bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Enhancing Academic Performance in Mathematics of Grade 11 Students through Pre-Recorded Lesson and Home Tutorial Session
Authors: Tapado Neilkim-Peter J.
Published: June 2023

Introduction: Under the new normal circumstances, a lot of students had the most difficulty learning effectively and succeeding in school, and they still frequently struggle. The majority of students were having problems understanding the modules and other subjects, particularly math. Consequently, students truly need the assistance of the teachers in each lesson in mathematics for the self-learning module. Method: The study employed descriptive research utilizing a quantitative approach through the comparative method to determine if there is a significant difference in the pre-test and post-test results of the students before and after giving pre-recorded lessons and home tutorial sessions. The respondents to the study were the 32 Grade 11 students at Jomalig National High School who took the General Academic Strand (GAS). Results: The findings of the study revealed that there were notable and significant differences between the pre-test and post-test scores of the students involved in the interventions. The pre-test and post-test data revealed a mean of 12.25 and 26.5312, respectively. The data also revealed a computed t-value of 24.52165006 and a p-value of 3.66137E-22 at the 0.05 level of significance, which shows that there is a significant difference in the pre-test and post-test scores of the students while giving the pre-recorded lesson and home tutorial session. The respondents were chosen purposefully. Conclusions: Giving pre-recorded lessons and home tutorial sessions had a massive effect on the academic performance in mathematics of grade 11 students; thus, these enhanced the academic performance of grade 11 students in mathematics.
Exploring the Moderating Role of Gender in the Relationship between Personality Traits and Entrepreneurial Competencies
Authors: Cabusao Marinela B.
Published: June 2023

This study examines the interplay between personality traits, gender, and entrepreneurial tendencies. Drawing from the framework of the Big Five personality traits (Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism), we investigate the moderating role of gender on the relationship between these personality traits and various entrepreneurial behaviors. The sample consists of 500 individuals from diverse professional backgrounds, who completed self-report measures assessing their personality traits and entrepreneurial tendencies.

The results reveal that gender plays a significant moderating role in the relationship between personality traits and entrepreneurial behaviors. Specifically, we find that gender moderates the effects of Agreeableness and Extraversion on Opportunity Seeking and Persistence. Additionally, gender moderates the effects of Openness and Conscientiousness on Commitment to Work Contract, and Openness and Extraversion on Risk Taking. However, no significant gender moderation is observed for the effects of personality traits on Demand for Quality and Efficiency.

These findings highlight the complex interaction between personality traits, gender, and entrepreneurial tendencies. Understanding these dynamics has important implications for practitioners and policymakers aiming to foster entrepreneurship and support diverse entrepreneurial ecosystems. By acknowledging the differential impact of personality traits on entrepreneurial behaviors based on gender, tailored interventions and training programs can be developed to empower individuals, irrespective of their gender, in their pursuit of entrepreneurial success.

Overall, this research contributes to the growing body of knowledge on the multidimensional nature of entrepreneurship, emphasizing the need to consider gender as an important factor influencing the relationship between personality traits and entrepreneurial behaviors.
Injectable Hydrogel Containing Bupivacaine-Loaded Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles for Local Anesthetic Therapy
Authors: Li Bo , Yan Hua , Zhang Baoyong , Zhang Caicai , Yang Pengpeng
Published: June 2023

Developing a sustained drug delivery system with effective administration ruts is a central demand for local anesthesia applications. Moreover, the fast systemic absorption of the approved local anesthetics due to their low molecular weight have highlighted these demand. The main objective
of the current study is to develop a sustained drug delivery system with effective administration ruts based on the combination of injectable hydrogel with mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNPs). The MSNPs were synthesized by combining the one-pot sol-gel reaction and the templating micelle
system. Bupivacaine was loaded into the pores of MSNPs, and the nanoparticles were characterized using DLS, Zetasizer, SEM, TEM, encapsulation efficacy and drug loading capacity. The synthesized bupivacaine-loadedMSNPs were incorporated into a hydrogel based on alginate and characterized.
The characterizations revealed that the formulation exhibited proper physicochemical properties beneficial for injectable hydrogel applications. The biological studies showed excellent encapsulation efficacy, drug loading efficacy, and local anesthetic effects. In conclusion, these results
showed that the synthesized injectable hydrogel containing bupivacaine-loaded MSNPs could be considered an effective drug delivery system for local anesthetic therapy.
Biofilm Biomimetic miR-29a Nanoparticles Inhibit Prostate Cancer Progression via Tristetraprolin/HuR-AR
Authors: Li Hongwei , Gao Zhan , Cui Zhiqiang , Wang Cezheng
Published: June 2023

Prostate cancer (PCa) occupies the second place among all male malignancies worldwide. Our study explored therapeutic mechanism of biofilm biomimetic nanoparticles encapsulating miR-29a on PCa. The expression and location of HuR and Androgen Receptor (AR) were detected by immunohistochemistry,
Western blot and Reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) along with analysis of cell apoptosis. After repeated extrusion of nanoparticles, cell membrane fragments were extruded into hollow spherical vesicles of 100–200 nm, which consisted of micron-scale
concave disks. In prostate tissue, HuR protein was expressed in both nucleus and cytoplasm, while AR protein was mostly expressed in nucleus. miR-29a and Tristetraprolin (TTP) expressions decreased in LNCaP and DU145 (P < 0.05) while the HuR level increased (P < 0.05) miR-29a
targeted TTP. Overexpression of miR-29a upregulated TTP and downregulated HuR (P <0.05), inhibiting miR-29a expression, which decreased TTP and increased the HuR level (P < 0.05). Overexpression of miR-29a inhibited cancer cell activities (P < 0.05) and its inhibition
inhibited apoptosis (P <0.05). Biofilm biomimetic nanoparticles encapsulated miR-29a regulated TTP and HuR expression and significantly affected activities of prostate cancer cells, indicating that encapsulation of miR-29a by biofilm biomimetic nanoparticles may become a new way
for prostate cancer treatment.
Dental Pulp Stem Cell-Derived Exosomes Inhibit Senescence-Induced Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Through the Nuclear Factor Kappa B Signaling Pathway
Authors: Cao Limin , Long Xuan , Liang Long , Zhang Jushan , Tuerhong Amanguli , Zhu Shuli , Xie Shuanshuan , Song Xiaolian , Wang Changhui
Published: June 2023

The respiratory condition known as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is widespread, but its pathogenesis remains unclear. To investigate the mechanism by which dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs) and their exosomes inhibit cellular senescence, senescence was first induced in bronchial
epithelial cells by treatment with 5% cigarette smoke extract (5% CSE). Our results revealed that the senescence of bronchial epithelial cells induced by 5% CSE was decreased when co-cultured with dental pulp stem cells or their exosomes. Furthermore, this study identified that 5% CSE promoted
cell senescence through the Nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kB) pathway. In addition, 5% CSE-induced cell senescence was limited when IKKβ was knocked out in bronchial epithelial cells. Meanwhile, DPSCs inhibited cell senescence through exosomal-MALAT1. Contrastingly, this effect was
reversed by MALAT1 knockout. In the mouse COPD model, it was found that DPSCs could effectively inhibit COPD progression via reducing cell senescence-related proteins in mouse lung tissues, such as p21 and GLB1, and upregulating the MALAT1 expression. TNF-α and p21 expression
levels were considerably reduced after treatment with dental pulp stem cells, according to IHC staining. Finally, we validated that DPSCs and their exosomes inhibit cell senescence by regulating MALAT1 and the NF-kB pathway in vitro as well as in vivo, thereby exerting a therapeutic
effect in COPD.
MicroRNA-532 Promotes Proliferation, Metastasis and Autophagy in Esophageal Cancer via Targeting Naked Cuticle 1
Authors: Chen Sui , Zhang Qilin , Yilihamu Yierxiati , Zhang Peipei , Jiang Junfei , Zhang Weiguang , Shen Zhimin
Published: June 2023

The aim of this study was to elucidate the role of microRNA-532 in influencing the progression of esophageal cancer and cell autophagy through negatively regulating Naked cuticle 1 (NKD1) level. Relative levels of microRNA-532 and NKD1 in esophageal cancer tissues and corresponding
paracancerous ones were detected. The relationship between microRNA-532 level and overall survival in esophageal cancer patients was statistically analyzed. Subsequently, regulatory effects of microRNA-532 and NKD1 on viability, metastasis and autophagy in TE-1 and EC-109 cells were examined.
The interaction between microRNA-532 and NKD1 was finally explored. MicroRNA-532 was upregulated in esophageal cancer tissues and its high level indicated poor prognosis in esophageal cancer patients. Serving as the downstream gene binding microRNA-532, NKD1 level was negatively regulated
by microRNA-532. Knockdown of microRNA-532 weakened viability and metastasis, as well as downregulated autophagy-associated genes (Atg5, LC-3I and LC-3II) in TE-1 and EC-109 cells. Knockdown of NKD1 achieved the opposite results. MicroRNA-532 promotes proliferation, metastasis and autophagy
in esophageal cancer by downregulating NKD1. It is believed that microRNA-532 may be a promising therapeutic target for esophageal cancer.
Efficacy of Sodium Alginate Microsphere Interventional Embolization Combined with Sorafenib in Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Authors: Wang Kun
Published: June 2023

To explore the efficacy of sodium alginate microsphere (SAM) transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) combined with sorafenib in liver cancer (LC), 118 patients with advanced LC were enrolled in the study. Patients were randomized into c-TACE and SAM-TACE groups; in addition
to TACE, the SAM-TACE group was treated with SAM and oral sorafenib. The physical properties and cytotoxicity of SAM were investigated in vitro. Liver function, tumor markers, the extent of solid tumor remission, adverse events, and survival rates were compared between the two groups
during a 2-year follow-up period. The diameter of SAM was approximately 180–250 μm and the swelling rate of the microspheres was good, especially at pH 7.4. SAMs did not reduce 3T3-L1 and ECV-304 cell activities and was biocompatible. SAM-TACE was effective in protecting liver
function in patients and, when combined with sorafenib, reduced tumor marker levels and cancer volumes, resulting in improved patient survival rates. SAM-TACE combined with sorafenib did not increase the rate of adverse reactions. Therefore, SAM-TACE combined with sorafenib has great potential
in the treatment of advanced LC.
Deliberate Nuclear First Use in an Era of Asymmetry: A Game Theoretical Approach
Authors: Larsen Even Hellan
Published: June 2023

Most nuclear dyads are characterized by some degree of nuclear and conventional asymmetry. This paper argues that these asymmetries create an environment in which deliberate nuclear first use (DNFU) can be rational. This possibility has been discarded in the formal literature on nuclear escalation because of the common reliance on the assumption of mutually assured destruction (MAD). This paper develops a formal model that traces how and under what circumstances two types of DNFU are rational. First, nuclear imbalances and advancements in counterforce technologies create a damage limitation incentive for a strong actor. Second, conventional asymmetry creates an incentive for the coercive use of nuclear weapons by the weaker player. Moreover, this paper illustrates that these asymmetric conditions are a relevant characteristic in important and very different nuclear dyads: DPRK–US, Pakistan–India, and Russia–US. Thus, the model demonstrates the potential core drivers of DNFU in today’s nuclear landscape.
The Online Battlefield: How Conflict Frames in Political Advertisements Affect Political Participation in a Multiparty Context
Authors: van der Goot Emma , Kruikemeier Sanne , Vliegenthart Rens , de Ridder Jeroen
Published: June 2023

This article examines how politicians’ conflict framing strategies in online campaign advertisements affect citizens’ political participation in a multi-party context. We rely on a unique combination of innovative research methods to do so, including a four-wave panel survey, a content analysis of Facebook browser-tracking data and a mobile experience sampling survey with data donations. All data were collected during the 2021 Dutch general elections. We find that conflict framing can discourage citizens from engaging in low-effort forms of political participation, such as discussing politics, signing a petition and visiting political websites. The results show that conflict frames can demobilize citizens because they lower enthusiasm and are perceived as less informative. Our study provides insights into the potential unintended consequences of using conflict framing as a campaign strategy in a multi-party setting.
Steering angle sensorless control for four-wheel steering vehicle via sliding mode control method
Authors: Yuan Haiying , Goh Keng , Andras Peter , Luo Wenguang , Wang Caisheng , Gao Yuan
Published: June 2023

This paper presents a new sensorless control method for four-wheel steering vehicles. Compared to the existing sensor-based control, this approach improved dynamic stability, manoeuvrability and robustness in case of malfunction of the front steering angle sensor. It also provided a software redundancy and backup solution, as well as improved fault tolerance. The strategy of the sensorless control is based on the sliding mode method to estimate the replacement of the front steering input from the errors between the vehicle’s measured and desired values of the vehicle’s sideslip angle and yaw rate. The simulation results demonstrate that the observer effectively estimated the front wheel steering angle at both low- and high-speed scenarios in the cornering and lane change manoeuvres. Furthermore, the sensorless control approach can achieve equivalent control performances to the sensor-based controller including a small and stable yaw rate response and zero sideslip angle. The results of the study offer a potential solution for improving manoeuvrability, stability and sensor fault tolerance of four-wheel steering vehicles.
The Impact of Economic Corridor and Tourism on Local Community's Quality of Life under One Belt One Road Context
Authors: Wang Shiying , Abbas Jaffar , Al-Sulati Khalid Ibrahim , Shah Syed Ale Raza
Published: June 2023

Economic corridors unlock new economic opportunities and tourism development in the region to achieve sustainable development goals. Green economic growth is conducive to environmental sustainability. Economic mega-projects of CPEC promote tourism that leads to communities’ well-being and better quality of life. Modern infrastructure development contributes significantly to economic growth and tourism activities. This study’s objectives emphasize exploring tourism and sustainable development pursuits under OBOR economic projects that open doors to improving residents' quality of life. The growing world is an eyewitness to a continuous rise in emissions and its severe consequences for humankind. It is necessary to show off the leading factors that result in tourism and economic activities causing environmental pollution rather than blame policymakers. Undoubtedly, many studies previously focused on demonstrating the influence of socio-economic factors that lead to better environmental quality. However, the empirical literature on tourism, social well-being, foreign direct investment, and the Environment in Belt and Road developed economies needed improvement. This research applied a series of advanced estimators that help demonstrate the study’s probable results. This study explores the role of Social well-being (HDI), tourism development, FDI, renewable energy, information & communication technology (ICT), and urbanization on CO2 emissions in Belt and Road (BRI) developed economies.Estimated results exhibited the significant contribution of ICT and renewable energy to sustainability. Besides, FDI contributes to emissions reduction after its threshold level. Conversely, urbanization and tourism activities contribute to environmental pollution. The study outcomes stated inverted/EKC U-shaped hypotheses related to specified economies. Finally, the analysis based on the D-H panel causality test constructs exciting results.The present study concludes that economic corridor plays a vital role in tourism development, the community’s well-being, and SDGs goals (sustainable development) impact on environmental safety. The findings suggest essential and applicable policies to attain the desired sustainability level. Findings contribute to the literature on tourism, well-being, and sustainability. Further studies can use insights using this methodology.
Embodying Resistance: Politics and the Mobilization of Vulnerability
Authors: Lloyd Moya
Published: June 2023

How are we to understand hunger strikes and episodes of lip-sewing in immigration detention? Are they simply cases of self-destruction or bare life, as is often claimed, or is there scope to view these embodied acts of self-harm as having a political dimension and to see those engaged in them as resistant subjects exercising political agency? To explore these issues, I draw on recent feminist theoretical work on vulnerability. Received wisdom suggests that vulnerability is an impediment to political action. Rejecting the idea that vulnerability equates exclusively to injurability and passivity, I contend, by contrast, that corporeal vulnerability can potentially prompt action, serve as a resource for collective acts of resistance, and enable the politicization of certain spaces. Since context matters to how vulnerability and resistance intersect, I illustrate my argument by exploring, in particular, the protests that took place at Woomera immigration detention centre in Australia in 2002.
Economic and mobility repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Chile–Bolivia border
Authors: Liberona Nanette , Piñones-Rivera Carlos
Published: June 2023

This article analyzes how the pandemic caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19) has impacted international migration. In particular, we compare the mobility and economic repercussions faced by Bolivian and Venezuelan migrants. We conducted 16 semi-structured interviews with migrants who requested legal and social support and advice provided by the Open Assembly of Migrants and Pro-Migrants of Tarapacá, Chile (AMPRO), an organisation dedicated to defending migrant rights. The Bolivian interviewees worked in Chile before the pandemic in the city of Iquique (close to the Bolivian border). The Venezuelan interviewees are undocumented people in transit who entered Chile during the pandemic. Through this comparison, we describe the economic repercussions on the everyday life, mobility, and survival strategies of people in transit, transboundary workers, and migrants with transnational families, and reveal a realignment of Chile’s border regime that benefits post-pandemic capitalism. Furthermore, we clarify how the health restrictions implemented due to the pandemic have favoured the reconfiguration of the border regime imposed in Chile, through a racist immigration policy based on the control and management of migration, leading to a greater irregularization of migration.
APOE4 expression confers a mild, persistent reduction in neurovascular function in the visual cortex and hippocampus of awake mice
Authors: Bonnar Orla , Shaw Kira , Anderle Silvia , Grijseels Dori M , Clarke Devin , Bell Laura , King Sarah L , Hall Catherine N
Published: June 2023

Vascular factors are known to be early and important players in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) development, however the role of the ε4 allele of the Apolipoprotein (APOE) gene (a risk factor for developing AD) remains unclear. APOE4 genotype is associated with early and severe neocortical vascular deficits in anaesthetised mice, but in humans, vascular and cognitive dysfunction are focused on the hippocampal formation and appear later. How APOE4 might interact with the vasculature to confer AD risk during the preclinical phase represents a gap in existing knowledge. To avoid potential confounds of anaesthesia and to explore regions most relevant for human disease, we studied the visual cortex and hippocampus of awake APOE3 and APOE4-TR mice using 2-photon microscopy of neurons and blood vessels. We found mild vascular deficits: vascular density and functional hyperaemia were unaffected in APOE4 mice, and neuronal or vascular function did not decrease up to late middle-age. Instead, vascular responsiveness was lower, arteriole vasomotion was reduced and neuronal calcium signals during visual stimulation were increased. This suggests that, alone, APOE4 expression is not catastrophic but stably alters neurovascular physiology. We suggest this state makes APOE4 carriers more sensitive to subsequent insults such as injury or beta amyloid accumulation.
Anterior inferior cerebellar artery occlusion accompanied by hemorheology-documented increased blood viscosity: a case report
Authors: Chen Yanyi , Li Yuxin , Zhan Tao
Published: June 2023

Anterior inferior cerebellar artery (AICA) occlusion is a subtype of posterior circulation stroke. Confirmation of its angiomorphology and etiology is challenging because of the complex mechanisms underlying small-artery thrombogenesis. In addition to conventional factors, physicians frequently overlook hemorheological changes. In this case report, we describe right AICA occlusion in a 50-year-old man. He presented with an unsteady walk, tinnitus, dizziness, and left-sided peripheral facial palsy observed over 36 hours, accompanied by increased blood viscosity on hemorheological evaluation. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed acute infarction in the left cerebellar hemisphere and middle cerebellar peduncles. Magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) and computed tomographic angiography (CTA) failed to detect AICA occlusion, which was later confirmed using digital subtraction angiography. Repeat routine blood examinations showed elevated erythrocyte and leukocyte counts and serum hemoglobin concentrations that persisted over many days. Hemorheological evaluation revealed increased whole blood viscosity at a low shear rate. AICA occlusion should thus be diagnosed based on its initial characteristic manifestations; notably, MRA and CTA may fail to detect arterial occlusion. The importance of hemorheological change as a factor of stroke is frequently neglected. We therefore report this case hoping to emphasize its relevance, especially in small-artery occlusion.
Islamic Spiritual Care, Depression, and Quality of Life Among Patients With Heart Disease: A Systematic Review
Authors: Nuraeni Aan , Suryani Suryani , Trisyani Yanny , Anna Anastasia
Published: June 2023

Objectives: This study sought to identify the potential effect of Islamic-Spiritual care and how it is delivered in treating depression and improving the quality of life (QoL) of patients with heart disease. Methods: This systematic review is reported based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis. We searched using relevant keywords through PubMed, CINAHL, Scopus, Springer Link, and Academic Search Complete. Articles with an experimental or cohort design were included, without date restrictions. The quality of evidence was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute critical appraisal checklist, and data synthesis used thematic analysis. Results: The analysis included 6 of the 47 identified studies. All studies were conducted in Iran, and a small number had a low risk of bias. The intervention was given through an Islamic teaching strategy, indicating the potential to reduce depression and improve QoL. Moreover, the learning core consists of belief and surrender in God's providence, strengthened meaning and life's purposes, worship, and skills to overcome obstacles. Conclusions: The interventions had the potential to treat depression and improve the QoL. However, a further study considering the risks of bias and involving a larger patient population with other Muslim backgrounds is necessary.
Optimizing the efficiency of solar thermal collectors and studying the effect of particle concentration and stability using nanofluidic analysis
Authors: Kandasamy Vetrivel Kumar , Jaganathan Sivakumar , Dhairiyasamy Ratchagaraja , Rajendran Silambarasan
Published: June 2023

The emission of greenhouse gases is widely acknowledged as the primary driver of global warming. The adoption of renewable energy sources is paramount to address the dependence on fossil fuels, which contribute significantly to this issue and account for 84.3% of current energy production. Solar thermal energy stands out as a prominent option, representing 54.1% of the world's solar energy derived from solar collectors. However, solar thermal energy encounters challenge due to the suboptimal thermal properties of the liquids used in these collectors. Incorporating particles into the liquids offers a potential solution to enhance absorption and thermal properties. Nanofluids, formed by reducing solid particles to nanoscale dimensions, provide an avenue for improvement. This study aimed to produce an Ag nanofluid through mechanical exfoliation and assess its impact on radiation absorption compared to a GO nanofluid. Under a simulated power of 1 unit, the Ag nanofluid demonstrated temperature differences of 4 to 7°C, while pure water showed no significant deviation. Moreover, the evaporation efficiency of the Ag nanofluid reached up to 40.8% for concentrations of 200 and 500 ppm, compared to 28.6% for pure water. These findings highlight the potential of Ag nanofluid as a promising option for direct absorption solar collectors, owing to its cost-effectiveness, low toxicity, and similar benefits to graphene. Incorporating nanofluids, particularly the Ag nanofluid produced through mechanical exfoliation, can significantly enhance the efficiency of direct absorption solar collectors.
Why the Naïve Argument against Moral Vegetarianism Really is Naïve
Authors: Benatar David
Published: June 2023

When presented with the claim of the moral vegetarian that it is wrong for us to eat meat, many people respond that because it is not wrong for lions, tigers and other carnivores to kill and eat animals, it cannot be wrong for humans to do so. This response is what Peter Alward has called the naïve argument. Peter Alward has defended the naïve argument against objections. I argue that his defence fails.
Exotic Species, Naturalisation, and Biological Nativism
Authors: Hettinger Ned
Published: June 2023

Contrary to frequent characterisations, exotic species should not be identified as damaging species, species introduced by humans, or species originating from some other geographical location. Exotics are best characterised ecologically as species that are foreign to an ecological assemblage in the sense that they have not significantly adapted with the biota constituting that assemblage or to the local abiotic conditions. Exotic species become natives when they have ecologically naturalised and when human influence over their presence in an assemblage (if any) has washed away. Although the damaging nature and anthropogenic origin of many exotic species provide good reasons for a negative evaluation of such exotics, even naturally-dispersing, nondamaging exotics warrant opposition. Biological nativists’ antagonism toward exotics need not be xenophobic and can be justified as a way of preserving the diversity of ecological assemblages from the homogenising forces of globalisation. Implications for Yellowstone National Park policy are explored.
Environmental Security and the Recombinant Human: Sustainability in the Twenty-first Century
Authors: Redclift Michael
Published: June 2023

Examining the concepts of ‘security’ and ‘sustainability’, as they are employed in contemporary environmental discourses, the paper argues that, although the importance of the environment has been increasingly acknowledged since the 1970s, there has been a failure to incorporate other discourses surrounding ‘nature’. The implications of the ‘new genetics’, prompted by research into recombinant DNA, suggest that future approaches to sustainability need to be more cognisant of changes in ‘our’ nature, as well as those of ‘external’ nature, the environment. This broadening of the compass of ‘security’ and ‘sustainability’ discourses would help provide greater insight into human security, from an environmental perspective.
Environmental Values and Adaptive Management
Authors: Norton Bryan G. , Steinemann Anne C.
Published: June 2023

The trend in environmental management toward more adaptive, community-based, and holistic approaches will require new approaches to environmental valuation. In this paper, we offer a new valuation approach, one that embodies the core principles of adaptive management, which is experimental, multi-scalar, and place-based. In addition, we use hierarchy theory to incorporate spatial and temporal variability of natural systems into a multi-scalar management model. Our approach results in the consideration of multiple values within community-based ecosystem management, rather than an attempt to maximise a single variable such as economic efficiency. We then offer two heuristics – one procedural and one evaluative – to guide a community toward shared goals, and to develop indicators to measure progress toward these goals. We illustrate our approach by application to environmental and developmental decisions in the Southern Appalachians.
A Constrained-Utility Alternative to Animal Rights
Authors: Frank Joshua
Published: June 2023

Numerous approaches have been taken in an effort to find a non-anthropocentric ethic that will lead to greater consideration of animals. Most of the recent approaches in this area have been rights-based. It is argued here that a rights-based approach alone fails both theoretically and in practical applications. It is shown that in theory these approaches can lead to unsound conclusions and cannot handle uncertainty. In addition, in practice the rules of the rights-based approaches will often be violated. A utility approach with unequal weighting for different species subject to certain rights or obligations is proposed as an alternative. This approach is intended to be operational rather than purely theoretical and therefore would be based on a negotiated consensus rather than a priori theory.
Forest Co-management as Science and Democracy in West Bengal, India
Authors: Sivaramakrishnan K.
Published: June 2023

This essay argues that important development and natural resource management initiatives that seek to expand meaningful participation by rural communities directly affected by such ventures can be usefully examined as democratic technologies. Drawing upon nearly two decades of experience designing, implementing, and researching forest co-management programs in India, the essay examines the analogous practices through which democracy and forest management science become contested regulatory ideals while creating the deliberative spaces in which post-Habermasian public spheres can be constructed. The analysis of disciplinary tendencies, bureaucratic transition, and emerging solidarities among historically marginalised groups responding to the performance of democracy and scientific forest management is used to offer revisions to the more sweeping critiques of technology as fundamentally anti-democratic.
Aquaphobia, Tulipmania, Biophilia: A Moral Geography of the Dutch Landscape
Authors: Zwart Hub
Published: June 2023

In Genesis (1:9–10) we are told that God gathered the waters into one place, in order to let the dry land appear, which He called earth, while the waters were called seas. In the Netherlands, this process took more than a single day, and it was the work of man. Gradually, a cultivated landscape emerged out of diffuse nature. In the course of centuries, the Dutch determined the conditions that allowed different aspects of nature to present themselves. This process is described as a moral geography in the sense that different types of landscape are read as a manifestations (or materialisations) of different moral attitudes towards nature, whereas concrete landscape interventions are interpreted as instances of moral criticism directed towards the activities and values of previous generations. At present, this process (the genesis of the Dutch landscape) is being reversed, as diffuse, wetland nature is experiencing a come-back.
Re-Thinking Nature: Towards an Eco-Pluralism
Authors: Curry Patrick
Published: June 2023

Both scientific realism and social constructionism offer unpromising and even destructive ways of trying to understand nature and human–nature relations. The reasons include what these apparent opponents share: a commitment to the (latterly) modernist division between subject/culture and object/nature that results from what is here called ‘monist essentialism’. It is contrasted with ‘relational pluralism’, which provides the basis of a better alternative – ecopluralism – which, properly understood, is necessarily both ecocentric and pluralist.
Cows are Better than Condos, or How Economists Help Solve Environmental Problems
Authors: Sagoff Mark
Published: June 2023

This essay explores three case studies that illustrate the exemplary use of economic analysis in environmental decision-making. These include: 1) the creation of a market in tradable grazing rights in the American West; 2) a cost analysis that facilitated a negotiated rulemaking at a power plant in Arizona; and 3) a conception of production-based pollution allowances that led to an agreement for regulating Intel microprocessor production plants. The paper argues that cost–benefit analysis may be less useful than other kinds of economic analysis that can guide and inform rather than judge and second-guess the outcome of negotiated and collaborative decision-making.
Future Generations and Contemporary Ethics
Authors: Johnson Lawrence E.
Published: June 2023

Future generations do not exist, and are not determinate in their make-up. The moral significance of future generations cannot be accounted for on the basis of a purely individualistic ethic. Yet future generations are morally significant. The Person-Affecting Principle, that (roughly) only acts which are likely to affect particular individuals are morally significant, must be augmented in such a way as to take into account the moral significance of Homo sapiens, a holistic entity which certainly does exist. Recent contributions to Environmental Values by Alan Carter and Ernest Partridge are criticised (but not entirely rejected).
Environmental Philosophy and the Public Interest: A Pragmatic Reconciliation
Authors: Minteer Ben A.
Published: June 2023

Most environmental philosophers have had little use for ‘conventional’ philosophical and political thought. This is unfortunate, because these traditions can greatly contribute to environmental ethics and policy discussions. One mainstream concept of potential value for environmental philosophy is the notion of the public interest. Yet even though the public interest is widely acknowledged to be a powerful ethical standard in public affairs and public policy, there has been little agreement on its descriptive meaning. A particularly intriguing account of the concept in the literature, however, may be found in the work of the American pragmatist John Dewey. Dewey argued that the public interest was to be continuously constructed through the process of free, cooperative inquiry into the shared good of the democratic community. This Deweyan model of the public interest has much to offer environmental philosophers who are interested in making connections between normative arguments and environmental policy discourse, and it holds great promise for enhancing environmental philosophy's role and impact in public life.
Reconciling Realism and Constructivism in Environmental Ethics
Authors: Evanoff Richard J.
Published: June 2023

This paper outlines a constructivist approach to environmental ethics which attempts to reconcile realism in the ontological sense, i.e., the view that there is an objective material world existing outside of human consciousness, with the view that how nature is understood and acted in are epistemologically and morally constructed. It is argued that while knowledge and ethics are indeed culturally variable, social constructions of nature are nonetheless constrained by how things actually stand in the world. The ‘realist’ version of constructivism proposed here can be linked to dialectical forms of reasoning which see knowledge and ethics as arising out of human interactions with an objectively real environment, and contrasted with strong constructivist views which see nature as ‘nothing more than’ a social construct. While both the physical environment and human attitudes towards it are in part socially constructed, nature also retains a measure of autonomy, or ‘wildness’, apart from human constructions.
Care for the Wild: An Integrative View on Wild and Domesticated Animals
Authors: Swart Jac A.A.
Published: June 2023

Environmental ethics has to deal with the challenge of reconciling contrasting ecocentric and animal-centric perspectives. Two classic attempts at this reconciliation, which both adopted the metaphor of concentric circles, are discussed. It is concluded that the relationship between the animal and its environment, whether the latter is human or natural, should be a pivotal element of such reconciliation. An alternative approach is presented, inspired by care ethics, which proposes that caring for wild animals implies caring for their relationship to the natural environment and thus taking action to maintain wildlife habitat. This type of care is labelled non-specific care because it is not directed towards the individual wild animal and its specific individual needs. In contrast, caring for domestic animals is called specific care because it is much more directed towards the individual animal's needs.
Justice for the Environment: Developing a Set of Indicators of Environmental Justice for Scotland
Authors: Todd Helen , Zografos Christos
Published: June 2023

This paper explores the context of environmental justice (EJ) in Scotland, and presents a case study whereby the main attributes for an indicator of EJ were identified, encompassing procedural and distributive aspects of justice. Through a participatory process, weights were assigned using a Multi-Criteria Analysis tool, the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP). Results show that overall, environmental injustices are mostly associated by respondents to unequal distribution of health burdens due to pollution, yet greater weight is attached to procedural justice by community environmental activists. The paper suggests that AHP may be applied to many situations and could form a basis for the development of tools to address and deliver EJ in Scotland.
On the Moral Considerability of Homo sapiens and Other Species
Authors: Sandler Ronald , Crane Judith
Published: June 2023

It is sometimes claimed that as members of the species Homo sapiens we have a responsibility to promote the good of Homo sapiens itself (distinct from the good of its individual members). Lawrence Johnson has recently defended this claim as part of his approach to resolving the problem of future generations. We show that there are several difficulties with Johnson's argument, many of which are likely to attend any attempt to establish the moral considerability of Homo sapiens or species generally. Further, even if Homo sapiens were morally considerable, this would not ground an adequate response to the problem of future generations. The sort of moral considerability that would be appropriate to Homo sapiens, or species generally, would not be as robust nor have the implications that many have supposed.
Biosecurity and Insecurity: The Interaction between Policy and Ritual during the Foot and Mouth Crisis
Authors: Nerlich Brigitte , Wright Nick
Published: June 2023

In 2001 a highly infectious animal disease, foot and mouth disease, broke out in the UK and spread rapidly. In May, when the spread seemed to be slowing down, new disease hotspots appeared in previously little affected regions, such as North Yorkshire. New biosecurity rules were imposed. Based on a series of semi-structured interviews with stakeholders, this article shows that the biosecurity measures farmers implemented during the epidemic meant more than just reducing the risk of spreading FMD. For many, cleansing and disinfecting became Foot and Mouth. Biosecurity actions became invested with symbolic values and, in particular, were ritualised as part of the symbolic spatial construction of an otherwise ‘invisible’ enemy.
Ecological Restoration Restored
Authors: Chapman Robert L.
Published: June 2023

Conceptual and methodological changes in ecology have the potential to alter significantly the way we view the world. A result of embracing a dynamic model (‘the flux of nature’, and ‘disturbance regimes’) has been to make ecological restoration projects a viable alternative, whereas under ‘equilibrium ecology’ (climax communities/nature-knows-best) restoration was considered destructive interference. The logic of sustainability strategies within the context of dynamic forces promises a greater compatibility with anthropogenic activity. Unhappily, environmental restoration turns out to be paradoxical under the current identification of wilderness with wildness where wildness is, at least, a necessary condition for the possession of natural value. The solution to the paradox is to separate wilderness from wildness both conceptually and ontologically by enlarging the domain of wildness to include certain human activities.
Saudis Perceived Severity of Middle East Respiratory Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) and Preventive Measures
Authors: Rentner Terry L. , Alsulaiman Saud A.
Published: June 2023

While the world is struggling with a Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in 2020, one country, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, has been tackling a different strain of the Coronavirus, the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV), since 2012. The Ministry of Health (MOH) has been working to ensure the safety and health of Saudi residents, particularly during the annual pilgrimage season. This study examined information-seeking behaviours among Saudi people regarding MERS-CoV and the level of adherence to health preventive measures during the Hajj season. The study used the Health Belief Model (HBM) to assess perceived severity among Saudis. The study aimed to measure Saudi’s levels of fear from being infected with MERS-CoV. Snowball sampling and simple random probability sampling methods were utilized. A total of 1,206 participated in the study. Mann–Whitney U test, Kruskal-Wallis test, Chi-Square test of independence, Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient tests were conducted. The study found that the MOH needed to be more effective in sharing MERS-CoV information and that most Saudis had high perceived severity of MERS-CoV but did not fear contracting MERS-CoV, nor did it impact decisions to attend Hajj. Further results found that respondents with high perceived severity of contracting MERS-CoV were less likely to seek Coronavirus information than those with lower scores.
Book Review of Distress in the Fields: Indian Agriculture After Economic Liberalization
Authors: De Roy Shantanu
Published: June 2023

Book Review of Distress in the Fields: Indian Agriculture After Economic Liberalization, R. Ramakumar (Ed.). Tulika Books, 2022.
Examination of Elements Influencing Mothers’ Dynamic Capacity and Versatility: A Household-level Analysis
Authors: Das Promila
Published: June 2023

The study aims at exploring the degree of dynamic capacities and versatility of mothers at the household level and to recognise its general determinants. The sample includes 280 households where mothers with school-going children are the respondents. Principal component analysis is applied to estimate a mother’s dynamic capacities and versatility level. The ordinary least-square regression model is developed to identify the factors that influence the mother’s dynamic capacities and versatility level. The outcome shows that the dynamic capacities and versatility of mothers shift fundamentally across families and in general, it is tolerably high. The further result shows that the higher the level of education and the higher the age at marriage the higher the mother’s capacity to taking decisions and move autonomously. Different elements that add to this are a place of residence, religion and housing conditions.
Maryland’s PRIDE: Evaluation of an Early Intervention Program Embedded Within a NICU and NICU Follow-Up Program
Authors: Xue Xiaofang , Zong Xiaoli , Valentine Gloria , Hussey-Gardner Brenda
Published: June 2023

The Maryland’s Premature Infant Developmental Enrichment (PRIDE) program is a unique collaborative endeavor between the University of Maryland School of Medicine and the Part C program for Baltimore City residents (Baltimore Infants and Toddlers Program; BITP). To evaluate the impact of PRIDE, the current study compared premature infants from low-income families who participated in BITP with (BWP) and without PRIDE (BWOP). A total of 956 premature infants (nBWP = 271; nBWOP = 685) were included in the study. Results showed that infants in BWP were referred at a younger age and stayed in BITP longer. A smaller percentage of parents in BWP withdrew from BITP and a larger percentage of BWP infants were eligible for special education preschool services under Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) at age 3. These findings provide support for the relative benefits of PRIDE to the traditional system of early intervention referral, evaluation, and service coordination.