w odczytywaniu i stosowaniu podstawowych pojęć, które należy traktować w sposób znacznie bardziej integralny i przekrojowy.
Efeito de coberturas comestíveis a base de quitosana e extrato de romã em parâmetros de qualidade de queijo coalho
Authors: Cibely Cabral de Melo Elisandra , Camila Firmino Freire Bárbara , Oliveira de Araújo Nícolas , Nogueira Barbosa Tallyson , Henrique de Lima Leite Ricardo , Mikaelle de Paiva Soares Karoline
Published: February 2023

O queijo coalho apresenta uma alta perecibilidade, tornando essencial a exploração de métodos capazes de atuar na sua conservação. Neste escopo, os produtos naturais empregados na produção de coberturas biopoliméricas têm merecido destaque. Dessa forma, o seguinte estudo teve por objetivo avaliar o efeito de coberturas comestíveis a base de quitosana e extrato de romã na qualidade de queijo coalho. Os grupos estudados foram: controle, solução de quitosana 2%, extrato hidroalcoólico de romã 5% e solução de quitosana 2% e extrato hidroalcoólico de romã 5%. Os dados das avaliações microbiológicas foram comparados pelo teste de Tukey ao nível de 5% de probabilidade, enquanto os valores obtidos na análise sensorial foram submetidos ao teste não-paramétrico de Kruskal-Wallis ao nível de 5% de significância. Como resultado, as coberturas biopoliméricas a base de quitosana e extrato de romã foram responsáveis pela diminuição do crescimento fúngico e manutenção dos parâmetros sensoriais do queijo coalho armazenado nas condições estudadas.
What makes a complement false? Looking at the effects of verbal semantics and perspective in Mandarin children’s interpretation of complement-clause constructions and their false-belief understanding
Authors: Brandt Silke , Li Honglan , Chan Angel
Published: February 2023

Research focusing on Anglo-European languages indicates that children’s acquisition of the subordinate structure of complement-clause constructions and the semantics of mental verbs facilitates their understanding of false belief, and that the two linguistic factors interact. Complement-clause constructions support false-belief development, but only when used with realis mental verbs like ‘think’ in the matrix clause (de Villiers, Jill. 2007. The interface of language and Theory of Mind.Lingua117(11). 1858–1878). In Chinese, however, only the semantics of mental verbs seems to play a facilitative role in false-belief development (Cheung, Him, Hsuan-Chih Chen & William Yeung. 2009. Relations between mental verb and false belief understanding in Cantonese-speaking children.Journal of Experimental Child Psychology104(2). 141–155). We argue that these cross-linguistic differences can be explained by variations in availability and usage patterns of mental verbs and complement-clause constructions across languages. Unlike English, Mandarin-Chinese has a verb that indicates that a belief might be false:yi3wei2‘(falsely) think’. Our corpus analysis suggests that, unlike English caregivers, Mandarin-Chinese caregivers do not produce frequent, potentially unanalyzed, chunks with mental verbs and first-person subjects, such as ‘I think’. In an experiment, we found that the comprehension of complement-clause constructions used withyi3wei2‘(falsely) think’, but not withjue2de2‘think’, predicted Mandarin children’s false-belief understanding between the ages of 4 and 5. In contrast to English, whether mental verbs were used with first- or third-person subjects did not affect their correlation with false-belief understanding.
Existence of a solution to an infinite system of weighted fractional integral equations of a function with respect to another function via a measure of noncompactness
Authors: Das Anupam , Paunović Marija , Parvaneh Vahid , Mursaleen Mohammad , Bagheri Zohreh
Published: February 2023

In this article, some new generalizations of Darbo’s fixed-point theorem are given and the solvability of an infinite system of weighted fractional integral equations of a function with respect to another function is studied. Also, with the help of a proper example, we illustrate our findings.
Structural deformation and its implication for hydrocarbon accumulation in the Wuxia fault belt, northwestern Junggar basin, China
Authors: Sun Shuai , Yang Sen , He Wenjun , Zheng Menglin , Zou Yang , Huang Liliang , Zhao Yi , Song Wei
Published: February 2023

With the great discovery of unconventional oil in the Fengcheng Formation in the Mahu sag, the Wuxia fault belt, which shows similar lithological characteristics and lithofacies, is considered the most favorable area for future petroleum exploration. However, the complicated structural patterns remain unclear and restrict the petroleum exploration and development. In this study, combined with new seismic data and some borehole data, we conclude the structural styles in the Wuxia fault belt and analyze their distribution characteristics, and further investigate their implications for tectonic evolution and hydrocarbon accumulation. Five typical seismic sections are captured from the west to the east of the fault belt. Decollement folds and fold accommodation faults superimpose on the underlying basement fault related folds. Structure patterns also show a zonation in S–N direction and a segmentation in E–W direction. The balanced section reveals that the present-day structure features were fundamentally formed by Late Permian. The structural deformation shows distinctive features of a foreland basin which may develop in Early Permian and continue until the Late Permian. The oil reservoirs in the Fengcheng Formation in deeper detachment fold and the autochthonous Fengcheng Formation in fault propagation folds are the most favorable regions for further unconventional petroleum exploration.
Fabrication of flame-retardant and smoke-suppressant rigid polyurethane foam modified by hydrolyzed keratin
Authors: Zhang Xu , Xu Chen , Wang Zhi , Xie Hua
Published: February 2023

Rigid polyurethane foam (RPUF) has been fabricated and modified by hydrolyzed keratin to improve its flame retardancy and smoke suppression. Then, the limiting oxygen index (LOI), cone calorimeter (CONE), thermogravimetric analyzer and scanning electron microscope (SEM) were used to characterize the modified RPUFs. It was found that the LOI of the modified RPUFs increased with the presence of hydrolyzed keratin. In addition, the peak heat release rate (PHRR) and total heat release (THR) of the modified RPUF tended to decrease. The HRR of RPUF-HK5 reduced 28.8 kW/m2 compared with RPUF-0, and the THR of RPUF-HK5 was 0.74 MJ/m2 lower than that of RPUF-0. RPUF-HK5 had the most obvious smoke suppression effect. Compared with RPUF-0, the smoke density (Ds) and light transmittance (T) of RPUF-HK5 decreased by 8.88 and increased by 11.26%, respectively. The current research results showed that hydrolyzed keratin can improve the flame-retardant and smoke-suppression performances of RPUFs and that 5 wt% hydrolyzed keratin was the most suitable ratio for the modified RPUF.
Liability Rules for the Digital Age
Authors: Wagner Gerhard
Published: February 2023

With legislative proposals for two directives published in September 2022, the European Commission aims to adapt the existing liability system to the challenges posed by digitalisation. One of the proposals is related and limited to liability for artificial intelligent (AI) systems, but the other contains nothing less than a full revision of the 1985 Product Liability Directive, which lies at the heart of European tort law. Whereas the current Product Liability Directive largely followed the model of US law, the revised version breaks new ground. It does not limit itself to the expansion of the concept of product to include intangible digital goods, such as software and data as well as related services, important enough in itself, but also targets the new intermediaries of e-commerce as liable parties. As such, the proposal for a new product liability directive is a great leap forward and has the potential to grow into a worldwide benchmark in the field. In comparison, the proposal of a directive on AI liability is much harder to assess. It remains questionable whether a second directive is actually needed at this stage of the technological development.
The (Non-Existent) Legal Risks of Apologising: Courts Do Not See Apologies as a Way to Accept Civil Liability
Authors: Wijntjens Lianne
Published: February 2023

Psychological research shows that apologies can have many positive effects. However, in a legal context, the positive potential of apologies could be complicated when legal proceedings raise barriers to apologising. Ideally, legal proceedings should encourage wrongdoers to apologise rather than discourage them. There is still much debate about the legal consequences of apologising. According to popular wisdom, persons who face the prospect of being blamed for an act should avoid apologising. Offering an apology would be risky because the apology could be interpreted as an admission of liability. The question is whether this reticence is justified. For many jurisdictions, we still know little about the exact role that apologies play in judicial decision-making. This paper provides a detailed and structured overview of how apologies can play a role in judicial decision-making in a civil law legal system. A structured content analysis was conducted, in which almost 4,000 Dutch judgments were analysed. The research findings show that the role apologies can play in legal decision-making is much more complex than previously assumed in the literature. This study shows that different modalities can be distinguished. Apologies almost never appear to lead to negative legal consequences, and, in many cases, apologising actually has legal benefits for the provider of such apology. Also, the case law analysis highlights that there are ways to encourage apologising in legal proceedings.
Highly angle-sensitive and efficient optical metasurfaces with broken mirror symmetry
Authors: Kim Nayoung , Kim Myungjoon , Jung Joonkyo , Chang Taeyong , Jeon Suwan , Shin Jonghwa
Published: February 2023

Optical metasurfaces have great potential to overcome the functional limitations of conventional optical devices. In addition to polarization- or wavelength-multiplexed metasurfaces, angle-multiplexed metasurfaces can provide new degrees of freedom, enabling previously unrealized complex functionality in diverse applications such as LiDAR, augmented reality glasses, and imaging. However, there have been fundamental trade-offs in transmission efficiency and angular sensitivity for practically important paraxial rays. In this paper, we overcome this limitation by breaking mirror symmetries of single-layer metasurface structures. Based on an effective medium theory, we intuitively explain which material parameters affect the sensitivity and efficiency and prove that high sensitivity and high efficiency can be achieved simultaneously by breaking the mirror symmetry. Based on this, we propose optimized metasurfaces for two applications: an angle-multiplexed beam-steering device with up to 93% relative efficiency and an angle-multiplexed metalens array that can break the fundamental resolution–density trade-off of microlens arrays with high efficiency. The proposed angle-selective designs could pave the way for the development of new classes of compact optical devices with novel functions.
Oxalic acid: recent developments for cost-effective microbial production
Authors: Kumar Sachin , Panwar Priya , Sehrawat Nirmala , Upadhyay Sushil Kumar , Sharma Anil Kumar , Singh Manoj , Yadav Mukesh
Published: February 2023

Organic acids are the important compounds that have found numerous applications in various industries. Oxalic acid is one of the important organic acids with different industrial applications. Different microbes have been reported as important sources of various organic acids. Majority of studies have been carried on fungal sources for oxalic acid production. Aspergillus sp. has been found efficient oxalic acid producer. Microbial productions of metabolites including organic acids are considered cost effective and eco-friendly approach over chemical synthesis. Fermentative production of microbial oxalic acid seems to be a good alternative as compared to chemical methods. Microbial production of oxalic acid still requires the extensive and elaborated research for its commercial production from efficient microbes using cost effective substrates. The present text summarizes the production of oxalic acid, its applications and recent developments in the direction of fermentative production of microbial oxalic acid.
COVID-19 Impact and Policy Response: A General Equilibrium Approach for Egypt
Authors: Eldeep City , Zaki Chahir
Published: February 2023

The economic impacts of COVID-19 were negative across nations but with different degrees depending on the timing, degree of containment measures and the extent of dependency on the world economy. Moreover, the policy response has been heterogeneous across different countries, but mainly addressing urgent and short-term problems without addressing the structural problems that led to the vulnerability of these countries in crisis times. Thus, the objective of this paper is threefold. First, it distinguishes between the supply and demand effects of COVID-19. Second, we examine the key differences between the short and long terms effects of the policies that were adopted. Finally, we modify the model to include the informal labor that was highly affected by the pandemic, and we relax the assumption of perfect competition and replicate the simulations under an imperfect competitive framework in order to see how reforms pertaining to competition policies can alter the adopted policies. To do so, we use a dynamic CGE model calibrated on the Egyptian Social Accounting Matrix of 2014/2015. Our findings show how the Egyptian economy has been relatively vulnerable to external shocks that affect its sources of foreign currency. Yet, most of the effects are temporary and vanish in the long run. Imperfect competition in commodity markets would increase the adverse effects of the pandemic and undermine the effectiveness of public policies.
Interventional pathway in the management of refractory post cholecystectomy pain (PCP) syndrome: a 6-year prospective audit in 60 patients
Authors: Lee Hayun , Kukreja Yuvraj , Niraj G.
Published: February 2023

Objectives

Post cholecystectomy pain syndrome can affect over a third of patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Acute exacerbations can result in recurrent emergency admission with excessive healthcare utilization. Standard surgical management appears to focus on visceral aetiology. Abdominal myofascial pain syndrome is a poorly recognised somatic pathology that can cause refractory pain in this cohort. It develops as a result of trigger points in the abdominal musculature. The report describes the pathophysiology and a novel interventional pathway in the management of post cholecystectomy pain secondary to abdominal myofascial pain syndrome.

Methods

The prospective longitudinal audit was performed at a tertiary pain medicine clinic in a university teaching hospital. Over a six-year period, adult patients with refractory abdominal pain following laparoscopic cholecystectomy were included in a structured interventional management pathway. The pathway included two interventions. Intervention I was a combination of abdominal plane blocks and epigastric port site trigger injection with steroids. Patients who failed to report durable relief (>50% pain relief at 12 weeks) were offered pulsed radiofrequency treatment to the abdominal planes (Intervention II). Outcomes included patient satisfaction, change in opioid consumption and impact on emergency visits.

Results

Sixty patients who failed to respond to standard management were offered the pathway. Four patients refused due to needle phobia. Fifty-six patients received Intervention I. Failure rate was 14% (8/56). Forty-eight patients (48/56, 86%) reported significant benefit at 12 weeks while 38 patients reported durable relief at 24 weeks (38/56, 68%). Nine patients received Intervention II and all (100%) reported durable relief. Emergency admissions and opioid consumption were reduced.

Conclusions

Abdominal myofascial pain syndrome is a poorly recognised cause of post cholecystectomy pain. The novel interventional management pathway could be an effective solution in patients who fail to benefit from standard management.
Assistive Loading Promotes Goal-Directed Tuning of Stretch Reflex Gains
Authors: Torell Frida , Franklin Sae , Franklin David W. , Dimitriou Michael
Published: February 2023

Voluntary movements are prepared before they are executed. Preparatory activity has been observed across the CNS and recently documented in first-order neurons of the human PNS (i.e., in muscle spindles). Changes seen in sensory organs suggest that independent modulation of stretch reflex gains may represent an important component of movement preparation. The aim of the current study was to further investigate the preparatory modulation of short-latency stretch reflex responses (SLRs) and long-latency stretch reflex responses (LLRs) of the dominant upper limb of human subjects. Specifically, we investigated how different target parameters (target distance and direction) affect the preparatory tuning of stretch reflex gains in the context of goal-directed reaching, and whether any such tuning depends on preparation duration and the direction of background loads. We found that target distance produced only small variations in reflex gains. In contrast, both SLR and LLR gains were strongly modulated as a function of target direction, in a manner that facilitated the upcoming voluntary movement. This goal-directed tuning of SLR and LLR gains was present or enhanced when the preparatory delay was sufficiently long (>250 ms) and the homonymous muscle was unloaded [i.e., when a background load was first applied in the direction of homonymous muscle action (assistive loading)]. The results extend further support for a relatively slow-evolving process in reach preparation that functions to modulate reflexive muscle stiffness, likely via the independent control of fusimotor neurons. Such control can augment voluntary goal-directed movement and is triggered or enhanced when the homonymous muscle is unloaded.
On the Impracticality of Lists
Authors: O’Neill Kevin Lewis
Published: February 2023

Lists of Roman Catholic priests form the documentary infrastructure of clerical sexual abuse. Based on an ethnography of one such list—a document compiled deep inside a Central American prison by a convicted cleric—this essay argues that such lists are, formally speaking, impractical. Impracticality names the way in which some lists may appear to be flat and referential but in fact are more concerned with evoking affects. It is an ambiguity that Church leaders manipulate to conjure the feeling (but not the fact) of transparency.
Montage Diversity
Authors: Matz Jesse
Published: February 2023

Montage diversity divides even as it unites the people it represents, making it a telling register of possibilities for social inclusion in American visual culture. Montage effects in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) and Pepsi-Cola’s 1969 campaign “You’ve Got a Lot to Live” demonstrate the problems that arise in the combination of social diversity and filmic montage, and, because one was the work of avant-garde film artist Slavko Vorkapich and the other of his son Ed Vorkapich, compose a critical genealogy of montage diversity and its implications for social inclusion.