bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Consensual Accommodation of Sharia Law and Courts in Greece
Authors: Koumoutzis Nikos
Published: July 2021

Consensual Accommodation of Sharia Law and Courts in Greece

Having been exempted from a massive population exchange that took place between Greece and Turkey under the Treaty of Lausanne (1923), the Muslim minority of Western Thrace enjoys ever since a special status providing for the application of the Sharia law in family and succession matters, as well as the jurisdiction of the Mufti for the resolution of relevant disputes. A reform introduced by Law 4511/2018 marks a watershed moment in this long history. From now on, the Sharia law and the Mufti cease to be mandatory; their intervention requires the consent of the members of the minority, who also have the alternative to subject to the civil law and courts. This article tries to explore key features of the new model providing for an accommodation of the Muslim personal legal system based on choice. It focuses on the technique employed to structure the right of choice, on the proper ways for the exercise of choice, on the possibilities offered (or not) to make a partial choice only and revoke a previously made choice. In the end, a further question is raised, concerning how effective the right of choice may prove in the hands of women insiders, given that these are the most likely to experience pressure to demonstrate loyalty and not ignore the traditions and values – including the nomos – of their collective.
Finding an Ideal Contract Law Regime for the International Sale of Goods
Authors: Ceesay Buba
Published: July 2021

Finding an Ideal Contract Law Regime for the International Sale of Goods

Parties enter into contracts for obtaining specific contractual benefits, and, as a result, they engage in risk allocation hoping that each will keep to its promise. These expectations are sometimes shattered by a breach by one of the parties. The contract at times provides remedies for breach of contract. However, in most cases, the parties’ contract leaves the regulation of the breach to the governing law of the contract. The efficiency of a remedial rule can be judged from the balance that it has put in place in ensuring the risks involved in international transactions are not skewed against the breaching party just because it is in breach. This article thus makes a comparative study between the United Nations Convention on Contracts for International Sale of Goods (CISG), UNIDROIT (International Institute for the Unification of Private Law) Principles of International Commercial Contracts (the PICC) and Sales Act (Act No. 4 of 1955) of The Gambia (GSGA) on the right of a creditor to terminate a contract to elucidate the similarities and the differences among the three regimes and to determine which of the regimes provides a suitable contract law model for the international sales of goods. The article reviews and analyses the legal instruments, case law and academic writings under the regimes and concludes that the CISG provides the most suitable contract law model for the international sale of goods.
The Reform of Contract Rules in China’s New Civil Code
Authors: Guo Peng , Li Linxuan
Published: July 2021

The Reform of Contract Rules in China’s New Civil Code – Successes or Pitfalls

The Civil Code of the People’s Republic of China (Civil Code) came into force on 1 January 2021. Book III on Contracts of the Civil Code has adopted significant changes compared to the old Chinese Contract Law (Contract Law). This article provides a comprehensive and systemic analysis of those changes from structure to content, from legislative technics to values underpinning the Civil Code. It evaluates all the factors in the context of the development of Chinese society, Chinese culture and Chinese legal system.

This article first outlines the historical background of the development of the Contract Law and the Civil Code. It then moves on to compare the Civil Code and the Contract Law, highlighting the changes in structure, the incorporation of new provisions and the amendments to old provisions in light of contemporary Chinese society and culture. Finally, it argues that the Civil Code is a significant milestone in China’s legislative history; that it reflects the legislative experience and judicial practice in China; that it adds provisions which are innovative and of Chinese characteristics to meet the needs of China’s changing society and legal system; and that it keeps pace with the development of the global law reform and harmonization.
Democratic Scrutiny of COVID-19 Laws
Authors: Moulds Sarah
Published: July 2021

Democratic Scrutiny of COVID-19 Laws: Are Parliamentary Committees Up to the Job?

In response to the complex and potentially devastating threat posed by COVID-19, parliaments around the world have transferred unprecedented powers to executive governments and their agencies (Edgar, ‘Law-making in a Crisis’, 2020), often with the full support of the communities they represent. These laws were passed within days, sometimes hours, with limited safeguards and a heavy reliance on sunsetting provisions, some of which are dependent on the pandemic being officially called to an end. While parliaments themselves have suspended or reduced sitting days (Twomey, ‘A Virtual Australian Parliament is Possible’, 2020), parliamentary committees have emerged as the forum of choice when it comes to providing some form of parliamentary oversight of executive action.

This article aims to evaluate the capacity of parliamentary committees established within the Australian, New Zealand (NZ) and United Kingdom (UK) parliaments to effectively scrutinize and review governments’ responses to COVID-19. It does this by comparing the legal framework underpinning the relevant committees in each jurisdiction and examining the work of these committees with a view to offering some preliminary views as to their impact on the shape of the laws made in response to COVID-19 in those jurisdictions. The article concludes by offering some preliminary observations about the scrutiny capacity of the parliamentary committee systems in Australia, NZ and the UK in the context of emergency lawmaking and flags areas for further research, evaluation and reform.
Electrochemical treatment of dye wastewater using nickel foam electrode
Authors: Ramanujam Saravanathamizhan , Muthumanickam Kaavya
Published: July 2021

Removal of dye from wastewater has been investigated using the electrocoagulation method. Batch experiment has been conducted to remove the color from synthetically prepared acid red 87dye wastewater. Stainless steel and nickel foam sheets are used as cathode and anode, respectively. The effect of some operating parameters, such as current density, initial dye concentration and supporting electrolyte concentration, on color removal has been studied. It can be observed from the present investigations that the nickel foam electrode effectively removes color from the wastewater. Nickel hydroxyl species formed during the operation and also, nickel (II) hydroxide flocs formed in a subsequent stage, trap colloidal precipitates and make solid-liquid separation easier during the flotation stage. These stages of electrocoagulation must be optimized to design an economically feasible process.
Grown up in the face of values. The subjective dimension of shaping values in human life.
Authors: Bodarski Rafał
Published: July 2021

Man as an active subject, as a creator of his own life and choices. Man, therefore, as a structure capable of managing itself, generating changes in the environment thanks to internal motivation. This view of the nature of subjectivity is presented by many educators, psychologists, sociologists and philosophers. Paying attention to the issue of agency in adult life is even more justified from the point of view of contemporary social changes. More and more advanced technological progress, changes in the area of the life model, transforming economies from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources pose a number of challenges and the need to forecast the future. A future that, as we can see, is hard to predict anyway. Even recent pandemic experiences have shown us how much can depend on man. This enormous impact of our activity is analyzed in the article from the point of view of selected theories functioning both in psychology and in pedagogy.
Children of the Empire. The shaping of English identity, 1890-1914
Authors: Galewski Jacek
Published: July 2021

Britain was an imperial power in the quarter-century before the outbreak of World War. Leaders expressed a sense of moral responsibility for ensuring competent and just rule for the nations of the Empire. At the same time, the fulfillment of this duty was a justification for the exercise of power itself, understood in ethical terms, and involved the preparation of a citizen of the Empire, both educated and shaped by universally accessible school education. The teaching of history, linked to the formation of the identity of the model citizen, has been subordinated to this preparation. The current article is an attempt at indicating the presence and purpose of historical threads in materials intended for the initial learning of reading.
Social inequalities as an expression of disproportions in participation in linguistic resources. The meaning of metaphors
Authors: Czykwin Elżbieta
Published: July 2021

The text is devoted to the problem of social inequalities created by the fact of unequal participation in language resources. "Gutenberg Galaxy" created social inequalities by setting a caesura between the reader and the author. Scientism limits the ability of lay people to understand specialized scientific knowledge. The participation in the language of actors and spectator of social life also has a different character. Assuming that the human anthropological challenge is the striving for optimal adaptation (D. Hoffman), social communication and adaptation take place in the space of language. As components of language, metaphors enable such an individual meeting. Mid-range metaphors play a special role here.
Rituals of entering adulthood in the religious and secular space
(sociological reflections)
Authors: Sroczyńska Maria
Published: July 2021

The text deals with the rituals of passage, granting and approval accompanying entering adulthood. These considerations refer to both theoretical issues, taking into account the typology of rituals proposed by Pierre Bourdieu, and to selected results of own research (quantitative and qualitative) carried out at the end of the first decade of the 21st century among high school graduates of the Świętokrzyskie region. The ritual practices that are still important for young people (confirmation, "eighteenth" and high school graduation) were taken into account, although the manner of their celebration and the functions performed are subject to more or less significant transformations.
The goal of education: spirituality or an intellectualism? An alternative to care of the self
Authors: Stępniewska-Gębik Hanna
Published: July 2021

This article deals with the dilemma related to the purpose of upbringing. M. Foucault's concept of care of the self and J. Patočka's works allow us to ask questions about the goal of education. Is it to become an intellectual or a spiritual person? The possibility of such a distinction is embedded in the ethics of care of the self, an ancient tradition, which even nowadays, among others, thanks to P. Sloterdijk or Foucault himself, has become an important category. An ethical attitude towards the self opens the way to spirituality through a set of appropriate practices. It becomes the basis for relations with others and with the world.
Creating Stories by Student Teachers as a Space for Multifaceted Adult Learning. Sustainable and Intercultural Perspective
Authors: Rogalska-Marasińska Aneta
Published: July 2021

The paper discusses the participation of the “Quality Education” goal of SDGs, “Personal, social, and learning to learn competence” of the EU Key Competences for Lifelong Learning, and four categories (the educator is someone who…) of the Competences for Educators in ESD in student teacher university training. It presents the theoretical explorations of relevant content to show possible options to be introduced to pre-service teacher training. Reflections about desired changes in personal and professional development are followed by the presentation of workshop outcomes realised with students of 3rd stage studies of pedagogy at the University of Lodz. Students have been developing their intercultural and sustainable development competences by creating stories with multicultural aspect and sustainable perspective. The paper refers to the application of the author's original learning method “Me and you towards sustainability” inspired by books of Robbins, What if? … (2008, 2018). The paper concludes that learning by creation gives more chances to understand oneself and Others.
Selected aspects of shaping the adulthood attributes of clients in social work
Authors: Kluczyńska Joanna
Published: July 2021

The article presents the elements of social work, which are important for shaping the aspects of clients' adulthood. The methods, techniques and forms of help should mobilize the client to be active and independent. In the process of help, it is important to build a mutual relationship between a social worker and a client based on the treating as a subject, showing respect and listening. Such an attitude towards the assisted person is aimed at strengthening him/her on the way to regain control over his/her own life, to build a faith in his/her own possibilities and  to take responsibility for his/her own fate and the fate of people dependent on the client. The social worker participates also in the process of empowering young people, who are brought up in foster care, and in the case of children from dysfunctional families, the social worker makes sure that they are not overwhelmed by the challenges of adulthood.
Towards generative fatherhood. Analysis of the social dimensions of the phenomenon.
Authors: Walczak Anna
Published: July 2021

In the face of the changes taking place in the area of parental roles and the expanding range of possibilities of fulfilling the father role (from the uninvolved father, the mother's helper to the father as an equal parent or even the primary caregiver), there is a need to take into account individual, individual and social aspects. The concept of generative fathering, understood as equal participation in all aspects of childcare, offers such an opportunity because it refers to men's motivations and aspirations, and at the same time describes the institutional basis of changes. The presented article characterizes the factors conducive to the development of generative orientation: egalitarian relationship with child’s mother, professional work that gives space for implementation in other areas of life and the possibility of creating a satisfactory relationship with the child. Research findings relating to the links between professional work of both parents and paternal commitment, and to the participation of fathers in childcare, suggest that generativity - when analyzed in a social context - is not a common father experience.
Human development in Kazimierz Dąbrowski's theory of positive disintegration as an expression of reaching psychic maturity
Authors: Chojnowski Dominik
Published: July 2021

In my article, I analyze how Kazimierz Dąbrowski's theory of positive disintegration can help with understanding the phenomenon of psychic maturity. From the perspective of this conception, the development of a human being is inherently connecting with going towards your ideal, which can't be achieved without mental disturbance and sometimes even psychic breakdown. The loosening of rigid psychic structures should be linking with self-education. This process leads toward the birth of a new person that internalized her hierarchy of values and goals. This hierarchy can't be changed. The theory inscribes the development of the given individual into five key levels that have different inner properties. I shortly analyzed theory and its main components, and after that, I showed how we should understand mental maturity in the light of Kazimierz Dąbrowski's theory.
Subjectivity as a challenge to adulthood
Authors: Najder-Stefaniak Krystyna
Published: July 2021

The author draws attention to the specificity of subjectivity and its importance for human security. It shows that we have an influence on the scope and quality of subjectivity.
The concept of a relatively isolated system helps to understand the subject. They were introduced by Roman Ingarden looking for ontical grounds of responsibility. According to Ingarden, the responsible person contacts the environment, but the source of the activity is within him. This means that we are not doomed to react, that we can act. We have an impact on the quality of the entity and, consequently, the scope and quality of subjectivity.
On the Analysis of Covid-19 Transmission in Wuhan, Diamond Princess and Jakarta-cluster
Authors: Soewono Edy
Published: July 2021

The whole world has been recently shocked by the massive spread of Covid-19 without any sign of when it will end. This phenomenon of this scale is understood as a plague that has never been happening in a lifetime. Almost all countries do not have proper preparedness when positive cases are found in a region. In a relatively short time, cases then spread quickly, and panic broke out in the community. With the rapid human to human transmission, and there is no vaccine available, the only way to control the spread of the disease is by implementing a contact tracing and isolation policy. The fact indicated that health officials in many affecting countries have difficulty in detecting individuals who are potentially exposed to the virus. The success of controlling the disease is very much dependent on the ability of the health authority in tracking and isolating the infected and the suspected cases. A transmission model for Covid-19 transmission in the form of SEIR is chosen to fit with the cases in Wuhan, Diamond Princess, and Jakarta-cluster. These cases represent the transmission in a large city, a relatively restricted and dense area, and a small cluster, respectively. The basic reproductive ratio and the infection rate are obtained based on the cumulative data for each case. These indicators can be used for predicting the progress of transmission for similar cases. A simple model for estimating the completing time of contact tracing and isolation is constructed in the form of a differential operator on the cumulative case. This operator represents the number of daily new infected cases. It is shown that for the case of Wuhan, the completing time for contact tracing and isolation is 55 days. This result is important for analyzing the intervention strategy of Covid-19 in an affected region.
An Analysis of Covid-19 Transmission in Indonesia and Saudi Arabia
Authors: Ndii Meksianis Z. , Hadisoemarto Panji , Agustian Dwi , Supriatna Asep K.
Published: July 2021

An outbreak of novel coronavirus has been happening in more than 200 countries and has shocked society. Several measures have been implemented to slowing down the epidemics while waiting for vaccine and pharmaceutical intervention. Using a deterministic and stochastic model, we assess the effectiveness of current strategies: reducing the transmission rate and speeding up the time to detect infected individuals. The reproductive ratio and the probability of extinction are determined. We found that the combination of both strategies is effective to slow down the epidemics. We also find that speeding up the time to detect infected individuals without reducing the transmission rate is not sufficient to slow down the epidemics.
SHAR and effective SIR models: from dengue fever toy models to a COVID-19 fully parametrized SHARUCD framework
Authors: Aguiar Maira , Stollenwerk Nico
Published: July 2021

We review basic models of severe/hospitalized and mild/asymptomatic infection spreading (with classes of susceptibles S, hopsitalized H, asymptomatic A and recovered R, hence SHAR-models) and develop the notion of comparing different models on the same data set as exemplified in the comparison of SHAR models with effective SIR models, where only the H-class of the SHAR model is taken into account in the SIR model. This is done via the so-called Bayes factor. A simpler pair of models with analytical expressions up to the Bayes factor will be briefly mentioned as well. The notions developed with respect to dengue fever epidemiology will then be used to analyze recently becoming available data on coronavirus disease 2019, COVID-19, where models can be fully parametrized including hospital admission and more extensions like intensive care unit (ICU) admission and deceased, always with a close look on as simple as possible models but not simpler, as exercised in Ochamâ€™s razor and analyzed by e.g. the Bayes factor. We present the resulting models of SHAR-type with additional classes of ICU admissions U, and deceased D, and for data analysis of cumulative disease data, also accounting the cumulative classes C, in the so-called SHARUCD framework. Besides a first basic version, SHARUCD model 1, we investigate also in detail a refined version, SHARUCD model 2, which could be achieved by a closer analysis of available data only obtained after the exponential growth phase of the epidemic, when lockdown control measures showed effects. Namely, the ICU admissions turned out to be more in synchrony with the hospitalized than with e.g.Â the deceased cases, such that we could adjust the transitions so that ICU admissions are modeled like hospitalizations in model 2, and not like recovery or disease induced death as assumed in model 1, explaining much better the empirical data, specially after the effects of the lockdown became visible. Special attention will be given here, for the first time, to the initial phase of the COVID-19 epidemics, before all variables entered into the exponential phase, and its interplay between asymptomatic and severe hospitalized cases, always in close check with the SIR-limiting case. Such improved understanding of the initial phase will help in the future analysis of re-emergent outbreaks of COVID-19, likely to happen in the next or a subsequent respiratory disease season in autumn or winter.
Forecasting COVID-19 Epidemic in Spain and Italy Using A Generalized Richards Model with Quantified Uncertainty
Authors: Darti Isnani , Suryanto Agus , Panigoro Hasan S. , Susanto Hadi
Published: July 2021

The Richards model and its generalized version are deterministic models that are often implemented to fit and forecast the cumulative number of infective cases in an epidemic outbreak. In this paper we employ a generalized Richards model to predict the cumulative number of COVID-19 cases in Spain and Italy, based on available epidemiological data. To quantify uncertainty in the parameter estimation, we use a parametric bootstrapping approach to construct a 95% confidence interval estimation for the parameter model. Here we assume that the time series data follow a Poisson distribution. It is found that the 95% confidence interval of each parameter becomes narrow with the increasing number of data. All in all, the model predicts daily new cases of COVID-19 reasonably well during calibration periods. However, the model fails to produce good forecasts when the amount of data used for parameter estimations is not sufficient. Based on our parameter estimates, it is found that the early stages of COVID-19 epidemic, both in Spain and in Italy, followed an almost exponentially growth. The epidemic peak in Spain and Italy is respectively on 2 April 2020 and 28 March 2020. The final sizes of cumulative number of COVID-19 cases in Spain and Italy are forecasted to be at 293220 and 237010, respectively.
Mathematical Modelling and Analysis of Dengue Transmission in Bangladesh with Saturated Incidence Rate and Constant Treatment Function
Authors: Chakraborty Amit Kumar , Haque M. A. , Islam M. A.
Published: July 2021

Dengue is one of the major health problems in Bangladesh and many people are died in recent years due to the severity of this disease. Therefore, in this paper, a SIRS model for the human and SI model for vector population with saturated incidence rate and constant treatment function has been presented to describe the transmission of dengue. The equilibrium points and the basic reproduction number have been computed. The conditions which lead the disease free equilibrium and the endemic equilibrium have been determined. The local stability for the equilibrium points has been established based on the eigenvalues of the Jacobian matrix and the global stability has been analyzed by using the Lyapunov function theory. It is found that the stability of equilibrium points can be controlled by the reproduction number. In order to calculate the infection rate, data for infected human populations have been collected from several health institutions of Bangladesh. Numerical simulations of various compartments have been generated using MATLAB to investigate the influence of the key parameters for the transmission of the disease and to support the analytical results. The effect of treatment function over the infected compartment has been illustrated. The sensitivity of the reproduction number concerning the parameters of the model has been analyzed. Finally, the most sensitive parameter that has the highest effect over reproduction number has been identified.
Successive Approximation, Variational Iteration, and Multistage-Analytical Methods for a SEIR Model of Infectious Disease Involving Vaccination Strategy
Authors: Mungkasi Sudi
Published: July 2021

We consider a SEIR model for the spread (transmission) of an infectious disease. The model has played an important role due to world pandemic disease spread cases. Our contributions in this paper are three folds. Our first contribution is to provide successive approximation and variational iteration methods to obtain analytical approximate solutions to the SEIR model. Our second contribution is to prove that for solving the SEIR model, the variational iteration and successive approximation methods are identical when we have some particular values of Lagrange multipliers in the variational iteration formulation. Third, we propose a new multistage-analytical method for solving the SEIR model. Computational experiments show that the successive approximation and variational iteration methods are accurate for small size of time domain. In contrast, our proposed multistage-analytical method is successful to solve the SEIR model very accurately for large size of time domain. Furthermore, the order of accuracy of the multistage-analytical method can be made higher simply by taking more number of successive iterations in the multistage evolution.
Measles Transmission Model with Vaccination and Hospitalization Treatments
Authors: Abadi Abadi , Fakhruddin Muhammad , Artiono Rudianto , Prawoto Budi Priyo
Published: July 2021

Measles (Rubeola) as one of notifiable diseases gets serious concern worldwide since it was first found in ninth century. The implementation of vaccines for controlling measles transmission since 1963 up to nowadays requires various studies regarding the effectiveness of the vaccines. Studies in the area of mathematical modeling of measles virus transmission has been done by many authors. This study intended to propose a model of measles virus transmission that also considered hospitalization as a complementary treatment for vaccination implementation program. The model is an SIHR model that divided the population into Susceptibles (S), Infectives (I), Hospitalized (H), and Recovered (R). The analysis started with determining the the equilibria and their stability based on the value of Basic Reproduction Ratio (R0). The analitical results were implemented to recorded data of measles of Jakarta, Indonesia in 2017 for numerical simulation. The simulation result said that hospitalization for measles patients in Jakarta escalates the effectiveness of vaccination program being implemented in the city. This can be considered by the city policy makers for giving more concern on hospitalizing measles-infected patients.
Role of Mathematical Model in Curbing COVID-19 in Nigeria
Authors: Madubueze Chinwendu Emilian , Akabuike Nkiru Maria , Dachollom Sambo
Published: July 2021

COVID-19 is a viral disease that is caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARSCoV-2) which has no approved vaccine. Based on the available non-pharmacological interventions like wearing of face masks, observing social distancing, and lockdown, this work assesses the impact of non-pharmaceutical control measures (social distancing and use of face-masks) and mass testing on the transmission of COVID-19 in Nigeria. A mathematical model for COVID-19 is formulated with intervention measures (observing social distancing and wearing of face masks) and mass testing. The basic reproduction number, R_0, is computed using next-generation method while the disease-free equilibrium is found to be locally and globally asymptotically stable when R_0< 1. The model is parameterized using Nigeria data on COVID-19 in Nigeria. The basic reproduction number is found to be less than unity (R_0 < 1) either when the compliance with intervention measures is moderate (50% <= alpha< 70%) and the testing rate per day is moderate (0,5 <=alpha_2 < 0,7) or when the compliance with intervention measures is strict (alpha>=70%) and the testing rate per day is poor (alpha_2 = 0,3). This implies that Nigeria will be able to halt the spread of COVID-19 under these two conditions. However, it will be easier to enforce strict compliance with intervention measures in the presence of poor testing rate due to the limited availability of testing facilities and manpower in Nigeria. Hence, this study advocates that Nigerian governments (Federal and States) should aim at achieving a testing rate of at least 0.3 per day while ensuring that all the citizens strictly comply with wearing face masks and observing social distancing in public.
Quantitative Measure to Differentiate Wicket Spike from Interictal Epileptiform Discharges
Authors: Gunadharma Suryani , Rizal Ahmad , Ruslami Rovina , Achmad Tri Hanggono , Ju See Siew , Puspita Juni Wijayanti , Indratno Sapto Wahyu , Soewono Edy
Published: July 2021

A number of benign EEG patterns are often misinterpreted as interictal epileptiform discharges (IEDs) because of their epileptiform appearances, one of them is wicket spike. Differentiating wicket spike from IEDs may help in preventing epilepsy misdiagnosis. The temporal location of IEDs and wicket spike were chosen from 143 EEG recordings. Amplitude, duration and angles were measured from the wave triangles and were used as the variables. In this study, linear discriminant analysis is used to create the formula to differentiate wicket spike from IEDs consisting spike and sharp waves. We obtained a formula with excellent accuracy. This study emphasizes the need for objective criteria to distinguish wicket spike from IEDs to avoid misreading of the EEG and misdiagnosis of epilepsy.
The Translation and Psychometric Evaluation of the Persian Version of Brief Multidimensional Life Satisfaction Scale for Iranian Patients with Cancer
Authors: Shirinabadi Farahani Azam , Bussing Arndt , Akbari Mohammad Esmaeil , Ashrafizadeh Hadis , Heidarzadeh Mehdi , Hatamipour Khadijeh , Tabatabaee Amir , Ansari Mojgan , Karami Maryam , Fallahi Sahar , Khademi Fatemeh , Pakseresht Maryam , Rassouli Maryam
Published: July 2021

Background: Due to the growing prevalence of cancer globally, the disease is considered one of the most important sources of stress, disability, and reduced life satisfaction. Although life satisfaction is supposed to be a relatively stable psychological construct, it may change in response to life events. Life-satisfaction is the assessment of the quality of life according to one’s chosen criteria. Objectives: The purpose of this research is the psychometric evaluation of the Persian version of “Brief Multidimensional Life Satisfaction Scale” (BMLSS) in Iranian patients with cancer. Methods: The present study was a methodological research, during which the BMLSS was translated and the Farsi version was validated for patients with cancer. Results: The fit indices of confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the dual dimension of the BMLSS. Regarding the convergent validity of the BMLSS, the total score of the instrument had a positive and significant relationship with age and the sense of religiosity. Cronbach's alpha and Intraclass Correlation were calculated. Conclusions: The findings indicated that this Persian version has good validity and reliability and can be used as a comprehensive instrument in Iran.
Air Pollution and Mortality in the Elderly in Kerman, Iran
Authors: Askari Baravati Zahra , Khanjani Narges , Malakootian Mohammad
Published: July 2021

Background: Today, air pollution is a major issue in the world, particularly in metropolitan areas. Objectives: Accordingly, this study aimed to investigate the relation between air pollution and mortality in the elderly in Kerman City. Methods: This ecological study was conducted using 2006 - 2013 mortality data inquired from the Deputy of Health of Kerman University of Medical Sciences. The data on cardiovascular and respiratory mortality, as well as death due to trauma, diabetes, and other diseases that happened in men and women aged 60 and higher were extracted. Air pollution data (CO, SO2, O3, NO, NO2, NOx, and PM10) for the same time frame were inquired from the Environmental Protection Agency of Kerman Province. Negative binomial regression was used to evaluate the relation between air pollutants and mortality using STATA13 software. Results: During the study period, a total of 14,793 deaths occurred in elderly men and women in Kerman City. Cardiovascular diseases were the leading cause of death. The results of multivariate analysis of air pollutants indicated that NO was directly and significantly related to the total number of deaths in the elderly, and increase in sulfur dioxide, ozone and NO was significantly related to increased mortality among elderly women. Carbon monoxide was significantly related to cardiovascular death of the elderly. But air pollutants did not show any significant effect on respiratory-, trauma-, and diabetes-related deaths. Conclusions: Our findings indicate that there is a significant relation between air pollution and mortality in the elderly. Accordingly, a warning system is suggested to reduce the elderly’s commuting on highly air polluted days.
Ginger Extract Modulates the Production of Chemokines CCL17, CCL20, CCL22, and CXCL10 and the Gene Expression of Their Receptors in Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells from Peptic Ulcer Patients Infected with Helicobacter pylori
Authors: Jalalpour Shila , Mirzaee Vahid , Taheri Mohammad , Sheikh Fathollahi Mahmood , Khorramdelazad Hossein , Jafarzadeh Abdollah
Published: July 2021

Background: The imbalanced expression of chemokines plays critical role in the development of Helicobacter pylori-mediated complications. Objectives: Our aim was to determine ginger extract (GE) effects on the expression of chemokines CCL17, CCL20, CCL22, and CXCL10, as well as CCR4, CCR6, and CXCR3 receptors by peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from H. pylori -infected patients with peptic ulcer (PU). Methods: Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were obtained from 20 patients with H. pylori-associated PU, 20 H. pylori-infected asymptomatic subjects (HAS), and 20 non-infected healthy subjects (NHS). The PBMCs were stimulated by 10 µg/mL of H. pylori-derived crude extract (HPCE) in the presence of 0, 10, 20, and 30 µg/mL of GE. After 36 hours, the supernatant and the RNA extracted from the cells were tested for chemokine concentration and chemokine receptor expression using ELISA and real-time PCR techniques, respectively. Results: In PU patients, treating HPCE-stimulated PBMCs with 10, 20, or 30 µg/mL GE reduced the production of CXCL10 (1.47, 1.5, and 1.53 folds, respectively, P < 0.001 for all), CCL20 (1.44, 1.62, and 1.65 folds, respectively, P < 0.003), and treatment with 30 µg/mL GE increased CCL17 (1.28-fold, P < 0.001) and CCL22 (1.59-fold, P < 0.001) production compared with untreated HPCE-stimulated PBMCs. In PU patients, the HPCE-stimulated PBMCs treated with 10, 20, or 30 µg/mL GE expressed lower levels of CXCR3 (1.9, 3, and 3.5 folds, respectively, P < 0.001) and CCR6 (2.3, 2.7, and 2.8 folds, respectively, P < 0.002) while treating with 10 µg/mL GE upregulated CCR4 (1.7 fold, P = 0.003) compared with untreated HPCE-stimulated PBMCs. Conclusions: Ginger extract modulated the expression of chemokines and their receptors in the PBMCs derived from H. pylori-infected PU patients. The therapeutic potentials of ginger for treating HP-related complications need to be further explored.
Aesthetic Reasons and Aesthetic Shoulds
Authors: McGonigal Andrew , Taylor Erin ,   Southwestern Philosophical Society
Published: July 2021

Some questions about normative structure are global. We can ask how we should live, or what we ought to do all things considered, or whether there are any categorical oughts. But we can also examine local normative structure. We might ask ourselves about what we should do from the moral point of view rather than the prudential one, or discuss promissory obligation in contrast with what friendship demands. How should we understand such localized forms of normativity? We argue that a plausible sounding treatment of the distinction cannot account for what we call the “interrelatedness” of reasons from different domains.
Gettier Cases, Knowledge and Experimental Inquiry
Authors: Ward Andrew ,   Southwestern Philosophical Society
Published: July 2021

In 1963, Edmund Gettier published a short paper in the journal Analysis. That paper, entitled “Is Justifi ed True Belief Knowledge?,” purported to demonstrate that even though a person is justified in believing a true proposition p, having that justified true belief (JTB) is not sufficient for the person knowing that p (Gettier, 1963). In particular, Gettier presented examples purporting to show that a person may have a justified true belief, but the belief is, in one way or another, a “lucky belief,” and so the person having the justified true belief that p does not know that p. In what follows, I argue that justified, but luckily true beliefs do count as knowledge. What is important is that there is a limited ability to generalize from such cases, suggesting that many, if not most of what we count as instances of knowledge are, to a greater or lesser extent, localized.
Making Sense of “Microaggression”
Authors: Stewart Heather ,   Southwestern Philosophical Society
Published: July 2021

Though philosophers are beginning to pay attention to the phenomenon of microaggressions, they are yet to fully draw on their training and skills in conceptual analysis to help make sense of what microaggression is. In this paper, I offer a philosophical analysis of the concept of microaggression. I ultimately argue that ‘microaggression’ as a concept gets its meaning not by decomposing into a set of necessary and sufficient conditions, but rather by means of what Ludwig Wittgenstein (1953) has called “family resemblance.” That is to say, what unifies the concept of microaggression is a set of common, overlapping features that link related instances together, but are not necessarily all present in all cases. I identify and explain a common set of features that together form the basis for a family resemblance account of the concept. I then argue that despite the difficulty that microaggressions pose in terms of being reliably recognized and understood as such, some people, in virtue of their epistemic standpoint, are better suited to recognize these features and subsequently identify instances of micraoggression in practice. I argue this by drawing on the vast literature in feminist standpoint epistemology (Alcoff, 1993; Hill Collins, 1990, 2004; hooks, 2004; Harding, 2004, 2008; Wylie, 2013).
A Problem for Frankfurt Examples
Authors: Kahn Samuel ,   Southwestern Philosophical Society
Published: July 2021

In this paper I intend to raise a problem for so-called Frankfurt examples. I begin by describing the examples and what they are used for. Then I describe the problem.
Religious Liberty and the Alleged Afterlife
Authors: Eva Richard R. ,   Southwestern Philosophical Society
Published: July 2021

It is common for religiously motivated actions to be specially protected by law. Many legal theorists have asked why: what makes religion special? What makes it worthy of toleration over and above other non-religious deeply held convictions? The answer I put forward is that religions’ alleged afterlife consequences call for a principle of toleration that warrants special legal treatment. Under a Rawlsian principle of toleration, it is reasonable for those in the original position to opt for principles of justice that accommodate actions with alleged afterlife consequences. And, under a utilitarian principle of toleration, a greater psychological harm is eased by such accommodations. Additionally, this alleged afterlife consequence is found in most of the religions that are thought to warrant some level of special toleration—not only do the Abrahamic religions have alleged afterlife consequences, but many eastern religions do as well, e.g. reincarnation.
Objective Purport, Relational Confirmation, and the Presumption of Moral Objectivism
Authors: Hammond Tanner ,   Southwestern Philosophical Society
Published: July 2021

All else being equal, can an objective-seeming character of moral experience support a presumption in favor of some form of moral objectivism? Don Loeb (2007) has argued that even if we grant that moral experience appears to present us with a realm of objective moral facts—something he denies we have reason to do in the first place—the objective purport of moral experience cannot by itself provide even prima facie support for moral objectivism. In what follows, I contend against Loeb that granting the objective purport of ordinary moral experience is sufficient to shift a presumptive case in favor of moral objectivism, and this by constituting non-explanatory, relational confirmation that incrementally raises the prima facie probability that moral facts exist. More specifically, I appeal to a modest confirmational principle shared by Likelihoodists and Bayesians—namely, the Weak Law of Likelihood—in an effort to show that (i) at a minimum, granting the objective purport of moral experience establishes a middling scrutable probability for a sufficient but not necessary condition of moral objectivism being true, and that (ii) this moderate probability in turn constitutes evidence that makes it prima facie more probable than not that at least some form of moral objectivism is true.
Reflections on Intellectual Grandstanding
Authors: Warman Jack ,   Southwestern Philosophical Society
Published: July 2021

In this short paper, I present a philosophical account of intellectual grandstanding. In section 2, I identify a putative case of intellectual grandstanding. In section 3, I introduce Tosi and Warmke’s account of moral grandstanding (Tosi and Warmke, 2016, 2020). In section 4, I highlight some of the similarities and differences between intellectual and moral grandstanding. In section 5, I conclude by proposing some further lines of inquiry.
The Benefits of Being a Suicidal Curmudgeon
Authors: Trujillo G. M. ,   Southwestern Philosophical Society
Published: July 2021

Emil Cioran offers novel arguments against suicide. He assumes a meaningless world. But in such a world, he argues, suicide and death would be equally as meaningless as life or anything else. Suicide and death are as cumbersome and useless as meaning and life. Yet Cioran also argues that we should contemplate suicide to live better lives. By contemplating suicide, we confront the deep suffering inherent in existence. This humbles us enough to allow us to change even the deepest aspects of ourselves. Yet it also reminds us that our peculiar human ability—being able to contemplate suicide—sets us above anything else in nature or in the heavens. This paper assembles and defends a view of suicide written about in Cioran’s aphorisms and essays.
What Makes Normative Concepts Normative
Authors: Hernandez Shawn , Laskowski N. G. ,   Southwestern Philosophical Society
Published: July 2021

When asked which of our concepts are normative concepts, metaethicists would be quick to list such concepts as good, ought, and reason. When asked why such concepts belong on the list, metaethicists would be much slower to respond. Eklund (2017) is a notable exception. He argues by elimination for “the Normative Role view” that normative concepts are normative in virtue of having a “normative role” or being “used normatively” (2017, p. 79). One view that Eklund aims to eliminate is “the Metaphysical view” that normative concepts are normative in virtue of referring to normative properties (2017, p. 71).2 In addition to arguing that Eklund’s objection looks doubtful by its own lights, we argue that there are several plausible versions of the Metaphysical view that Eklund doesn’t eliminate, defending various claims about normative concepts and their relationships to deliberation, competence, reference, and possession along the way.
Epistemic Peerhood and Standpoint Theory
Authors: Piñeiro Josué ,   Southwestern Philosophical Society
Published: July 2021

This paper uses standpoint theory to explore whether all there is to establish epistemic peerhood between subjects is that they be (i) equally exposed to or familiar with the evidence pertaining to a disagreed claim, and be (ii) equals with regards to intelligence, freedom from bias and similar epistemic virtues within the domain of the claim in question. I argue that there is at least one general circumstance in which conditions (i) and (ii) are met, but nevertheless the subjects deviate in their likelihood to be mistaken about the claim in question, thus preventing them from being epistemic peers. Such a circumstance presents itself as a case in which the claim in question is part of those aspects of social relations and experiences of the marginalized.
Hvad kan HyFlex-organiseret undervisning?
Authors: Bregnhøj Henrik , Mathiasen Helle
Published: July 2021

Fokus i artiklen er på kommunikationens betingelser i HyFlex-undervisning, hvor halvdelen af de studerende på skift kan møde op på campus, mens resten kan følge undervisningen live online. En e-moderator i forelæsningslokalet fungerer som et kommunikativt bindeled mellem online-deltagerne og forelæser.
Artiklens empiri omfatter en kvantitativ og kvalitativ del og har fokus på forelæsninger og de studerendes kommunikative deltagelse. 
Undersøgelsesresultaterne fortæller bl.a., at 74% af studerende vælger at følge forelæsningerne online, og at de studerende er enige om, at HyFlex er en god og fleksibel forelæsningsorganisering. Argumenterne for valg af onsite/online-deltagelse viser en vifte af individuelle præferencer.
E-moderator-funktionen er vigtig. Onlinestuderende er mere kommunikativt aktive mht. faglige spørgsmål (gennemsnitlig et bidrag fra hver tredje onlinestuderende i chatten). Chatkommunikationen initierer spørgsmål/svar via e-moderator (IRE-triader), mens interaktion forelæser/onsite og onsite/onlinestuderende (interaktionskæder) har vanskelige vilkår. De studerendes oplevelser indbefatter sparring, spejling, afveksling, engagement og motivation som vigtige parametre for deres tilgang til HyFlex-undervisning.