bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The association between sexual orientation and psychotic experiences during adolescence: A prospective cohort study
Authors: Corcoran Emma , Althobaiti Amal , Lewis Glyn , Solmi Francesca , McCloud Tayla , Lewis Gemma
Published: June 2023

Purpose
Psychotic experiences are relatively common during adolescence and associated with a range of negative outcomes. There is evidence that sexual minorities are at increased risk of mental health problems including depression, anxiety, self-harm and suicidality. However, no study has investigated the association between sexual orientation and psychotic experiences during adolescence. We compared trajectories of psychotic experiences in sexual minority and heterosexual adolescents from 12 to 24 years of age.
Methods
We used data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC). Participants provided data on sexual orientation at age 16 and psychotic experiences at ages 12, 17 and 24. We used multi-level logistic regression models to test associations between sexual orientation and psychotic experiences, before and after adjusting for covariates. We investigated whether the association differed according to time-point and sex using interaction terms.
Results
We found evidence that the odds of psychotic experiences were 2.35 times (95% Confidence Interval 1.79–3.05, p < .0001) higher among sexual minority compared with heterosexual adolescents, after adjusting for covariates. There was no evidence that the association between sexual orientation and psychotic experiences differed according to time-point (p = 0.49) or sex (p = 0.29).
Conclusion
We found an increased risk of psychosis in sexual minorities compared with heterosexuals, which was present from around 12 years of age and persisted until age 24. Early interventions to prevent this mental health inequality could include universal interventions to promote inclusivity and acceptance of diverse sexual orientations.
Are dental outcomes associated with medication use in young and older adults?
Authors: Castro Ricardo Dias , Vieira Alexandre Rezende
Published: June 2023

Objetive: We aimed to examine the association between medication use and dental outcomes in 4,531 individuals aged 18 to 44 and 45 to 64 years.
Method: Medical and dental data were obtained from the Dental Registry and DNA Repository project at the University of Pittsburgh. Demographic data, medical history, and oral health data were collected. Self-reported medication use was obtained for several types of pharmacologic therapeutic classes. Dental outcomes analyzed were: sound teeth, caries experience, caries activity, periodontal disease, endodontic treatment, and missing or extracted teeth.
Results: The use of any type of medication was identified in 65.22% (n = 2,955) of the sample, with higher frequencies for psychiatric/neurological medications (26.84%, n = 1,216), cardiovascular medications (20.06%, n = 909), and analgesics (14.72%, n = 667). Overall, the use of these medications was associated (p< 0.0001) with a lower number of healthy teeth and a higher number of extracted teeth in the 18 to 44 age group for all types of teeth assessed. Medication use is associated with a higher number of maxillary and mandibular teeth affected by caries, and contraceptive use was associated with a lower number of active caries in the same groups of teeth (p< 0.0001).
Conclusions: The use of drugs for psychiatric or neurological disorders, immunomodulators, pain, antimicrobials, proton pump inhibitors, and cardiovascular disease was associated with fewer healthy teeth, more extracted or missing teeth, and more active caries in anterior teeth. The use of contraceptives was associated with better oral health conditions.
Level of satisfaction with the learning environment and transition to employment among health professions graduates at a Ugandan medical school
Authors: Ngonzi Joseph , Kintu Timothy Mwanje , Muganzi David Jolly , Kyagambiddwa Tonny , Atimango Lorna , Kihumuro Raymond Bernard , Bajunirwe Francis
Published: June 2023

Background: To ensure training quality, medical training institutions must provide adequate learning environment and prepare trainees for work but there is research paucity on the subject. We determined the level of satisfaction with the learning environment and transition to employment among graduates of a Ugandan medical school.
Methods: We conducted an online cross-sectional survey among graduates of Mbarara University of Science and Technology medical school in Uganda, graduating between 1995 and 2020 between March - November 2022. We used Likert scales to measure satisfaction with the learning environment and assessed relevance of the training in transition to the job market. Participants were reached by snowballing and data was analyzed using R-Studio.
Results: A total of 361 graduates responded to the survey. Majority were male (72%) and reported having formal employment (94%). Most (57.4%) of the graduates were satisfied with the quality of teaching at medical school. In contrast, fewer graduates (31.2%) were satisfied with the state of the infrastructure at the university and the opportunities available to influence medical school policy. Majority (85%) utilized the knowledge and skills acquired at university in their current job and 75% were satisfied with their ability to perform well under pressure. However, only 37% and 25.4% reported that the medical school supported them in internship and employment search.
Conclusion: Students were satisfied with the teaching quality at the University and ability to perform well at their jobs but gaps exist in infrastructure and preparation for transition to jobs. Hence a need to improve infrastructure.
Boldness suppresses foraging behavior in food hoarding season and reduces over-wintering survival in a social rodent
Authors: Gan Lin , Tian Shuangjie , Wang Dehua , Liu Wei
Published: June 2023

Background
The "pace-of-life" syndrome (POLS) framework can encompass multiple personality axes that drive important functional behaviors (e.g., foraging behavior) and that co-vary with multiple metabolic and/or life history traits. However, the empirical evidence for the relationships between animal personality and foraging strategies remains unclear, including their fitness consequences in the POLS framework. Therefore, the POLS hypothesis might be limited, and the environmental context could influence this linkage. In this study, the Mongolian gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus), a social rodent, was used as a model system to investigate how boldness or shyness is associated with foraging strategies in the food hoarding season and over-wintering survival or reproduction at individual and group levels.
Results
Our results showed that bold and shy gerbils had different foraging strategies and over-wintering adaptations. Compared with shy gerbils, bold gerbils had a lower effort foraging strategy, including higher latency, less frequency, and shorter duration when foraging during the food hoarding season, and exhibited lower over-wintering survival, but bold-shy personality differences had no effect on over-wintering reproduction.
Conclusion
These findings suggest that animal personality is a key factor that affects the foraging strategy during the food hoarding season in Mongolian gerbils. Personality may be related to energy states or the reaction to environmental change (e.g., predation risk, food availability) in bold or shy social animals. These results reflect animal life history trade-offs between "current versus future reproduction" and "reproduction versus self-maintenance", thereby helping Mongolian gerbils adapt to seasonal fluctuations in their living environment.
Medication persistence among persons with multiple sclerosis in Slovenia treated with dimethyl fumarate: a retrospective observational cohort study
Authors: Jozef Maj , Locatelli Igor , Jakob Gregor Brecl , Kos Mitja , Rot Uroš
Published: June 2023

BackgroundMultiple sclerosis is a chronic, demyelinating inflammatory disease of the central nervous system. Medication persistence is an interval between initiation and last dose of a medication, followed by discontinuation of the applied medication.AimThe aim of this observational study was to evaluate Medication persistence and discontinuation reasons in Slovenian persons with multiple sclerosis treated with dimethyl fumarate.MethodsIn this retrospective cohort study, we evaluated persons with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis treated with dimethyl fumarate as an initial monotherapy or switched from injectable disease modifying therapy medication during 2014 and 2021. Medication dispenses were extracted from Slovenian National Institute of Public Health Outpatient Medication Database. Medication persistence criterion was based on treatment gap. Patients exceeding a 60-day gap were considered nonpersistent. The mean time to discontinuation was assessed using survival analyses. Considering discontinuation reasons, patients were further divided into safety and inefficacy group. The impact of confounders was evaluated by Cox regression.ResultsA total of 259 patients were included (176 women, mean age 37 years). During the 7-year follow-up period, 118 patients discontinued treatment. The mean time to discontinuation was 5.6 years. After 1 and 2 years of treatment, 85% and 77% of patients were found to be persistent, respectively. Age 30 and above was significantly related to higher medication persistence (P = 0.006).ConclusionThe results of our study proved high persistence rate among our patients. The most frequent discontinuation reason was gastrointestinal adverse effects. Medication persistence requires interventions in younger patients with unstable disease course.
A Selective Hybrid Parallel Double Self-Attention Net: Lane Mark Detection Model for Autonomous Driving
Authors: Fan Shengli , Zhang Yuzhi , Lu Shengrong , Bi Xiaohui
Published: June 2023

At the moment, research is focusing on autonomous driving. Researchers are focusing on it more and more. In several autonomous tasks, such as lane keep assistant, lane follow, highway helper, and so on, lane mark detection is crucial. The planner and controller, in addition to those, are also heavily dependent on it. Therefore, there are high criteria for not only its detection accuracy but also its detection speed. But it has a lot of difficult issues. For instance, lane markings come in a variety of colors, line kinds, and patterns. In addition, there will be an impact on lane mark detection from bright light, shadow, erosion, and traffic. Our research proposes a novel lane mark detection net as a solution to these problems. To increase the receptive field while preventing the gridding effect, it employs hybrid dilated convolution. We also suggest simultaneous twofold attention to obtain global and contextual information from spatial and neighboring channels. In some difficult situations, it can overcome obstacles. We use the Tusimple and the CULane datasets as our benchmarks for verification. The accuracy in the Tusimple dataset is the greatest among [15,49,51-53,62-64,66] at 96.04%. In the CULane dataset, our suggested model gets 73.39% in F1, which is the highest result, particularly in difficult scenarios. In the Tusimple and CULane datasets, our suggested approach obtains the best performance possible in terms of accuracy.
A Python Module for Modelling and Design of Solar Panels with Unidentical Cells
Authors: Elgamal Muhammad Abdelwahed , Ismail Yehea
Published: June 2023

The authors have requested that this preprint be removed from Research Square.
Ontology-driven machine learning applications for public policy analysis from social media data: A systematic literature review
Authors: Kero ADMAS ABTEW , Demissie Dait , Kekeba Kula
Published: June 2023

With the widespread use of social media platforms for various purposes, including political discussions, public opinion on policy issues can be inferred from social media data. Ontology-driven machine learning techniques have been applied to extract relevant information from such data for public policy analysis. In this systematic literature review (SLR), we aim to identify the current state-of-the-art in ontology-driven machine learning applications for public policy analysis from social media data. We conducted a comprehensive search for relevant studies published in peer-reviewed journals and conference proceedings up to May 2023. After screening and selection, we included 35 studies in the final review. Our review revealed that ontology-based approaches are commonly used for information extraction and entity recognition, while machine learning algorithms are employed for sentiment analysis, topic modeling, and policy issue identification. The review also highlighted the importance of domain-specific ontologies and labeled training datasets in achieving higher accuracy in policy analysis. Furthermore, we identified research gaps in the application of ontology-driven machine learning techniques for public policy analysis in non-English languages and for policy evaluation. Overall, this SLR provides insights into the current research trends, challenges, and opportunities in ontology-driven machine learning applications for public policy analysis from social media data.
A biomarker panel of C-reactive protein, procalcitonin and serum amyloid A is a predictor of sepsis in severe trauma patients: a case control study
Authors: Li Mei , Qin Yan-jun , Zhang Xin-liang , Zhang Chun-hua , Ci Rui-juan , Hu De-zheng , Dong Shi-min
Published: June 2023

Background Severe trauma could induce sepsis due to the loss of control of the infection, which may eventually lead to death. Accurate and timely diagnosis of sepsis with severe trauma remains challenging both for clinician and laboratory. Combinations of markers, as opposed to single ones, may improve diagnosis. We therefore compared the diagnostic characteristics of routinely used biomarkers of sepsis alone and in combination, trying to define a biomarker panel to predict sepsis in severe patients. Methods This prospective observational study included patients with severe trauma(ISS 16 or more) in the EICU at a university hospital. Blood samples were collected at 8 a.m. every day after admission to the EICU, until the day included patients were transferred out of EICU. Plasma levels of PCT, CRP, IL-6 and SAA were measured using commercial ELISA kits. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to evaluate the ability of the biomarkers to identify the possibility of sepsis in the enrolled patients. Logistic regression models were used to identify independent risk factors for sepsis. Results A total of 100 patients were eligible for analysis. Of these, 52 were diagnosed with sepsis. CRP yielded the highest discriminative value with an area under the ROC curve (AUC) of 0.82 (82% confidence interval [CI], 0.73–0.91; P<0.001), followed by PCT (AUC 0.77 [0.68–0.86]; P<0.001). Whereas, in multiple logistic regression, SAA, CRP, and PCT were found to be independent predictors of sepsis. Bioscore which was composed of SAA, CRP, and PCT, with AUC=0.89(95%CI, 0.82-0.95), cut-off=0.28, sensitivity=0.77, specificity=0.9, P<0.001, was shown to be far superior to that of each individual biomarker taken individually. Conclusions Compared with single markers, the biomarker panel of PCT, CRP, and SAA was more predictive of sepsis in severe polytrauma patients.
ETUDE RETROSPECTIVE DU CONTROLE DE QUALITE DES MEDICAMENTS AU LABORATOIRE NATIONAL DE LA SANTE, BAMAKO DE 2012 A 2019
Authors:   Faculte de Pharmacie, Universite des Sciences, des Techniques et des Technologies, Bamako, Mali., Diallo Tidiane ,   Laboratoire National de la Sante, Bamako, Mali., Dembele Ousmane ,   Faculte de Pharmacie, Universite des Sciences, des Techniques et des Technologies, Bamako, Mali.,   Laboratoire National de la Sante, Bamako, Mali., Patomo Arama Dominique ,   Faculte de Pharmacie, Universite des Sciences, des Techniques et des Technologies, Bamako, Mali.,   Direction de la Pharmacieet du Medicament, Bamako, Mali., Goh Sylvain Kouassi ,   Faculte de Pharmacie, Universite des Sciences, des Techniques et des Technologies, Bamako, Mali., Yaranga Koumare Benoit ,   Faculte de Pharmacie, Universite des Sciences, des Techniques et des Technologies, Bamako, Mali.,   Laboratoire National de la Sante, Bamako, Mali., Maiga Ababacar ,   Faculte de Pharmacie, Universite des Sciences, des Techniques et des Technologies, Bamako, Mali.
Published: June 2023

In Africa, a number of factors contribute to the proliferation of counterfeit medicines: lack and inadequacy of technical personnel and qualified structures to control the quality of medicines, corruption, absence or weakness of national pharmaceutical regulatory authorities. The objective of this work is to develop the quality profile of drugs analyzed at the National Health Laboratory (LNS) in Bamako, Mali from 2012 to 2019.Our methodology was based on a retrospective collection of data from analytical certificates during our study period. Analytical techniques were based on pharmacopoeial methods, manufacturer methods and validated internal monographs.Thus, out of 4032 samples received and then analyzed, 3771 were compliant, i.e. a rate of 94%, and 261 were non-compliant, i.e. a rate of 6%. Non-compliance mainly affected the family of antibiotics with a rate of 22.22% followed by antiseptics 19.2%. The causes of non-compliance were due to underdosage of active ingredient or the absence of active ingredient.Greater vigilance and collaboration from national drug regulatory authorities is needed to make good quality, safe and effective drugs available to the population.
TUBERCULOSIS OFINTRAMUSCULAR HEMATOMA POST ACL RECONSTRUCTION: A CASE REPORT
Authors:   College of Medicine, The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, Dublin, Ireland., Alhassan Yaser , Gronfula Amin ,   College of Medicine, The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, Dublin, Ireland., Almubarak Maisa ,   Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Suadi-German Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia., Ashour Abdulrahman ,   Department of Orthopedic Surgery, East Jeddah Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.,   Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Fagih Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia., Krimly Abdullah ,   Department of Orthopedic Surgery, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Published: June 2023

Introduction: Tuberculosis (TB) is considered well-eradicated in many developed countries however, in Saudi Arabia, it is still regarded as uncontrolled. Many organs can be affected by TB, the most common being the lungs. Presentation Of the Case: a 34-year-old male patient presented 8 months post Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) reconstruction complaining of a 2 cm swelling in the left lateral aspect of the left knee along with a decrease in range after an aggressive physiotherapy session. reddish, warmth, and pain, with a limited range of movement and then diagnosed with tuberculosis of the knee, histopathologically confirmed following surgical debridement Furthermore, the patients underwent the administration of an anti-tuberculous drug regimen. Discussion: This case is unique due to the unspecific clinical manifestations of the disease, which contributed to delayed diagnosis. Aggressive physiotherapy led to endobutten flipping resulting in hematoma development infected with M. Tuberculosis. Conclusion: Extraarticular Knee Hematoma infected with M. tuberculosis is a rare disease often misdiagnosed. Clinical manifestations need a further surgical approach followed by a histopathology examination to diagnose the level of injury. Good physiotherapy instructions with proper technique post-ACL repair are crucial steps to prevent complications, especially post-ACL reconstruction.
Reseña de: Otto Böhmer, Reif für die Ewigkeit. Kierkegaard und das Lachen der Götter
Authors: Choque Osman
Published: June 2023

Se trata de una reseña del libro: Otto Böhmer, Reif für die Ewigkeit. Kierkegaard und das Lachen der Götter
Mujer e individualidad en el pensamiento de Edith Stein
Authors: Mosquera Ramos Melani B. , Quiceno Osorio Juan David
Published: June 2023

Indagar sobre la esencia femenina es una tarea fundamental en nuestro tiempo. Sin embargo, es un esfuerzo que ha caído en el descrédito dado que se considera que no tiene en cuenta las diferencias individuales de las mujeres y contribuye a la sumisión femenina. Especialmente, a través de la formación de imágenes estereotipadas. En este artículo estudiaremos las conferencias sobre la mujer de Edith Stein, y algunos de sus estudios antropológicos, con la intención de aproximarnos a una comprensión que une la esencia femenina con la acción y manifiesta su intrínseca unidad con la individualidad. Stein está convencida que toda mujer posee una triple vocación: a nivel humano, femenino e individual que se ha de desarrollar de manera integral y complementaria. Sin embargo, esto solo será posible si reconoce el orden metafísico –cristiano– del que depende su ser.
La antifragilidad: Una mirada positiva del envejecimiento
Authors: Arboleda Campo Víctor Hugo , Muñoz Rodríguez Diana Isabel , Cardona Arango Doris , Segura Cardona Angela , Gallo Giraldo Erika Alejandra , Robledo Marín Carlos Arturo
Published: June 2023

Este artículo pretende explorar el concepto de antifragilidad en el adulto mayor, dado el cambio demográficoen el mundo, con evidencia del aumento de personas mayores, que exige a los profesionales vinculados a su atenciónimplementar modelos de intervención acordes con sus necesidades, relacionadas con su capacidad funcional y promociónde una cultura de antifragilidad. La construcción teórica de lo que significa ser adulto mayor antifrágil, en unasociedad que asimila el envejecimiento con fragilidad, enfermedad y discapacidad, es una oportunidad para presentaruna mirada positiva de la salud en la vejez, a partir de las adaptaciones al estrés en diferentes dimensiones que influencianla vida de este grupo poblacional, en el que el capital físico, psicológico y social se integran e influencian, en unproceso que se relaciona con la antifragilidad y el envejecer como un continuo de la vida, con ganancias y pérdidas; elestudio de esta relación permitirá contar con políticas inclusivas adecuadas en cada etapa de la vida.
Palabras clave: adulto mayor, adultos mayores fragilizados, envejecimiento, atención primaria de salud, atenciónambulatoria.
Alteraciones olfativas y déficits en la capacidad del reconocimiento emocional en pacientes con trauma craneoencefálico
Authors: Prada Sarmiento Edward Leonel , Mieles Toloza Ismael Leonardo , García Bibiana , Rojas Delgado Fabian Orlando , Avilés Reyes Rubén , Patiño Jaimes Vanessa , Torrado Duarte Omar Elias , Martínez Garrido Lía Margarita
Published: June 2023

El presente estudio tuvo como objetivo general identificar la asociación entre las alteraciones olfativas y el reconocimiento emocional en un grupo de pacientes con diagnóstico de traumatismo craneoencefálico. Fue desarrollada bajo un enfoque cuantitativo con diseño no experimental, en donde fueron evaluados 10 pacientes con antecedente de trauma craneoencefálico moderado y severo junto a 10 participantes controles sin daño cerebral. Para las variables sexo, edad y escolaridad los resultados fueron muy similares entre los grupos, con edades promedio de 26 años; la población fue predominantemente masculina, y la mayoría tenía grado de educación superior. En las pruebas de reconocimiento emocional, el grupo control logró un desempeño superior al grupo de casos. Adicionalmente, el grupo control logró mejor capacidad en las pruebas olfativas que el grupo de casos. Se encontró una correlación estadísticamente significativa entre los resultados del reconocimiento emocional y la variable olfativa en el grupo de casos, lo que permite identificar el rol que estructuras del sistema cerebral topográfica y funcionalmente pueden estar participando del procesamiento; a su vez, abre perspectivas de estudios a futuro, en especial a modelos de intervención en los grupos clínicos con afectación por el traumatismo craneoencefálico.
Palabras clave: Emociones, rostros, olfato, reconocimiento emocional
Pengaruh Kepercayaan Merek, Country of Origin, dan Desain Produk pada Minat Beli Mobil
Authors: Sofa Akhul Yunia , Parmariza Yennida
Published: June 2023

This study aims to determine the effect of brand trust, country of origin and product design on purschase intention in Mitsubishi Xpander. Respondents in this study were people who had never bought a Mitsubishi Xpander, but already knew about the product. The population in this study is not clearly known. The sampling technique used is the Hair et al technique where the indicator is multiplied by 5 to 10. The number of samples in this study was 119 samples. The data analysis method used is PLS (Partial Least Square) technique through the SmartPLS statistical software, with the research instrument being a questionnaire. The results showed that Brand Trust, Country Of Origin, and Product Design had a positive and significant effect on Purchase Intention in Mitsubishi Xpander.
Treatment of tequila vinasse mixed with domestic wastewater in two types of constructed wetlands
Authors: Montoya Arturo , Tejeda Allan , Sulbarán-Rangel Belkis , Zurita Florentina
Published: June 2023

Tequila vinasse (TV) is a high-strength effluent generated during the production of tequila, with a chemical oxygen demand (COD) concentration of up to 74 g/L. In this study, the treatment of TV was evaluated in a 27-week study in two types of constructed wetlands (CWs), namely horizontal subsurface flow wetlands (HSSFWs) and vertical upflow wetlands (VUFWs). The pre-settled and neutralized TV was diluted at 10, 20, 30, and 40% with domestic wastewater (DWW). Volcanic rock (tezontle) was used as the substrate and Arundo donax and Iris sibirica as emergent vegetation. The two systems showed similar high removal efficiencies for COD, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5), turbidity, total suspended solids (TSS), true colour (TC), electrical conductivity (EC), and total nitrogen (TN). The highest average percentages of removal were obtained at 40% of dilution: 95.4 and 95.8% for COD, 98.1 and 98.2% for turbidity, 91.8 and 95.9% for TSS, and 86.5 and 86.4% for TC in the HSSFWs and the VUFWs, respectively. This study demonstrates the potential of CWs for TV treatment as a major step in a treatment system.
Injustiças espaciais da água privatizada: o caso da PROLAGOS-RJ
Authors: Farias Damaris Alencar de
Published: June 2023

The municipalities of Armação dos Búzios, Arraial do Cabo, Cabo Frio, Iguaba Grande and São Pedro da Aldeia, belonging to the so-called Região dos Lagos, a coastal and tourist region in the state of Rio de Janeiro, had their water privatized in 1998. Since 1998. then, water management was carried out by Prolagos, a company belonging to AEGEA Sanitation – a sanitation holding that includes companies operating in forty-nine municipalities in eleven states in five Brazilian regions. Brazilian economic policy is once again dominated exclusively by neoliberalism and in this context, water (and sanitation) is once again one of the main neoliberal targets in Brazil. Specifically in the case of Rio de Janeiro, which is going through a severe economic crisis, the privatization of its sanitation company, the State Water and Sewage Company of Rio de Janeiro – CEDAE, was given as a guarantee to the federal government in a loan of 2.9 billions of reais. After two decades of Prolagos' activities, this article seeks to consider the importance of maintaining the supply of sanitation services by the public authorities, confronting the neoliberal discourse with the reality of the localities that privatized their water, demonstrating through official data that the management based on making profits, which is the case of Prolagos, makes universal access to water difficult, promoting a new type of scarcity for those who cannot pay for it, and that favors another example of environmental injustice in the state of Rio de Janeiro.
Tecnologias digitais na comunicação e na integração educacional e intercultural: desafios globais contemporâneos
Authors: Ramos Maria Natália , Lopes Ana Cristina
Published: June 2023

In 2020, with the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, the world was confronted with drastic changes that led to challenges, transversal to society. Social inequalities between countries and countries were evidenced, with greater impact on the most vulnerable groups, in poverty or migration. These challenges were particularly reflected in the area of education, highlighting the vulnerabilities of the existing educational model. In the face of an unprecedented crisis, the potential arising from the use of digital technologies, the adaptation of the educational community, as well as the resilience of teachers and students, stood out. This text emphasizes the importance of the use of digital technologies, as facilitators of educational and intercultural integration. Digital technologies in education allow students from different countries and cultures to be integrated, preparing them for the reality of a global, plural and changing world of work. This method, although closer to the social reality, has the limitations, being more adapted to certain target audiences and requiring the student to have a high organization and automotive capacity. Traditional teaching, by stimulating the closer relationship between the teacher and the student, creates a safety net for the student, not leaving him so dependent on himself, forcing him to maintain a constant learning routine. Teaching and learning, at a distance or in person, are distinct realities. The objective is to identify the pillars of each model, strengths and constraints. It is important to take advantage of the challenges that the pandemic has imposed as opportunities, implementing appropriate policies, innovative solutions, supporting teachers, empowering them and improving their skills, as well as that of their students, promoting training in the technological field (Ramos, 2016; Ramos & Lopes, 2021). In an era of globalization and increasing multi/interculturality based on unprecedented technological evolution, the in(success) of teaching, learning and society depend on the definition of policies, open, inclusive and flexible methodologies that integrate the social and cultural diversity in which we live, and are adaptable to adverse and atypical situations. Harnessing these lessons to develop sustainable policies can not only help overcome the current crisis, but also prepare for further future adversities, reducing inequalities and making education increasingly inclusive and quality.
Opportunities for mobility in the context of european employment policy
Authors: Dimitrova Tatyana
Published: June 2023

The European Union's principle of free movement of workers is considered one of the most important rights of EU citizens. This means you can move to any EU country, as well as Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland, as EFTA members, to look for and start work. Indeed, sometimes exercising this right can seem like a daunting and difficult task. The analysis of social processes shows that from the middle of the 20th century to the beginning of the 21st century, the transnationalization of production became a dominant feature of globalization. The challenges of the XXI century affected not only institutions, but also interpersonal relations. In the Covid-19 situation, there is no doubt that there is a need for leaders to present their leadership qualities to the public, declaring stability and confidence. And in Bulgaria, the employment policy in 2021 is mainly aimed at overcoming the consequences of the COVID19 crisis; increasing the qualifications and skills of the workforce according to the needs of the economy and activating and increasing the employment of disadvantaged groups on the labor market, with priority from the least developed regions and those who have lost their jobs due to the COVID-19 crisis. The active policy of the labor market includes the implementation of employment programs, incentive measures under the Law on the Promotion of Employment (EPL) and projects under the Operational Program “Human Resources Development” (OP HRD) to preserve and increase employment, limit unemployment through subsidizing jobs, as well as increasing the quality of the workforce by conducting training for adults, acquiring professional qualifications, acquiring and improving key competencies and motivating active behavior on the labor market, career counseling and development.
Effect of Administrative Empowerment on the Organizational Effectiveness of Bank Employees
Authors: Saleh Motasem , Kabalan H.
Published: June 2023

This study seeks to identify the level of the impact of administrative empowerment in its dimensions on the organizational effectiveness in the banking sector in Syria. In order to verify the objectives, develop and test the validity of the hypotheses, the descriptive approach was adopted. The study found that there is a statistically significant effect of the dimensions of administrative empowerment on the organizational effectiveness of workers in banking sector.
Investigation of the Luxury Yachts Condition and Their Maintenance
Authors: Dovramadjiev Tihomir , Mitkov Todor
Published: June 2023

Surveying the condition of yachts and their maintenance is of great importance for their functionality and efficiency. Finding the right approaches, expertise at different levels, design benchmarking are essential for all yacht maintenance and security, resulting in crew and passenger safety. This report presents an evaluation and expertise in a real environment and documentation of decision-makers for the strength and functionality of a luxury motor yacht. For a good understanding of the problem, detailed photographic material has been documented showing in detail the required technical corrections. The research would be of interest to a wide range of yacht design and industry professionals, academic and research representatives, yacht users and all interested stakeholders.
Simulation of BLDC Motor Drive Systems for Electric Vehicles Using Matlab Simulink
Authors: Dániel Nemes , Hajdu Sándor
Published: June 2023

The defining scientific developments of our time would not have been possible without the use of simulations. The aim of the research is to create a simulation of a BLDC motor. When creating a simulation, great emphasis must be placed on defining the purpose of the simulation. This basically determines the structure and complexity of the model. The model discussed here was created so that an optimization task could be defined more precisely by inserting it as a sub-model into a vehicle dynamics model. Scalability was another aspect, that is, to be able to increase the accuracy of the model with measured data in the future, as well as to be able to validate it. During the research, a BLDC motor efficiency map generation program was created, as well as an environment for testing the generated data. The created system gives researchers the opportunity to use a shape-correct efficiency model when simulating a BLDC motor even without measured data. This makes it possible to discover real relationships between model parameters when performing optimization.
Efficiency of the Machining Process of Circular Shapes by Electrical Discharge Technology
Authors: Straka Ľuboslav , Kuchta Patrik
Published: June 2023

Due to its high machining precision, EDM technology is nowadays very important in the production of high-precision parts for various industries. The high precision of the machined surface in combination with the ability to machine circular surfaces brings, in addition to several advantages, some negatives. The most significant negative of this machining technology is the relatively low productivity as well as the overall production efficiency. The latter is affected by many accompanying phenomena. The main accompanying phenomenon that contributes to the decline in the overall economic efficiency of EDM is the microgeometry errors that occur due to the non-homogeneity of the EDM process. Another accompanying negative phenomenon is the geometric accuracy errors of the machined surface, as a consequence of systematic destruction of the wire tool electrode, faulty interpolation in its guidance, and, last but not least, its vibration. These aspects consequently lead to the requirement for multiple applications of additional finishing cuts, which significantly reduces the overall economic efficiency of the machining process. Therefore, the experimental research aimed to search for options that can effectively help to achieve higher productivity but especially the overall economic efficiency of the machining process.
Radiation induced abscopal antitumor effect
Authors:   A. Tsyb Medical Radiological Research Centre – branch of the National Medical Research Radiological Centre of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation (A. Tsyb MRRC), Grivtsova L.Y. , Isaeva V.G. ,   A. Tsyb Medical Radiological Research Centre – branch of the National Medical Research Radiological Centre of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation (A. Tsyb MRRC), Zhovtun L.P. ,   A. Tsyb Medical Radiological Research Centre – branch of the National Medical Research Radiological Centre of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation (A. Tsyb MRRC), Samborsky S.M. ,   A. Tsyb Medical Radiological Research Centre – branch of the National Medical Research Radiological Centre of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation (A. Tsyb MRRC), Ivanov S.A. ,   A. Tsyb Medical Radiological Research Centre – branch of the National Medical Research Radiological Centre of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation (A. Tsyb MRRC), Kaprin A.D. ,   National Medical Research Radiological Centre of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation (NMRRC)
Published: June 2023

Radiation therapy is a cancer treatment that causes direct death of cancer cells, however there is a number of reports on anticancer effect of radiotherapy, that may be considered as tumor regression at sites that are outside the irradiated volume, this phenomenon was called as abscopal antitumor effect. The article presents results of the model study of the abscopal antitumor effect. The model of very aggressive ascitic mammary tumor “Ehrlich ascites carcinoma” (EAC) was used for the study. First, one-step bilateral grafting of EAC cells to mice hind extremities was performed, the following step was the formation of tumor contralateral nodes in the hips. In 5 days after the cells transplantation, the right (target) node was locally irradiated with 60Co gamma rays with a dose of 30 Gy. The growth of the left (non-target) and the target tumor nodes was watched during 20 days after irradiation. It was found that local irradiation of the right tumor node with a dose of 30 Gy at an early stage of tumor growth caused inhibition of the left, non-target tumor node growth from 10 to 49% relative to the growth of the tumor nodes in the control group of the tumor bearing mice. In order to reduce the dose burden in this model, the impact of fractionated irradiation with single dose of 10 Gy, to a total dose of 30 Gy on the abscopal effect was studied. The ability of the immune system of the mice with transplanted tumors in both hips and the irradiated target tumor node to respond to an antigenic stimulus was studied. The study results are the following: the immune system of mice, with a transected tumor in both thighs and subsequent gamma-ray irradiation of the target tumor node at a dose of 30 Gy respond to the antigenic stimulus; radiation doses to the target tumor node are crucial in achieving the abscopal effect; the use of complementary therapeutic methods, such as targeted therapy or immunotherapy, will increase the probability of the abscopal effect achieving.
Distribution of the ambient dose equivalent rate of gamma radiation in specially protected natural areas of the Rostov region
Authors:   Southern Federal University, Buraeva E.A. , Malomyzheva N.V. ,   Southern Federal University
Published: June 2023

To monitor the ambient dose equivalent rate of gamma radiation in the ecosytems of the specially protected natural areas is necessary for identification of the areas with high radiation background and estimation of the background level of radiation contamination in the adjacent territories. The paper presents results of the study of ambient dose equivalent rate of gamma radiation in the dry and semidry steppes ecosystems. For these purposes six specially protected natural areas located in the Rostov Region were used as research objects. The ambient dose equivalent rate of gamma radiation was estimated with dosimeters-radiometers by the field method of pedestrian gamma ray shooting. For the analysis of the obtained results statistical methods were used. It was found that the distribution of the ambient dose equivalent rate of gamma radiation in the specially protected natural areas varied from 0.01 to 0.32 µSv/h. Arithmetic mean, geometric mean, modal and median values of the ambient dose equivalent rate of gamma radiation for all studied specially protected natural areas are 0.128 µSv/h; 0.120 µSv/h; 0.135 µSv/h and 0.135 µSv/h, respectively. It was found that the ambient dose equivalent rate of gamma radiation in the specially protected natural areas in the Rostov Region did not depend on soil types. The study results allow us to make the following conclusion: insignificant differences in the arithmetic mean values of the ambient dose equivalent rate of gamma radiation in the territories under consideration may be due to the peculiarities of their protection and use regimes, as well as due to the radioactive fallout released by the Chernobyl accident and the uncertainty in radioactivity measurement.
The role of the liver in the regulation of protein-steroid interaction in healthy and irradiated animals
Authors:   Peoples' Friendship University of Russia, Omelchuk N.N.
Published: June 2023

The study of the role of the liver in the regulation of protein-steroid interaction in healthy and irradiated animals allows us to supplement a number of theoretical provisions of radiobiology on factors influencing the pathogenesis of acute radiation sickness. The relevance of the study is due to its theoretical significance in creating a holistic concept of radiobiological patterns of pathogenesis of acute radiation sickness. The aim of the experiments is to study the effect of the liver on the fractional composition of 11-oxycorticosteroids (11-OCS) in the blood plasma of healthy and irradiated animals. The experiments were carried out on 7 mongrel dogs weighing from 22 to 27 kg. In dogs, the total concentration of 11-OCS, the level of free, protein-bound and glucuronic acid-bound corticosteroids in the blood of the femoral, portal and hepatic veins were determined. At the first stage, experiments were conducted on healthy animals. 4 animals were subjected to angiostomy by skin flap method. Blood was obtained in the absence of exposure, 90 minutes after intravenous injection of 40 units of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), the introduction of hydrocortisone into the stomach at a dose of 50 or 100 mg. The total content of 11-OCS, mcg%, was determined by the fluorimetric method in the author's modification. To determine the free 11-OCS, the gel filtration method was used in the author's modification. The fraction associated with plasma proteins was isolated on a column with sephadex G-25. Glucuronides were determined after plasma incubation with betta-glucuronidase. At the second stage, the tests were carried out on irradiated animals that were exposed to gamma-irradiation at the EGO-2 installation at an average dose rate of 5.75 Gy/min at a dose of 3.5 Gy, causing acute stage IV radiation sickness. The results of the study showed that the liver inactivates free 11-OCS, binding them to glucuronic acid. The degree of delay and inactivation of free corticoids correlate with the concentration of the latter in the blood. The liver does not affect the level of protein-related hormones. Corticosteroids bind to plasma proteins outside the liver. In acute radiation sickness, the ability of the liver to inactivate biologically active corticosteroids decreases.
Oxidative fluctuations in rat blood exposed to GSM, UMTS and LTE multi-frequency electromagnetic field
Authors:   Izmerov Research Institute of Occupational Health, Perov S.Yu. , Konshina T.A. ,   Izmerov Research Institute of Occupational Health, Kislyakova A.A. ,   Izmerov Research Institute of Occupational Health
Published: June 2023

The paper presents results of research on effects of long term continuous animals exposure to multi-frequency electromagnetic fields of the mobile communication standards (GSM, UMTS and LTE). Prooxidant and antioxidant activity was investigated in the blood of exposed Wistar rats. The animals were continuously exposed to electromagnetic fields at frequencies of 1800, 2100 and 2600 MHz with the total power density of 250 muW/cm2 (GSM-20%; UMTS-20%; LTE-60%). Peripheral blood samples were taken from the affected and control rats after the decapitation at the end of each month of exposure. Fluctuations in indices of lipid peroxidation (diene conjugates) and antioxidant activity (enzyme, catalases) were observed at all stages of the exposure. The modulation effect of prooxidant and antioxidant activity in animals blood serum is suggested to depend on the amount of formed reactive oxygen species, and it may be caused by the direct effect of electromagnetic fields. The modulation effect of long-term continuous exposure to multi-frequency electromagnetic fields of mobile communication base stations on the blood lipid peroxidation may cause unfavorable consequences, which requires further study. The obtained results indicate necessity to take into account the detected modulating effect that can affect the level of reactive oxygen species.