bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
RHETORIC OF TETRAD MEDIA
Authors:   Politehnica University Timişoara, Băiaș Cosmin-Constantin
Published: May 2023

In the digital age, the great development of the media means of communication require a method of analysis for the new technologies. Through a metatheoretical analysis we evaluate, from a methodological point of view, the theory of tetrad media. Based on four items (enhancement, obsolescence, retrieval and reversal), four laws concerning the impact and development of every form of communication can be discovered, formulated and analysed. We consider that tetrad media provides a simple theory of media effects that can be critically used to evaluate the ways in which a particular means changes the cultural processes in the societies that adopt it. Finally, we argue in favour of the tetrad media as a qualitative method of analysis in communication sciences.
Interkulturelle Kommunikation im DaF-Unterricht
Authors:   Politehnica University Timişoara, Dejica-Carțiș Anca
Published: May 2023

Die interkulturelle Kommunikation ist eine Form der Kommunikation. Interkulturelle Kommunikation findet dann statt, wenn Menschen aus unterschiedlichen Kulturen miteinander kommunizieren. Verschiedene Bildungseinrichtungen führen die interkulturelle Kommunikation im DaF-Unterricht ein, mit dem Ziel kommunikative Beispiele in verschiedenen Bereichen zu begegnen und kommunikative Situationen kennenzulernen. Die interkulturelle Kommunikation ist im privaten und im geschäftlichen Bereich aktiv und aktuell. Im Empfang kommen verschiedene Kommunikationsformen. Für verschiedene Kommunikationsformen sind das Wissen, die Erfahrung und die Anpassung wichtig. Vorliegender Artikel bewertet einige wesentliche Aspekte der interkulturellen Kommunikation, die auch im Rahmen der Seminare für DaF-Unterricht eingeführt wurden, um verbale und non-verbale Besonderheiten in verschiedenen kommunikativen Situationen reibungslos zu begegnen.
"ZUM VERHÄLTNIS VON FACHSPRACHLICHEM UND ALLGEMEINSPRACHLICHEM FREMDSPRACHENUNTERRICHT"
Authors:   West University of Timişoara, Maghețiu Anca-Raluca
Published: May 2023

Die Nachfrage nach Fachsprachenunterricht ist in den letzten Jahren eindeutig gestiegen. Vor allem im Kontext der Dominanz der englischen Sprache, deren Kenntnis eine eindeutige Voraussetzung für die berufliche Entwicklung darstellt, bedeutet das Beherrschen der deutschen Sprache einen klaren und nicht zu vernachlässigenden Pluspunkt. Dies geschieht vor allem im Hinblick auf die viel thematisierte und zunehmende Globalisierung und auf Umstände wie berufliche Mobilität, Schul- und Hochschulwechsel, Tourismus usw. Auch der Bedarf an Experten mit fachsprachenbezogenen kommunikativen Fertigkeiten, Mittlern mit Fachsprachenkenntnissen und Fachleuten für fachsprachliche Unterweisung steigt, deshalb ist Fachsprachenforschung im weitesten Sinne notwendig, um die für die Optimierung der Kommunikation erforderlichen Voraussetzungen zu schaffen.
SEVERAL ISSUES CONCERNING THE TRANSLATION OF SCIENTIFIC TERMINOLOGYi IN RUSSIAN AND SERBIAN
Authors:   West University of Timișoara, Ţaran Andreici Maţa
Published: May 2023

Due to the technical and scientific progress, the translation of technical and scientific texts has developed considerably and has gained an outstanding importance nowadays. Although translation of a technical text may seem easier at the first sight, on account of its lack of expressiveness, the task of the translator is hardened in this case by the interference between the lexemes common and technical usage. Therefore, in order to realize a correct translation, it is necessary for the translator to have consistent knowledge in the domain of the translated text and of the real phenomena described and of their designations.
CITATION PRACTICES IN A CORPUS OF ROMANIAN TEXTS ON ECONOMICS
Authors:   Alexandru Ioan Cuza University, Ghivirigă Teodora
Published: May 2023

The present paper investigates the pattern of citation practices in professional communication. The research is based on a corpus of Romanian texts on Economics. Quantitative data indicate a preference for the non-integral type of quotation, interpreted as placing more emphasis on the data than on the person of the authors cited. The existence of combined forms (footnotes and author/date) seems to indicate that the young researchers are not aware of the difference and may not be very confident in using either according to generally accepted practices in the academia.
"The Gig Economy and Automation. A Brief Presentation with Discussions"
Authors:   Politehnica University Timişoara, Gașpar Cristian-Marian , Vartolomei Mihaela ,   Politehnica University Timişoara
Published: May 2023

In recent years the advancement in technologies has led to the creation of platforms, apps and websites, which became more and more popular after the financial crisis hit the world’s economy and companies hired less. A new economy arose, the so-called Gig economy: people would no longer be hired directly from a company, but as free lancers working mainly on web-based platforms. Along with these two trends, the landscape became more and more complicated because of the progress being made towards automation.
Educational Quizz Platforms for Romanian as a Foreign Language: A Case Study of Kahoot
Authors:   Alexandru Ioan Cuza University, Braniște Ludmila
Published: May 2023

The present paper is centred around the educational platform Kahoot and the assessment of its use as a teaching and learning aid at the lectures of the Romanian language for foreign students. With the advance of modern technology, teachers (belonging to the generation of digital migrants) face the necessity of adapting to the new type of thinking characteristic of the contemporary generation of students (digital natives) – the so-called clip thinking, which imposes the elaboration of new tools, mechanisms and strategies of teaching. Thus, today’s educational system sees the appearance of a great number of new digital products, some of which prove highly useful and even necessary when correctly implemented and exploited in language teaching. One of such resources is Kahoot – a quizz platform that can be used by language teachers to both reinforce and assess students’ knowledge and skills. The aim of this article is to look at this platform more closely, to analyse its advantages and disadvantages from the viewpoint of modern pedagogy by means of applying the criteria of the assessment of digital curricular products put forward by Constantin Cucoș, and, last but by no means least, to offer recommendations concerning its use in the real practice of teaching Romanian as a foreign language.
Designing Skill Cards for New Professions: Easy-toread Facilitators and Validators
Authors:   Politehnica University Timișoara, Kilyeni Annamaria , Dejica Daniel ,   Politehnica University Timișoara, Șimon Simona ,   Politehnica University Timișoara, Fărcașiu Marcela ,   Politehnica University Timișoara
Published: May 2023

Easy-to-read (E2R) can be defined broadly as a text simplification method aimed at making information more accessible to people with reading and learning difficulties, promoted intensely in recent years as a top-priority European strategy for social inclusion. Although validation of E2R content is an important step in the process, neither validation nor those involved in it, i.e. validators and facilitators, get official recognition. The present article focuses on the creation of skill cards for E2R validators and facilitators within the Train2Validate European project, in an attempt to promote the professionalization of validation work.
An Extended Study on Motivation and Need for Multimedia Skills Development in the Case of University Staff
Authors:   Politehnica University Timişoara, Drăghici Anca , Ivascu Larisa ,   Politehnica University Timişoara, Dermol Valerij ,   International School of Social and Business Studies, Slovenia, Stankeviciute Zivile ,   Kaunas University of Technology
Published: May 2023

University staff has been the most vulnerable actor (or even stakeholder) in the process of the online transition of all the academic activities (education, scientific, communication, internationalization, involvement in the community etc.). University missions has been re-shaped and re-designed considering the new ways (methods and tools) for communication, opinion expressions, dialogue, for scientific argumentations and negotiations, promotion of different results, achievements, events or the university activities. Multimedia competencies have become more valuable and together with the digital creativity has been considered the new “weapon” for creating a new image of the online universities (defining the new online world of the academic environment). In this context, the paper first, presents the specific situation and potential for multimedia competencies development in the case of the seven partners of MUST project: “Multimedia Competencies for University Staff to Empower University - Community Collaborations” (2020-1-RO01-KA203-080399, https://mustproject.eu/). The extended study refers to partners from countries as: Romania, Slovenia, Germany, Lithuania, Portugal, Spain, and North Macedonia. The preliminary state of the university staff competencies in the field of multimedia, has been the basis for the survey based on a designed questionnaire development for the training needs development. In the final part of this article the results of the survey are presented together with some comments and conclusions. The achieved knowledge and information from the extended study on motivation and need for multimedia skills development in the case of university staff have been considered for designing the MUST training program structure and content.
Overview of the Romanian Legal Framework on Crisis Management. A Debate on the Pandemic Crisis Case
Authors:   Politehnica University Timisoara, Chincea Rebecca Ioana , Tămășilă Matei ,   Politehnica University Timisoara
Published: May 2023

The periods affected by a crisis call for changes in the social framework with which we have been used and for new rules of coexistence to emerge. These rules affect both human behavior and the economic sphere of a state. All these rules are designed to overcome the crisis, but also to learn how to live in a time of crisis. Often of crisis and their management require the restriction of human freedom to reach solutions. But for this new way of living to be accepted, democratic states have only one solution: the law. This article presents a summary of the Romanian legislation over the past two years, analyzing the changes it imposed.
Communicative Aspects of Public Health Campaigns: A Content Analysis of the Pro-vaccination Campaign in Romania during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Authors:   Politehnica University Timișoara, Fărcașiu Marcela-Alina , Gherheș Vasile ,   Politehnica University Timișoara, Cernicova-Buca Mariana ,   Politehnica University Timișoara
Published: May 2023

The purpose of this research is to observe the pro-vaccination campaign in Romania from an informative and communicative perspective. A qualitative content analysis was carried out on the videos broadcast both on the Government's YouTube channel and on the Facebook page, describing the video messages’ structure, framing, and linguistic and extralinguistic elements. The results highlighted the fact that the messages, in terms of content and significance, were not fully adapted to the target audience’s needs, that communication efforts failed to influence vaccine acceptance behaviors and that the campaign message could be improved to comply with the existing recommendations/standards.
Testing Memes as a Teaching Tool
Authors:   Politehnica University Timişoara, Pele Andreea , Bran Ramona ,   West University of Timișoara
Published: May 2023

In the age of technology, communication through emojis and stickers was replaced by memes and gifs in the blink of an eye. As teachers, the authors of this paper have asked themselves how these swift changes might affect our classes. If students communicate more and more through memes, would integrating them into our lessons lead to a better comprehension? To investigate this possibility, we built a concise grammar exercise involving two meme templates and had the students build two passive voice memes.
"Environmental Management Accounting: Analysis of Environmental Costs and Decision-Making in the Organisation "
Authors:   Politehnica University Timisoara, Boatca Maria Elena , Vartolomei Mihaela ,   Politehnica University Timisoara, Sirbu Roxana Mihaela ,   Politehnica University Timisoara
Published: May 2023

Environmental management accounting (EMA) is a relatively new tool in environmental management. EMA can be defined as the identification, collection, estimation, analysis, internal reporting, and use of information regarding materials and energy flow and environmental costs for both conventional and environmental decision-making process within an organisation. Thus, EMA incorporates and integrates two of the three milestones of sustainable development (environmental and economics dimensions), as they relate to an organisation’s internal decisional process.
COPYWRITERS’ PERCEPTIONS OF ADS ADAPTATION
Authors:   West University of Timișoara, Cristea Sanda Ligia
Published: May 2023

The aim of the paper is to stress the importance of professionalism in print ads translation. The pairs or groups of ads selected by the author will reflect how the American/ the Australian/ the British or the Romanian ad translators convey the same message. For instance, the British versions of some ads show that, compared to the American or the Romanian advertisers, the British copywriters always respect the ‘face’ of the potential buyer by using politeness markers, and that they successfully succeed in connecting the texts and the images of the ads. The language or punctuation mistakes made by some copywriters also prove that a translator should have both academic and commercial skills.
Japanese SME Internationalization in Halal Food Industry: A Preliminary Study
Authors: Tatsuya Fujiwara
Published: May 2023

Recently, Japanese small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have faced a shrinking domestic market due to a declining population in Japan. In contrast, the global Muslim population has been drastically increasing, which is attractive to Japanese SMEs, especially food manufacturers. Despite the situation, there has been little empirical research on the internationalization of Japanese SMEs in the halal food industry. With this in mind, this study explores it by adopting an existing framework of SME internationalization. The main aims are to describe the process of how one Japanese small food manufacturer has entered a foreign Muslim market by starting and expanding its halal food business and to identify the role of international entrepreneurial orientation (IEO) in this specific field. By analyzing this case, the findings show the following things. First, IEO is considered an important factor to lead to the internationalization of Japanese SMEs in the halal food industry because the president of the manufacturer actively collected information on the halal food business and built an appropriate organizational structure. Second, since the halal industry in Japan has obstacles to SME internationalization, Original Equipment Manufacturing (OEM) is an effective form of entry into foreign Muslim markets, which gave the president opportunities to collect market information and build a network in the market. Third, procurement innovation is imperative to receive foreign halal certification and break down a cultural barrier based on food habits since ingredients Japanese manufacturers procure possibly contain non-halal materials at the level of not only first-tier suppliers but second and third-tier suppliers.
Identité Touristique et Territoire : de l’artificiel au réel ?
Authors: Escallier Christine
Published: May 2023

Le tourisme a évolué en fonction des époques, des désirs et des nécessités des sociétés. Il est l’économie durable sur laquelle reposent aujourd’hui de nombreux pays en crise ou en développement. Dans la communauté de pêcheurs portugaise de Nazaré, l’histoire du tourisme sous-tend celles de son territoire et de son identité. Elle se raconte en décrivant les différentes interactions entre individus et espaces, dans un contexte politico-économique et socio-culturel. Sur un mode essentiellement descriptif, l’article met en évidence comment un tourisme local, « artisan » et de circonstance, est devenu au cours du temps un tourisme structurel intégré dans une économie mondiale, aux stratégies de marques. Cette nouvelle identité peut-elle concourir à la préservation d’une identité ancestrale en réorientant celle-ci vers de nouveaux concepts ?
Authenticité et valorisation de la destination Taroudant sur les réseaux sociaux : cas de YouTube
Authors: BENAMARA Khalid , AIT NACER Mohamed AIT
Published: May 2023

Dans un monde de plus en plus connecté, les médias sociaux sont devenus l’eldorado des professionnels du marketing et de la communication promotionnelle. En outre, selon des cabinets spécialisés dans la promotion via le Web, la vidéo demeure le support le plus efficace pour accroître la visibilité et la diffusion d’un contenu. De ce fait, les grandes destinations touristiques mondiales se sont progressivement implantées dans le plus grand moteur utilisé pour la recherche « vidéo » : YouTube. Cette insertion se fait à travers des chaînes conçues pour valoriser et promouvoir les atouts du territoire. C’est dans cette logique que s’inscrit cette étude dont l’objectif est d’opérer une recherche « YouTube » sur la ville de Taroudant et son patrimoine. Les conclusions tirées ont permis, en premier lieu, de dresser une typologie du contenu YouTube sur la ville de Taroudant, en deuxième lieu, de constater que les vidéos postées sont principalement l’œuvre de particuliers amateurs et touristes en absence totale des acteurs institutionnels locaux.
The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the frequency of shopping and online sale of organic food among consumers of the former Yugoslavia
Authors: Mitić Vladimir , Čolović Milica
Published: May 2023

The main goal of this research is to determine the impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on the frequency of buying organic food. It also examines whether the online sale of organic food has increased, and which channels were used for its purchase. The sample in the current research consists of 400 respondents of different demographic characteristics who filled out the questionnaire on two occasions, in 2020 and 2022. Data was processed in the SPSS program, and in addition to descriptive statistics, non-parametric techniques, the Wilcoxon test of equivalent pairs and the Kruskal-Wallis test were used to determine the differences in scores between several groups of respondents. The results showed that due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, the frequency of buying organic food increased as its sale via the Internet. Consumers buy organic food most often in supermarkets and hypermarkets, while only few consumers buy it directly from organic food producers.
estigma hacia el trastorno mental grave (TMG) en profesionales: una revisión sistemática
Authors: Martínez-Cava Cáceres Irene
Published: May 2023

El estigma en profesionales de la salud es un objeto de estudio al que se le está prestando mayor atención. Esto debido al papel clave que desempeñan en el proceso de recuperación, así como en la implementación de intervenciones y difusión de las condiciones de salud mental que engloba el concepto Trastorno Mental Grave. El objetivo de este artículo es realizar una revisión sistemática de las investigaciones que abordan el estigma en profesionales de la salud para conocer el estado de conocimiento actual en este tema. Los resultados señalan relaciones complejas que forman parte del fenómeno del estigma. Por un lado, por la presencia de estigma (creencias, emociones y conductas discriminatorias) en los/as profesionales de la salud, así como relaciones entre este estigma y las prácticas de atención. Por otro lado, también muestran a los/as profesionales como objeto de estigmatización y las consecuencias estresoras del estigma en el ejercicio de su profesión. Finalmente, emerge una última categoría que muestra a los profesionales como agentes de desestigmatización.
Representaciones y prácticas en torno a la implementación de la educación sexual integral en una institución educativa de nivel primario de la ciudad de Río Cuarto (Córdoba, Argentina)
Authors: Caraballo Mariela Rosana , Faletti Marcos Ariel
Published: May 2023

La Ley 26.150 de Educación Sexual Integral (2006) instituye la educación sexual como política pública desde una perspectiva de derechos, haciendo de la escuela el espacio de ejecución, y erigiendo al Estado como garante de su transversal implementación.  La concreción de sus objetivos es un desafío que encuentra como principales obstáculos las resistencias de diversos sectores sociales e instituciones tradicionales, los obstáculos subjetivos y la formación incipiente de quienes deben transversalizar sus contenidos.  Desde un proyecto de extensión elaborado en base al pedido de una comunidad educativa de Río Cuarto (Córdoba), se realizó un abordaje reflexivo y formativo sobre las representaciones, prácticas, posibilidades y dificultades en la implementación de la E.S.I.   El proyecto se enmarca en un diseño cualitativo, de tipo transversal y exploratorio, con un muestreo no probabilístico conformando una muestra de casos-tipo, integrada por veinte docentes de nivel inicial de una institución educativa de gestión pública de la ciudad de Río Cuarto (Córdoba, Argentina).  Se aplicaron técnicas de recolección de información tales como, cuestionarios exploratorios ad hoc sobre representaciones y creencias en torno a la sexualidad, dinámicas grupales y sondeos de opinión a partir de materiales audiovisuales digitalizados y técnicas de escritura autobiográfica.   Los datos obtenidos permitieron identificar inconsistencias entre la percepción docente que se tiene sobre el conocimiento de la E.S.I. y el conocimiento manifiesto que se pone en juego en su tarea docente.  Así mismo se observaron propuestas incipientes, aisladas y no sistematizadas referidas a la implementación de la E.S.I. que requieren mayor consistencia teórico-metodológica y sostén a lo largo del tiempo.  Más allá de las pocas iniciativas el conjunto de las/os docentes manifestó su acuerdo respecto a la importancia de la ley y a los aportes de la E.S.I. en la formación de sus estudiantes.
Apuntes sobre el Protocolo Unificado Transdiagnóstico
Authors: Arrigoni Flavia , Marchena Consejero Esperanza , Navarro Guzmán José I.
Published: May 2023

Sucintamente, en este artículo se presenta el Protocolo Unificado para el tratamiento Transdiagnóstico de los Trastornos Emocionales. Se caracterizan sus aspectos principales en tanto intervención cognitivo conductual de la tercera ola de Terapias Cognitivo Conductuales. Aspira identificar las estrategias de regulación emocional desadaptativas que las personas utilizan para entrenarlas en la adquisición de otras nuevas y más adaptativas. Compuesto por ocho módulos, cuenta con material bibliográfico de guía para el terapeuta y el paciente. A través de los 8 módulos del tratamiento las personas serán capaces de entrenar cinco habilidades de regulación emocional: conciencia emocional, flexibilidad cognitiva, identificación de conductas emocionales y propuesta de conductas alternativas, exposición interoceptiva y exposición emocional. Se trata de una intervención cuya eficacia ha sido, y, continúa siendo, probada en sus múltiples opciones y posibilidades: como intervención individual o grupal, cara a cara o en línea, en contextos clínicos y en otros no clínicos, bien como estrategia de atención o de prevención de la salud
Recuperación laboral en empleados fuera del trabajo: una revisión paraguas de revisiones sistemáticas y meta-análisis
Authors: López-González M. Angeles , De-María Berta , Rubio-Garay Fernando , Rodríguez-Cifuentes Francisco , Fernández-Salinero San Martín Samuel , Latorre Felisa , Topa Gabriela
Published: May 2023

El trabajo es una condición fundamental de la vida humana pero puede resultar disfuncional por acarrear consecuencias indeseadas y nefastas en determinadas situaciones. En este contexto se entiende la recuperación del trabajo (recovery) como contrapunto a los procesos de tensión a los que se ve sometida la persona en su puesto de trabajo. Dentro de las diferentes estrategias que los trabajadores ponen en marcha para recuperarse, resultan de especial relevancia las llevadas a cabo fuera de su horario laboral. El interés científico en esta materia queda patente en la publicación de numerosas revisiones sistemáticas en los últimos años. El objetivo de este estudio es clarificar y aportar evidencia sobre los resultados de las revisiones sistemáticas realizadas hasta la fecha. Así, se realizó una revisión paraguas de revisiones sistemáticas y metaanálisis sobre la recuperación laboral fuera del horario de trabajo. Para ello se llevó a cabo una búsqueda sistemática de documentos potencialmente relevantes en seis bases de datos, tanto temáticas como multidisciplinares. Se recuperaron ocho revisiones sistemáticas y metanálisis que cumplieron los criterios de inclusión establecidos. El análisis de contenido de los trabajos seleccionados permitió identificar diversas perspectivas o encuadres en el estudio de la recuperación laboral externa: (a) el período temporal; (b) las características del trabajo; (c) las experiencias de recuperación; (d) las actividades de recuperación; (e) los procesos que impiden que la recuperación sea efectiva; y (f) las variables cercanas al proceso de recuperación. Asimismo, se sistematizaron las principales variables sustantivas de naturaleza laboral y psicosocial consideradas en los diversos trabajos. Se discute la escasa atención prestada en los estudios revisados a las posibles diferencias culturales que podrían afectar al proceso de recuperación. Además, ninguna investigación hace mención especial a la pandemia por la COVID-19 en la recuperación laboral, ni tampoco a la potencial influencia de las nuevas realidades laborales en auge como el teletrabajo o los espacios virtuales compartidos (co-working).
COST CONTINGENCY ESTIMATION: A NEW METHOD FOR QUANTITATIVE RISK ANALYSIS APPLIED TO A REAL CONSTRUCTION PROJECT
Authors: CURTO LORENZO DAVID , POZA GARCIA DAVID JESUS , VILLAFAÑEZ CARDEÑOSO FELIX ANTONIO , ACEBES SENOVILLA FERNANDO
Published: May 2023

The main objective of this work is to propose a method based on Monte Carlo simulation (MCS) to estimate the allocation of project cost contingency reserves in the planning phase, incorporating the different types of uncertainty described in the literature, associating them to each of the risks identified in the project. The method was applied to validate our proposal on an actual construction project carried out by the University of Valladolid (Spain).
Applying the proposed method has allowed us to obtain a more accurate estimate of cost contingencies than the method traditionally used by the company, which consisted of reserving a fixed and arbitrary percentage of the total project execution budget.

Keywords: Monte Carlo Simulation; Quantitative Risk Analysis; Cost Contingency; Risk Management; MCSimulRisk
Bruce Springsteen, uno de tantos que se hacen viejos
Authors: Fernández-Ardèvol Mireia
Published: May 2023

Bruce Springsteen es uno de tantos que se hacen viejos, con la particularidad de que sus conciertos no pasan precisamente desapercibidos. Ahora que ya tiene 73 años, tanto la prensa como los tertulianos no dejan de comentar el mérito de estar en activo «a su edad». Una gesta, una proeza. Que si se cuida mucho, que si hace esto, que si hace lo otro. Y, por supuesto, también se deja caer algún comentario que recuerda que ya no salta tanto como en la última gira o que quizás sea la última vez que lo veamos en Europa.
Synthesis of Purine Derivatives en Route to Novel Optical Materials
Authors:   , Sebris Armands
Published: May 2023

The Doctoral Thesis has been prepared as a collection of thematically related scientific publications complemented by summaries in both Latvian and English. The Doctoral Thesis unites four scientific publications and one review. The research examined the possibilities of obtaining new purine derivatives applicable in materials science using methods known in the literature and new synthetic approaches were developed. The photophysical properties of the obtained purine derivatives and their applications possibilities in OLED devices were determined.
Subsystem With Ultrasonic and Passive Infrared Sensors for Pedestrian Detection
Authors: Stjepanović Aleksandar , Ćurguz Zoran , Kostadinović Miroslav , Jotanović Gordana , Stojčić Mirko , Kuzmić Goran
Published: May 2023

Despite the rapid development of technologies for the detection of pedestrians in traffic, there are still significant problems with automated vehicle management systems. Often these problems are caused by different external conditions, weather disasters, different light levels, day and night, and more. All these factors can affect the incorrect assessment of the system and the performed detection of the pedestrian object. Pedestrian fatalities have risen recently, even as vehicles are equipped with sophisticated avoidance technology. Vehicle-based sensors can fail to identify pedestrians especially when those pedestrians are small, too far or too close to the vehicle, or partially occluded by nearby objects. Pedestrians have variable physical characteristics and appear in a variety of environments with different background features. The paper analyzes the possibilities and problems that arise in the detection and recognition of pedestrians. Pedestrian safety is one of the important issues of traffic safety in urban areas. The application of various technologies in vehicles provides enormous opportunities to reduce accidents in which pedestrians are most often injured. The development of intelligent pedestrian recognition systems can be divided into two directions. Development of hardware part related to different types of sensors, and development of software part based on artificial neural networks and machine learning techniques. The paper analyzes various technologies used in pedestrian detection in automated vehicles with an emphasis on hardware development. A low-cost system based on two types of sensors, ultrasonic sensor and passive infrared, is proposed. Aspects of the application of such sensors with possibilities of implementation in complex computer vision systems are analyzed. The most common classes of sensors presently used in automated driving applications include visible-light cameras (VLC), light detection, and ranging (LiDAR).
Vitamin D induces SIRT1 activation through K610 deacetylation in colon cancer
Authors: García-Martínez José Manuel , Chocarro-Calvo Ana , Martínez-Useros Javier , Fernández-Aceñero María Jesús , Fiuza M. Carmen , Cáceres-Rentero Jose , De la Vieja Antonio , Barbáchano Antonio , Muñoz Alberto , Larriba María Jesús , García-Jiménez Custodia
Published: May 2023

Posttranslational modifications of epigenetic modifiers provide a flexible and timely mechanism for rapid adaptations to the dynamic environment of cancer cells. SIRT1 is an NAD
+
-dependent epigenetic modifier whose activity is classically associated with healthy aging and longevity, but its function in cancer is not well understood. Here, we reveal that 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D
3
(1,25(OH)
2
D
3
, calcitriol), the active metabolite of vitamin D (VD), promotes SIRT1 activation through auto-deacetylation in human colon carcinoma cells, and identify lysine 610 as an essential driver of SIRT1 activity. Remarkably, our data show that the post-translational control of SIRT1 activity mediates the antiproliferative action of 1,25(OH)
2
D
3
. This effect is reproduced by the SIRT1 activator SRT1720, suggesting that SIRT1 activators may offer new therapeutic possibilities for colon cancer patients who are VD deficient or unresponsive. Moreover, this might be extrapolated to inflammation and other VD deficiency-associated and highly prevalent diseases in which SIRT1 plays a prominent role.
Remapping in a recurrent neural network model of navigation and context inference
Authors: Low Isabel I.C. , Giocomo Lisa M. , Williams Alex H.
Published: May 2023

Neurons in navigational brain regions provide information about position, orientation, and speed relative to environmental landmarks. These cells also change their firing patterns (“remap”) in response to changing contextual factors such as environmental cues, task conditions, and behavioral state, which influence neural activity throughout the brain. How can navigational circuits preserve their local computations while responding to global context changes? To investigate this question, we trained recurrent neural network models to track position in simple environments while at the same time reporting transiently-cued context changes. We show that these combined task constraints (navigation and context inference) produce activity patterns that are qualitatively similar to population-wide remapping in the entorhinal cortex, a navigational brain region. Furthermore, the models identify a solution that generalizes to more complex navigation and inference tasks. We thus provide a simple, general, and experimentally-grounded model of remapping as one neural circuit performing both navigation and context inference.
Reciprocal discoidin domain receptor signaling strengthens integrin adhesion to connect adjacent tissues
Authors: Park Kieop , Jayadev Ranjay , Payne Sara G. , Kenny-Ganzert Isabel W. , Chi Qiuyi , Costa Daniel S. , Ramos-Lewis William , Thendral Siddharthan Balachandar , Sherwood David R.
Published: May 2023

Separate tissues connect through adjoining basement membranes to carry out molecular barrier, exchange, and organ support functions. Cell adhesion at these connections must be robust and balanced to withstand independent tissue movement. Yet, how cells achieve synchronized adhesion to connect tissues is unknown. Here, we have investigated this question using the
C. elegans
utse-seam tissue connection that supports the uterus during egg-laying. Through genetics, quantitative fluorescence, and cell specific molecular disruption, we show that type IV collagen, which fastens the linkage, also activates the collagen receptor discoidin domain receptor 2 (DDR-2) in both the utse and seam. RNAi depletion, genome editing, and photobleaching experiments revealed that DDR-2 signals through LET-60/Ras to coordinately strengthen an integrin adhesion in the utse and seam that stabilizes their connection. These results uncover a synchronizing mechanism for robust adhesion during tissue connection, where collagen both affixes the linkage and signals to both tissues to bolster their adhesion.
Conflicts are represented in a cognitive space to reconcile domain-general and domain-specific cognitive control
Authors: Yang Guochun , Wu Haiyan , Li Qi , Liu Xun , Fu Zhongzheng , Jiang Jiefeng
Published: May 2023

Cognitive control resolves conflict between task-relevant and -irrelevant information to enable goal-directed behavior. As conflict can arise from different sources (e.g., sensory input, internal representations), how a finite set of cognitive control processes can effectively address huge array of conflict remains a major challenge. We hypothesize that different conflict can be parameterized and represented as distinct points in a (low-dimensional) cognitive space, which can then be resolved by a limited set of cognitive control processes working along the dimensions. To test this hypothesis, we designed a task with five types of conflict that could be conceptually parameterized along one dimension. Over two experiments, both human performance and fMRI activity patterns in the right dorsolateral prefrontal (dlPFC) support that different types of conflict are organized in a cognitive space. The findings suggest that cognitive space can be a dimension reduction tool to effectively organize neural representations of conflict for cognitive control.
Molecular Consequences of Peripheral Influenza A Infection on Cell Populations in the Murine Hypothalamus
Authors: Lemcke René , Egebjerg Christine , Berendtsen Nicolai T. , Egerod Kristoffer L. , Thomsen Allan R. , Pers Tune H. , Christensen Jan P. , Kornum Birgitte R.
Published: May 2023

Infection with Influenza A virus (IAV) causes the well-known symptoms of the flu, including fever, loss of appetite and excessive sleepiness. These responses, mediated by the brain, will normally disappear once the virus is cleared from the system, but a severe respiratory virus infection may cause long-lasting neurological disturbances. These include encephalitis lethargica and narcolepsy. The mechanisms behind such long lasting changes are unknown. The hypothalamus is a central regulator of the homeostatic response during a viral challenge. To gain insight into the neuronal and non-neuronal molecular changes during an IAV infection, we intranasally infected mice with an H1N1 virus and extracted the brain at different time points. Using single-nucleus RNA sequencing (snRNA-seq) of the hypothalamus, we identify transcriptional effects in all identified cell populations. The snRNA-seq data showed the most pronounced transcriptional response at 3 days past infection, with a strong downregulation of genes across all cell types. General immune processes were mainly impacted in microglia, the brain resident immune cells, where we found increased numbers of cells expressing pro-inflammatory gene networks. In addition, we found that most neuronal cell populations downregulated genes contributing to the energy homeostasis in mitochondria and protein translation in the cytosol, indicating potential reduced cellular and neuronal activity. This might be a preventive mechanism in neuronal cells to avoid intracellular viral replication and attack by phagocytosing cells. This is complemented by increased activity of microglia monitoring their surroundings.
The zebrafish mutant dreammist implicates sodium homeostasis in sleep regulation
Authors: Barlow Ida L. , Mackay Eirinn , Wheater Emily , Goel Aimee , Lim Sumi , Zimmerman Steve , Woods Ian , Prober David A. , Rihel Jason
Published: May 2023

Sleep is a nearly universal feature of animal behaviour, yet many of the molecular, genetic, and neuronal substrates that orchestrate sleep/wake transitions lie undiscovered. Employing a viral insertion sleep screen in larval zebrafish, we identified a novel gene,
dreammist
(
dmist
), whose loss results in behavioural hyperactivity and reduced sleep at night. The neuronally expressed
dmist
gene is conserved across vertebrates and encodes a small single-pass transmembrane protein that is structurally similar to the Na
+
,K
+
-ATPase regulator, FXYD1/Phospholemman. Disruption of either
fxyd1
or
atp1a3a
, a Na
+
,K
+
-ATPase alpha-3 subunit associated with several heritable movement disorders in humans, led to decreased night-time sleep. Since
atpa1a3a
and
dmist
mutants have elevated intracellular Na
+
levels and non-additive effects on sleep amount at night, we propose that Dmist-dependent enhancement of Na
+
pump function modulates neuronal excitability to maintain normal sleep behaviour.
Getting off to a good start
Authors: Martianov Igor , Davidson Irwin
Published: May 2023

RNA polymerase II transcription can efficiently occur when mouse embryonic stem cells lack TBP and TBP-like proteins, confirming that this initiation factor may not be as essential as once thought.
A consumer emotion analysis system based on support vector regression model
Authors: Huo Mingkui , Li Jing
Published: May 2023

The effective means to stimulate economic growth is to enhance consumers’ consumption capacity. Because many consumers have different consumption habits, they will pay different attention to products. Even the same consumer will have different shopping experiences when buying the same product at different times. By mining the online comments of consumers on the online fitness platform, we can find the characteristics of fitness projects that consumers care about. Analyzing consumers’ emotional tendencies towards the characteristics of fitness programs will help online fitness platforms adjust the quality and service direction of fitness programs in a timely manner. At the same time, it can also provide purchase advice and suggestions for other consumers. Based on this goal, this study uses an optimized support vector regression (SVR) model to build a consumer sentiment analysis system, so as to predict the consumer’s willingness to pay. The optimized SVR model uses the region convolution neural network (RCNN) to extract features from the dataset, and uses feature data to train the SVR model. The experimental results show that the SVR model optimized by RCNN is more accurate. The improvement of the accuracy of consumer sentiment analysis can accurately help businesses promote and publicize, and increase sales. On the other hand, the increase in the accuracy of emotion analysis can also help users quickly locate their favorite fitness projects, saving browsing time. To sum up, the emotional analysis system for consumers in this paper has good practical value.
A systematic review of informal supporters of intimate partner violence survivors: the intimate partner violence model of informal supporter readiness
Authors: Davies Ryan L. , Rice Kylie , Rock Adam J.
Published: May 2023

Background

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a serious public health issue that consists of physical, sexual, and psychological violence perpetrated by a current or former partner. Informal supporters (e.g., family and friends) of survivors are more often witness to IPV or are the first people a survivor will disclose abuse to and are more able to provide consistent ongoing support than professional services. Therefore, greater understanding of informal supporters is warranted to aid in reducing the risks experienced by survivors. This systematic review aimed to: (1) identify factors associated with either an increase or decrease in helping behaviour toward a survivor, (2), identify the most effective self-care strategies employed by informal supporters, and (3) consider the current theoretical approaches used to understand informal supporters help-giving behavioural intention.

Methods

A systematic literature search was conducted following the PRISMA guidelines. The search included English language articles published between 2005 and 2021 in the databases Psych Articles, Scopus, Proquest Social Services Abstracts, and Ebscohost. Studies were included if the primary research aims explored the motivators and inhibitors of helping intention or self-care strategies of adult social network members of adult IPV survivors. Two reviewers independently screened all identified articles for inclusion suitability.

Results

One hundred and twenty articles were subjected to full text screening resulting in 31 articles being identified as meeting inclusion criteria. Synthesis of the findings identified the following three key areas associated with help-giving behavioural intentions: normative factors, individual factors, and situational factors. There were no articles identified that considered self-care of informal supporters. Of the 31 articles, 22 had a theoretical underpinning. None of the utilised theories explained all three of the identified factors of help-giving behavioural intention.

Conclusion

These results are integrated into a proposed Intimate Partner Violence Model of Informal Supporter Readiness (IPV-MISR), incorporating the identified factors associated with help-giving behavioural intention. This model provides a framework for conceptualising the readiness of an informal supporter to provide adequate support to IPV survivors. The model extends existing theoretical standpoints and has utility in both practice and research.
m6A eraser ALKBH5 mitigates the apoptosis of cardiomyocytes in ischemia reperfusion injury through m6A/SIRT1 axis
Authors: Liu Liangliang , Liu Zhen
Published: May 2023

Recent studies have shown that the potential regulatory role of N6-methyladenine (m6A) modification may affect the occurrence and development of various cardiovascular diseases. However, the regulatory mechanism of m6A modification on myocardial ischemia reperfusion injury (MIRI) is rarely reported. A mouse model of myocardial ischemia reperfusion (I/R) was established by ligation and perfusion of the left anterior descending coronary artery, and a cellular model of hypoxia/reperfusion (H/R) was conducted in cardiomyocytes (CMs). We found that the protein expression of ALKBH5 in myocardial tissues and cells were decreased, accompanied by increased m6A modification level. Overexpression of ALKBH5 significantly inhibited H/R-induced oxidative stress and apoptosis in CMs. Mechanistically, there was an enriched m6A motif in the 3′-UTR of SIRT1 genome, and ALKBH5 overexpression promoted the stability of SIRT1 mRNA. Furthermore, results using overexpression or knockdown of SIRT1 confirmed the protective effect of SIRT1 on H/R induced CMs apoptosis. Together, our study reveals a critical role of ALKBH5-medicated m6A on CM apoptosis, supplying an important regulating effect of m6A methylation in ischemic heart disease.
24-Epibrassinolide confers zinc stress tolerance in watermelon seedlings through modulating antioxidative capacities and lignin accumulation
Authors: Liu Xuefang , Zhu Quanwen , Liu Wentao , Zhang Jun
Published: May 2023

Zinc (Zn) is an important element in plants, but over-accumulation of Zn is harmful. It is well-known that brassinolide (BR) plays a key role in the regulation of abiotic stress responses in plants. However, the effects of brassinolide on alleviating Zn phytotoxicity in watermelon (Citrullus lanatus L.) seedlings are not clear. The purpose of this study was to study the effect of 24-epibrassinolide (EBR, one of the bioactive BRs) on Zn tolerance of watermelon seedlings and its potential resistance mechanism. Exposure to excessive Zn significantly inhibited shoot and root fresh weight of watermelon, but this could be significantly alleviated by the optimum 0.05 μM EBR. Exogenous spraying EBR increased the pigments and alleviated oxidative damage caused by Zn through reducing Zn accumulation and the levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and malonaldehyde (MDA) and increasing the activities of antioxidant enzymes and contents of ascorbic acid (AsA) and glutathione (GSH). Importantly, the relative mRNA levels of antioxidant genesincluding Cu/Zn-superoxidedismutase (Cu-Zn SOD), catalase (CAT), ascorbic acid peroxidase (APX), and glutathione reductase (GR) were significantly induced after EBR treatment. In addition, EBR pre-treatment induced lignin accumulation under Zn stress, and the activity of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL) and 4-coumaric ligase (4CL), two key enzymes regulating lignin synthesis, also tended to be consistent. Collectively, the present research proves the beneficial effects of EBR in response to Zn stress through enhancing antioxidant defense and lignin accumulation and provides a new insight into the mechanism of BR-enhancing heavy metal tolerance.