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Abstract Background Youth engagement refers to the collaboration between researchers and youth to produce research. Youth engagement in health research has been shown to inform effective interventions aimed at improving health outcomes. However, limited evidence has identified promising practices to meaningfully engage youth. This synthesis aims to describe youth engagement approaches, frameworks, and barriers, as well as provide both evidence-based and youth-generated recommendations for meaningful engagement. Main body This review occurred in two stages: 1) a narrative review of existing literature on youth engagement and 2) a Youth Advisory Council (YAC) to review and supplement findings with their perspectives, experiences, and recommendations. The terms ‘youth engagement’ and ‘health research’ were searched in Google Scholar, PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and PsycINFO. Articles and non-peer reviewed research works related to youth engagement in health research were included, reviewed, and summarized. The YAC met with research team members and in separate youth-only forums to complement the narrative review with their perspectives. Types of youth engagement include participation as research participants, advisors, partners, and co-investigators. Barriers to youth engagement were organized into youth- (e.g., time commitments), researcher- (e.g., attitudes towards youth engagement), organizational- (e.g., inadequate infrastructure to support youth engagement), and system-level (e.g., systemic discrimination and exclusion from research). To enhance youth engagement, recommendations focus on preparing and supporting youth by offering flexible communication approaches, mentorship opportunities, diverse and inclusive recruitment, and ensuring youth understand the commitment and benefits involved. Conclusions To harness the potential of youth engagement, researchers need to establish an inclusive and enabling environment that fosters collaboration, trust, and valuable contributions from youth. Future research endeavors should prioritize investigating the dynamics of power-sharing between researchers and youth, assessing the impact of youth engagement on young participants, and youth-specific evaluation frameworks.

Driven by the rise of recent technologies and long-standing interest in accommodating diverse student needs, the demand for flexibility in higher education has intensified. Moreover, the COVID-19 pandemic has intensified studies investigating online learning effects, reflecting shifting preferences and demands in education. Although prior research recognizes diverse flexibility practices, a narrow focus on instructional delivery limits its potential. Bridging this gap requires re-envisioning flexible learning by involving students, educators, and institutions in the transformation process. Therefore, this study aims to investigate and compare students’ and educators’ perspectives and experiences of five dimensions of flexibility (deadlines, modality, assessment type, grading and weighting, and course correspondence). The study involves a quantitative and qualitative survey, composed of Likert scale and open-ended questions. The survey respondents were students (N = 315) and educators (N = 100) at Western University across different years and programs. The quantitative component reveals a general alignment between student and educator preferences across flexibility dimensions. Noteworthy preferences include collaborative deadline setting, non-timed and take-home assessments, and more frequent, lower-weighted tasks. Students’ increased preference for hybrid learning, despite a general preference for in-person formats, underscores the value placed on flexibility and adaptability. Qualitative findings illuminate the broader implications of flexibility that can be organized into the following four themes: (1) flexibility humanizes teaching and learning, (2) flexibility recognizes diverse student populations, (3) flexibility provides broad accommodation and increases accessibility, and (4) flexibility can offer immediate relief but poses long-term consequences. In conclusion, this study emphasizes the multifaceted nature of flexibility in higher education, offering a nuanced understanding of the impact of flexibility on students, educators, and institutions, encouraging further exploration and evidence-based policy decisions. Beyond academia, the research suggests potential reshaping of the higher education landscape, positioning flexibility as a fundamental element to foster a more inclusive, supportive, and effective learning environment for both students and educators.

Energy is a crucial component of productivity and is regarded as an engine for economic growth. In countries where more energy is consumed, the standard of living is frequently higher. Yet utilizing energy also leads to the emission of harmful greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide emissions (CO2) and sulphur dioxide emissions (SO2). In this regard, this study examines the relationship between economic growth, energy consumption, and environmental degradation in Kenya using the Autoregressive Distributed Lag model (ARDL) from 1990 to 2019. The empirical results find that energy consumption and economic growth increase CO2 emissions both in the short- and long-run in Kenya except for economic growth which is inconsequential in the short run. However, the study suggests the implementation of environmental regulations that would contribute in lowering pollution emissions. In addition, implementing policies that encourage investing in cleaner energy sources will reduce environmental pollution. The Kenyan policymakers should undertake various technological, behavioural, and other changes to increase its economy's overall energy efficiency.

Eliminating microbes in low-moisture foods (LMFs) is challenging because this requires the preservation of their raw quality during pasteurization. Vacuum steam pasteurization (VSP) has been shown to be effective in reducing microbes while maintaining food quality. These studies were conducted at a laboratory scale where issues such as steam distribution, penetration, and condensation are not a concern, but in larger samples, these are of primary concern. Hence, this study repurposes a pilot-scale grain moisture conditioner (GMC) into a VSP system with the aim of replicating the lab-scale conditions in larger-scale applications. The modification entailed a series of design alterations, conducting a structural analysis of the conditioning chamber, creating a vacuum environment, ensuring uniform steam distribution, and designing and adding a preheater and a cooling system. Performance tests confirmed that the adapted system replicates the VSP’s lab-scale functionality. The results demonstrated that the VSP system can preheat to beyond 40 °C and achieve an absolute pressure of 11.7 kPa at 85 °C with a 344.7 Pa pressure increase per minute. Furthermore, steam distribution inside the chamber showed no significant variations, and rapid steam evacuation and chamber cooling could be performed simultaneously. The success of these modifications will be used in future experiments.

Abstract Background Microalgae cells can be identified as a potential source for new and renewable energy. The economic investigation for biodiesel and bio-active compound production from the microalgae community (Bloom), which are collected from the high rate algal pond (HRAP) constructed to treat municipal wastewater at Zenin wastewater treatment plant, Giza, was the main target of study. Results The microscopical examination showed that Scenedesmus obliquus is the dominant species. The total carotenoids were extracted using jojoba oil and determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to reach 81.44 μg/g. The biodiesel production through acid transesterification reaction recorded 70.6% of fatty acid methyl ester content with high cetane number (44) and low acid value. Such results prove that the obtained biodiesel has better ignition quality. The total phenolic and flavonoid compounds have been derived from the remaining biomass to give 5.36 ± 0.03 and 1.50 ± 0.19 mg/g respectively. Finally, total proteins and carbohydrates content in algal cells were recorded 54.3 and 1.5 mg/g successively Conclusion The preliminary economic evaluation showed that the production of biodiesel and carotenoids from the microalgae growing in municipal wastewater can be considered, as a techno-economic feasible process.

Climate change is considered one of the most defining challenges in this century because it poses a threat to the health and well-being of every person in the world by posing a large aggregate risk to the economy. Developing and least developed countries such as Somalia are the most vulnerable countries to climate change consequences. Besides the vulnerability to climate change, government institutions in Somalia have been malfunctioning since 1991 hence affecting economic growth. Hence, this empirical work addresses the long-and short-run effects of institutional quality and climate change on economic growth in Somalia for the period 1985–2017 using the autoregressive distributed lag model (ARDL), Johansen and Juselius Cointegration, and dynamic ordinary least square (DOLS). The empirical results found that institutional quality and climate change are cointegrated into economic growth in the long run. Furthermore, average rainfall, instutional quality , and capital stimulate economic growth in Somalia in the long run; whereas the average temperature has a devastating effect on economic growth in the long run. These results are robust for various econometric methods. However, the study proposes implementing policies related to climate adaptability and mitigation strategies, and improving institutional quality such as; law and order, government effectiveness, and bureaucratic quality, as these will confirm sustainable economic growth in the long run.

Driven by the rise of recent technologies and long-standing interest in accommodating diverse student needs, the demand for flexibility in higher education has intensified. Moreover, the COVID-19 pandemic has intensified studies investigating online learning effects, reflecting shifting preferences and demands in education. Although prior research recognizes diverse flexibility practices, a narrow focus on instructional delivery limits its potential. Bridging this gap requires re-envisioning flexible learning by involving students, educators, and institutions in the transformation process. Therefore, this study aims to investigate and compare students' and educators' perspectives and experiences of five dimensions of flexibility (deadlines, modality, assessment type, grading and weighting, and course correspondence). The study involves a quantitative and qualitative survey, composed of Likert scale and open-ended questions. The survey respondents were students (N = 315) and educators (N = 100) at Western University across different years and programs. The quantitative component reveals a general alignment between student and educator preferences across flexibility dimensions. Noteworthy preferences include collaborative deadline setting, non-timed and take-home assessments, and more frequent, lower-weighted tasks. Students' increased preference for hybrid learning, despite a general preference for in-person formats, underscores the value placed on flexibility and adaptability. Qualitative findings illuminate the broader implications of flexibility that can be organized into the following four themes: (1) flexibility humanizes teaching and learning, (2) flexibility recognizes diverse student populations, (3) flexibility provides broad accommodation and increases accessibility, and (4) flexibility can offer immediate relief but poses long-term consequences. In conclusion, this study emphasizes the multifaceted nature of flexibility in higher education, offering a nuanced understanding of the impact of flexibility on students, educators, and institutions, encouraging further exploration and evidence-based policy decisions. Beyond academia, the research suggests potential reshaping of the higher education landscape, positioning flexibility as a fundamental element to foster a more inclusive, supportive, and effective learning environment for both students and educators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eliminating microbes in low-moisture foods (LMFs) is challenging because this requires the preservation of their raw quality during pasteurization. Vacuum steam pasteurization (VSP) has been shown to be effective in reducing microbes while maintaining food quality. These studies were conducted at a laboratory scale where issues such as steam distribution, penetration, and condensation are not a concern, but in larger samples, these are of primary concern. Hence, this study repurposes a pilot-scale grain moisture conditioner (GMC) into a VSP system with the aim of replicating the lab-scale conditions in larger-scale applications. The modification entailed a series of design alterations, conducting a structural analysis of the conditioning chamber, creating a vacuum environment, ensuring uniform steam distribution, and designing and adding a preheater and a cooling system. Performance tests confirmed that the adapted system replicates the VSP's lab-scale functionality. The results demonstrated that the VSP system can preheat to beyond 40 °C and achieve an absolute pressure of 11.7 kPa at 85 °C with a 344.7 Pa pressure increase per minute. Furthermore, steam distribution inside the chamber showed no significant variations, and rapid steam evacuation and chamber cooling could be performed simultaneously. The success of these modifications will be used in future experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change has received substantial attention from policymakers and academicians; hence, demonstrating the importance of environmental conservation. Fossil fuel energy use for industrialization and urbanization curtails environmental quality. This highlights the urgent need for green financing in green technologies and clean energy to preserve environmental quality. Contrary to the previous attempts that focus on the importance of green finance for mitigating climate change without examining how well-versed people are in the idea of green finance; however, this study aims to examine the awareness and preference for green finance among staff of commercial banks in Mogadishu, Somalia using a descriptive statistics research design. The results indicate more than 75% of the respondents are very familiar or familiar with green finance. However, less than 25% are unfamiliar with green finance. the result also indicates that the majority of the respondents prefer green finance more than 65% and just over 14% said they do not prefer green finance. Therefore, policymakers should implement policies aimed at reducing uncertainty and providing the banks with a conducive environment in green financing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this research investigation is to determine the effect of Sweden aid, UK aid, and US aid with control variables including the capital, and labor on economic growth utilizing Somalia data for the years 1989 to 2017. the study checked unit root problem by using both Phillips Perron (PP) and Augmented Dickey Fuller (ADF) bounds testing approach were employed to model the long-run and short-run cointegrations of the scrutinized variables and also the study uses the J & J cointegrating to regress for the long-run estimation. The study's empirical findings revealed that the variables had a long cointegration. It was discovered that while UK aid has no noticeable long-term relationship with economic growth in Somalia, whereas Swedish aid and US aid contribute the economic growth of Somalia. There are indications that Swedish assistance will boost long-term economic growth. Similarly, US aid is indicated to contribute to long-term gross domestic product (GDP), but UK aid has an insignificant impact on economic growth because UK aid relates mostly to military aid compared to those two other countries. Capital is also seen to contribute to long-term gross domestic product (GDP) which is suggesting that capital growth is more responsive to economic growth than other variables. While labor is also seen to contribute to long-term gross domestic product. Therefore, policymakers should establish a strategy to growth the economy by promoting the economy's most important drivers, such as exchange rates, capital, and inflation, and address drivers that impede the country's economic growth, such as the labor force. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Correction Following publication of the original article [1], the authors reported that additional file 10 contained a typing error in the table “Percentage of responders (≥50% max TOTPAR) over two, four, six and eight hours (single-dose phase) (ITT Population)”. The table is to be read as follows:

The objective of this study is to assess the effect of trade openness on economic growth in Somalia using time series data spanning 1985-2017. The study employed multivariate cointegration and a fully modified ordinary least square (FMOLS) cointegration method to achieve the objective of the study. The empirical findings of the multivariate cointegration test detected the presence of the long-run connection among the variables in Somalia. Moreover, the findings of the FMOLS method indicated that trade openness has a negative and significant effect on economic growth in the long run in Somalia. Besides, gross capital formation and labor force stimulate economic growth in Somalia in the long run. However, the study recommends the implementation of an effective policy to turn the unfavorable effect of trade openness on economic growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose -- The aims of this paper is to determine intentions to adopt takaful mediating perceived trust in case of Somalia. Design/methodology/approach -- This study utilizes relative advantage, compatibility and complexity constructs as an original factors of diffusion innovation theory (DOI). Moreover, the three external constructs of awareness, culture, and trust are added into the DOI constructs. The authors distributed 419 questionnaires to the contributors of the study. The survey was conducted using convenience sampling technique in Somalia and our respondents were potential takaful product users. The DOI theoretical model was put to the test through structural equation modeling (SEM). Findings -- The findings show that relative advantage, compatibility, culture has positively and significantly influence on adoption of takaful with mediating perceived trust. On the other hand, perceived complexity and awareness is positively related to adoption of takaful but there is no mediation with perceived trust. Originality/value -- This research is an original attempt for investigating the factors that determines the adoption of takaful products regarding customers with mediating trust in Somalia by changing the DOI theory. Therefore, it presents a unique contribution to the takaful field in context of Somalia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photometric data on 17 binary near-Earth asteroids (15 of them are certain detections, two are probables) were analysed and characteristic properties of the near-Earth asteroid (NEA) binary population were inferred. We have found that binary systems with a secondary-to-primary mean diameter ratio [D.sub.s]/[D.sub.p] [greater than or equal to] 0.18 concentrate among NEAs smaller than 2 km in diameter; the abundance of such binaries decreases significantly among larger NEAs. Secondaries show an upper size limit of [D.sub.s] = 0.5-1 km. Systems with [D.sub.s]/[D.sub.p] [less than or equal to] 0.5 are abundant but larger satellites are significantly less common. Primaries have spheroidal shapes and they rotate rapidly, with periods concentrating between 2.2 to 2.8 h and with a tail of the distribution up to ~4 h. The fast rotators are close to the critical spin for rubble piles with bulk densities about 2 g/[cm.sup.3]. Orbital periods show an apparent cut-off at [P.sub.orb] ~ 11 h; closer systems with shorter orbital periods have not been discovered, which is consistent with the Roche limit for strengthless bodies. Secondaries are more elongated on average than primaries. Most, but not all, of their rotations appear to be synchronized with the orbital motion; nonsynchronous secondary rotations may occur especially among wider systems with [P.sub.orb] > 20 h. The specific total angular momentum of most of the binary systems is similar to within [+ or -] 20% and close to the angular momentum of a sphere with the same total mass and density, rotating at the disruption limit; this suggests that the binaries were created by mechanism(s) related to rotation near the critical limit and that they neither gained nor lost significant amounts of angular momentum during or since formation. A comparison with six small asynchronous binaries detected in the main belt of asteroids suggests that the population extends beyond the region of terrestrial planets, but with characteristics shifted to larger sizes and longer periods. The estimated mean proportion of binaries with [D.sub.s]/[D.sub.p] [greater than or equal to] 0.18 among NEAs larger than 0.3 km is 15 [+ or -] 4%. Among fastest rotating NEAs larger than 0.3 km with periods between 2.2 and 2.8 h, the mean proportion of such binaries is (66 [+ or -] 110)%. Keywords: Asteroids; Photometry

We present both a review of earlier data and new results on non-principal axis rotators (tumblers) among asteroids. Among new tumblers found, the best data we have are for 2002 T[D.sub.60], 2000 W[L.sub.107], and (54789) 2001 M[Z.sub.7]--each of them shows a lightcurve with two frequencies (full terms with linear combinations of the two frequencies are present in the lightcurve). For 2002 TD60, we have constructed a physical model of the NPA rotation. Other recent objects which have been found to be likely tumblers based on their lightcurves that do not fit with a single periodicity are 2002 N[Y.sub.40], (16067) 1999 R[H.sub.27], and (5645) 1990 SP. We have done a statistical analysis of the present sample of the population of NPA rotators. It appears that most asteroids larger than ~ 0.4 km with estimated damping timescales (Harris, 1994, Icarus 107, 209) of 4.5 byr and longer are NPA rotators. The statistic of two short-period tumblers (D = 0.04 and 0.4 km) with non-zero tensile strength suggests that for them the quantity [micro] Q/T, where [micro] is the mechanical rigidity, Q is the elastic dissipation factor, and T is a spin excitation age (i.e., a time elapsed since the last significant spin excitation event), is greater by two to four orders of magnitude than the larger, likely rubble-pile tumblers. Among observational conditions and selection effects affecting detections of NPA rotations, there is a bias against detection of low-amplitude (small elongation) tumblers. Keywords: Asteroids; Excited rotation; Photometry

Background: Breast cancer is the most common cancer. In the course of cancer progression, there are specific neuromuscular disturbances that directly affect coordination. Handwriting is regarded as a vital constituent when it comes to the tracing of neuromuscular coordination. The Study aimed to study handwriting analysis in female cancer breast patients trying to find simple useful, non-invasive way help in early detection and diagnosis and follow up of those patients. Methods: The study included 160 participants. The study participants were asked to write the same text (two Arabic sentences and her name in Arabic language) and draw lines in another paper, and then all handwriting samples were scanned and examined. Results: Breast cancer patients age ranged from 30 - 76 years old with a mean ± SD of 50.3 ± 10.5.Patients according to Educational level parameter were 5 groups; Illiteracy eradication program, primary, middle, secondary, graduation and post gradates were 14 (8.75 %), 10 (8.75 %),16(10 %), (80) 50 %,40 (25 %) respectively. By analysis of handwriting samples: Tremor, wide spaces between words, heavy writing pressure, slop or slant of writing upward slant or down slant and heaviness of Initial and terminal strokes were observed. After re-observation of pervious Handwriting changes and make a relation between these changes and cancer stages and lines of treatment which received, it was noticed that these changes were in samples of patient received multiple lines of treatment, in patients with metastasis or has another associated tumor as ovarian, bladder cancers or lymphoma. Conclusion: There is no evidence of significant handwriting Changes in breast cancer samples unless patient received multiple lines of treatment, in patients with metastasis or has another associated tumor as ovarian, bladder cancers or lymphoma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Acute organophosphorus (OP) poisoning is a common toxic emergency all over the world especially in the developing countries as Egypt. Neurological damage occurs after exposure to these compounds can lead to respiratory failure and death. Thus, it is important to identify the severity of poisoning and predict the need to ventilation support or death. Methods: A prospective study that included 50 adult patients presented with neurological manifestations after acute OP poisoning admitted to the ICU of Poison Control Center of Ain shams university (PCC-ASU), and 25 healthy volunteers. Meusering levels of Neuron Specific Enolase (NSE) and Neurofilament Light (NFL) protein and correlate this with severity according to APACHE II score and outcome of patients. Conclusion: There was a significant difference between cases and controls among levels of NSE and NFL protein, also there was a significant correlation between NSE and NFL protein levels and prediction of both M.V. need and mortality, so NSE and NFL protein can be used as markers for neurological damage after exposure to OP compounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]