bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting: From Fundamentals to Advanced Applications
Authors: Bhatnagar Rahul , Yadav Varsha , Kumar Upendra , Carrasco Marcos Flores
Published: December 2024

Piezoelectric energy harvesting (PEH) has surfaced as an innovative technology for supplying power to low‐power electronic devices by converting mechanical energy into electrical energy. This technology utilizes the piezoelectric effect, in which specific materials produce an electric charge when they experience mechanical stress. Piezoelectric materials can be categorized into three main types: single crystal, composite, and polymeric. Single‐crystal materials exhibit elevated piezoelectric coefficients and stability; however, they tend to be costly and fragile. Composite materials integrate piezoelectric ceramics with polymer matrices, enhancing flexibility and lowering costs. Polymeric materials exhibit lightweight, flexible, and biocompatibility characteristics, rendering them ideal for wearable and implantable applications. Although PEH presents considerable promise, it is essential to tackle challenges, including low power output, material constraints, and environmental influences. Future investigations will focus on creating innovative materials that exhibit improved piezoelectric characteristics, refining device architecture for optimal energy conversion, and incorporating piezoelectric harvesting technology into intelligent systems. By addressing these challenges and investigating creative solutions, PEH can significantly advance sustainable and self‐powered electronic devices.
Investigating Salt‐Finger Convection Under Time‐Dependent Gravity Modulation in Micropolar Liquids
Authors: Jayan Devika , Tom Clair , Arun Kumar N.
Published: December 2024

This paper investigates how gravity modulation affects salt‐finger convection in a micropolar liquid layer confined between two parallel, infinitely long plates separated by a thin gap. The system is heated and has solute added from above. The study uses linear stability analysis to examine when and how salt‐finger convection, driven by the salt‐finger process, begins. To analyze this, the partial differential equations governing the system are solved numerically using normal mode analysis. The Venezian approach is applied to find the critical Rayleigh number and the solutal Rayleigh number, which are key to understanding the onset of convection. Also, the paper explores how different micropolar fluid parameters—such as the coupling parameter, micropolar heat conduction parameter, couple stress parameter, and inertia parameter—affect the system when gravity modulation is present. It is found that gravity modulation can either stabilize or destabilize convection, depending on its frequency. At very high frequencies (approaching infinity), the effect of gravity modulation becomes minimal, having little impact on the convection process. The paper also examines the relationship between the critical Rayleigh number and the solutal Rayleigh number, which are related to heat and solute concentration, respectively.
Profitability and Bank De‐Branching in the Digital Age: Evidence From Russian Regions
Authors: Zimin Evgenii , Semenova Maria
Published: December 2024

This study examines the relationship between bank de‐branching and profitability in Russian regions depending on the region's internet infrastructure development and financial digital literacy. Using data from 84 Russian regions from 2010 to 2020 and panel data analysis techniques, we test whether the adequacy of internet infrastructure for online banking and financial digital literacy are positively related to bank de‐branching and whether they add to bank de‐branching efficiency in terms of bank profitability. We show that a higher degree of the region's internet infrastructure development and higher levels of financial digital literacy are positively related to bank de‐branching. We observe that banks closing their branches in regions exhibiting higher levels of internet development and financial digital literacy gain more profit from de‐branching. This study adds to the literature by being the first to examine whether financial digital literacy and the development of internet technologies enhance the positive effect of bank de‐branching on bank profitability.
At the Cybersecurity Frontier: Key Strategies and Persistent Challenges for Business Leaders
Authors: Balzano Marco , Marzi Giacomo
Published: December 2024

This study disentangles the cybersecurity landscape, highlighting its strategic role in contemporary digital environments. Aligned with modern holistic management approaches, it uncovers key insights and strategic imperatives by distilling core lessons and identifying ongoing challenges in the field. We emphasize significant contributions to understanding enduring lessons and addressing unresolved challenges in cybersecurity literature. The findings underscore the relevance of adopting a strategic approach to cybersecurity, one that balances technological solutions with human behavior, training, and awareness. Additionally, the study examines the evolving nature of cyber threats, the impact of legal and regulatory frameworks, and ethical dilemmas, emphasizing the need for continuous adaptation and proactive management in the face of increasingly sophisticated digital risks.
The Impact of Board Structure, IT Governance, and Fintech on Green Finance and Sustainability: An Integrated Model
Authors: Almaqtari Faozi A. , Rehman Sheena , Nigam Sadichha , Khan Mohsin
Published: December 2024

The purpose of this study is to investigate the association between board structure, IT governance strategies, innovation, Financial Technologies, green finance, and sustainability performance in Indian banks. The research utilizes a survey of 210 participants drawn from Indian banks. To estimate the results, the study used descriptive statistics and structural equation modeling. The results reveal that a well‐board structure is associated with higher levels of innovation, while the link between board strategic focus and innovation was found to be weak. The findings also indicate that good IT governance leads to good FinTech practices. Further, the results indicate that IT governance and green finance projects are not well aligned. Moreover, the results show that sustainability performance does not appear to be significantly influenced by either green business activities or green investment projects, possibly because green initiatives often have long‐term effects and may not provide noticeable returns over the short run. Therefore, banks need to enhance the integration of innovation, IT governance, and FinTech into board strategies to include more focused green initiatives and projects. The research contributes to academia and practice by integrating various theoretical and practical perspectives, focusing on the intersection of board structures, IT governance strategies, innovation decisions, Fintech integration, green business project execution, and sustainability performance within corporate governance. The findings could shape regulatory frameworks and environmental and social policy debates, enhancing sustainable performance and providing empirical information from real‐world perspectives.
Interpenetrating Network Strategy for Highly Effective Toughening of Epoxy Resin Using Cellulose Microgels
Authors: Li Bingbing , Liao Liqiong , Shi Zhiping , Li Kai , Li Xiang
Published: December 2024

Epoxy resin (EP) is widely used in coatings, adhesives, and molding materials. EP's high crosslinking density provides a strong modulus but also leads to reduced elongation at break and lower toughness. In this study, bacterial cellulose microgel (BC‐M) is employed to toughen EP through in situ polymerization, to form an interpenetrating network with EP. Bacterial cellulose nanofibers (BC‐CNF) and ethylated bacterial cellulose microgels (EM) are used as controls to highlight the advantages of the 3D network in enhancing polymer toughness. BC‐M demonstrates the most effective toughening performance for EP. At a filler content of 0.3 wt.%, BC‐M/EP nanocomposites exhibite significant improvements in mechanical properties, including a fracture strength of 107.8 MPa, strain of 3.53%, Young's modulus of 3.09 GPa, and toughness of 1.98 kJ m−3. Compared to EP, these values represent enhancements of 40%, 9.5%, 27.3%, and 58.4%, respectively. Comparisons with BC‐CNF/EP and EM/EP nanocomposites clearly demonstrate that BC‐M provided superior toughening effects. The exceptional toughening capability of BC‐M is attributed to its 3D network structure, which effectively dissipates applied energy, and its strong interfacial interaction with the epoxy matrix through covalent bonding.
How Women and Men with Parkinson's Disease Approach Decision‐Making for Deep Brain Stimulation Surgery
Authors: Fullard Michelle E. , Dafoe Ashley , Shelton Erika , Kern Drew S. , Matlock Dan D. , Morris Megan A.
Published: December 2024

Background

Women make up only 23% to 30% of recipients for deep brain stimulation (DBS) surgery for Parkinson's disease (PD), a discrepancy that is not accounted for by differences in disease incidence. One of the many factors that may contribute to this gap includes gender differences in decision‐making.

Objective

The aim was to explore how women and men approach the decision for DBS in terms of informational needs, weighing risks and benefits, and decision‐making.

Methods

Semistructured interviews were conducted with 33 participants with PD who had undergone DBS evaluation within the past 3 years. Data were analyzed using content analysis.

Results

Sixteen women and 17 men participated in interviews. We identified 4 key themes. First, information sources were similar between women and men, and they valued hearing personal experiences. Second, the motivations for DBS surgery were often very personal. Third, the decision‐making process occurred over time, sometimes years. Fourth, although many expressed fear of brain surgery, trust in the surgeon helped many overcome this fear. Women overall had less support than men during decision‐making and after surgery. Women also placed greater value on talking to other women who had undergone DBS, although they had a hard time finding these women. Men, on the contrary, were less often worried about support and valued numerical information when weighing risks and benefits.

Conclusion

We found gender differences in information needs, support, motivating factors, and how patients weighed risks and benefits. These differences can be used to inform educational tools and counseling for DBS.
Approximation Algorithm for the Minimum Interval Partial Multi‐Cover Problem
Authors: Ran Yingli , Jin Jianhong , Zhang Zhao
Published: December 2024

Given a set of points on a line, a set of intervals along the line and an integer , each point is associated with a covering requirement , the goal of the minimum interval partial multi‐cover (MinIPMC) problem is to select the minimum number of intervals to fully cover at least points, where a point is fully covered if it belongs to at least selected intervals. This paper presents a 2‐approximation algorithm for the MinIPMC problem.
The World Intellectual Property Organization Treaty on genetic resources and traditional knowledge: Implications for plant science
Authors: Jefferson David J.
Published: December 2024

Societal Impact Statement

The recently adopted World Intellectual Property Organization Treaty on Intellectual Property, Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional Knowledge (“WIPO Treaty”) is the latest in a series of international legal frameworks designed to strike an appropriate balance between access to genetic and knowledge resources, and their utilization. This opinion piece argues that although the WIPO Treaty is an important milestone in international lawmaking related to the protection of Indigenous peoples' knowledge and resources, it is unlikely to significantly alter extant scientific practices. Therefore, more work will still need to be done to ensure equity in the development of plant‐based innovations.

Concerns about the sourcing of materials and information used in plant breeding and related scientific fields have been widespread for decades. Generally, these preoccupations are rooted in historical and ongoing inequalities, particularly the fact that the benefits resulting from scientific and commercial exploitation of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge are rarely shared with the people and communities from which they originate. Since the early 1990s, multiple international treaties and national laws have been designed to address concerns over the misappropriation of genetic resources and traditional knowledge, creating a complex web of legal obligations that scientists and research administrators need to navigate. Most recently, in May 2024 the members of the World Intellectual Property Organization adopted a Treaty on Intellectual Property, Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional Knowledge (“WIPO Treaty”, 2024). This opinion piece focuses on the new WIPO Treaty and examines its likely impact on plant breeding and other scientific fields that rely on plant genetic resources. Ultimately, the article argues that the WIPO Treaty is unlikely to add significant impediments to the work of scientists beyond the requirements already imposed under the Convention on Biological Diversity (“CBD”) and its Nagoya Protocol. However, the WIPO Treaty likely will result in the introduction of new administrative requirements for patent filing in many jurisdictions, which may create additional burdens for research administrators, such as personnel in university technology transfer offices.
Characteristics and projected changes in maximum daily precipitation across the globe
Authors: Uchale Nishant N. , Singh Bhupendra Bahadur
Published: December 2024

Research indicates a notable rise in extreme precipitation events across the globe in association with a warmed climate. A considerable chunk of such assessments focuses either on global land areas or specific regions, and these have often been reported on an annual basis. However, it is crucial to note that significant monthly variations occur in the precipitation regimes, especially during seasonal transitions. This research evaluates the statistical characteristics of extreme precipitation globally in observations and Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 model projections. Our assessment focuses on maximum daily precipitation on an annual, seasonal, and monthly scale globally for both historical and future climate in the 21st century. The historical assessment is conducted based on the 1980–2014 period, whereas the future climate is sectioned into near future (2040–2060) and far future (2070–2090) focusing on two emission scenarios: SSP245 and SSP585. Monthly assessments of maximum daily precipitation indicate an expansion in the probability density curve's width starting from the boreal winter season going into the peak‐to‐late summer season both in observations and model simulations. Transitioning between unimodal and bimodal distributions in density curves indicates the appearance of one more class of grid points that receive higher precipitation; for example, over the land. Despite large inter‐model spread, future projections assessed based on multimodel mean reveal a substantial rise in maximum daily precipitation in a warmer climate. The reported increase in the intensity of maximum daily precipitation compared with historical climate outweighs the decrease by at least a factor of 1.2 in both scenarios, which is, further, more prominent in SSP585. A large decrease and increase in the intensity of extremes indicates that it may become more variable and intense in future. Additionally, land regions, particularly along the intertropical convergence zone and global monsoon domains, are expected to exhibit more pronounced intensification in future, whereas the decline is mostly confined to tropical–subtropical oceanic regions.
A Novel Nonsingular Fast Fixed‐Time Sliding Mode Control and Its Application to Satellite Attitude Control
Authors: Barman Saumitra , Sinha Manoranjan
Published: December 2024

In this paper, a Lyapunov‐like sufficient condition for the fast fixed‐time stability of autonomous systems is proposed. The proposed fast fixed‐time stability theorem ensures a smaller upper bound on the convergence time than the existing fixed‐time stability theorems. The fixed‐time sliding mode controls require switching from the fixed‐time sliding surface to the general sliding surface in the vicinity of the origin to avoid non‐differentiability at that point. It is demonstrated that the switching method converges the system states either to a residual set around the equilibrium point or directly to the equilibrium point, depending on the tuning parameter settings. To address this issue, a new nonsingular sliding surface is proposed based on the fast fixed‐time stability theorem. This approach ensures singularity‐free convergence of the system states to the equilibrium point without additional switching logic for the sliding surfaces or any constraints on tuning parameters. Furthermore, a novel continuous adaptive fast fixed‐time sliding mode control (AFFTSMC) law is proposed for attitude control of a satellite in the presence of the satellite inertia uncertainty and unknown upper‐bounded external disturbance torques. The proposed AFFTSMC law ensures chattering‐free and singularity‐free satellite attitude control. Simulation results are presented for both rest‐to‐rest and tracking attitude maneuvers of a satellite, demonstrating the superiority of the proposed controller.
A Versatile Method to Produce Monomodal Nano‐ to Micro‐Fiber Fragments as Fillers for Biofabrication
Authors: Lamberger Zan , Priebe Vivien , Ryma Matthias , Lang Gregor
Published: December 2024

A key goal of biofabrication is the production of 3D tissue models with biomimetic properties. In natural tissues, fibrils—mainly composed of collagen—play a critical role in stabilizing and spatially organizing the extracellular matrix. To use biomimetic fibers for reinforcing bioinks in 3D printing, fiber fragmentation is necessary to prevent nozzle clogging. However, existing fragmentation methods are often material‐specific, poorly scalable, and provide limited control over fragment size and shape. A novel workflow is introduced for producing fiber fragments applicable to various materials and fabrication techniques such as electrospinning, melt‐electrowriting, fused deposition modeling, wet spinning, and microfluidic spinning. The method uses a sacrificial membrane as a substrate for precise cryo‐sectioning of fibers. A significant advantage is that no additional handling steps, such as fiber detachment or transfer, are needed, resulting in highly reproducible fiber sectioning with a quasi‐monodisperse length distribution. The membrane can be rolled before cutting, preventing fibers from sticking together and significantly increasing production efficiency. This method is also versatile, applicable to multiple fiber types and materials without re‐parameterization. Cell culture experiments demonstrate that the fibers maintain key properties necessary for cell‐fiber interactions, making them suitable for systematic screenings in the development of anisotropic 3D tissue models.
Water utilization practices and wastage at household level: A case study of Lahore City
Authors: Chaudhry Anam , Khan Hina , Mahmood Yasar , Karim Amber , Shah Gulzar , Aslam Muhammad
Published: December 2024

The current research places its emphasis on addressing the issue of water shortage, which, if left unaddressed, could hinder sustainable development in the broader Punjab region, with a particular focus on the city of Lahore. In pursuit of our research objectives, we conducted a comprehensive survey that involved 600 households within Lahore. Our research methodology included the usage of both quantitative and qualitative analysis which included interviews and snowball sampling. Our findings indicate a clear and direct correlation between water shortage and patterns of water utilization and wastage. The absence of sustainable strategies to ensure adequate water supply, efficient resource management, and universal sanitation poses a substantial threat to our future. To address water shortages, it is crucial to encourage the use of water‐saving appliances and fixtures like toilets, low‐flow faucets, and showerheads. The purpose of these measures is to conserve water and align it with sustainable development goals by encouraging resource utilization that is efficient, minimizing environmental impact. By implementing these solutions, both households and border areas can benefit from significant water‐saving practices. Consequently, we recommend that the government implement targeted programs aimed at raising awareness among individuals about responsible water usage and reducing wasteful practices within households.
Predicted effect of the grand Ethiopian renaissance dam on the Epilimnion temperature in the high Aswan dam reservoir
Authors: Alsadeq Mai Wagih , Nassar Yasmin , Eldayem Ahmed Wagdy Abd
Published: December 2024

The Nile River is a crucial geopolitical water stream. The construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) on the Blue Nile poses significant challenges for downstream countries, including Egypt. The GERD will be the largest hydroelectric power plant in Africa and the seventh in the world. This led many researchers to investigate the impacts of the dam construction on water quantity, agriculture, power generation, and the environment. This study aims to investigate some of the environmental impacts of the operation of the GERD on the High Aswan Dam (HAD) reservoir. Water level fluctuations due to the operation of the GERD will directly affect the thermodynamics of the HAD reservoir. As a result, the vertical distribution of heat will be altered assuming the incoming solar radiation will remain the same. Studies indicate that the water level in the HAD reservoir will decline by 10–27 m, due to the filling of the reservoir upstream of the GERD over the next few years. To quantify the change in temperature, the heat content for the reservoir is calculated pre‐ and post‐dam operation. Moreover, a one‐dimensional simulation model, DYnamic REservoir Simulation Model (DYRESM), was used to simulate the change in thermal stratification of the HAD reservoir pre‐ and post‐GERD operation. Results showed that the epilimnion temperature is expected to increase during summer from an average of 31.9°C pre the GERD operation to 33.7°C post the GERD operation. Consequently, this is expected to affect the ecosystem in the reservoir. The findings of this study highlight the significant environmental impacts of the GERD on HAD reservoir. To mitigate these impacts and ensure the sustainable management of water resources in the Nile River basin, it is imperative to implement comprehensive policies and strategies.
Introduction to Part I
Authors: Christians Allison
Published: December 2024

The Chapters in this Part introduce readers to the multifaceted and interconnected governance aspects of tax, trade, and investment regimes. Navigating these regimes, states find themselves contending with conflicting and sometimes mutually exclusive policy choices, necessitating difficult tradeoffs among internal goals as well as between domestic and international goals. The chapters demonstrate that there is very little policy coherence across the global regulatory areas, and that policymakers do not always seem to acknowledge the inconsistency of their own approaches in each area. In some cases, national policy choices respecting cross-border taxation seem to conflict directly with competing national policy goals in cross-border trade and investment. In other cases, national policy choices in one area seem to be constrained by pre-existing international obligations in another. Sometimes, national policy choices seem wholly constrained by historical international ones. When a need for reform in one area arises, multilaterally embedded policy choices in the other areas may interfere if not prevent reform. Each chapter in this Part examines various aspects of these conflicts, with an eye to understanding the legal, social, economic, and distributive aspects of the contemporary tax, trade, and investment landscape.
Introduction to Part III
Authors: Heitmüller Frederik
Published: December 2024

The chapters in this part deal with overlaps of the policy areas of tax, trade, and investment. Complementing the focus on interactions at the governance level adopted in Part I of this book, the chapters in this part focus on individual cases to show how interlinkages between the different areas play out within specific international agreements and in cases heard by investment tribunals.
A Survey and Critique of International Tax Governance Reform
Authors: Brown Karen B.
Published: December 2024

The most far-reaching international tax reform proposal in nearly 100 years, the Base Erosion Profit Shifting (BEPS) project, unfolded under the auspices of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) largely without input from the non-OECD member nations in Sub-Saharan Africa. That area hard hit by the multiple calamities of Covid-19 and other devastating diseases, climate change, inflation engendered by wars waged inside and outside its confines, debt service, and other revenue drains has been designated as key to the survival of the remainder of the world. The prospect of the future progression of tax reform without meaningful initial input from the Sub-Saharan region is untenable. A truly inclusive global tax governance process will restore legitimacy and integrity to reform efforts.
International Tax and Investment Policy: Navigating Competing Demands
Authors: Kuhn Katharina
Published: December 2024

Since the start of the OECD’s BEPS Initiative, the international tax regime has witnessed an unprecedented degree of multilateralization. While the initiative seeks to increase revenues around the world by reducing tax competition and tax evasion, the situation is more complex for capital-importing economies that use preferential tax regimes to attract FDI as part of their economic development strategy. The Global Anti-Base Erosion (GloBE) rules constrain the policy space of capital-importing economies to offer tax incentives that would reduce the effective tax rate (ETR) of certain multinational enterprises (MNEs) in their jurisdiction below 15%. At the same time, however, international tax policy also contains a reputational dimension that should not be overlooked. This chapter argues that multilateral tax governance confronts policymakers in capital-importing economies with competing demands: while on the one hand participation in multilateral tax governance frameworks may enhance the reputation of a jurisdiction by signalling adherence to best practices in international tax policy, it curtails the scope for offering tax incentives to attract FDI. As a result, policymakers in capital-importing economies need to balance two potentially contradicting policy goals: the ability to safeguard their policy space for investment-oriented tax policy and the reputation of their jurisdiction building on legal and tax certainty and ‘good tax governance’. This chapter maps the interactions of both policy goals under the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on BEPS and the 2021 Two-Pillar Solution.
The Tax Carve-Out Clause in International Investment Law
Authors: Córdoba Paloma García
Published: December 2024

This chapter thoroughly examines the substantive role and inherent attributes of tax carve-out clauses in International Investment Agreements (IIAs), emphasizing their critical importance in the relationship between International Investment Law and International Tax Law. These provisions are strategically designed to exclude taxation matters from the scope of IIAs. Nonetheless, the inconsistency in their drafting and the usage of imprecise terminology in the design of these clauses present interpretational concerns. This analysis, therefore, explains the crucial role of tax carve-out clauses within the context of IIAs.
Competition and Complementarity of EU and FATF Beneficial Ownership Transparency Orders
Authors: Ates Leyla , Knobel Andres , Lorenzo Florencia , Meinzer Markus
Published: December 2024

The legal order of responses to the lack of beneficial ownership has gone beyond domestic to transnational norms. The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and the EU are two prominent actors in this regard. Initially, the EU complemented the FATF only when it set its first international beneficial ownership standard in 2003. However, more recently, the EU has begun to differentiate its legal scope by taking measures ahead of the FATF’s standard in terms of the ambition to go beyond the status quo. Considering the overlap in geographic scope, such divergence means competition between the two transnational legal orders. This conclusion presents a challenge to the conventional view of the interdependent relationship between the anti-money laundering systems of two organizations. Such competition for transnational norm-making can spur the development of beneficial ownership transparency norms for the benefit of all nations. However, in 2022, the European Court of Justice resisted the EU’s standard-setter role in a preliminary ruling case brought by a national court. This shows that the EU must be aware of the recursive interaction between transnational and national judicial forums to develop a beneficial ownership transparency order that may interfere with the normative settlement. Otherwise, the EU falters its global standard-setter role.
Human Defensins: Structure, Function, and Potential as Therapeutic Antimicrobial Agents with Highlights Against SARS CoV-2
Authors: Nagib Maryam , Sayed Ahmed M. , Korany Ahmed H. , Abdelkader Karim , Shari Falah H. , Mackay William G. , Rateb Mostafa E.
Published: December 2024

The human defensins are a group of cationic antimicrobial peptides that range in size from 2 to 5 kDa and share a common structural motif of six disulphide-linked cysteines. Several naturally occurring human α- and β-defensins have been identified over the past two decades. They have a wide variety of antimicrobial effects, and their potential to avoid the development of resistance to antimicrobial treatment makes them attractive as therapeutic agents. Human defensins have recently been the focus of medical and molecular biology studies due to their promising application in medicine and the pharmaceutical industry. This work aims to provide a comprehensive summary of the current developments of human defensins, including their identification, categorization, molecular features, expression, modes of action, and potential application in medical settings. Current obstacles and future opportunities for using human defensins are also covered. Furthermore, we shed light on the potential of this class as an antiviral agent, particularly against SARS CoV-2, by providing an in silico-based investigation of their plausible mechanisms of action.
Integrating the metabolic and molecular circuits in diabetes, obesity and cancer: a comprehensive review
Authors: Anand Shrikirti , Patel Trupti N.
Published: December 2024

The progressive globalization of sedentary lifestyles and diets rich in lipids and processed foods has caused two major public health hazards—diabetes and obesity. The strong interlink between obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus and their combined burden encompass them into a single term ‘Diabesity’. They have also been tagged as the drivers for the onset of cancer. The clinical association between diabetes, obesity, and several types of human cancer demands an assessment of vital junctions correlating the three. This review focuses on revisiting the molecular axis linking diabetes and obesity to cancer through pathways that get imbalanced owing to metabolic upheaval. We also attempt to describe the functional disruptions of DNA repair mechanisms due to overwhelming oxidative DNA damage caused by diabesity. Genomic instability, a known cancer hallmark results when DNA repair does not work optimally, and as will be inferred from this review the obtruded metabolic homeostasis in diabetes and obesity creates a favorable microenvironment supporting metabolic reprogramming and enabling malignancies. Altered molecular and hormonal landscapes in these two morbidities provide a novel connection between metabolomics and oncogenesis. Understanding various aspects of the tumorigenic process in diabesity-induced cancers might help in the discovery of new biomarkers and prompt targeted therapeutic interventions.

Graphical Abstract
Applying Budyko framework to explore the projected hydrologic changes in southern Taiwan
Authors: Kuo Chen-Min , Chen Yan-Zhi , Chen Shien-Tsung
Published: December 2024

This study combines future rainfall and temperature projections with the Budyko framework to analyze future water resource changes in four key watersheds in southern Taiwan under climate change scenarios. Since only temperature and rainfall data are available in the future climate change projections, the future evapotranspiration projections are estimated by this study. This study establishes Budyko equations of each watershed, using historical evapotranspiration and temperature data along with potential evapotranspiration estimates, to project future evapotranspiration based on future temperature and rainfall data. The future rainfall is expected to gradually increase, with the most significant increase under the SSP5-8.5 scenario. However, the rainfall increase varies with the geographical location (latitude) of the watershed, with higher rainfall increases in northern watersheds, such as Zengwen, Jiaxian, and Nanhua. Moreover, the projected evapotranspiration differs in watersheds in southern Taiwan indicating the uncertainty and challenge of evapotranspiration projection under climate change. The future runoff projections indicate an increasing trend with a significant increase (13.4–20.3%) by the end of the century (2081–2100), due to projected increases in rainfall and minor changes in evapotranspiration. The projected increase in runoff implies an optimistic outlook in water resources planning and management, but may pose a threat in flood disasters due to increased rainfall in the wet season.
Inescapable Entrapments?
Authors: Grandia Mantas Mirjam
Published: December 2024

Inescapable Entrapments? reevaluates the role of the military in foreign policy by comparing the decision-making processes behind British and Dutch military action in Afghanistan. Drawing on more than one hundred interviews, this study finds that neither the military nor the government influenced the other to act; rather, the decision to deploy troops to Afghanistan emerged organically from a series of prior transnational commitments.
THE USE OF SCIENTIFIC EXPERTS IN ENVIRONMENTAL CASES BEFORE THE EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS
Authors: Keller Helen , Ganesan Pranav
Published: December 2024

This article argues that the current approach of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) to evaluating scientific evidence is lacking and hampers its ability to properly handle cases involving questions of science, and particularly environmental cases which are replete with them. It identifies three problem areas in relation to the ECtHR's adjudication of such cases: the evaluation of evidence proving the causation of harm; the extent of the Court's deference to the determinations made by national authorities; and the Court's evaluation of evidence adduced by the respondent State in justifying its conduct as being in line with the standard of due diligence. Several cases that illustrate the recurring problem of the lack of science-based reasoning in the Court's judgments are then identified, highlighting the shortcomings of its approach. Such issues have an impact upon the legitimacy of the ECtHR, and it is therefore imperative that it engages more robustly with scientific evidence. The article suggests the best way to do this would be for the ECtHR to make more use of its power to seek assistance from independent scientific experts in environmental cases.
CONTROL MECHANISMS IN MULTILATERAL INVESTMENT TRIBUNALS: NAVIGATING PROCEDURAL MULTILATERALISM AND SUBSTANTIVE BILATERALISM
Authors: Paine Joshua
Published: December 2024

A future multilateral investment court (MIC) or multilateral appellate mechanism (MAM) will operate on a plurilateral basis, among States that become parties to the tribunal's constitutive instrument and grant it jurisdiction over disputes under their investment treaties. The creation of a MIC or MAM would involve a significant strengthening and centralization of dispute settlement institutions in the investment treaty regime, which is already overly dependent on law-development by adjudicators, reflected in well-established concerns about loss of State control. Thus, a key challenge in designing a MIC or MAM is to incorporate appropriate control mechanisms that will enable State input, without unduly undermining a MIC or MAM's independence. This article analyses control mechanisms in a MIC or MAM, considering a wide range of questions of institutional design. It highlights two fundamental tensions. One is the tension between independence and accountability. The other tension is between procedural multilateralism and substantive bilateralism. While the procedural law in a MIC or MAM will have been multilateralized, the substantive law the tribunal will interpret and apply will remain contained in mostly bilateral investment treaties, controlled by the parties to those agreements. This article addresses the challenges of designing a multilateral tribunal for a regime that lacks multilateral substantive law and contributes to wider debates over striking an appropriate balance between international judicial independence and Member State control.
WOLFGANG FRITZ VOLBACH COME MUSEOLOGO A ROMA. UNA RIFLESSIONE CON TESTI INEDITI
Authors: Cecalupo Chiara
Published: December 2024

L'articolo si propone di presentare lo storico dell'arte paleocristiana e bizantina tedesco Wolfgang Fritz Volbach (1892–1988) come museologo, alla luce di alcune ricerche recenti, di nuove acquisizioni documentarie e di una più ampia rassegna della sua attività tra Magonza, Berlino e Roma. Il testo si concentra sul suo periodo romano (e in particolare vaticano), sia in qualità di precoce professore di museologia al Pontificio Istituto di Archeologia Cristiana di Roma, sia come attivo collaboratore nella riorganizzazione del Museo Sacro della Biblioteca Vaticana. Si riflette poi anche sulle sue idee di museologo, attingendo ai suoi testi critici e ai musei in cui ha lavorato tra Berlino e Magonza.
Before astropolitics: Ratzel, Schmitt, and the question of cosmic colonisation
Authors: Klinke Ian
Published: December 2024

This paper seeks to open an inquiry into the origins of astropolitics, an intellectual and popular imagination whose defining characteristic is the attempt to project geopolitical concepts and categories into outer space. I locate the roots of this vision not merely in Anglo-American maritime strategy but in the rather earthlier German tradition of geopolitics, more specifically in the work of the geographer Friedrich Ratzel and the political theorist Carl Schmitt. Surprisingly, however, my reverse chronology discovers that although the two men’s ideas reverberate through contemporary astropolitical discourses, they were both in fact, in different ways and for different reasons, hesitant about space colonisation. The paper makes sense of this finding and unpacks its implications for contemporary International Relations debates on off-earth politics.
Green Pan-Africanism: Normative power and the making of a regional sustainability order
Authors: Mbeva Kennedy
Published: December 2024

This article examines the role of normative power in shaping the global sustainability order. It challenges the prevailing focus on hegemonic leadership and norm diffusion from dominant states, arguing that less powerful states have contributed significantly to the global order by creating regional initiatives tailored to their unique contexts. The article adopts an alternative theoretical framework of norm-governed change, comprising norm-building, institutionalisation, and transformation. Using an illustrative case study of Africa’s regional economic institutions, it employs process-tracing and archival analysis of key policy documents. The study demonstrates how African states have proactively embedded environmental norms within their regional initiatives, while contributing to the global sustainability agenda, exemplifying a form of normative power referred to as ‘Green Pan-Africanism’. This approach broadens the understanding of global sustainability governance, positioning less economically powerful actors as active participants in world-making. The findings highlight the critical role of normative power in advancing global sustainability governance, particularly in addressing complex global challenges such as climate change.
Evaluations of digital public health interventions in the WHO Southeast Asia Region: a systematic literature review
Authors: Gudi Nachiket , Raj Elstin Anbu , Jahn Beate , Siebert Uwe , Brand Angela
Published: December 2024

Introduction

Digital health technologies have been enhancing the capacity of healthcare providers and, thereby, the delivery of targeted health services. The Southeast Asia Region (SEAR) has invested in strengthening digital public health. Many digital health interventions have been implemented in public health settings but are rarely assessed using the holistic health technology assessment (HTA) approach.

Methods

A systematic literature review was performed to provide an overview of evaluations of digital public health interventions in the World Health Organization (WHO) SEAR. Searches were conducted on four electronic databases. Screening title abstracts and full texts was independently conducted by two reviewers, followed by data extraction. Dimensions of HTA were analyzed against the EUnetHTA Core Model 3.0. Quality assessment of included articles was conducted using the JBI Checklist for Economic Evaluation and Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards 2022 checklist to assess the reporting quality. The findings are presented using systematic evidence tables and bar charts.

Results

Of the forty-three studies screened at the full-text stage, thirteen studies conducted across six countries were included in the analysis. Telemedicine and m-health interventions were assessed in ten studies. Nine studies conducted cost-effectiveness analysis, and five assessments were conducted from a societal perspective. Four studies utilized more than one perspective for the assessment. Health problem definition and current use of technology, description and technical characteristics of the technology, clinical effectiveness, costs, economic evaluation, and organizational aspects were assessed by all the studies, whereas legal aspects were least assessed.

Conclusion

The lack of HTAs on digital public health interventions in the region highlights the need for capacity-building efforts.
How harmful information on social media impacts people affected by armed conflict: A typology of harms
Authors: Ulbricht Bailey , Rizk Joelle
Published: December 2024

Armed conflict presents a multitude of risks to civilians, prisoners of war and others caught in the middle of hostilities. Harmful information spreading on social media compounds such risks in a variety of tangible ways, from potentially influencing acts that cause physical harm to undermining a person's financial stability, contributing to psychological distress, spurring social ostracization and eroding societal trust in evidentiary standards, among many others. Despite this span of risks, no typology exists that maps the full range of such harms. This article attempts to fill this gap, proposing a typology of harms related to the spread of harmful information on social media platforms experienced by persons affected by armed conflict. Developed using real-world examples, it divides potential harm into five categories: harms to life and physical well-being, harms to economic or financial well-being, harms to psychological well-being, harms to social inclusion or cultural well-being, and society-wide harms. After detailing each component of the typology, the article concludes by laying out several implications, including the need to view harmful information as a protection risk, the importance of a conflict-specific approach to harmful information, the relevance of several provisions under international law, and the possible long-term consequences for societies from harmful information.

The information used for this typology is based entirely on open-source reporting covering acts that occurred during armed conflict and that were seemingly related to identified harmful information on social media platforms or messaging applications. The authors did not verify any reported incidents or information beyond what was included in cited sources. Throughout the article, sources have been redacted from citations where there is a risk of reprinting harmful information or further propagating it, and where redaction was necessary to avoid the impression that the authors were attributing acts to particular groups or actors.
Niche small States in humanitarian diplomacy: Qatar's positionality in the protection ecosystem
Authors: Barakat Sultan
Published: December 2024

Humanitarian diplomacy emerged as a concept in the 2000s to describe the vital work effected by non-State humanitarian organizations to negotiate access, protect civilians and uphold humanitarian principles. This paper charts the rise of State-led humanitarian diplomacy in the Middle East, arguing for the need to expand the conventional lens that is focused on non-State actors. It does so through a detailed examination of Qatar, a case study that has emerged over the last two decades as a significant State actor engaging in a range of forms of humanitarian diplomacy. Following a brief theoretical examination of the concept of humanitarian diplomacy, the paper describes Qatar's role in humanitarian diplomacy in relation to the changing context of armed conflict and humanitarian response in the Middle East. It then presents a categorization of Qatar's humanitarian diplomacy, employing a framework structured around multiple levels including practice, policy and normative/ideational, carried out by both non-State and State actors. Finally, the paper reflects on the significance of Qatar's experience and the implications it may have on the conduct of humanitarian diplomacy in the region, and in particular what a niche small State can do to contribute to the protection of the humanitarian sphere.
Technostress in der Psychiatrie
Authors: Bieri Jannic , Golz Christoph
Published: December 2024

Was ist zu diesem Thema bereits bekannt?

Technologische Fortschritte treiben die Digitalisierung in psychiatrischen Kliniken an. Doch die Digitalisierung bringt nicht nur Vorteile mit sich.

Wie wird eine neue Perspektive eingebracht?

Der Artikel fokussiert auf die Auswirkungen von Technostress in verschiedenen Gesundheitsberufen in der Psychiatrie und betont die digitale Kompetenz als Schlüssel zur Bewältigung von Technostress.

Was sind die Auswirkungen für die Praxis?

Praxisimplikationen betonen die Notwendigkeit, die digitale Kompetenz bei Gesundheitspersonal zu fördern, um langfristige Konsequenzen wie Burnout und frühen Berufsaustritt zu vermeiden.