bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
4th A in a triple A syndrome – A rare case report
Authors: MaheshKumar K. , Mahadevan Shriraam , Ramaswamy Padmavathi
Published: July 2020

Objectives

AAA (Allgrove) syndrome is a rare genetic disorder characterized by cardinal features of adrenal insufficiency, achalasia, and alacrimia.

Case presentation

A 21 year girl of known case of Triple A syndrome was referred for the evaluation of autonomic function. She was born full term with developmental delay and abnormal gait. Esophageal manometry study by pneumatic balloon dilatation revealed the presence of achalasia cardia. She had signs of peripheral neuropathy and had episodes of fainting and suspected orthostatic hypotension. Cardiovascular autonomic function and heart rate variability tests were conducted as per Ewing protocol, revealed that the patient had sympathovagal imbalance and sympathetic dominance.

Conclusions

The presence of autonomic dysfunction adds the 4th A to the Triple A syndrome (Adrenal insufficiency, Achalasia, Alacrimia and Autonomic dysfunction). Noninvasive autonomic function tests are recommended for Triple A syndrome patients to reduce the morbidity associated with autonomic dysfunction.
Character degrees in 𝜋-separable groups
Authors: Grittini Nicola
Published: July 2020

If a group G is π-separable, where π is a set of primes, the set of irreducible characters

B
π

⁡

(
G
)

∪

B

π
′

⁡

(
G
)

{\operatorname{B}_{\pi}(G)\cup\operatorname{B}_{\pi^{\prime}}(G)}

can be defined.
In this paper, we prove variants of some classical theorems in character theory, namely the theorem of Ito–Michler and Thompson’s theorem on character degrees, involving irreducible characters in the set

B
π

⁡

(
G
)

∪

B

π
′

⁡

(
G
)

{\operatorname{B}_{\pi}(G)\cup\operatorname{B}_{\pi^{\prime}}(G)}

.
The invariably generating graph of the alternating and symmetric groups
Authors: Garzoni Daniele
Published: July 2020

Given a finite group G, the invariably generating graph of G is defined as the undirected graph in which the vertices are the nontrivial conjugacy classes of G, and two classes are adjacent if and only if they invariably generate G.
In this paper, we study this object for alternating and symmetric groups.
The main result of the paper states that if we remove the isolated vertices from the graph, the resulting graph is connected and has diameter at most 6.
On the Hochstadt–Lieberman problem for the Dirac operator with discontinuity
Authors: Yang Chuan-Fu , Yurko Vjacheslav , Zhang Ran
Published: July 2020

Using the input data – the spectrum of the Dirac operator with discontinuity, the potential on the half-interval and one boundary condition as well as discontinuity conditions – this paper presents a uniqueness theorem and the solvability conditions of the potential on the whole interval, and provides a reconstruction algorithm of the solution to this kind of inverse problems.
Entropy Generation in Magnetized Blood Flow Through a Finite Wavy Channel Under Slip Conditions
Authors: Zhang Lijun , Bhatti Muhammad Mubashir , Michaelides Efstathios E.
Published: July 2020

This study deals with the entropy generation in magnetized blood flow through a channel. The blood is modeled as a non-Newtonian fluid that circulates by a uniform peristaltic wave with slip at the boundaries. An inertia free flow is considered using an approximation of the long-wavelength peristaltic wave. The governing equations of the flow are formulated and numerically solved using computational software to identify the characteristics of this non-uniform and time-dependent flow system. In addition, several closed-form solutions of the problem are explicitly presented.
From infancy to adulthood: challenges in congenital nephrogenic diabetes insipidus
Authors: Atmis Bahriye , Bayazit Aysun Karabay , Melek Engin , Bisgin Atil , Anarat Ali
Published: July 2020

Objectives

Congenital nephrogenic diabetes insipidus (NDI) is a rare hereditary disorder which is characterized by unresponsiveness to arginine vasopressin (AVP) in collecting ducts and leads to polyuria and polydipsia. The wide clinical spectrum of congenital NDI can cause difficulties in early diagnosis. We aimed to evaluate clinical prognosis of children with congenital NDI in long-term period.

Methods

Nineteen children with congenital NDI followed up in Pediatric Nephrology Department were enrolled to the study. This study is a single-center retrospective study, which reports clinical follow-up and genetic results of children with congenital NDI.

Results

Presenting symptoms of patients were mostly dehydration and fever due to polyuria and polydipsia. Four male patients had bilateral nonobstructive hydroureteronephrosis (HUN) and neurogenic bladder which requires clean intermittent catheterization (CIC). One patient had intracranial calcification which is a rarely seen complication in congenital NDI due to recurrent hypernatremic dehydration and severe brain dehydration. The causative mutations were identified in all patients. The identified mutations in six of them (31.6%) were hemizygous mutations in AVPR2 gene and homozygous mutations of AQP2 gene in the rest 13 cases (68.4%). More than that, four of these mutations (two in AVPR2 and two in AQP2) were novel mutations. Noncompliance with the treatments is associated with high risk of morbidity due to neurogenic bladder and chronic kidney disease (CKD).

Conclusions

The prognosis of congenital NDI is good when diagnosis can be made early and treatment is started immediately. Genetic counseling and prenatal testing for hereditary diseases are recommended especially in regions with relatively higher rates of consanguineous marriages.
Quality of life and associated factors in parents of children with late diagnosed phenylketonuria. A cross sectional study in a developing country (Tunisia)
Authors: Ben Abdelaziz Rim , Ben Chehida Amel , Kachouri Henda , Ben Messaoud Sana , Ferchichi Maherzia , Ben Ameur Zeineb , Sassi Yosra , Abdelmoula Mohamed Slim , Azzouz Hatem , Tebib Néji
Published: July 2020

Objectives

We investigated the quality of life (QOL) in parents of children with late treated phenylketonuria (PKU) and its associated factors.

Methods

We conducted a cross sectional study in the reference center of inherited metabolic disease in Tunisia. We used the Tunisian version of the 36-item short-form health survey questionnaire (SF-36). We compared variables in the groups with and without impaired QOL and the SF-36 scores between subgroups of parents and children and between our sample and the Tunisian general population based on published data. We looked for associations between SF-36 scores and quantitative variables. Linear regression and logistic binary regression were used for multivariate analysis.

Results

Sixty-five parents from 42 families participated. QOL was impaired in 61% of them. The mean SF-36 score was 55.3 ± 25.07. The physical component sub-score was higher than that reported in the Tunisian general population (63.66 ± 27.77 vs. 50.11 ± 8.53; p<0.001). The mental component sub-score was comparable to that reported in the Tunisian general population (46.99 ± 25.94 vs. 47.96 ± 9.82; p=0.830). Gender (mothers) (p=0.008), low monthly income (p = 0.027), low education (p=0.011), and autism in PKU children (p = 0.001) were associated with impaired QOL.

Conclusions

We identified at risk parents for altered quality of life among parents of PKU children. Our findings were used to develop a psychological and social support strategy for at-risk parents and to promote the implementation of newborn screening of this treatable disease in our low-income country.
Estimated fetal weight and severe neonatal outcomes in preterm prelabor rupture of membranes
Authors: Duncan Jose R. , Dorsett Katherine M. , Aziz Michael M. , Bursac Zoran , Cleves Mario A. , Talati Ajay J. , Schenone Mauro H. , Meyer Nornan L. , Mari Giancarlo
Published: July 2020

Objectives

Our aim was to study the association of clinical variables obtainable before delivery for severe neonatal outcomes (SNO) and develop a clinical tool to calculate the prediction probability of SNO in preterm prelabor rupture of membranes (PPROM).

Methods

This was a prospective study from October 2015 to May 2018. We included singleton pregnancies with PPROM and an estimated fetal weight (EFW) two weeks before delivery. We excluded those with fetal anomalies or fetal death. We examined the association between SNO and variables obtainable before delivery such as gestational age (GA) at PPROM, EFW, gender, race, body mass index, chorioamnioitis. SNO was defined as having at least one of the following: respiratory distress syndrome, intraventricular hemorrhage, necrotizing enterocolitis, neonatal sepsis, or neonatal death. The most parsimonious logistic regression models was constructed using the best subset selection model approach, and receiver operator curves were utilized to evaluate the prognostic accuracy of these clinical variables for SNO.

Results

We included 106 pregnancies, 42 had SNO (39.6%). The EFW (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve [AUC]=0.88) and GA at PPROM (AUC=0.83) were significant predictors of SNO. The addition of any of the other variables did not improve the predictive probability of EFW for the prediction of SNO.

Conclusions

The EFW had the strongest association with SNO in in our study among variables obtainable before delivery. Other variables had no significant effect on the prediction probability of the EFW. Our findings should be validated in larger studies.
Effects of coronavirus 19 pandemic on maternal anxiety during pregnancy: a prospectic observational study
Authors: Mappa Ilenia , Distefano Flavia Adalgisa , Rizzo Giuseppe
Published: July 2020

Objectives

Coronavirus (COVID-19) is a new respiratory disease that is spreading widely throughout the world. The aim of this study was to evaluate the psychological impact of COVID-19 pandemic on pregnant women in Italy.

Methods

We considered 200 pregnancies attending our antenatal clinic. A questionnaire was sent to each woman in the days of maximum spread of COVID-19. Sectional was finalized to acquire in 18 items maternal characteristics and to test the women’s perception of infection. Section included the State–trait anxiety inventory (STAI) 40 items validated test for scoring trait anxiety (basal anxiety, STAI-T) and state anxiety (related to the ongoing pandemic, STAI-S). An abnormal value of STAI was considered when ≥40.

Results

The questionnaire was completed by 178 women (89%). Fear that COVID-19 could induce fetal structural anomalies was present in 47%, fetal growth restriction in 65% and preterm birth in 51% of the women. The median value of STAI-T was 37 and in 38.2% of the study group STAI-T score ≥40 was evidenced. STAI-S values were significantly higher with an increase of median values of 12 points (p≤0.0001). There was a positive linear correlation between STAI-T and STAI-S (Pearson=0.59; p≤0.0001). A higher educational status was associated with increased prevalence of STAI-S ≥ 40(p=0.004). Subgrouping women by the other variables considered did not show any further difference.

Conclusions

COVID-19 pandemic induces a doubling of the number of women who reached abnormal level of anxiety. These findings validate the role of the remote use of questionnaire for identifying women at higher risk of anxiety disorders allowing the activation of support procedures.
Risk factors for cerebral vasospasm in patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage
Authors: Opancina Valentina , Lukic Snezana , Jankovic Slobodan , Vojinovic Radisa , Mijailovic Milan
Published: July 2020

Introduction

Aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage is a type of spontaneous hemorrhagic stroke, which is caused by a ruptured cerebral aneurysm. Cerebral vasospasm (CVS) is the most grievous complication of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). The aim of this study was to examine the risk factors that influence the onset of CVS that develops after endovascular coil embolization of a ruptured aneurysm.

Materials and methods

The study was designed as a cross-sectional study. The patients included in the study were 18 or more years of age, admitted within a period of 24 h of symptom onset, diagnosed and treated at a university medical center in Serbia during a 5-year period.

Results

Our study showed that the maximum recorded international normalized ratio (INR) values in patients who were not receiving anticoagulant therapy and the maximum recorded white blood cells (WBCs) were strongly associated with cerebrovascular spasm, increasing its chances 4.4 and 8.4 times with an increase of each integer of the INR value and 1,000 WBCs, respectively.

Conclusions

SAH after the rupture of cerebral aneurysms creates an endocranial inflammatory state whose intensity is probably directly related to the occurrence of vasospasm and its adverse consequences.
Erzähltes Recht oder Erzählen vom Recht? Praxis, Theorie und Gender in isländischen Sagatexten
Authors: Scheel Roland
Published: July 2020

The society depicted in the Icelandic family sagas has often been characterised as the archetype of a ‘feuding society’. The disputing strategies found in the sagas have therefore served as an argument that the prescriptions of the laws which curb revenge were irrelevant in socio-legal practice. This dominance of the feud as the actual ‘law’ crystallising in saga disputes is questioned through a close analysis of gender roles. While ‘classical’ sagas frequently apply the motif of the female whetter who forces a male character to take action or lose his manly honour, thus stabilising the feuding mechanism, the contemporary sagas and non-canonical family sagas display a wide variety of male-female interaction in the negotiation of social resources and legal obligations. The systematic look at non-canonical passages reveals a discourse of counsel, in which gender roles are fluid and interchangeable. This fluidity reveals an implicit theory of ‘law’ in the sense of doing conflict which stresses the stabilising forces supporting written law opposed to the motif of the whetter, which comes to form a central element of the imagination of the Icelandic heroic age.
Phylogenetic relationships among accessions in Citrus and related genera based on the insertion polymorphism of the CIRE1 retrotransposon
Authors: Horibata Akira , Kato Tsuneo
Published: July 2020

A total of 145 accessions of the genus Citrus and related genera, maintained in the Conservation Garden for Citrus Germplasm at the Experimental Farm of Kindai University, Yuasa, Wakayama, Japan, were examined for their phylogenetic relationships. The present classification was conducted using an inter-retrotransposon amplified polymorphism (IRAP) method based on the insertion polymorphism of a retrotransposon, CIRE1, identified in C. sinensis. The objective of this study was to evaluate the applicability of the IRAP method for citrus classification. The constructed dendrogram showed that the 145 accessions and two outgroup species were successfully classified into five major clades. A large number of C. sinensis accessions were divided into three traditional groups, navel orange, sweet orange, and blood orange, almost corresponding to the sub-clades in the dendrogram. Several other accessions belonging to the same species, and also many hybrid cultivars from crossbreeding, were localized into the respective sub-clades or near positions in the dendrogram. Several unclassified accessions could also be located in the dendrogram, suggesting novel relationships with other accessions. It was concluded that the IRAP method based on CIRE1 insertion polymorphism was suitable for the classification of citrus from a molecular point of view.
Darker shades of “fairness” in India: Male attractiveness and colorism in commercials
Authors: Mukherjee Sayantan
Published: July 2020

The skin-lightening products for men in India and their mode of advertising have been shaping the concept of attractiveness for Indian men by portraying lighter skin tone as the most fundamental quality of being attractive, always desirable, and successful. Although women’s skin-lightening products in India have received attention by a few scholars lately, men’s products are still underresearched. Hence, this study aims to investigate the issue of colorism augmented by television commercials for men’s “fairness” (light skin tone) products in India. The primary data for this study are six Hindi television commercials for men’s skin-lightening products which were broadcast from 2005 to 2015 and were available on YouTube during data collection. The commercials are by one popular brand, Emami Fair and Handsome. The target commercials are significant for their categorical distinction in directness as well as for their nature of storytelling that helps facilitate the discourse of colorism itself. The methodology is a combination of multimodal analysis, critical discourse analysis, and advertisement analysis. The overall goal of this study is to bring visibility to this subtle and multilayered problem of colorism in Indian society which is being reinforced by the skin-lightening products for men.
Morality politics: Drug use and the Catholic Church in the Philippines
Authors: Cornelio Jayeel , Lasco Gideon
Published: July 2020

This article traces the trajectory of the Catholic Church’s discourses on drug use in the Philippines since the first time a statement was made in the 1970s. By drawing on official statements by the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), it argues that shifts in emphasis have taken place through the years: the destruction of the youth, attack on human dignity, and then social moral decay. Collectively, they emanate from an institutional concern for peace and order. But they also reflect the moral panic around drug use that has been around for decades, which, on several occasions, Filipino politicians, including President Duterte, have mobilized as a populist trope. In this way, the article historicizes the Catholic Church’s official statements and frames them in terms of morality politics through which values and corresponding behavior are defined by an influential institution on behalf of society whose morality it deems is in decline. The article ends by reflecting on the recent statements by the CBCP that invoke compassion and redemption.
Relational work in dispute: Negotiating norms, negotiating relationships
Authors: Hu Yanwei
Published: July 2020

Recent developments of politeness research mainly consist of the study of politeness within a broader framework of relationship or relating and the re-conceptualization of politeness as an evaluative judgement made by participants on the basis of norms and expectations. This article hopes to contribute to the study of relating by probing into the normative basis of relational work. Addressing the relational aspect of communication, Habermas’ (1979) concept of normative rightness claim highlights the normative commitment of the speaker in doing (more than judging) relational work, which has been obscured by the focus on (hearers’) judgements in current research on relational work. Habermas’ concept brings into focus the fact that participants in interaction can define and redefine their relationship through contesting the other’s normative rightness claim or the normative background thereby evoked. This dynamic process of negotiating relationships through negotiating norms can be further explicated by drawing on Culpeper’s (2008) and Kádár and Haugh’s (2013) differentiations of norms. The article explores the usefulness of such differentiations by analyzing different cases of norm variation which can be seen to underlie relational work dispute.
Gestures of closure: A small stories approach to museumgoers' texts
Authors: Noy Chaim
Published: July 2020

Museums are familiar public institutions whose primary mode of mediation is narration. They are geared toward narrating collective stories that are authoritative, linear, and grand in scope. Yet with the historical turn museums have recently taken from collection-centered to audience-centered institutions – coupled with a participatory mode of mediation – more than ever museumgoers are now invited to participate in these grand narrations. This article examines the institutional interaction between museums and museumgoers, and the texts that the latter producein situ. It analyzes over 3000 texts that visitors wrote at the Florida Holocaust Museum, between 2012 and 2015. It employs the “small stories” framework to explore the interactional narrative structure and features within which museumgoers' written comments are elicited and displayed in museums. The analysis highlights the narrative functions and authorial roles that museumgoers are ascribed institutionally, and whether and how they discursively occupy them. Three main narrative strategies of/for participation are discerned, through which museumgoers variously perform gestures of closure of their visit. These narrative gestures index ways, in which visitors signal the approaching end of the museum's narration, employing diverse discursive resources, while adding a coda or a resolution to the institutional narrative.
Suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid inhibits LX2 cells proliferation via decreasing yes-associated protein/transcriptional coactivator with PDZ-binding motif proteins
Authors: Özel Merve , Güçlü Kenan , Helvacı Nazlı , Kilic Eser , Baskol Mevlüt , Baskol Gülden
Published: July 2020

Background

Hepatic fibrosis is a complex and dynamic process similar to “wound healing” that results in the progressive accumulation of connective tissue. We aimed to investigate the epigenetic control of liver fibrosis and Hippo pathway in human hepatic stellate cell (HSC) line. We examined the effect of Suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid (SAHA), a histone deacetylase inhibitor on the LX2 cell line.

Material and methods

2.5 μM SAHA was treated to LX2 cell line for 2 days. Cell proliferation and apoptosis measurement were performed by Muse Cell Analyzer. Yes-Associated Protein/Transcrıptional Coactivator With Pdz-Binding Motif (YAP/TAZ) and alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) protein expression levels were measured by western blotting.

Results

In our study, we observed that the SAHA treatment reduced cell viability and induced apoptosis of LX2 cells statistically. We found that SAHA treatment decreased α-SMA, YAP and TAZ proteins levels statistically.

Conclusion

Decreased cell viability could be due to physiological, autophagical and also related to the apoptotical mechanisms. We thought that SAHA plays an important role in the creation of the fates of the LX2 cell line.
The crystal structures of α-Rb7Sb3Br16, α- and β-Tl7Bi3Br16 and their relationship to close packings of spheres
Authors: Chang Jen-Hui , Doert Thomas , Ruck Michael
Published: July 2020

Yellow prismatic crystals of rubidium bromido-antimonate(III) Rb7Sb3Br16 and of two different modifications of thallium bromido-bismuthate(III) Tl7Bi3Br16 were obtained by solvent-free synthesis and by precipitation from acidic aqueous solutions. X-ray diffraction analyses revealed the Tl7Bi3I16-type for α-Tl7Bi3Br16 (orthorhombic, Cmcm, a = 2324.31(8) pm, b = 1346.69(4) pm, c = 3460.0(1) pm; Pearson symbol oC312) and a new structure type for β-Tl7Bi3Br16 (monoclinic, C2/c, a = 2331.87(5) pm, b = 1343.33(3) pm, c = 3546.01(7) pm, β = 102.708(1)°; mC312). The antimonate Rb7Sb3Br16 adopts the Tl7Bi3I16-type, too (orthorhombic, Cmcm, a = 2347.16(3) pm, b = 1357.89(5) pm, c = 3539.47(9) pm; oC312). The crystal structures of α- and β-Tl7Bi3Br16 comprise alternating slabs of isolated [BiBr6]3– octahedra and [Bi2Br10]4– octahedra pairs. Both structure types are hierarchically organized and can be regarded as sphere close packing with the same stacking sequence, if octahedra and octahedra pairs are replaced by spheres of equal size. The structural relationship between the Tl7Bi3I16-type and the hydrate Na7Bi3Br16 · 18H2O, which comprises similar structural features, is discussed.
Electromagnetic propagation characteristics of one-dimensional photonic crystals with metal layers in quasi-parity-time (PT)-symmetric system
Authors: Yu Guanxia , Lv Yihang , Zhang Xiaomeng , Cao Ruoyu
Published: July 2020

In this study, the propagation characteristics of electromagnetic waves in a parity-time (PT)-symmetrical 1D photonic crystal comprising dispersed silver layers are investigated. Based on the transmission matrix theory, the total reflection and transmission coefficients of the structure are obtained. It was found that, due to the PT-symmetrical structure, the reflections of the left and right incident waves are nonreciprocal. Numerical simulations indicated that the width of the band gap decreases with the increase in the gain and loss factor ρ in the PT medium, and the band gap ultimately disappears when ρ reaches a critical value, i. e.,

ρ

P
T

${\rho }_{PT}$

. With the increase in

ρ
>

ρ

P
T

$\rho { >}{\rho }_{PT}$

, anomalous transmittance and reflection occur within the original bang gap. As the gain and loss factor ρ continue to increase, the abnormal transmittance and reflectivity exhibit a trend of oscillatory decline, and perfect transmission can be achieved at larger values of ρ.
Dependence of the electrical properties of Cu-doped ZnO nanoparticles decorated by Ag atoms
Authors: Modwi Abueliz , Taha Kamal K. , Khezami Lotfi , Boudina Mohamed , Khairy Mohamed , Al-Duaij Omer K. , Talab Sarra
Published: July 2020

Silver decorated copper doped zinc oxide nanoparticles (Ag@Cu-ZnO) were successfully prepared via sol gel method. X-ray diffraction analysis revealed ZnO wurtzite crystalline structure with the existence of minor peaks attributed to Cu and Ag. The presence of Cu and Ag in addition to ZnO lattice was supplementary verified by EDS data while the shift in the FTIR band confirmed the Cu incorporation within the ZnO host lattice. Both SEM and XRD revealed an increase in particle size with Ag loading. At different frequencies, electrical measurements demonstrated a decrement in the dielectric constant, dielectric loss and AC conductivity with the increment of Ag content. Meanwhile, the Nyquist plots of the impedance measurement showed a single semicircle arc indicating the predominance of grain boundary resistance. This study elucidated the great influence of Ag on Cu-doped ZnO nanoparticles’ structural, dielectric constant and electrical conductivity which make it a promising candidate for catalytic, photocatalytic and adsorption applications.
Assumptions of the Monetary Policy Council in Fiscal Policy and Protection of Monetary Regime as Public Value
Authors: Ofiarski Zbigniew
Published: July 2020

The assumptions of the fiscal policy, established and implemented by the organs of the National Bank of Poland, constitute a set of goals of a macroeconomic nature and instruments of their implementation. This work includes an analysis of valid legislation in order to determine the legal nature of the document and its importance for the protection of the constitutional value, which is the monetary regime of the Republic of Poland. The general findings included in the document are supplemented with the issued by the NBP implementing resolutions specifying the rules and mode of applying individual instruments of the fiscal policy. In scope of the formation of the fiscal policy assumptions the legislator assigns the main role to the Monetary Policy Council which is an organ of the NBP. The document is a crucial theme of the cooperation between the organs of the NBP and between the organs and State organs (Sejm, the Council of Ministers and the Minister of Finance). The basic goal of the cooperation is active protection of the public value in the form of the monetary regime and in a broad prospect to obtain financial stability of the State. The assumptions of the fiscal policy integrate the most important organs of the State in their actions for such a monetary regime that should ensure the proper value of money, planning predictability and rationality of decisions in economic matters, protection of real value of savings of the entrepreneurs and households as well as proper operation of the market.
Administrative agreement as a Legal Form of Administration in the Light of the System of Implementation of the Structural Funds and the Cohesion Fund by Public Finance Sector Entities
Authors: Wojewski Piotr
Published: July 2020

The paper indicates the need to change and modify the definition of “administrative agreement” as a legal form of administration’s activity, constructed still in the legal system of the People’s Republic of Poland and limited by its political conditions and the then organizational structure of public authority. This definition has been functioning until now in administration science textbooks, despite the system changes and new challenges facing public administration connected, among others, with the implementation of EU funds, where this legal form of administration activity plays a particularly important role in the system of distribution of structural and cohesion funds on the territory of the Republic of Poland. This change in the doctrinal definition of an administrative agreement would consist in the fact that, while retaining its other elements, the change would concern the status of entities concluding agreements in regards to their “independence”. The current definition allows for the possibility of concluding such an agreement only with entities independent of each other, not being in the administrative subordination structure. On the other hand, the current legal regulations allow for the possibility of concluding such an agreement between entities that are dependent on each other, whether structurally, functionally or politically, though, for example, the possibility of filling managerial positions by a superior entity in an entity that is a party to such an administrative agreement.
IN MEMORIAM
Authors: Žurnalistikos institutas VU Komunikacijos fakulteto
Published: July 2020

Vilius UŽTUPAS: „Knyga gimsta kaip žmogus, bet nemiršta…“ 1927-03-31–2008-08-28Liūdna žinia apie įžymaus spaudos tyrinėtojo ir leidėjo mirtį skatina prisiminimus, kaip kartu su Viliumi Užtupu žurnalistikos studentai narstė spaudos pasaulį: technologijas, spaustuvių istoriją, mokėsi redagavimo. Nuo 1979 metų, kai apgynė disertaciją, Vilniaus universiteto Spaudos žurnalistikos katedroje padėjo ugdyti žiniasklaidos specialistus. Kolega gebėjo sujudinti Lietuvos leidyklų gyvenimą, suteikdamas naujų spalvų išradingomis idėjomis, kurias pateikdavo kaip pokštą, bet įgyvendindavo rimtai, profesionaliai, preciziškai – pradėjęs leisti mažąsias knygeles. Jo dėka knygos menas Lietuvoje išplėtė ribas.
Intercultural issues in the Norwegian journalism curriculum
Authors: Økland Øyvind
Published: July 2020

This study looks into Norwegian journalism curricula and how and to what degree they focus on intercultural issues. The web pages to six different schools are analyzed to see how the objectives are formulated, and how the curricula are composed. The six schools are Oslo University College, Volda University  College, Bodø University College, University of Stavanger, Gimlekollen Schoolof Journalism and Communication and University of Bergen. The findings suggest that the schools emphasize educating for practical journalistic skills on behalf of in-depth analysis of contemporary society. Oslo University College and Gimlekollen School of Journalism and Communication focus on intercultural communication and global issues to a larger extent than the others. Based on the results, the study discussed some perspectives that might be needed to equip Norwegian future journalists for a global reality, where there are no longer given and fixed skills for a journalist.
Keywords: journalism education, curriculum, intercultural, global, ethnicity,Norway.
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Changes in journalism versus changes in journalism education
Authors: Brikše Inta
Published: July 2020

This paper is focused on journalism education in the context of changes in journalism, the professionalization of journalism, and the study programmes that are offered by universities. The author has relied on self-evaluation reports from three study programmes in Latvia, the Evaluation commission final reports, and the things which students themselves have had to say about theirknowledge and skills in comparison to what is needed to work as a journalist.
Keywords: journalism, education, professional standards.
Politikos žurnalistika. Lietuvos žiniasklaidos elito nuomonių analizė
Authors: Donauskaitė Džina
Published: July 2020

Šis straipsnis skirtas pateikti šiuolaikinės Lietuvos žurnalistikos santykio su politika analizės rezultatus žiniasklaidos elitų perspektyvoje. Tyrimo duomenys buvo renkami magistro darbui 2009-aisiais ir analizuojami naudojant Pierre Bourdieu lauko teoriją. Tyrime dalyvavo nacionalinės spaudos, transliuojamosios žiniasklaidos ir naujienų agentūros vyriausieji redaktoriai ir politikos skyrių redaktoriai. Rezultatai atskleidė, kad politikos žurnalistikos lauke dominuoja trys šios žurnalistikos suvokimo modeliai: 1) politikos lauko dalyvė; 2) aktyvi pilietinė jėga; 3) visiškai autonomiška nuo politikos lauko institucija.Tyrimo rezultatai taip pat parodė, kad Lietuvoje politikos žurnalistikos laukas savo struktūrą ir vertybes reprodukuoja konservatyviu būdu: tai reiškia, kad dabartinis santykis su politikos lauku nekis: neturėtų silpnėti ar stiprėti tol, kol į lauką nepateks naujų kvalifikuotų politikos žurnalistų. Tačiau nors ir pripažįstama, kad gerų politikos žurnalistų trūksta ir perspektyvūs žurnalistai palieka lauką, jokių specialių žurnalistų rekrutavimo strategijų nėra taikoma; šiame lauke politikos žurnalistai juda, patenka ir išeina iš jo patirdami heteronomišką spaudimą.Reikšminiai žodžiai: politikos laukas, žurnalistikos laukas, žiniasklaidos elitas.
Elections in the Public Sphere: the Analysis of Lithuanian TV Debates „Lyderių Forumas“
Authors: Valiauskaitė Aistė
Published: July 2020

The article analyses the information that spreads in the media during the election campaign. It looks at the aspect of promises made by politicians through an academic lens. The definition of a political promise is explained; some insights are devoted to an analysis of the reasons why some promises are more commonly fulfilled. The paper mostly concentrates on the role of the media, combining ideas of media theorists with the investigation of pre-election TV debates “Lyderių forumas”.Keywords: campaign, objectivity, parliamentary elections, political communication, professionalism, promise, tv debates.
Entangled in the Net? Would Scandals function under the Conditions of the Internet alone?
Authors: SJ Johannes Ehrat
Published: July 2020

Using semiotic method of consideration the article investigates judgement power of public sphere in traditional media and internet. The analysis reminds that news stories obey the narrative rules. They become an object for judgement only in a mediation that allows present public opinion. At the same time because of mediation and in accordance with functioning of meta-texts these stories become subject of moralising sanction to their heroes. For mass media, the mediation function creates the parallel universe of the public sphere. The aim of the article is to find an answer whether there exists something in the internet which produces a similar public universe.Theoretical argument lets to conclude that the tribunal of public opinion is not just a meaning apparatus; it also has to be narrated. That means, that the question of justice, of right or wrong, has to be turned into a pragmatic question of performance (how well?) and competence (by whom?). As publicity is only an idea, a meaning apparatus, for normative purposes need to hide behind narrative plausibility. As soon as actors are seen as pragmatic subjects, they are subject to sanctioning. Actually, a source is the direct will of the judging instance, which in the public sphere is the hypostasis of ‘all’.When internet lacks direct mediation instance, it is unable to turn information into narratives. Without public sphere produced by traditional media the internet lacks the meaning. Such stating together with the example of Wikileaks let to conclude that when there is no legitimisation of power, then, no realisation of the pragmatic subject, and in consequence – there is no scandal.
Keywords: common sense, industrial meaning, internet communication, judgement, meta-text, meaning, meaning constraint, moralising, narrative, power (meta-text 1), pragmatic subject (meta-text 2), publicity, public opinion, public sanctioning, scandal, theatre meaning.
Freedom, the Media, and War: an Investigation on Interactions
Authors: Steltemeier Andra
Published: July 2020

This paper is set to analyze interdependencies of freedom, media, and war. In order to show freedom’s impacts on the latter, first historical and current concepts are discussed. To cope with recent developments in both war and media, a categorization of old and new wars is then depicted in order to sketch the major differences. Terrorism as a new appearance of war is examined in more detail, as it provides a comprehensive example of how all subcomponents of the investigation – freedom, media and war – interact. The media with their special role in regard to freedom, war, and state, are more specified in order to follow the logical scope of the paper. It is shown how the three stated elements reciprocally depend on each other. Lastly, the possible solutions for inhibiting negative interactions are presented. Due to its largest lever, the focus is hereby placed on the media.
Factors that Influence Freedom of Speech and Self-censorship in Mass Media in Contemporary Russia
Authors: Olshevskaya Oksana
Published: July 2020

An attempt to define the degree of media freedom in contemporary Russia leads to contradiction between the declaration of the mass media freedom provided by the Constitution of the Russian Federation and the Soviet Union heritage of unequivocal control of the press by the government, described by Siebert et al. (1984) as the Soviet-Communist Press Theory. The reason for this ambiguity could be explained by the great deal of different factors that exert an influence on the journalism, such as features of mass media legislation, governmental control of the media, the diversity of media ownership, sources of media incomes, and traditions of censorship in Russia.  The current development of the media legislation in Russia shows no improvement regarding the freedom of speech. In the beginning of the third presidential term in 2012, Vladimir Putin has signed several laws that reduced the freedom of speech through the limitation of public assembly, criminalization of defamation in the mass media, and intensification of governmental censorship on the internet. On the other hand, the contemporary press freedom that appeared in conditions of the new market economy in the beginning of the 1990s has brought discredit as to the conception of an exclusively positive impact of unconditional freedom on the mass media since the newspapers, television and radio channels were controlled by several powerful oligarchs who used the owned mass media to spread and support their political influence. However, after the authorities’ reference in the 2000s the balance was not regained. As a result, the majority of the media outlets in Russia became co-owned or fully controlled by the government. Another crucial aspect of the mass media freedom as the cultural phenomenon should be kept in mind: seven decades of severe censorship could not be erased from the journalism professional community’s memory in several years. The negative experience of predecessors transforms censorship into self-censorship in modern Russia.
Propagandos kaita politiniame lauke ir arenoje. Ukrainos atvejis
Authors: Mažeikis Gintautas
Published: July 2020

Straipsnyje nagrinėjama propagandos įtaka politinio lauko raidai ir arenos dinamikai. Aiškinamas komunikacinio proto ir socialinės politinės kritikos netapatumas. Turima omenyje, kad komunikacinio veiksmo ir komunikacinio proto sampratos tinka ir propagandos paveikiamoms gru­pėms apibūdinti, ir autonominių propagandos subjektų savaiminei veiklai aiškinti. Straipsnyje epistemologiniais tikslais komunikacinio veiksmo sam­prata susiaurinama iki pranešimų perdavimo ir interpretavimo. Straipsnyje komunikacijos teorijos sąvokos yra atskiriamos nuo kitų idėjų: pasaulio ir gyvenimo patirčių. Pasaulio įvykiai daro ne mažesnę įtaką svarbiausiems žmogaus egzistencijos veiksniams: draugystei, solidarumui, ištikimybei ir kt. Teigiama, kad nėra pakankamų prielaidų šias patirtis versti į komu­nikacijos sąvokų kalbą. Socialinė ir politinė kritika gali remtis ontologine analize ir susijusia dialektika ir tuo kritikuoti propagandos taikymą komu­nikacijos veiksmuose. Straipsnyje naudojami Louis A. Blanqui ir blankizmo pavyzdžiai siekiant paaiškinti organizuotų informacinių grupių gynybos ir puolimo veiksmus. Propaganda ir jai pavaldus mokslas siekia pašalinti įvai­riausius nesupratimus, skirtybes ir kuria vieno pasakojimo tikrovę, vykdo reductio ad primitiva. Straipsnyje pateikiami atsi-pasakojimų pavyzdžiai, kurie plėtoja politinius mitus ir istorines legendas. Straipsnyje įvairovės principas yra aiškinamas kaip racionali, moksliška nesupratimo plėtra. Tuo tikslu naudojami Theodoro Adorno negatyviosios dialektikos elementai ir Paulo Feyerabendo metodologinio anarchizmo teiginiai. Informacinio karo metu komunikacinio proto ir politinio lauko plėtrai ir kismui didelę įtaką daro ne tik struktūrinis įtikinėjimas, bet įvairiausios pilietinės informacinės grupės bei pilietinis informacinis karas. Šiandieninis struktūrinis ir pilieti­nis informacinis karas yra giliai susijęs su „feikų1“ gamyba, politinių mitų ir farso produkavimu, lygiai kaip ir su jų kritika ir demaskavimu. Kita vertus, nestruktūruotas informacinių, karinių ir pilietinių grupių aktyvumas lemia politinio lauko ir arenos dinamiškumą nacionaliniu, regioniniu ir pasauliniu lygiu. Straipsnyje daugiausia dėmesio skiriama Maidano evoliucijai, Krymo okupacijai ir aneksijai bei Rusijos-Ukrainos karui Luhansko ir Donecko sri­tyse Ukrainoje.
Internet news about Ukraine and the “audience agenda”: topics, sources and the audience aggressiveness
Authors: Rožukalne Anda
Published: July 2020

Euromaidan in Kiev, the annexation of Crimea and the war in Eastern Ukraine had become the most important international events that impacted media content in 2013 and 2014. This paper provides research that intends to analyse the interrelation between news content of the three largest news sites in Latvia (Delfi.lv, Apollo.lv, Tvnet.lv) and the Latvian and Russian-speaking audience reaction to the news about the events in Ukraine in 2014. By using a unique tool for audience behaviour analysis “The Index of Internet Aggressiveness” in this research, the level of audience aggressive­ness that appears within audience comments has been analysed with the aim to find out how and if the professional approach of the news producers influ­ences the aggressiveness of the news site’s audience.The three different groups of data from the Index of Internet Aggressive­ness are used to measure audience behaviour: the quantity of aggressive key­words used in the comments by audience members that create a significant rise in the Index of Internet Aggressiveness next to the news on Ukraine; content analysis of the most aggressively commented news articles about the events in Ukraine; the semi-structured qualitative interviews with editors of news sites that explain professional routines.The most significant conclusions of the research show the domination of the official Russian media outlets among the news sources about Ukraine. By republishing ready-made and easily accessible news stories, independent news sites of Latvia have become distributors and multiplicators of messages favourable to the Russian version of the events in Ukraine.
La tele socialista desde el Centro: UCD y CDS en la comisión de control de RTVE y su representación en "ABC" y "El País" (1982-1986)
Authors: Berdón-Prieto Pablo , García-Gil Samuel
Published: July 2020

El Estatuto de Radio y Televisión de 1980, aprobado con los votos de UCD y PSOE, trajo la creación de una Comisión Parlamentaria del Congreso de los Diputados destinada a controlar la actuación de RTVE. Este artículo se centra especialmente en la actividad que los representantes de los dos principales partidos de centro (UCD y CDS) tuvieron en este órgano durante la II Legislatura (1982-1986) y su repercusión en los dos periódicos más importantes de la época (ABC y El País). Para estudiar esto se ha llevado a cabo un análisis de contenido de los diarios de sesiones de esta Comisión de Control en los que participaron con preguntas los miembros de estas formaciones y un análisis hemerográfico de las piezas periodísticas referentes a estas reuniones. La investigación nos muestra cómo la alta actividad de estos partidos en la comisión no se vio representada en El País y ABC.
China en la política exterior de España durante el posfranquismo
Authors: Huiling Luo
Published: July 2020

El presente artículo plantea la posibilidad de lograr un mejor conocimiento de la Historia de las Relaciones Internacionales entre España y China. Para lograr esto, ha sido analizado el periodo de la Historia correspondiente a la Transición española, época que coincidió con la reforma política en China, llevada a cabo por Deng Xiaoping, y con la apertura internacional de ambos países después de años apartados de la primera línea de la política mundial. La utilización de fuentes primarias, tanto memorias de los protagonistas y testigos de sucesos históricos como las noticias en prensa, nos ayuda a conocer que 1978-1982 fue un momento en el que España y China tuvieron un desarrollo significativo de sus relaciones bilaterales.
Scarcity of Safe Assets and Global Neutral Interest Rates
Authors: Shousha Samer , Ferreira Thiago
Published: July 2020

We quantitatively evaluate the role of supply and demand of safe assets in determining neutral interest rates. Using an empirical cross-country state-space model, we find that the net supply of sovereign safe assets available to the private sector in secondary markets is an important driver of neutral rates for 11 advanced economies in the period 1970–2018. We also find that the global accumulation of international reserves in sovereign safe assets since the 1990s (the global savings glut) lowered the net supply of these assets and, thus reduced neutral rates by up to 50 basis points in our sample.
O imaginário do mundo das águas: lendas, narrativas e histórias ancestrais sobre a vida dos povos das estearias
Authors: Navarro Alexandre , Martins Dayse Marinho , Gouveia Neto João Costa
Published: July 2020

As estearias são sítios arqueológicos formados pela concentração de esteios de tronco de árvores colocados no leito dos rios e lagos da Baixada Maranhense entre o início da era cristã até o ano de 1200 d.C. Estão localizadas num rosáceo de cidades de várzea à beira dos rios, cujas narrativas e lendas da formação destes assentamentos pré-coloniais pululam a imaginação da população, como os Encantados, boitatá e locais de esconderijo de escravos fugitivos e antigos quilombolas. O artigo examina esse rico conjunto de histórias ancestrais e o imaginário social, que caracterizam a explicação das pessoas que vivem próximas às estearias acerca da formação destes assentamentos indígenas e sua ancestralidade.
Pescadores – Coletores do Litoral Fluminense: novos olhares, velhos problemas
Authors: De Oliveira Nanci Vieira
Published: July 2020

O presente texto propõe realizar reflexões sobre o que fala a Arqueologia com relação aos sítios arqueológicos litorâneos, em especial os do Rio de Janeiro. Na década de 1980, as propostas histórico-culturais deram lugar para estudos sistemáticos voltados para respostas adaptativas das populações humanas em seus aspectos culturais e cronológicos. Estudos do espaço social dos sítios litorâneos resultaram em discussões sobre identidade cultural. O deslocamento do olhar sobre o sítio isolado para o agrupamento contribuiu para a quebra de paradigma dos chamados “nômades” para grupos que ocuparam por longos períodos um território com abundância de recursos, em uma relativa sedentarização.