bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
USP22-dependent accumulation of lipidomes drives hepatocellular carcinoma progression by stabilizing PPARγ
Authors: Ning Zhen , Guo Xin , Liu Xiaolong , Lu Chang , Wang Aman , Wang Xiaolin , Wang Wen , Chen Huan , Qin Wangshu , Liu Xinyu , Zhou Lina , Ma Chi , Du Jian , Lin Zhikun , Lou Haifeng , Otkur Wuxiyar , Qi Huan , Chen Di , Xia Tian , Liu Jiwei , Tan Guang , Xu Guowang , Piao Hai-long
Published: December 2020

Elevated de novo lipogenesis (DNL) is considered to be a crucial factor in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) development. However, the molecular mechanism for its occurrence in HCC is still unclear. Herein, we identified ubiquitin-specific protease 22 (USP22) as a key regulator for de novo fatty acid synthesis, which directly interacts with, deubiquitinates and stabilizes PPARγ through K48-linked deubiquitination, and in turn, this stabilization increases ACC and ACLY transcription. In addition, we found that USP22 promoted the de novo synthesis of fatty acid labeling from glucose tracers. USP22-dysregulated de novo fatty acid synthesis contributes to HCC progression, but USP22 was functionality suppressed by inhibiting the expression of PPARγ, ACLY, or ACC in in vitro cell proliferation and in vivo tumorigenesis experiments. In HCC, USP22 expression positively correlates with PPARγ expression, and simultaneously, high expression of USP22 and PPARγ or USP22, ACC and ACLY is associated with a poor prognosis. Taken together, we identified a previously undescribed USP22-regulated lipogenesis molecular mechanism that involves the PPARγ-ACLY/ACC axis in HCC tumorigenesis and provide a rationale for therapeutic targeting of lipogenesis via USP22 inhibition.
Zur Bedeutung des Nichtwissens und die Suche nach Problemlösungen
Authors: De Witt Claudia , Leineweber Christian
Published: December 2020

Als disruptive Technologie verändert und beeinflusst Künstliche Intelligenz fast alle menschlichen Lebensbereiche und stellt das Bild und die Bildung des Menschen auf die Probe. Dabei stellt gerade das Nichtwissen ein bedeutendes Unterscheidungsmerkmal zwischen Mensch und Maschine dar und treibt den Menschen in unsicheren Situationen zu Problemlösungen und Urteilen an. Diese Fähigkeiten machen die Einzigartigkeit des Menschen aus und bleiben auch in Zukunft eine wichtige Bildungsaufgabe. Medienpädagogik nimmt in dieser Konstellation eine Aufklärungs- und Gestaltungsfunktion für die Verbindung zwischen dem individuell bzw. sozial Kontingentem und den materiellen, technischen Umwelten ein. Im vorliegenden Beitrag werden diese Überlegungen anhand interdisziplinärer Theorieansätze begründet.
Partizipation durch Medienbildung – Medienbildung durch Partizipation
Authors: Hüpping Birgit , Kamin Anna-Maria
Published: December 2020

Medienbildung und partizipative Bildungszugänge werden mit Blick auf die Institution Grundschule vielfach noch als getrennte Handlungsfelder betrachtet, obwohl sie die gemeinsame Zielstellung von Teilhabe der Kinder verbindet. Vor dem Hintergrund des Modells einer partizipativen Mediendidaktik nach Mayrberger (2019) und der Methode der Aktiven Medienarbeit wird im Beitrag die Konzeption einer partizipativen Medienbildung unter Berücksichtigung der UN-Kinderrechtskonvention mit dem Recht der Kinder auf Meinungsäusserung und Einflussnahme entfaltet (United Nations 1989; UNICEF 2014). Der empirische Zugang erfolgt durch die qualitative Studie «Partizipation von Grundschulkindern im Umgang mit digitalen Medien in der Grundschule». Am Beispiel einer Kleingruppenarbeit zur Erstellung eines Trickfilms mit dem Tablet wird herausgearbeitet, dass partizipative Aushandlungsprozesse, in deren Rahmen Schülerinnen und Schüler ein hohes Mass an Selbstwirksamkeit und Einflussmöglichkeiten im Schulalltag erfahren, Voraussetzung für digitale Teilhabe sind. Deutlich wird aber auch, dass sowohl Verantwortungsabgabe vonseiten der Institutionen und Personen als auch Verantwortungsübernahme vonseiten der Kinder notwendig ist.
The Role of Knowledge Management for Industrial Safety Compliance
Authors: Pi Shih-Ming , Al-Zu’bi Ghassan Khaled
Published: December 2020

The paper investigates the role of knowledge management in safety compliance in the industrial sector. The article reveals that problems with safety compliance have a negative impact on the enterprises’ activity. It is emphasized that knowledge management, which has recently become a novel tendency in business, has a strong influence on the managerial activities of the enterprise. Different approaches to defining the concept of knowledge management are identified. The creation of knowledge management was supported by many political, social, economic, and technological factors, including a broader spread of information technologies systems in companies, communication opportunities in computer networks, the segmentation and specialization of skills, the mobility of the workforce, and intellectual assets as well as competitive problems in the business environment. The article represents and analyzes the most common and popular definitions of this concept. Safety compliance has a positive impact on the economic and non-economic activities of the enterprise. A systemic management approach to workplace safety and health in industries has been implemented for many years already. It was figured out that there is close relations between knowledge management and safety compliance. To be more specific the problems with safety compliance have a negative impact on the enterprises’ activity, so safety compliance should become the priority of the enterprises’ management. The article demonstrates what actions are needed for safety compliance applications and how they are connected with knowledge management steps. It was revealed that the positive impact of security measures (renewable employment, stable development of the enterprise, better ecological performance) are connected with enhanced financial and non-financial results of the enterprises’ activity and, as a result, with knowledge management. Keywords: knowledge management, safety compliance, sustainable development, safety, knowledge application, industry, safety training.
Economic and Legal Bases of Using Car-Sharing Business Models in Ukraine
Authors: Matsenko Oleksandr M. , Malanchuk Tetiana М. , Popov Vladyslav S. , Piven Vladyslav S. , Skrypka Evhenyi O.
Published: December 2020

This article summarizes the concept of sharing, bibliographic analysis of publications in the field of car-sharing based on the Scopus database. The primary purpose of the study is to study the economic and legal basis for the development of car-sharing business models in Ukraine. Systematization of literature sources and approaches devoted to the economic efficiency of the implementation of car-sharing business models has shown that in Ukraine, this issue is almost not paid attention to in the economic, scientific sphere, and legal, scientific areas. The urgency of solving this scientific problem lies in the need and ability to relieve road traffic from traffic jams, reducing the average downtime of vehicles, as well as economic benefits for entities (vehicle owners and passengers) involved in sharing business models. The research has the following logical sequence: the types of car-sharing business models were analyzed, and their comparative characteristics were carried out; the economic and legal preconditions of car-sharing business development in Ukraine are investigated. The research identifies legislative obstacles to the establishment of a car-sharing company in Ukraine. A SWOT analysis of the conditions for implementing a car-sharing business model in Ukraine was performed. It analyses the costs and efficiency of creating a business based on a car-sharing business model in Ukraine on a conditional example. We propose to use system-structural and comparative analysis to analyze the problems of modern transport, methods of formal-logical analysis for determining the directions of development of car-sharing business models, and economic method for assessing the effect and a payback period of the proposed project car-sharing business model. The study results can be useful for the development of the car-sharing business in Ukraine, for entrepreneurs, scientists, and vehicle owners. Keywords: car-sharing, car-sharing business model, car-sharing business, motor transport, hire, expenses, analysis.
Deshadowing the Economy as the Vector to Ensure Effective State Tax Policy
Authors: Kuznetsova Anzhela Ya. , Humenna Yuliia G.
Published: December 2020

The article is devoted to the study of the interconnection of tax policy indicators and the shadow economy in the complex interaction in the context of the country’s competitive tax system. Key indicators of tax policy implementation (total tax and contribution rates, number of taxes, time to administer taxes by economic entities) of Ukraine are compared with the countries of the European Union. The paper uses empirical correlation coefficients to determine the relationship between tax rates, tax revenues, and the level of economy shadowing, both for the Ukrainian economy and internationally. The dual role of the shadow economy in the use of the Laffer concept is substantiated. The key directions of the deshadowing policy of the economy of the country are identified. It will help to balance and increase the efficiency of the implementation of the mechanisms of taxation of economic entities.

Keywords: shadowing of the economy; tax policy; tax rate; tax revenues; tax burden; Laffer concept.
The significance of faith in the concept of integral knowledge of Vladimir Solovyov
Authors:   The Pontifical University of John Paul II in Krakow, Obolevitch Teresa
Published: December 2020

The article examines the role and place of faith in the concept of Vladimir Solovyov who is considered to be the creator of the first Russian philosophical system. The purpose of the article is to determine the epistemological and methodological significance of faith in Solovyov’s understanding as a special factor of cognition. In order to study this problem, a synthetic method of reconstruction of the thought of Solovyov as well as a method of philosophical analysis was used. First, Solovyov’s project of integral knowledge or free theosophy is presented, i. e. synthesis of philosophy, theology, and science. The suppositions of this concept are revealed and its polemical context is indicated, namely, Solovyov’s attempt to overcome the abstract or one-sided principles: reason, empirical experience, and faith in order to create an integral system that should unite all types of knowledge. In addition, philosophy as such corresponds to reason, science to experience, and theology to faith. The second part of the article is devoted to the epistemological aspects of faith in the concept of integral knowledge. It lies in the fact that each act of cognition begins with the assertion of the objective existence of its object, which Solovyov describes as faith in a broad sense of the word. Thus, faith has a universal significance as a necessary condition for the cognitive process. The third part of the article discusses the methodological aspect of faith as a key link in the system of integral knowledge. As a result, faith has a dominant role not only in theology, but in all spheres of knowledge, including philosophy and science. Thus, it is possible to conclude that there is no conflict between faith and reason; on the contrary, they complement each other. Solovyov’s position is still relevant nowadays.
The genesis of art and the digital age
Authors:   St. Petersburg State University, Drikker Alexander S. , Makovetsky Eugene A. ,   St. Petersburg State University
Published: December 2020

The complete translation of cultural heritage into a digital format acutely poses the question of art’s place in the digital era. The search for an answer is built upon the foundation of proposed evolutionary models of the genesis of art. Transitional periods from one historical cultural era to the next are characterized by a change in the most popular types of art. The establishment of one or another type of art is rigidly connected with the introduction of new data storage media and coding techniques. The constant increase in the variety of genres and media has culminated in the digital display. The appearance of a universal digital media must be reflected in the energetic reconstruction of the artistic world, but the birth of new types of art will lag behind. Moreover, the problem of the existence or non-existence of art also becomes relevant. In parallel with the elimination of literature, a virtual excarnation of object plasticity is occurring. It is possible that art is irreversibly forsaking sensual and bodily language, but the idea that it is using such an unexpected lexicon in an attempt to break through to the individual directly seems more productive. The purpose of art is to expand the space of consciousness. The digital age is distinguished by its possibility to transform this space in surprising ways. Digitalization of a work has a clear basic similarity to the physiological process of convolution of a sensory signal in the depths of the brain. Computer-based dipoles and neural synapses are binary structures, described in binary symbols. A work that has been translated into digits can be seen as the projection of a certain neural configuration that has come together in the depths of consciousness and is revealed in the form of an image. The likely prospects of obtaining, instead of projections, a multi-dimensional digital display, as well as the potential possibility for the psyche to adequately decipher it, portend a holistic reading of the work and even closer contact between the artist and the addressee. Right on the horizon is the path towards a synthesis of images that go beyond the limits of the usual forms and sensations. And nowadays unimaginable classes of feelings are capable of generating many vibrant “types and genres”. At the same time, threatening to the habitual methods of sensory perception and facilitating the liberation of the spirit, the excarnation of art works promise a categorically new stage in the genesis of art as well as a different level of creation and perception.
There are no languageless cultures, or on the relevance of Pyotr Bitsilli’s methodological strategy
Authors:   St. Petersburg State University, Shchedrina Irina O.
Published: December 2020

The intellectual heritage of thinkers of the Russian abroad today is increasingly attracting the attention of researchers of Russian philosophy of the first half of the 20 th century. Although the author clarifies, one can sometimes hear that we are talking about philosophers of a kind of “second place”, since thinkers of the level of Berdyaev, Shestov, and Stepun are already quite fully and comprehensively represented in the relevant literature. The author of the article believes that it is not enough to limit oneself to only historical-philosophical academic interest in turning to the work of philosophers of this era. With great attention and breadth, sometimes anew, to the ideas of thinkers of the Russian abroad, we are forced to turn to the changing socio-spiritual situation of our time. The processes of globalization, the contacts of cultures, and civilizations make their heritage extremely relevant today. A striking example of this is the work of Pyotr Bitsilli. Based on several of Bitsilli’s works, and in particular on his article Nation and Language, the author emphasizes the specific relevance of the methodological strategy of the philosopher and historian. In addition, the author reveals another specific aspect of Bitsilli’s methodology — the interdisciplinary nature of his research. It is the breadth of intellectual horizons, as well as in-depth knowledge in the field of philosophy, history, and linguistics, that distinguish Bitsilli. His work is gaining particular semantic fullness at present, when the themes of the nation, language, culture, as well as their correlation, are given new perspectives in modern socio-cultural dynamics. The author of the article suggests that hermeneutic and narrative approaches allow them to acquire specific features in the philosophical interpretations of Bitsilli.
BACK TO THE BEGINNING OF THE FUTURE: COMPARING DIGITAL POLICIES OF THE NETHERLANDS AND GERMANY
Authors:   St. Petersburg State University, Feenstra Christina Maria
Published: December 2020

The aim of this article is to compare the introduction of digital technologies in public administrations in the Netherlands and Germany. In academic research, models are developed to analyse the level of digitalization and performance of different organizations. Models serve to simplify reality in research, but the danger exists that this simplification starts to shape our understandings of different issues. In order for one to understand the current state of affairs, an understanding should be built towards the first initiatives regarding the digitalization of public administrations. Therefore, in this article, the policy notes of the Netherlands from 1995 and Germany from 2001 have been analysed and compared to determine the differences in designing and implementing digital technologies in public administrations. Different elements of the policy notes have been manually selected to offer a credible comparison of the two approaches towards digitalization. Due to the scope of this research, limited information has been provided about the influence of initiatives from the European level on the level of the Member States. The results show that both countries have a specific approach towards digitalization of public administration; the Netherlands focused on the utilization of the potential of digital technologies for her constitutional democracy. Germany, on the other hand, largely focused on developing the appropriate IT infrastructures as well as its central coordination. Finally, in the Netherlands, the government turned into a facilitator, enabling different actors to collaborate in numerous projects, with a strong focus on accessibility and inclusion. In Germany, despite the fact that the government already focused on the development and implementation of an IT infrastructure in the early 2000s, the focus is still laid on improving the digital infrastructure of the country.
Concerning the determination of the period of familiarization with the materials of the criminal case
Authors:   Vladivostok State University of Economics and Service, Vereshhagina Alla V.
Published: December 2020

Despite the variety of proposals to improve the completion of the preliminary investigation, they are mainly palliative. This is due that researchers count this institute is aprioristic. The article is devoted to only one element of the Institute — the establishment of the period of familiarization with the materials of the criminal case by the court. The initial research hypothesis was the assumption of abuse of procedural rights by participants in criminal proceedings when familiarizing themselves with the materials of the criminal case by retardation the procedure. The article analyses the judicial practice has confirmed this assumption. The analysis also revealed some peculiarities of law application in different regions, which are not essential. In addition, the study of court decisions, combined with an analysis of the existing norms, revealed a number of defects in the criminal procedure law, which nullify such procedural guarantees as the appeal of the court decision on the setting the deadline of familiarization with the materials of the criminal case and arraignment. The author came to the conclusion that it is necessary to radically modernize the procedure for the completion of criminal proceedings with the preparation of an indictment, since the available regulation creates the prerequisites for the falsification of evidence by both parties and does not contribute to the justice. The methodological basis of the research is the General philosophical principles of cognition of comprehensiveness, objectivity, pluralism, as well as specifically sociological, formal-logical and comparative methods of cognition. The during research was studied the works of T. Volchetski, A. Grinenko, S. Gubin, T. Riabinini, V. Strukova and others, were used 13 scientific papers. The empirical basis of the work is 150 appeals (cassation) decisions of the courts of the Irkutsk region and Primorsky and Khabarovsk territories for the period 2011–2017.
Theory and practice of legal regulation labor incapable employees
Authors:   Tyumen State University, Zajceva Larisa V. , Kursova Oksana A. ,   Tyumen State University
Published: December 2020

The study of the legal personality of citizens recognized as legally incompetent by the court is timely and relevant in the light of the recent changes in the civil legislation of the Russian Federation, as well as the emerging trends in the development of judicial practice. In the doctrine of labor law, the legal personality of individuals is observed as an independent category of labor law, differing in this capacity from other related legal categories, in particular from civil legal capacity and legal capacity. At the same time, the labor legislation of the Russian Federation has made an unsuccessful attempt to receive the norms of civil legislation in relation to the employer — an individual who is recognized incapable by the court. At the moment, the Russian legislator with regard to the possibility of concluding an employment contract on the part of an employee recognized as legally incompetent took the position of “qualified silence”, which today can hardly be called successful for a number of reasons indicated in the proposed study. The study of the legal personality of citizens recognized as incapable makes it possible to assess the level of compliance of Russian legislation with international social and labor standards, determine the vectors for its further development and improvement in terms of optimal protection of human rights and citizenship. The main methods of the research were system and complex analysis of regulatory legal acts of the Russian Federation and a number of other countries and international organizations; Comparative method, which made it possible to compare the international regulation of the participation of incompetent citizens in the work activity with Russian labor legislation, as well as the labor legislation of certain countries of the near and far abroad; Method of expert assessment, based on the analysis of court decisions and scientific publications on the participation of incapacitated persons in labor relations. The results of the study are both theoretical and practical, and suggest some directions for improving the labor legislation of the Russian Federation on the participation in labor relations of citizens recognized by the court as legally incompetent.
Constitutional-legal status of unincorporated territories of the United States
Authors:   Southern Federal University, Irhin Igor' V.
Published: December 2020

This article is dedicated to constitutional-legal status of unincorporated organized and unorganized territories of the United States. In the light of the provisions constitutional-legal status of the unorganized territory of Samoa illustrates the absence of clear demarcation lines between the institutional forms of organized and unorganized territories. Also drawn attention to the fact that unincorporated territories are in a unique legal position — they belong to the United States, but they are not part of this state. Indicates the methods used to integrate the unincorporated territories into the United States. It is indicated that the generalizing features of the constitutional-legal status of the unincorporated territories of the United States are the fragmentary application to them of the provisions of the national Constitution and the limited scope and resources for participation in shaping and implementing decisions made at the national level. Attention is focused on a discriminatory approach on the part of the United States with respect to the political rights of citizens living in unincorporated territories. The point is that the population of these territories is not entitled to participate in the election of Congress and the President of the United States and only some territories (USA Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico) delegate their representatives to the House of Representatives. In the conclusion is formulated that such an approach does not comply with international legal standards of human rights, including those signed by the United States Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights of 1966. It is emphasized that the scope of competence of some unincorporated territories may be broader than that of the states. Also within the framework of this article, the constitutional legal parameters of legislative, executive and judicial authorities of the unincorporated territories of the United States are considered. Attention is focused on the role and importance of federal authorities in determining and modifying the constitutional-legal status of unincorporated territories. It was concluded that diversified models of unincorporated organized and unorganized territories are peculiar indicators of the complex asymmetric structure of the USA.
Fundamentalism as problem of identity: Social psychological observations in theological perspective
Authors:   Martin-Luther-University, Plaul Constantin
Published: December 2020

The article analyses the so-called religious and non-religious fundamentalism. From an empirical perspective, fundamentalism appears to be a constant phenomenon of modern life. The author claims that the principle possibility of fundamentalism has its roots in the sociocultural structures of Modernity. Of course, fundamentalist positions do not emerge necessarily, but they are inscribed in these structures as a permanent option. In the field of identity construction, the relation between fundamentalism and modern life can be explored especially well. This is because under modern conditions identity formation processes have not only found new opportunities, but also risky challenges. Herein lays a significant motive for fundamentalist identity constructions. To shed some light on this problematic complex, the author refers to insights of classical social psychology (Dilthey, Mead, Hofstätter, Goffman, Krappmann) and applies them to the problem here at stake. Because of the close nexus between fundamentalism and religion, religion plays an important role in the author’s argument. Reasoning from a protestant theological point of view, the author is not limited to a descriptive approach, but also offers a normative critique.
Incorporation of “Human Values” in all Higher Education Curricula (Technical & Non-Technical) – An inevitable action to eradicate discriminations
Authors:   Assistant Professor, Department of English, Mepco Schlenk Engineering College, Sivakasi, Tamilnadu., Suresh G. S. , GangaLakshmi C. ,   Senior Assistant Professor, Department of English, Mepco Schlenk Engineering College, Sivakasi, Tamilnadu.
Published: December 2020

This paper argues that the current education system needs a rational and radical change from the objective of materialistic education to humanistic education. Hence, incorporation of human values education (AICTE, 2017) in the modern education system particularly in higher education including both technical and non-technical streams becomes the fulcrum point of this paper. A critical analysis on the Gen Z learners’ aversive mindset towards the current learning routines and education system is presented for discussion. As a remedial approach, a bunch of refreshing rough and ready but pragmatic learning strategies are advocated to nurture them both with human values and employability skills. Even in the scientific/digital era, it is noted with big concern that this civilized nation irrationally exercises discrimination and disparity across the globe. As a remedial action, the teaching fraternity should impart human values education without any compromises because the creation of a better world is only in the hands of rational teachers and compassionate Gen Z students. Finally, this paper places the following question for the perusal of the whole academia, “Which is essential to prepare the Gen Z to stand against all types of discrimination and live a harmonious life: a balanced curriculum inclusive of human values/moral values and competitive skills or a restricted curriculum imparting only technical knowledge and competitive skills excluding human values/moral values?”.
Effect of Visuo-Motor Behavior Rehearsal on enhancing Mental Toughness of Soccer Players
Authors:   Assistant Professor, National Sports University (A Central University), Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Govt. of India, Singh Sorokhaibam Premananda , Bhowmik Sanjib Kumar ,   Assistant Professor, Department of Physical Education, Tripura University (A Central University), Suryamaninagar
Published: December 2020

The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of six weeks of Visuomotor Behavior Rehearsal on Enhancing Mental Toughness of Soccer Players. For the purpose of study forty (n=40) soccer players in the age groups of 17 to 21 years belong to Th. Birchandra Singh Football Academy (TBSFA), Imphal West, Manipur were selected. Subjects were divided into Treatment and controlled group (20 players in each group). The data was collected through the administration of the Psychological Performance Inventory (PPI) by James E. Loehr (1996) containing 42 items. To find out the significant effect of the Psychological Skills Training Program on Selected Psychological Variables of Soccer Players, MANOVA for psychological variables was used and the level of significance was set at 0.05. The findings of the study revealed that there was a significant effect of soccer players on those who underwent the PST program as compared to the players in the controlled group.
You are Cancelled: Virtual Collective Consciousness and the Emergence of Cancel Culture as Ideological Purging
Authors:   De La Salle University., Velasco Joseph Ching
Published: December 2020

Social networking platforms were originally conceived to enable individuals to engage in various forms of online interactions. As social networking sites robustly permeated different facets of society, they have been commonly grouped under the more generic term “social media.” Social media has become a powerful force in contemporary life, paving the way for the rise of digital participatory cultures and social movements. More recently, the culture of cancellation has entered the vernacular of digital culture, primarily targeted at public figures who break the loose norms of social acceptability. Specifically, cancel culture is a form of public shaming initiated on social media to deprive someone of their usual clout or attention with the aim of making public discourse more diffused and less monopolized by those in positions of privilege. Conversely, cancel culture has also been framed as a form of intolerance against opposing views. In this essay, I unpack the nuances and implications of cancel culture through Neil Alperstein’s concept of “virtual collective consciousness.” In Southeast Asia, particularly the Philippines, cancel culture has become more demonstrable on social media. I will use a case study of a public figure from the Philippines who has been subjected to cancel culture in order to examine the complexity of this social phenomenon.
Problems and Challenges Faced by EFL Students of Saudi Arabia during COVID-19 Pandemic
Authors:   Department of English, College of Sciences and Languages Sajjir, Shaqra University, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,, Akhter Tawhida
Published: December 2020

The teaching of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) is very interesting but at the same time is considered difficult particularly for those students who have read most of the subjects of their courses in their mother tongue. The four skills viz, Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing are necessary for learning a foreign language and an imbalance in any skill can hamper the whole process. All the skills are important but during present pandemic situation listening skill is considered as a problematic skill particularly in a foreign language context where practice opportunities are limited because of the world pandemic COVID-19 that hampered all our teaching and learning process. This study aimed to explore the problems and challenges faced by EFL students because of the limited resources. An online survey method was followed to collect data from a group of Saudi EFL students (n = 100) using the Listening Comprehension Processing Problems Questionnaire. The results indicated that these students experienced moderate to high levels of difficulty in all the skills particularly in ‘Listening’ because of limited resources. The findings are expected to have useful implications for teachers who intend to address these problems of EFL learners. Analysis of the findings revealed that most of the students encountered problems in listening most of the times during online classes sometimes because of physical and sometimes other barriers. Discussion and implications of these findings are presented.
Deconstructing Maternal Semiotic and Paternal Symbolic: A Psycholinguistic Perspective for Social Refinement
Authors:   Department of Business and management, Institute of Advanced Research, Gandhinagar., Rathod Dhara
Published: December 2020

To examine the possibilities of reciprocal relationship of Semiotic and Symbolic in language processing, the present study attempts to analyze the psycholinguistic perspective as an essential tool for social refinement. When the select semiotic used for female which is maternal gets its signification in symbolic which is paternal was found affective. Genially, there should no such ideas as masculine or feminine in semiotic and symbolic. Consciously or unconsciously, female locates her priming words as an auxiliary and thereafter the psycholinguistic perspective for social change demands influence of semiotic and symbolic congruency for women empowerment in the globalized era. To transmit, receive and deform meanings of the words that have been used, misused and abused for females, the present study attempts to analyse select words through psycholinguistic filament of language learning. The finding suggests that this deconstructing psychic and linguistic change demands representation of right semiotic and symbolic interpretation of words at Mirror Stage of language processing.
Palate Tales, Kitchen Truths: Coming Home to Cooking in the Time of Covid
Authors:   Department of English, Visva-Bharati, Santiniketan., Dutta Gupta Ananya
Published: December 2020

“Palate Poetry, Kitchen Truths: Coming Home to Cooking” is a long essay comprising non-didactic philosophical reflections on the wisdom of home cooking attained over the first three months spent in Covid-19 lockdown. I make a case for home cooking and home eating as an experiential strategy that can, mutatis mutandis, alert us to ontologies and knowledge systems that resist the seeming inexorability of neoliberal, millennial urbanised living. I do so without holding forth any normative rejection of technology and other exigencies of modern living; and gesture instead towards an inclusive paradigm where machines can be applied towards a promotion of food making and food sharing that is ethical, cosmopolitan, community-minded, ecologically aware, and yet forward-looking. The auto-ethnographic methodology covers both the analytical prose and the interspersed poems it provides a discursive matrix for. I found myself planting these poems (and accompanying images of food from my kitchen) at strategic moments in the argumentation so as to allow the reader, experimentally, a detour and respite from the critical density of the prose. I suppose I am experimenting with the possibility of treating of the same subject in different mediums and then gathering them back into the fold of the personal, reflective essay.
A Pandemic Circumscribing another Pandemic: The Covid 19 World of Disabled Women
Authors:   Department of English Literature, the English and Foreign Languages University, Hyderabad, S Gokul
Published: December 2020

Accessibility and inclusion have always been a major impediment in the lives of the disabled. As a result, their lives have always been ontologically nebulous from the gaze of the outside world. Covid-19 has brought new norms of normalcy and extrapolating social behaviour such as social distancing. Such a regimented form of behaviour has ossified even further the problems of inclusion and accessibility. The upsurge of the pandemic has further complicated the forms of social behaviour and thereby adding more to the disability of an already disabled. This paper aims to analyze the problems of this new behavioural norm by the espousal of a centrifugal outlook and multilateral imagination keeping the disabled as the focal point of discussion. It also explains vis-a-vis Foucault’s idea of Bio politics, the ways new norm installs amongst people a different kind of solidarity based upon a common idea of vulnerability.
Live (Life) Streaming: Virtual Interaction, Virtual Proximity, and Streaming Everyday Life during the COVID- 19 Pandemic
Authors:   Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Roorkee, Uttarakhand, Khobra Ujjwal , Gaur Rashmi ,   Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Roorkee, Uttarakhand
Published: December 2020

This paper proposes to examine the digital event of live streaming as an entanglement of digital engagement, virtual proximity, and virtual embodiment as a possible posthuman concern, foregrounded by the ongoing COVID- 19 pandemic. The transition witnessed in the medium of communication between humans has significantly deconstructed our understanding of the ‘normal’, consequently introducing a new phase of lost corporeality, digitally. Unforeseen excessive employment of the virtual engagement system of live (life) streaming is a testament to the current human extremity. In the light of this transition, the paper attempts to explore the possibility of witnessing some semblance of reality by altering the praxis of normalcy in the practice of the COVID appropriate ‘new normal’ through the virtual medium of a live stream. Since the ontology of human exceptionalism has come under direct attack due to the current pandemic, a reassessment of the human/ technology interphase and its consequent posthuman predicament is urgent. Drawing on Rosi Braidotti’s concept of life beyond the self and N. Katherine Hayles’s concept of embodied virtuality, this paper analyses the technical feature of live streaming as the ‘digital’ becoming of human beings in the contemporary COVID- 19 world, further complicating the modes of construction of embodiment through live (life) streaming.
“When spotted deaths ran arm’d through every street”: Women-Healers and the Great Plague in Geraldine Brooks’ Year of Wonders
Authors:   Vidyasagar University, Faculty, Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis Mahavidyalaya., Biswas Isha
Published: December 2020

In the late 1600s, England was reeling under the recurrence of the pandemic that had swept continent-wide in the 14th century. However, it was not the only disease lurking around. At the heels of the scarlet-ringed Black Death, came the scarlet letter of witchcraft accusations, mostly geared towards Wise Women in the margins of society- women who exhibited knowledge and skill in medicine, herbal remedies and midwifery. Set in the time when religious fanaticism and Puritanical fear-mongering was at its height, Year of Wonders presents before us an opportunity to delve into the web of lies and life-threatening allegations that formed the bedrock of the English witch trials continuing in full swing since the incursion of Continental lore ever since James I came to power. Furthermore, with midwives and female herbalists in the area falling prey to targeted sexual and physical violence in the wake of the pandemic in the story, what needs to be inspected is the inescapable link between Church-backed patriarchy’s delusional fear, jealousy and consequent scapegoating of the economically and socio-sexually marginalized woman-healers in the countryside and the failure of the male-dominated medical field in effectively containing the spread of the virus. The paper investigates further the generational flow of biomedical wisdom in a female-oriented domain which becomes significant in the presentation of the two female leads inheriting the function of the Wise Women from the original holders of the position, thus solidifying the sense of found family and sisterhood standing against the mounting social pressure to bend to the will of the Church and the men in their lives.
Celebrating Female Desire in the Medieval Era: an Exegesis of the Erotic Verses from Jayadeva’s G?tagovinda
Authors:   Department of English, Faculty of Arts, Banaras Hindu University ., Ganguly Tirthendu
Published: December 2020

Discussing women’s sexual desire has long been perceived as a taboo in the East and the West as well. Undeniably, there is a stigma attached to it which, unfortunately, continues even today. However, surprisingly enough, the ancient and the medieval Indians had always been open to female sexuality before their philogynist culture was obliterated and replaced by the ‘zenana culture’ of the Mughals and the ‘Victorian morality’ of the British Raj. Even in the Medieval Era, which is often labelled as conservative and orthodox, people accepted female desire as a biological reality. Composed in twelve cantos, Jayadeva’s magnum opus, G?tagovinda, celebrates sexuality and candidly depicts female orgasm with sheer poetic acumen. Jayadeva has not only eradicated the stigma attached to it, but he has also delineated it from the aesthetical perspectives of the San?tana Dharma which makes it “a unique work in Indian literature and a source of religious inspiration in both medieval and contemporary Vaisnavism” (Miller, 1984). In this paper endeavours to analyze, assemble, and demonstrate how the poet has celebrated female psyche, female sexuality, and female orgasm in the 12th Century CE. The paper deals with the primary aspects of the book which are related to female mind and sexuality. Library method of research has been carried out to substantiate the claims that this research paper makes. As the book is originally composed in Sanskrit, the research paper contains many Indic names and words which are written in accordance with the International Alphabet for Sanskrit Translitearation (IAST) method.
How close simple EAs’ optimal solutions can approach global optima: experience from water distribution system design problems
Authors: Yin Hang , Xu Chengna , Yao Fengyi , Chu Shipeng , Huang Yuan
Published: December 2020

An issue regarding near-optimal solutions identified by evolutionary algorithms (EAs) is that their absolute deviations from the global optima are often unknown, and hence an EA's performance in handling real-world problems remains unclear. To this end, this paper investigates how close optimal solutions from simple EAs can approach the global optimal for water distribution system (WDS) design problems through an experiment with the number of decision variables ranging from 21 to 3,400. Three simple EAs are considered: the standard differential evolution, the standard genetic algorithm and the creeping genetic algorithm (CGA). The CGA consistently identifies optimal solutions with deviations lower than 50% to the global optimal, even for the WDS with 3,400 decision variables, but the performance of the other two EAs is heavily case study dependent. Results obtained build knowledge regarding these simple EAs’ ability in handling WDS design problems with different sizes. We must acknowledge that these results are conditioned on the WDSs and the parameterization strategies used, and future studies should focus on generalizing the findings obtained in this paper.
Trend in river water quality: tracking the overall impacts of climate change and human activities on water quality in the Dez River Basin
Authors: Mahmoodi Nariman , Osati Khaled , Salajegheh Ali , Saravi Mohsen Mohseni
Published: December 2020

A perceptible degradation in water quality complicates safe water supply for drinking and irrigation purposes. Therefore, this study aims at monitoring water quality changes and effective factors in the Dez River Basin, which are required to manage water resources effectively. To this end, the common influence of flow rate changes on water quality was separated by implementing seasonal Mann–Kendall test on residuals resulting from the LOWESS test. The results show that after adjusting the effects of seasonality and streamflow fluctuations, significant positive trends in most water quality parameters are still observed. It emphasizes the role of other factors controlling river water quality in the basin. Comparison of the trends of modified quality parameter time series (residuals) in different subbasins having natural or mad-made conditions, with or without significant groundwater resources, shows almost the same presented trends in water quality. This supports that, overall, minor changes occurred in land use, groundwater table, and environmental and human factors with no important influences on presented trends in water quality. Our analyses show that overall reduction in precipitation as well as positive trends in temperature and evaporation led to intensified streamflow variations, explaining the main changes in the river water quality of the basin.
Influence of thermal hydrolysis treatment on chemical speciation and bioleaching behavior of heavy metals in the sewage sludge
Authors: Zheng Jinxin , Qiu Chunsheng , Wang Chenchen , Zhao Jiaqi , Wang Dong , Liu Nannan , Wang Shaopo , Yu Jingjie , Sun Liping
Published: December 2020

In this study, the transformation of chemical speciation of Cr, Mn, As and Cd in the sewage sludge before and after thermal hydrolysis treatment was investigated using modified BCR method. The effect of thermal hydrolysis treatment and chemical speciation change on the subsequent bioleaching behavior was also researched. The results showed that the concentrations of Cr, Mn, As and Cd in oxidizable fraction decreased in the sludge treated by thermal hydrolysis. Meanwhile, the proportions of Cr, Mn and As in the mobile fractions (acid-soluble/exchangeable and reducible fraction) all decreased, while Cd was concentrated in the sludge treated by thermal hydrolysis. The final pH value of bioleached sludge treated by thermal hydrolysis was lower than that in the bioleached raw sewage sludge. And faster increase of oxidation-reduction potential (ORP) was also found in the bioleaching process of the sludge treated by thermal hydrolysis. The removal percentage of Mn and Cd increased in the bioleached sludge treated by thermal hydrolysis. Thermal hydrolysis treatment can promote the bioleaching to some extent. Furthermore, the environmental risk of Cr, Mn, As and Cd in the bioleached sludge treated by thermal hydrolysis was all alleviated according to risk assessment analysis compared with the bioleached raw sewage sludge.