bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The effect of activation temperature on structure and properties of blue coke-based activated carbon by CO2 activation
Authors: Lan Xinzhe , Jiang Xu , Song Yonghui , Jing Xingpeng , Xing Xiangdong
Published: August 2019

Blue coke-based activated carbon (BAC) was prepared via CO2 activation with disused blue coke powder as raw materials at high temperature. The factor of activation temperature was intensively studied. The properties of sample were characterized by N2 adsorption-desorption techniques, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), and the activation mechanism was also proposed. The results showed that, with the increase of temperature, the yield of BAC decreased, while the iodine adsorption increased first and then decreased. The N2 adsorption-desorption isotherms revealed that the BAC had both micropores and mesopores, and the optimal temperature of porosity development was at 900-1000°C. When the activation temperature reached 1000°C, the maximum Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) specific surface area and pore volume of BAC were 636.91 m2·g-1 and 0.3627 cm3·g-1, respectively. The FTIR results indicated that BAC surface contained large amounts of surface functional groups such as hydroxyl, ester, carboxyl, and so on. The content of them decreased with the increase of temperature. Mechanism analysis shows that radial hole-making function happen first then transverd hole-enlarging function as the temperature increases, for the formation of large amount of microporous, the radial activation was the main controlling process.
Optimization of reaction parameters for the green synthesis of zero valent iron nanoparticles using pine tree needles
Authors: Kheshtzar Raziyeh , Berenjian Aydin , Taghizadeh Seyedeh-Masoumeh , Ghasemi Younes , Asad Ali Ghanbari , Ebrahiminezhad Alireza
Published: August 2019

In the current study, the optimal reaction condition for fabrication of INPs by using pine tree (Pinus eldarica) leaf extract was developed. A fractional factorial design was utilized to screen the effective parameters in the green synthesis reaction, and central composite face design was employed to achieve the optimal reaction condition. Leaf extract and iron precursor concentrations were found to be the most effective parameters for the fabrication of INPs. Physicochemical characteristics of the obtained nanoparticles were evaluated by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffractometer (XRD), vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and derivative thermo gravimetric (DTG). The prepared particles were found to be zero-valent iron nanoparticles without any iron oxide impurities. Nanoparticles were spherical in shape with diameters ranging from 8 nm to 34 nm with a mean particle size of 18 nm. The fabricated particles were amorphous with a low magnetization value of 33 memu/g.
From hollow lignin microsphere preparation to simultaneous preparation of urea encapsulation for controlled release using industrial kraft lignin via slow and exhaustive acetone-water evaporation
Authors: Wang Miao , Zhao Yadong , Li Jiebing
Published: August 2019

Lignin nano/microparticles have recently attracted growing interest for various value-additive applications of lignin, especially encapsulation. In this study, in order to establish a highly efficient and highly productive preparation process to effectively utilize technical lignin, a brand-new, slow and exhaustive solution evaporation process following a simple, self-assembly principle was developed using industrial softwood kraft lignin (SKL) from a starting acetone-water (80/20, v/v) solution to recover 100% of the lignin as homogeneous and well-shaped microspheres. The prepared microspheres had a typical average diameter of 0.81 ± 0.15 μm and were hollow with very thin shells (of nanoscale thickness). Based on this developed technique, encapsulation of urea by these lignin microspheres was directly achieved using the same process as hollow lignin microspheres with urea attached to the outside and entrapped inside of the wall. Two distinct urea release rates were observed for the urea-encapsulated microspheres: a fast release of the urea outside the shell wall and a slow (controlled) release of the urea inside the shell wall. The encapsulation efficiency was as high as 46% of the trapped urea as encapsulated inside the lignin microspheres. The slow and exhaustive solution evaporation procedure reported here is a simple and straightforward method for the valorization of industrial kraft lignin as hollow microspheres with controllable, homogeneous and desired morphologies, and especially for the direct preparation of lignin-based encapsulating fertilizers for controlled release.
Alternative Facts, Fake News, Conflicting Perceptions, & Their Relevance to Library and Information Professionals
Authors: Crowley Bill
Published: August 2019

This article addresses contemporary and emerging issues involving perceptions of “truth,” particularly truth in social networking and other web environments. It is a work primarily tackling issues concerning perceptions of truth in the United States of America with a lesser emphasis on their impact on other developed nations. Heuristics (trial and error lessons) derived from the author’s tacit knowledge gained in the political arena communicating factual information to legislators and their staff under the American constitutional right to petition for “redress of grievances” are provided. Research dealing with the well-documented predisposition of people, both well and poorly-educated, to seek out information supporting their existing views is considered. Also reviewed are the implications of the increased availability of disinformation and misinformation from hostile, mercenary, illegal, alt-right, alt-left and other contentious online sources. The essay concludes with the examination of the feasibility of a spectrum of possible roles to be played by libraries and information centers and their personnel in support of a broader identification and provision of validated facts at a time of overabundance in often unreliable electronic information.
Solitary Wave Solution of Nonlinear PDEs Arising in Mathematical Physics
Authors: Rani Attia , Khan Nawab , Ayub Kamran , Khan M. Yaqub , Mahmood-Ul-Hassan Qazi , Ahmed Bilal , Ashraf Muhammad
Published: August 2019

The solution of nonlinear mathematical models has much importance and in soliton theory its worth has increased. In the present article, we have investigated the Caudrey-Dodd-Gibbon and Pochhammer-Chree equations, to discuss the physics of these equations and to attain soliton solutions. The exp(−ϕ(ζ ))-expansion technique is used to construct solitary wave solutions. A wave transformation is applied to convert the problem into the form of an ordinary differential equation. The drawn-out novel type outcomes play an essential role in the transportation of energy. It is noted that in the study, the approach is extremely reliable and it may be extended to further mathematical models signified mostly in nonlinear differential equations.
Spikelets in pyramidal neurons: generating mechanisms, distinguishing properties, and functional implications
Authors: Michalikova Martina , Remme Michiel W.H. , Schmitz Dietmar , Schreiber Susanne , Kempter Richard
Published: August 2019

Spikelets are small spike-like depolarizations that are found in somatic recordings of many neuron types. Spikelets have been assigned important functions, ranging from neuronal synchronization to the regulation of synaptic plasticity, which are specific to the particular mechanism of spikelet generation. As spikelets reflect spiking activity in neuronal compartments that are electrotonically distinct from the soma, four modes of spikelet generation can be envisaged: (1) dendritic spikes or (2) axonal action potentials occurring in a single cell as well as action potentials transmitted via (3) gap junctions or (4) ephaptic coupling in pairs of neurons. In one of the best studied neuron type, cortical pyramidal neurons, the origins and functions of spikelets are still unresolved; all four potential mechanisms have been proposed, but the experimental evidence remains ambiguous. Here we attempt to reconcile the scattered experimental findings in a coherent theoretical framework. We review in detail the various mechanisms that can give rise to spikelets. For each mechanism, we present the biophysical underpinnings as well as the resulting properties of spikelets and compare these predictions to experimental data from pyramidal neurons. We also discuss the functional implications of each mechanism. On the example of pyramidal neurons, we illustrate that several independent spikelet-generating mechanisms fulfilling vastly different functions might be operating in a single cell.
Microstructures, interface structure and room temperature tensile properties of magnesium materials reinforced by high content submicron SiCp
Authors: Shen M.J. , Zhang M.F. , Ying T.
Published: August 2019

The present work aims to research the treatment processing of magnesium reinforced with 1 μmsilicon carbide particle (SiCp) using stir casting combined by ultrasonic vibration. Present studies have been done on six different materials: (a) AZ31B alloy without particles, (b) 5 vol.% SiCp/AZ31B composites fabricated with different semi-solid stirring time (5 min, 10 min, 15 min and 20 min), (c) composite with 20 vol.% SiCp. The effects of 1 μm/SiCp pretreatment and stirring time on microstructure and interfacial wettability as well as mechanical properties of the materials were confirmed. Both short and long stirring time for the particle dispersion brought particle agglomeration. Results of SEM microstructure and tensile properties exhibited that the optimal stirring parameters of 625 °C/1500 rpm/15 min are exploited, and 20 vol.% SiCp/AZ31B composite was fabricated by the optimal stirring parameters. The application of optimal stirring parameters for the treatment resulted in homogeneous particle distribution. The addition of SiCp leads to a reduced matrix grain, and 20 vol.% SiCp/AZ31B composite showed smaller grain size than. 5 vol.% SiCp/AZ31B composite. The interface between SiCp and matrix is clear and interfacial wettability well. Tensile test results show that with increasing SiCp content, strengths increase while ductility decreases.
Contract Law and the Liberalism of Fear
Authors: Oman Nathan B.
Published: August 2019

Liberalism’s concern with human freedom seems related to contractual freedom and thus contract law. There are, however, many strands of liberal thought and which of them best justifies contract is a difficult question. In The Choice Theory of Contracts, Hanoch Dagan and Michael Heller offer a vision of contract based on autonomy. Drawing on the work of Joseph Raz, they argue that extending autonomy should be the law’s primary concern, which requires that we extend the range of contractual choices available. While there is much to admire in their work, I argue that autonomy as conceived by Dagan and Heller cannot justify contract law. First, there are reasons to doubt the coherence of autonomy as an ideal. Second, given the pluralism of liberal societies, which, for example, often include substantial numbers of religious believers who reject core assumptions of autonomy theory, it is doubtful that such a theory can legitimate contract law. A more modest version of liberalism concerned primarily with protection against cruelty and providing a modus vivendi in pluralistic societies is more tenable. Such a vision of liberalism yields a more modest vision of contract law. Rather than making it into another means of realizing the dream of a more autonomous self, it is enough that contract law facilitates commerce and the marketplace. Markets in turn can serve an important — albeit limited — role in sustaining the peaceful cooperation and coexistence toward which a more realistic liberalism should aim.
Contract Law in a Just Society
Authors: Benbaji Yitzhak
Published: August 2019

This Article challenges Hanoch Dagan and Michael Heller’s choice theory of contract, according to which contract law is autonomy-enhancing. I make three points: first, the choice theory of contract cannot clarify the critical normative distinction between enforceable formal contracts and unenforceable informal promises. Second, I develop the roads/contract-types analogy: instead of promoting individuals’ autonomy and enhancing their choice among different projects, most contract types are justified by the preexisting preferences of citizens. Finally, I outline a teleological justification of contract law that is different from that propounded by Dagan and Heller. On this view, contract law should remain neutral as to which conception of the good is commendable and provide individuals with the means of shaping and pursuing a conception of a good life.
Voluntary Obligation and Contract
Authors: Bagchi Aditi
Published: August 2019

Absent mistake or misrepresentation, most scholars assume that parties who agree to contract do so voluntarily. Scholars tend further to regard that choice as an important exercise in moral agency. Hanoch Dagan and Michael Heller are right to question the quality of our choices. Where the fundamental contours of the transaction are legally determined, parties have little opportunity to exercise autonomous choice over the terms on which they deal with others. To the extent that our choices in contract do not reflect our individual moral constitutions — our values, virtues, vices, the set of reasons we reject and the set of reasons we endorse — we are not justified in regulating contracts reluctantly. Contracts are entitled to the privilege of liberal regulatory deference only to the extent that they are the work product of individual autonomy. The assumption that contract is voluntary does enormous work in most normative theories of contract. This Article takes still more seriously the obstacles to autonomous choice that contracting parties face. The most important constraints are not in contract law itself but in the material and moral imperatives that dictate parties’ contracting preferences. Many contracts are driven by circumstantial considerations or actual background obligations. While these contracts are not wholly lacking in the element of voluntariness, we should distinguish them from those choices — and those contracts — which more fully realize our potential to self-consciously author our relations with others. Autonomous choice in contract requires more than Dagan and Heller imply, and it is likely beyond the power of contract law standing alone to deliver it.
Parol Evidence Rules and the Mechanics of Choice
Authors: Klass Gregory
Published: August 2019

Scholars have to date paid relatively little attention to the rules for deciding when a writing is integrated. These integration rules, however, are as dark and full of subtle difficulties as are other parts of parol evidence rules. As a way of thinking about Hanoch Dagan and Michael Heller’s The Choice Theory of Contracts, this Article suggests we would do better with tailored integration rules for two transaction types. In negotiated contracts between firms, courts should apply a hard express integration rule, requiring firms to say when they intend a writing to be integrated. In consumer contracts, standard terms should automatically be integrated against consumer-side communications, and never integrated against a business’s communications. The argument for each rule rests on the ways parties make and express contractual choices in these types of transactions. Whereas Dagan and Heller emphasize the different values at stake in different spheres of contracting, differences among parties’ capacities for choice — or the “mechanics of choice” — are at least as important.
Money Talks: Institutional Investors and Voice in Contract
Authors: Kreitner Roy
Published: August 2019

Contracts are the building blocks of markets, where participation is typically understood through choice: to buy or not to buy, and if so, from whom? In other words, contract choices allow participation by exit, with little need for discussion. However, in some instances markets may be open to a fair degree of voice. Market behavior is not always a take it or leave it endeavor, and market participation does not always entail the kind of passivity associated with the role of the price taker. At least when some contract parties put their minds to it, markets may retreat from the mechanics of pure preference satisfaction and interact with a realm of reasoned deliberation, where some market reasons are significantly public-minded. This essay explores the potential of contracts to become a locus of deliberative participation in the context of institutional investment (primarily by pension funds) and investors’ pursuit of commitments to nonfinancial goals.
Unity and Multiplicity in Contract Law: From General Principles to Transaction-Types
Authors: Benson Peter
Published: August 2019

Modern contract law is characterized by a certain kind of unity and multiplicity. On the one hand, it establishes fundamental principles that apply to all contracts in general. But at the same time, it specifies further principles and rules for particular kinds of contracts or transaction-types that mark out their distinctive features, incidents and effects. Clearly, a viable theory of contract law should be able to provide a suitable account of both aspects. The central critical contention of The Choice Theory of Contracts is that all prior approaches, in particular rights-based theories, have failed to do so. Indeed, Dagan and Heller argue that only a theory that explains the settled rules of contract law as teleologically oriented toward facilitating individuals’ pursuit of their different substantive goods, and thus as primarily power-conferring in this particularly robust sense, can provide the needed account. Such a theory, they believe, would be not only interpretatively accurate with respect to the actual law but also fully acceptable as a liberal view of contract. This Article challenges the core contentions of choice theory, suggesting why it may be unable to meet its own goal of explaining how contract law coherently specifies and integrates the general and specific dimensions of enforceable agreements. The Article looks into basic contract doctrines in order to specify a general conception of the contractual relation that can meet this desideratum and it sketches how, beginning with that conception, contract law unfolds a rich multiplicity of transaction-types. The resulting view is liberal but rights-based rather than teleological, and it proposes an alternative understanding of how the rules of contract law are power-conferring as well as duty-imposing.
Freedom, Choice, and Contracts
Authors: Dagan Hanoch , Heller Michael
Published: August 2019

In “The Choice Theory of Contracts,” we explain contractual freedom and celebrate the plurality of contract types. Here, we reply to critics by refining choice theory and showing how it fits and shapes what we term the “Contract Canon”.

I. Freedom. (1) Charles Fried challenges our account of Kantian autonomy, but his views, we show, largely converge with choice theory. (2) Nathan Oman argues for a commerce-enhancing account of autonomy. We counter that he arbitrarily slights noncommercial spheres central to human interaction. (3) Yitzhak Benbaji suggests that choice theory’s commitment to autonomy is overly perfectionist. Happily, in response to Benbaji, we can cite with approval Charles Fried’s point that contract types are “enabling our liberties.”

II. Choice. (4) Aditi Bagchi criticizes our inattention to impediments to choice. We show how choice theory’s commitments to both multiplicity and relational justice ameliorate these impediments. (5) Gregory Klass explores parol evidence to highlight the mechanisms of choice. We substantially concur with his position, and show how such mechanisms can ensure voluntariness, an essential element of choice. (6) Oren Bar-Gill and Clayton Gillette question the institutional capacity of existing legal actors to implement choice theory. Working from the example of cohabitation, we offer a somewhat more optimistic view.

III. Contracts. (7) Peter Benson contends our focus on the rational slights the reasonable. Although we did not use this Rawlsian vocabulary, choice theory complies with its strictures — more so than transfer theory. (8) Daniel Markovits and Alan Schwartz claim provocatively that contract theory must: capitulate before pluralism (as they endorse); leverage it; or fall victim to a so-called “embracing” approach (their charge against us). We reject the charge that choice theory is foundationally value-pluralist. Instead, we cabin pluralism and put it to work. (9) The Contract Canon starts on the next big step for choice theory by explaining existing doctrine (rebutting Benson on lack of fit) and helping adjudicate contract practice (countering Markovits and Schwartz on the vices of our pluralism).

Each Article in this Issue advances the field; each prompts us to refine choice theory — all steps, we hope, toward a more just and justified law of contract.
Investigation of relaxation times in 5-fluorouracil and human serum albumin mixtures
Authors: Korunur Sibel , Zengin Bilgin , Yilmaz Ali
Published: August 2019

Background

Human serum albumin (HSA) is often selected as a subject of any study because albumin is the most abundant protein in human blood plasma. NMR is recognized as a valuable method to determine the structure of proteins-ligand and protein-drug complexes.

Objective – Aim of the study

In this study, protein drug interactions were investigated using 5-Fluorouracil anti-cancer drug and human serum albumin protein.

Materials and methods

In this context 400 MHz NMR spectrometry was used and NMR relaxation rates in drug-albumin complex were investigated with respect to increase albumin concentration and increase in 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU)-albumin solution temperature.

Results

The results of this study indicated that 5-FU had a weak association with albumin, and it easily dissociated from the protein to which it was attached.

Conclusion

The obtained results also gave us useful information about molecular dynamics of drug-albumin interactions.
Robotized Fiber Laser Cladding of Steel Substrate by Metal Matrix Composite Powder at Cryogenic Conditions
Authors: Lisiecki Aleksander , Ślizak Dawid , Kukofka Adrian
Published: August 2019

The results of investigations on laser cladding of mild steel plates (0.17 wt.% carbon and 1.4 wt.% manganese) by nickel powder with addition 60 wt.% of tungsten carbides at conditions of forced cooling by liquid nitrogen are presented. To provide reproducible conditions and high accuracy, tests of cladding were carried out on a robotized stand equipped with a fiber laser generator and powder feeding system. The symmetrical circular laser beam with beam spot diameter of 300 μm was applied as the heat source for cladding of composite single stringer beads at different heat inputs and different cooling conditions. Free cooling of the steel substrate was conducted in the ambient air, while the forced cooling was achieved by partial immersion of the steel plate in liquid nitrogen at approximately −190°C. The results showed that the conditions of cooling have a strong influence on the cladding process, mechanism of a bead formation, quality, microstructure, and geometry of the beads. Laser cladding at forced cooling leads to a favorable fine-grained microstructure and increased microhardness of the metal matrix and also, lower dilution. In the case of stringer beads produced at cryogenic conditions, the heat-affected zone in the substrate of the mild steel is hardened with evident traces of bainitic microstructure. However, the heat input of laser cladding must be significantly increased at forced cooling to provide the proper shape of the bead and also to avoid cracks and a lack of fusion the steel substrate.
INVESTIGATION OF PHENOLIC COMPOSITION OF ORGANICALLY-GROWN STRAWBERRY AND BLUEBERRY
Authors: UÇURUM Huriye Özgül , EKŞİ Hacer
Published: August 2019

The present study aimed to investigate phenolic
compounds of strawberry which is organically-grown in Bursa region and
blueberry in Trabzon region. The phenolic acids and flavonoids were detected by
RP-HPLC according to their retention times with the help of diode array
detector at 280 nm, 320 nm and 360 nm. Investigated compounds were gallic acid,
epigallocatechin, catechin, epicatechin, epicatechin gallate, 2 coumaric acid,
3 coumaric acid, 4 coumaric acid, chlorogenic acid, cafeic acid, neochlorogenic
acid, trans resveratrol, ferulic acid, quercetin, kaempferol and myricetin. According to results it was determined that
bluberry fruit contains high amounts of chlorogenic acid (644.25 mg/kg) and
among the phenolic acids in strawberries, 4 coumaric acid is regarded as major
phenolic compound (3.76 mg/kg).  The
highest level of myricetin compounds was measured in blueberry (14.41 mg/kg),
on the contrary, myricetin was not identified in strawberry fruits but this
fruit is especially rich in catechins (58.34 mg/kg).
Habermas, Cultural Hegemony, and the Educational Public Sphere
Authors: Abdul-Jabbar Wisam KH.
Published: August 2019

This study explores Habermas’s work in terms of the relevance of his theory of the public sphere to the politics and poetics of the Arab oral tradition and its pedagogical practices. In what ways and forms does Arab heritage inform a public sphere of resistance or dissent? How does Habermas’s notion of the public space help or hinder a better understanding of the Arab oral tradition within the sociopolitical and educational landscape of the Arabic-speaking world? This study also explores the pedagogical implications of teaching Arab orality within the context of the public sphere as a contested site that informs a mode of resistance against social inequality and sociopolitical exclusions.
Islamic-Secular Dialogue in the Arab World
Authors: El-Msaoui Mohammad
Published: August 2019

Many debates between Islamists and secularists have taken place in the Arab political sphere with the aim of building bridges of communication between the two actors who contributed to the transformations that have taken place in the Arab world. Despite the multiple dialogues between Islamists and secularists, conflict and tension have prevailed on both sides, with conflict taking on all forms of material and moral violence. One of the most significant indicators of the crisis in communication is the emergence of violence. That being so, this study broaches the problem using Habermas’s basic idea, which focuses on violence as a disease of human discourse and communication. According to Habermas, violence is the result of distorted discourse between fundamentalists and others; it is a distorted discourse because it does not recognize the other as it is. The study employs the Habermas communicative action theory as a central concept. Accordingly, Habermas’s theory of communication is invoked to understand the causes of the escalation of violence in the Arab political sphere.
Roshdi Rashed
Authors: Aref Mohammed
Published: August 2019

This review essay introduces the work of the Egyptian scientific historian and philosopher Roshdi Rashed, a pioneer in the field of the history of Arab sciences. The article is based on the five volumes he originally wrote in French and later translated into Arabic, which were published by the Centre for Arab Unity Studies and which are now widely acclaimed as a unique effort to unveil the achievements of Arab scientists. The essay reviews this major work, which seems, like Plato’s Republic to have “No Entry for Those Who Have No Knowledge of Mathematics” written on its gate. If you force your way in, even with elementary knowledge of computation, a philosophy will unfold before your eyes, described by the Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei as “written in that great book which ever lies before our eyes—I mean the universe— but we cannot understand it if we do not first learn the language and grasp the symbols, in which it is written. This book is written in the mathematical language, and the symbols are triangles, circles and other geometrical figures, without whose help it is impossible to comprehend a single word of it; without which one wanders in vain through a dark labyrinth.” The essay is a journey through this labyrinth where the history of world mathematics got lost and was chronicled by Rashed in five volumes translated from the French into Arabic. It took him fifteen years to complete.
Effects of Iraq’s Parliamentary Gender Quota on Women’s Political Mobilization and Legitimacy Post-2003
Authors: Al-Tamimi Huda
Published: August 2019

Parliamentary gender quotas have become increasingly prevalent since the 1990s, yet in-depth research illuminating their effects on women’s political agency remains scarce. Iraq’s political evolution offers a unique perspective on feminist, democratization, and gender quota scholarship as related to Middle Eastern women in politics since the US and allied invasion of Iraq in 2003. Throughout Iraq’s modern history, Iraqi women’s ability to pursue legitimate political agency has fluctuated with changes in the country’s political climate. The 2003 invasion set in motion sweeping reforms to the judicial, legislative, and executive governing powers. Women’s potential role in the emerging polity was enhanced by enactment of an electoral gender quota stipulating no less than twenty-five percent of seats in the Iraq parliament to be filled by women. This article presents research that sought to elucidate the impact of that quota on women’s political mobilization since 2003. Data collected included televised interviews, reports, and media articles that were qualitatively analyzed using a critical literary theory approach. Analysis was aided by NVivo qualitative analysis software. The findings indicate that although the gender quota has nominally increased descriptive representation, it has proven insufficient to support women’s substantive and symbolic representation. Issues of women’s socioeconomic position, lack of cooperation among female members of parliament, and ongoing security threats must be addressed for women to achieve full political legitimacy.
Social Media and Urban Social Movements
Authors: Karolak Magdelena
Published: August 2019

The goal of this research is to explore the opportunities brought about by the use of new media in urban protests. Specifically, it investigates the use of the Internet in modern protest movements that failed to bring about the changes they sought, using Bahrain as a case study. The focus is put on urban movements that continue revolutionary activism off- and online in the sixth year after the failure of the Bahraini uprising. This research assesses the need to maintain an online presence for these cities and explains the goals of their online presence. The paper also aims to understand what type of variations exist within these urban movements; and analyzes the interplay between such online manifestations and online censorship. This research is based on the critical discourse analysis of web content and graphic representations produced by Bahraini activists on particular online sites pertaining to each city in question.
“We Speak the Truth!”
Authors: Sari Hanafi
Published: August 2019

This study investigates the preachers and their Friday sermons in Lebanon, raising the following questions: What are the profiles of preachers in Lebanon and their academic qualifications? What are the topics evoked in their sermons? In instances where they diagnosis and analyze the political and the social, what kind of arguments are used to persuade their audiences? What kind of contact do they have with the social sciences? It draws on forty-two semistructured interviews with preachers and content analysis of 210 preachers’ Friday sermons, all conducted between 2012 and 2015 among Sunni and Shia mosques. Drawing from Max Weber’s typology, the analysis of Friday sermons shows that most of the preachers represent both the saint and the traditional, but rarely the scholar. While they are dealing extensively with political and social phenomena, rarely do they have knowledge of social science
Political Division and Social Destruction
Authors: Alijla Abdalhadi
Published: August 2019

This article discusses the effect of the political division between Fatah and Hamas on the level of generalized trust in Palestine. It argues that the level of trust in Palestinian society has been shaped and influenced by the ongoing political division since 2007. As the level of trust has been declining since 2007, this research suggests that distrust in the political system, the deteriorated healthcare and education services, the high level of unemployment, corruption, and the violation of human rights in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank have led to the decline of the level of generalized trust in society at large. This study uses statistical test results to support the main argument. Data available from 2007, 2011, 2014, and 2017 from the Arab Barometer are used to examine how institutional and contextual factors affect the level of generalized trust in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. The article discusses the results and how creating a hybrid society has contributed to lowering the level of trust generally. It seeks to understand the change in social trust among Palestinians over the years of the ongoing division, and examines how the political division, directly or indirectly, has led to the current low level of trust that has left remarkable changes and deep polarization in Palestinian society.
Offensive versus Defensive Realism
Authors: Grafov Dmitry
Published: August 2019

This article approaches Russia’s strategy of countering the United States indirectly by way of intermediate states. It is concerned with the reasons why Russia decided to engage in the Syrian conflict in 2015 and, from this perspective, the real goals of Russia’s policy in the region. These questions cannot be considered without taking account of how they are linked with the all-out confrontation between Russia and the West in Ukraine. The Syrian conflict merely represents an external platform for Russia in countering the United States. Russia is testing her own power to force the United States out of Syria and seeks any opportunity to demonstrate American vulnerability. There is a triangle of interests for the key regional actors—Turkey, Iran, and Russia—that oppose US interests. The rising confrontation with Washington in Syria triggered Moscow to seek ways of using other potential rivals of the United States, given that there are numerous areas of tension and conflict with Washington beyond the Middle East. The author’s analysis of the actors’ behavior is based on the “security dilemma” and the “balance of power” approaches. There are well-known disputes between “defensive” and “offensive” realism in the theory of international politics concerning which of these approaches is more reliable and reasonable when considering costs and results, as well as the risk of tensions spiraling out of control (“security spiral”). The aim of this research is to make a comparison between America’s offensive strategy with Russia’s defensive approach and evaluate the efficiency of both policies. Following a particular scholarly approach, this article presumes that Moscow acquires power via the indirect, “low-cost strategies,” using any opportunity available to counterbalance US power via other countries. It is concluded that offensive or defensive behavior depends on the situation and available resources. The United States has sufficient resources to implement an offensive strategy, and Washington may raise the stakes in confrontation. Russia’s defense approach of a “buck-passing” strategy is more efficient, but Moscow suffers from a lack of resources and chooses indirect countering, using any means necessary to counterbalance US power in Syria and beyond.
Rethinking the Root Causes of The Tunisian Revolution and its Implications
Authors: Contemporary Arab Affairs Editors
Published: August 2019

What happened within and beyond Tunisia in 2010–11 has been told repeatedly from a number of perspectives, each putting a greater or a lesser emphasis on one or several variables ranging from society, politics, economics, to religion or the involvement of external dynamics. An exploration of the causes of the Arab Spring and the factors that shaped its outcome is critical when answering several frequently raised questions, some of which are highlighted here. This article provides a concise picture of the Arab Spring and its consequences for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). It defines the meaning of revolution by examining various explanations and interpretations provided by several theorists and shows which explanation( s) best fits the Tunisian case. Moreover, the study explains how multiple factors, such as social and economic injustice, authoritarian rule, the internet, and social media have played a role in enabling the Tunisian Revolution to happen.
Acute effects on human sperm exposed in vitro to cadmium chloride and diisobutyl phthalate
Authors: Marchiani S , Tamburrino L , Farnetani G , Muratori M , Vignozzi L , Baldi E
Published: August 2019

Epidemiological studies reported a negative relationship between concentrations of heavy metals and phthalates in seminal fluid and semen quality, likely compromising male fertility potential. The aim of this study was to investigate the in vitro effects of cadmium chloride (CdCl2), a common heavy metal, and diisobutyl phthalate (DIBP), a common phthalate ester, on human sperm functions necessary for fertilization. After in vitro incubation of spermatozoa with 10 µM CdCl2 or 100 and 200 µM DIBP for 24 h, a significant decrease of sperm progressive and hyperactivated motility was observed. The exposure to each of the two toxic agents also induced spontaneous sperm acrosome reaction and blunted the physiological response to progesterone. Both agents induced an increase of caspase activity suggesting triggering of an apoptotic pathway. Our results suggest that acute exposure of spermatozoa to these pollutants may impair sperm ability to reach and fertilize the oocyte.
A switch from high-fat to normal diet does not restore sperm quality but prevents metabolic syndrome
Authors: Crisóstomo Luís , Rato Luís , Jarak Ivana , Silva Branca M , Raposo João F , Batterham Rachel L , Oliveira Pedro F , Alves Marco G
Published: August 2019

In recent decades, the prevalence of metabolic diseases has concomitantly increased with a decline on fertility rates and sperm quality. High-fat diets (HFD) are seldom considered part of the problem, but the molecular mechanisms underlying its effects on male fertility remain poorly understood. Herein we postulated that HFD alter sperm quality. We evaluated the effects of switching from a HFD to a normal diet in early adulthood on metabolic disease onset, testicular metabolism and sperm quality. Thirty-six male C57BL6/J mice were divided in: a control group fed with standard chow; a group fed with HFD for 200 days; and a group fed with HFD for 60 days and then with standard chow (HFDt). Biometric data and whole-body metabolism were assessed. Epididymal sperm was studied for concentration, motility, viability and morphology. 1H-NMR metabolomics approach was performed on testicular extracts to trace the metabolic changes. Diet switch reduced body weight and fat mass, preventing metabolic syndrome onset. However, sperm viability, motility and morphology were deteriorated by HFD consumption and not restored by diet switch. HFD induced irreversible changes in pyruvate and glutamate metabolism, ethanol degradation and ammonia recycling in testis. Furthermore, HFDt changed purine and cysteine metabolism, urea cycle, and glutathione content. Overall, HFD caused irreversible changes in testicular metabolism even after switching to normal diet. HFD feeding until early adulthood decreases sperm quality, which cannot be restored by diet switch or weight loss, even when development of metabolic syndrome is avoided.
Examining User Experience of Conversational Agents in Hedonic Digital Services – Antecedents and the Role of
Psychological Ownership
Authors: Danckwerts Sebastian , Meißner Lasse , Krampe Caspar
Published: August 2019

Conversational agents (CA) that interact with users in human language have become increasingly popular over the past years. This study explores antecedents of the user experience with CAs in hedonic digital services, utilizing the example of music streaming services. Moreover, this study investigates whether a positive CA user experience increases users’ sense of psychological ownership towards the service, which in turn is supposed to positively influence users’ intention to use the service’s fee required premium version. Using structural equation modelling, the results indicate that perceived humanness and perceived personalization of the CA positively affect the user experience. The results also show that CAs can greatly benefit from higher humanness and personalization when users trust the hedonic digital service. Furthermore, psychological ownership has been identified as an underlying mechanism through which CA user experience leads to users’ premium usage intention, indicating that CAs might be valuable for hedonic digital services.
The effect of tillage system and fertilization on corn yield and water use efficiency in irrigated conditions of the South of Ukraine
Authors: Vozhehova R. A. , Maliarchuk M. P. , Biliaieva I. M. , Markovska O. Y. , Maliarchuk A. S. , Tomnytskyi A. V. , Lykhovyd P. V. , Kozyrev V. V.
Published: August 2019

Efficient water management in agriculture is an important part of the general programme on water resources preservation. This study is devoted to the determination of the effects of soil processing system and mineral fertilization on the water use efficiency and productivity of grain corn (Zea mays Linnaeus, 1753). The trials were conducted in 2017–2018 on irrigated land in the South of Ukraine. The field experiments were carried out on the experimental plots of the Institute of Irrigated Agriculture of the NAAS in four replications. We studied the following agrotechnological parameters and their combinations: Factor A – primary tillage type and depth within different tillage systems in the short crop rotation (grain corn – grain sorghum – winter wheat – soybean); Factor B – application rates of mineral fertilizers (N0P0, N120P60, N180P60). We established that the highest yield of grain accompanied by the best water use efficiency was provided by the cultivation technology with disk cultivator tillage on the depth of 8–10 cm within the differentiated tillage system in the crop rotation under the maximum nutritive background of N180P60. This agrotechnological variant resulted in a corn grain yield of 14.51 and 14.59 t/ha in 2017 and 2018 years of the study, respectively. The coefficient of water use efficiency, which is the relation of the water used by the crop to the yield, in this variant was the lowest – 39.6 and 42.0 mm/t in 2017 and 2018, respectively, which indicates the optimum response of corn grain to watering. The worst indexes of water use efficiency and corn productivity were determined in the experimental variant with disk cultivator tillage on the depth of 12–14 cm within the subsoil tillage system within the crop rotation under non-fertilized conditions. We determined that strengthening of the crop nutrition under the rational tillage system in crop rotation is helpful in optimization of the crop water use in the irrigated conditions of the South of Ukraine, which is very important in the current conditions of freshwater scarcity.
ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES OF FOREST FIRES ON THE TERRITORY OF STARA ZAGORA REGION
Authors: Bivolarski B.
Published: August 2019

This article presents the dynamics of ground and canopy forest fires outbreaks on the territory of Stara Zagora region in the period of 1990-2016. We have also made a detailed analysis of the fires with the causes for their occurrence, the burnt area, damages, the number of firefighters and equipment used to extinguish fires by the Regional Directorate of Forestry – Stara Zagora in 2016. It was found that the total number of fires during the studied period was 821, as the largest number was registered in 2001 (115 fires), and the lowest – in 2014 (3 fires). There were three times more ground fires than canopy fires for the whole period of study. The total burnt area was 204 710 decares. This indicator reached its peak in 2007 (52 310 decares), and its lowest point in 2014 (7 decares). The damages inflicted by forest fires on the Regional Directorate of Forestry –Stara Zagora in 2016 amounted to 434 116 BGN. In the same year, the firefighters involved were 449 state forestry employees, 347 fire safety employees, 30 military servants and 154 volunteers. The number of equipment used was: 156 from the state forestries, 109 from the fire safety services, 6 heavy vehicles and 128 mobile devices.
In conclusion, in the past 15 years, Bulgaria, and Stara Zagora in particular, have become a high risk territory for forest fire outbreaks, which requires an entirely new level of firefighting practices.
Homogenization of very rough three-dimensional interfaces for the poroelasticity theory with Biot's model
Authors: Kieu Nguyen Thi , Vinh Pham Chi , Tung Do Xuan
Published: August 2019

In this paper, we carry out the homogenization of a very rough three-dimensional interface separating  two dissimilar generally anisotropic poroelastic solids modeled by the Biot theory. The very rough interface is assumed to be a cylindrical surface that rapidly oscillates between two parallel planes, and the motion is time-harmonic. Using the homogenization method with the matrix formulation of the poroelasicity theory, the explicit  homogenized equations have been derived. Since the obtained  homogenized equations are totally explicit, they are very convenient for solving various practical problems. As an example proving this, the reflection and transmission of SH waves at a very rough interface of tooth-comb type is considered. The closed-form analytical expressions of the reflection and transmission coefficients have been  derived. Based on them, the effect of the incident angle and some material parameters  on the reflection and transmission coefficients are examined numerically.
Automatic Bayesian Density Analysis
Authors: Vergari Antonio , Molina Alejandro , Peharz Robert , Ghahramani Zoubin , Kersting Kristian , Valera Isabel
Published: August 2019

Making sense of a dataset in an automatic and unsupervised fashion is a challenging problem in statistics and AI. Classical approaches for exploratory data analysis are usually not flexible enough to deal with the uncertainty inherent to real-world data: they are often restricted to fixed latent interaction models and homogeneous likelihoods; they are sensitive to missing, corrupt and anomalous data; moreover, their expressiveness generally comes at the price of intractable inference. As a result, supervision from statisticians is usually needed to find the right model for the data. However, since domain experts are not necessarily also experts in statistics, we propose Automatic Bayesian Density Analysis (ABDA) to make exploratory data analysis accessible at large. Specifically, ABDA allows for automatic and efficient missing value estimation, statistical data type and likelihood discovery, anomaly detection and dependency structure mining, on top of providing accurate density estimation. Extensive empirical evidence shows that ABDA is a suitable tool for automatic exploratory analysis of mixed continuous and discrete tabular data.