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The use of antibiotics without prescription (self-medication) is growing globally and is associated with increased bacterial resistance, ineffective treatment and adverse reactions. This study aimed at assessing the practice of antibiotic self-medication in the Iraqi population. A cross-sectional study design was adopted in this work. The sample was comprised of 303 staff members from the non-medical colleges in Iraq. An online questionnaire was distributed between the 29th of June to the 14th of September 2021 to collect data including socio-demographic characteristics and questions about antibiotic self-medication. Most of the participants had a university degree and a moderate monthly income. The majority (88%) have practiced self-medication at least once before. A “simple” condition and convenience were the main motivators behind self-medication, which was mainly used for sore throat, fever and cough. Own experience was the most reported determining factor for selecting an antibiotic, and community pharmacies were the main source for obtaining the antibiotics. About 40% of the participants admitted to switching the antibiotic or changing its dose during the treatment course. Self-medication with antibiotics is a major issue in our community and measures have to be taken to reduce its impact on public health through the development of bacterial resistance.

Postcolonial studies have dealt with the protest literature since they consider it as the voice of the oppressed people. In the same aspect, resistance literature begins in Palestine with Ghassan Kanafani and Mahmoud Darwish after 1948. Protest literature aims not only at freeing the oppressed from dominating powers and overturning the authority but also at liberating the humans from oppression. "The term resistance "Moqawamah" was first applied in a description of Palestinian Literature in 1966 by the Palestinian writer Ghassan Kanfani in his study "Resistance Literature in Occupied Palestine" (Harlow, 1987). Mahmoud Darwish has been involved in Palestine's political affairs throughout his entire life. In "I Come from There", Darwish tries to raise the voice of Palestinians; therefore, it can be heard all over the world. The theme of this poem assures his refusal to forget his country and unveils the struggle for a doomed homeland. By appropriating the descriptive and analytical method, along with the discourse analysis of Darwish's terms and phrases in the poem "I Come from There", this paper clarifies the symbolic meaning of the words to represent his sense of loss and sense of possession that he feels towards his land. Against this, the paper argues whether resistance protest literature succeeds in defending oppressed people and giving the subaltern their voices and whether literature helps the occupied people to get free and believe in non-violent resistance instead of violent resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amblyomma sculptum is a species of public health interest because it is associated with the transmission of the bacteria that causes Brazilian Spotted Fever (BSF). The use of repellents on humans is a prophylactic measure widely used to provide protection against a series of arthropod vectors, including mosquitoes and ticks. However, in Brazil, the effectiveness of commercial repellents against A. sculptum is little known. Therefore, it is necessary to carry out specific studies to evaluate the repellency of these commercial products, registered for use against mosquitoes, against the star tick. The main goal of the present work was to evaluate the effectiveness of six commercial repellents against A. sculptum. Unfed nymphs, aged between two and eight weeks, were tested against products based on DEET (OFF!® and Repelex®), Icaridin (Exposis® and SBP®), and IR3535 (Johnsons and Henlau). Three bioassays were conducted to evaluate tick behavior: (i) filter paper, (ii) fingertip, and (iii) field. All bases tested showed high repellent activity, differing significantly (p < 0.05) from the control. It was observed the formulation with DEET resulted in the best results in the filter paper bioassay. In the fingertip bioassay, the DEET base repelled a greater number of ticks compared to Icaridin. In the field bioassay, there was no significant difference between the Icaridin base and DEET, and both formulations differed from the control (p < 0.05). The six formulations tested showed significant percentages of repellency against ticks; however, for the fingertip and field bioassays, the products OFF!®, Repelex®, and Exposis® were tested as they showed better performance in the filter paper test. OFF!® showed the best percentage of repellency (100%), followed by Repelex® (96.8%), and Exposis® (93.1%), considering the two-hour period of the bioassay-field-test. Proving the effectiveness of repellents on the market against A. sculptum presented in this study is crucial, since this is the main ectoparasite of humans that can transmit Rickettsia rickettsii when infected. The effectiveness of commercial insect repellents against other tick species that parasitize humans can also be explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This book collects contributions from seven doctoral candidates at Birzeit University, focusing on different aspects of Palestine, particularly that part occupied in 1967. Palestine as history, geography, demography, and culture presents many challenges and numerous research issues that require originality, ingenuity, and imagination in thinking, methodology, theory, and narrative. The authors demonstrate originality and imagination in methodology, theory, and narrative while taking up key themes of resistance, identity, and literature. Although the papers do not ignore the general features of the Palestinian question, this review stresses the need to guard against reducing Palestine to a portion of its geography, and its population to a part of its own original citizens. The book represents a small but important step in meeting this challenge - of particular significance to Palestinian universities and social scientists - of producing knowledge that informs and concerns all the components of the Palestinian people in their diverse socio-economic, political, and cultural environments and combating setter colonialism and apartheid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This editorial summarizes the main scientific contributions from 11 papers comprising the Special Issue (SI) "Molecular Basis of Crops and Fruit Plants in Response to Stress". Here, we collected papers from different research groups encompassing molecular studies from monocots (ginger, rice, maize) and eudicots (common hazel, cowpea, pepper, soybean, tomato) species submitted to abiotic stresses as heat, cold, salt, drought, and heavy metals or biotic stresses induced by different viruses, such as BPEV, PepGMV, PMMoV, and TEV. These studies explored different aspects of molecular mechanisms involved in plant stress tolerance, establishing comparative analyses among genotypes/cultivars to identify potential molecular markers of stresses that are now available for future application in biotechnological studies. This SI presents a collection of advanced concepts and emerging strategies for readers and researchers aiming to accelerate plant breeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper intends to explore Affect as a potential source of both personal and political subjectivity, with special reference to Bangladeshi author Hasan Azizul Haque's historical novel Agun Pakhi (The Bird of Fire). Published in 2008, The Bird of Fire chronicles a highly eventful time in the history of the Indian subcontinent. The novel begins around twenty years before the partition of Bengal and goes on to document a number of socio-political upheavals of the time, including, for example, the Second World War, the Bengal famine of 1943, the partition of Bengal, and the ensuing unrest between the Hindus and Muslims. In The Bird of Fire, however, these events are documented not as external, 'outside' activities, and are instead mediated by and presented through the everyday domestic experiences of the novel's unnamed female protagonist. As a consequence, the 'mundane' in Haque's novel acquires political salience. In Haque's novel, qualities like tenderness and affection, which are usually taken to be signs of 'passive' femininity, come to play a crucial role in the protagonist's attempts to subjectivize her. This 'feminine' expression, in turn, is largely driven by Affective dimensions. By the virtue of her emotional response-ability, the protagonist succeeds in forging a new mode of resistance that challenges both political violence and patriarchy. By studying the form and content of Haque's novel, this paper explores how the notion of resistance in The Bird of Fire recalibrates itself in terms of the 'ordinariness' of the protagonist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Tropelías: Revista de Teoría de la Literatura y Literatura Comparada is the property of Prensas Universitarias de Zaragoza and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

To improve the efficiency of the multidisciplinary design optimization of underwater vehicles, this paper proposes a combined proxy model with adaptive dynamic sampling. The radial basis function model (RBF), Kriging model, and polynomial response surface model (PRS) are used to construct the proxy model. Efficient sample points are collected based on the synthetic minority oversampling technique (SMOTE) algorithm and the lower confidence bound (LCB) criterion. The proxy model process is integrated after dynamic sampling. The collaborative optimization framework is used, which considers the coupling between the main system set and the subsystem set. The hierarchical analysis method is used to transform the multidisciplinary optimization problem into a single-objective optimization problem. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) numerical simulation is utilized to simulate underwater submarine navigation. The optimization strategy is applied to the underwater vehicle SUBOFF to optimize resistance and energy consumption. Three dynamic proxy models and three static proxy models are compared. The results show that the optimization efficiency of the underwater vehicle has been improved. To prove the generalization performance of the proposed combined proxy model, a reducer example is investigated for comparison. The results show that the combined proxy model (CPM) is highly accurate and has excellent generalization performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, an extensive review of the literature is provided examining the significance of tolerance to fungal diseases in wheat amidst the escalating global demand for wheat and threats from environmental shifts and pathogen movements. The current comprehensive reliance on agrochemicals for disease management poses risks to food safety and the environment, exacerbated by the emergence of fungicide resistance. While resistance traits in wheat can offer some protection, these traits do not guarantee the complete absence of losses during periods of vigorous or moderate disease development. Furthermore, the introduction of individual resistance genes into wheat monoculture exerts selection pressure on pathogen populations. These disadvantages can be addressed or at least mitigated with the cultivation of tolerant varieties of wheat. Research in this area has shown that certain wheat varieties, susceptible to severe infectious diseases, are still capable of achieving high yields. Through the analysis of the existing literature, this paper explores the manifestations and quantification of tolerance in wheat, discussing its implications for integrated disease management and breeding strategies. Additionally, this paper addresses the ecological and evolutionary aspects of tolerance in the pathogen–plant host system, emphasizing its potential to enhance wheat productivity and sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines K.R. Meera's novel Hangwoman (2015), translated into English from Meera (2012), originally written in Malayalam. The text unfolds the patriarchal domination over the social life of women in India. Although the title of the novel indicates it as the story of a female protagonist, her journey unfolds the multi-layered nuances of patriarchy at play in the sub-continental context. It investigates the blurring of boundaries and the constant negotiations between public and private spaces, both of which are controlled by powerful social institutions. Contemporary Indian literature, especially women's writing, offers myriad perspectives of patriarchy that control women's bodies and thoughts. This paper sheds light on the dominant forces of patriarchy in moulding the domestic as well as public worlds and also the cultural influences produced by such domination. The novel fictionalises the life of Chetna Gradha Mullick, the country's first female executioner, and her journey through a typically male-dominated domain. It delves into how Chetna struggles to carve out a place for herself in the larger society while battling against patriarchal encroachment in her private life. Meera's novel also portrays how violence and the possibility of violence constrain and control the actions of women under the present social order. The present paper involves a close textual and thematic analysis of the novel and also explores the feminist discourses on patriarchy to trace how the personal and public selves of women are constantly created and recreated through a complex process of negotiations with and resistance to the dominant power structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Yu, H.; Wang, Y., and Li, D., 2023. Using the AHP-entropy weight method to study regional marine economy resilience in China. Journal of Coastal Research, 39(5), 960–969. Charlotte (North Carolina), ISSN 0749-0208. Marine economy has become an important part of China's national economy, but it is facing many constraints and disturbances from within and outside the region. Marine economy resilience can reflect to what extent the region will overcome these problems and achieve sustainable development. Nevertheless, evaluating marine economy resilience is a difficult task requiring considerable effort that is missing in the literature. This paper constructed the evaluation index system from the four dimensions of resistance, recovery, reorganization, and renewal and comprehensively used the analytic hierarchy process and entropy method to make a quantitative assessment of marine economy resilience in 11 coastal regions of China. Based on this, the paper then explored the spatial and temporal evolution of regional marine economy resilience. The evaluation results reveal that the overall level of China's marine economy resilience from 2006 to 2016 shows a fluctuating and rising trend. The resistance ability is generally in an upward fluctuating trend, the recovery ability fluctuates little but has no significant improvement, the reorganization ability also shows a fluctuating and rising trend, and the renewal ability has the largest increase in the four dimensions. This paper puts forward three suggestions for the coastal province governments to improve regional marine economy resilience in terms of technological innovation, green development, and coordinated opening up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) is still a leading global cause of mortality and an increasingly crucial problem in fighting TB is antibiotic resistance. We aimed to conduct a bibliometric analysis on the articles of the past 25 years on antibiotic-resistant active pulmonary TB. Methods: Appropriate keywords were combined using the Boolean and wildcard operators and searched in Scopus database for articles published between 1996 and 2020 in English language. For all the bibliometric analyses, the Bibliometrix package in RStudio and Biblioshiny web apps were used. We identified the publication and citation trends, topmost cited documents, most productive authors, countries and institutions and most influential journals and funding agencies. We constructed collaborative networks of countries and co-citations. In addition, we developed a Three-Fields plot and a Thematic Map to explore different publication themes. Results: We included 7024 articles (88.9% research articles) and a persistently increasing publication and citation trends were evident throughout the past 25 years. Boehme 2010 was the most cited paper (1609 times cited), Stefan Niemann was the most productive author (86 papers), and 'International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease' was the leading journal. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was the top contributing institution (3.7% papers) and both US- and UK-based funders were leading. The most productive countries were the USA, India, the UK, South Africa, and China and most of the collaborations took place between the USA, the UK, and South Africa. Conclusion: Undoubtedly, researchers and funders from the USA dominated followed by the UK in most of the fields in antibiotic-resistant TB research. The outcomes of antibiotic-resistant TB research would be more productive and translational if researchers from low- or middle-income countries (especially from Africa, South America and Asia) with high research productivity and TB burden could be in collaboration with high-income countries exhibiting low TB burden. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper critically examines the interplay between the ethical constitution of subjectivity and the notion of truth in Michel Foucault's political oeuvre, with a specific focus on the technologies of the self. Employing a comprehensive genealogical approach, the study delves into various technologies of the self, unraveling the complex models of knowledge and power they embody. This investigation illuminates key socio-historical shifts, revealing nuanced dynamics in the relationships between subject, self, truth, and power that extend beyond the traditional focus on the disciplined subject of modernity. A unique contribution of this work lies in its exploration of the methodological significance of technologies of the self within contemporary political philosophy, considering not only historical perspectives but also the implications of digital hyperconnectivity and gamified self-technologies. By examining strategies of resistance and freedom, the paper underscores the potential of these technologies as tools for both empowerment and surveillance, presenting a multifaceted view of self-constitution in the digital era. In its analysis, the paper integrates insights from recent scholarship, including the ethical dimensions of technological mediation and the concept of 'quantified otherness,' thereby enriching the understanding of how the technologies of the self-shape and are shaped by socio-technological systems. The paper aims to contribute to ongoing discussions about power, resistance, and the ethical constitution of subjectivity in contemporary political philosophy, highlighting the relevance of Foucault's work in the context of emerging technologies and evolving social norms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The focus of the paper is on the fate of a special police unit and its members. Before World War II, the civilian response work in the present sense took place within the framework of the police in Hungary. Within the framework of the Budapest Metropolitan Police Commissariat, the task of the Political Police Department was to carry out the prevention work. By the end of the 1930s, it was clear that Germany, an ally on paper, was active in Hungary. Thus, when the Wehrmacht occupied Hungary on March 19, 1944, one of the first steps the invading SS and SD units have taken was to arrest the police officers working against the Germans. At the same time, many police officers have anticipated the continuation of their careers, moreover, a progress in it after the German occupation. The State Security Police, established at that time, served the occupiers and participated in the Holocaust. Typically, they continued to work in 1945 to wrap up an anti-state conspiracy. The mentioned German-arrested police officers were detained for weeks and then deported. In 1945, they were liberated by US troops and then entered the CIC to find the Hungarian war criminals. Finally, the study dealt with the post-war fate and career of the policemen featured in the article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a growing academic interest in respect for critical game studies from the domains such as cultural studies, literature, ludology, and gender studies. However, the research done on videogames from the perspective of the political discourse is not broad enough. Rocksteady Studios' Batman: Arkham Asylum (2009, director Sefton Hill) is a franchise that has redefined the superhero videogame genre. Although previous Batman transmedia adaptations would usually portray Gotham City as the prime location to narrate the story from the perspective of Batman, the videogame utilizes the carceral setting of Batman to subvert the traditional narratives and makes it completely a Joker's (character) game. Therefore, this version of storytelling carries a character with a more nuanced demeanor and a setting with socio-political influence. The current paper examines the underlying structural inequality present in Batman using Giorgio Agamben's bare life theory and the subsequent discourse of resistance using the theoretical framework of Mikhail Bakhtin. The analysis reveals the various carnivalesque elements present in the game and illustrates how the game takes advantage of them to mount an attack against the bare life status of the antagonists that are usually seen in Batman transmedia universe. Furthermore, the paper elaborates on the posthuman traits of Joker's becoming through a Gilles Deleuze-inspired perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In early 2020, the spread of COVID-19 resulted in the wide use of online classes in China. Drawing on Foucault’s disciplinary power and De Certeau’s strategy-tactic dialectic, this paper explores the online learning practice of students in a rural junior middle school at Yu Town in Central China during the pandemic, through interviewing the students, teachers, and parents. The findings show that the teachers and the students engaged in a power game in online education and employed a series of strategies and tactics to realize the control and resistance through the creative use of media technologies. The study reveals the paradox that the rural students’ agency and resistance, enabled by the media technologies, may result in negative consequences for their learning and further broaden the gap between rural and urban students, thus reproducing the system that they are dissatisfied with. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By focusing on the notion of 'coming out as undocumented', this concept paper critically explores whether identity politics has the potential to transform dominant 'illegalisation' processes. It argues that although the coming out strategy has helped make marginalised communities more visible and audible, it does not necessarily help disrupt dominant stigmas. Drawing upon insights from Disability Studies and Fat and Queer Politics, it suggests that the celebration of stigmatised identities through coming out events does not necessarily disrupt and transform unequal systems. What is needed is a radical shift in focus: from identity celebration to political projects, from an 'unliveable' present to an inclusive tomorrow. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The escalating cadmium influx from industrial activities and anthropogenic sources has raised serious environmental concerns due to its toxic effects on ecosystems and human health. This review delves into the intricate mechanisms underlying microbial resistance to cadmium, shedding light on the multifaceted interplay between microorganisms and this hazardous heavy metal. Cadmium overexposure elicits severe health repercussions, including renal carcinoma, mucous membrane degradation, bone density loss, and kidney stone formation in humans. Moreover, its deleterious impact extends to animal and plant metabolism. While physico-chemical methods like reverse osmosis and ion exchange are employed to mitigate cadmium contamination, their costliness and incomplete efficacy necessitate alternative strategies. Microbes, particularly bacteria and fungi, exhibit remarkable resilience to elevated cadmium concentrations through intricate resistance mechanisms. This paper elucidates the ingenious strategies employed by these microorganisms to combat cadmium stress, encompassing metal ion sequestration, efflux pumps, and enzymatic detoxification pathways. Bioremediation emerges as a promising avenue for tackling cadmium pollution, leveraging microorganisms' ability to transform toxic cadmium forms into less hazardous derivatives. Unlike conventional methods, bioremediation offers a cost-effective, environmentally benign, and efficient approach. This review amalgamates the current understanding of microbial cadmium resistance mechanisms, highlighting their potential for sustainable remediation strategies. By unraveling the intricate interactions between microorganisms and cadmium, this study contributes to advancing our knowledge of bioremediation approaches, thereby paving the way for safer and more effective cadmium mitigation practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim: Pediculus humanus capitis, the human head louse, remains a global health problem. This study evaluated the resistance of head lice to permethrin and 6-paradol mediated by in vitro detoxification enzyme activity experiments and to describe physical changes in the lice using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Materials and Methods: The adult stages of P. h. capitis were collected from patients exposed to 1% permethrin and three different concentrations of 6-paradol (0.00005%, 0.0001%, and 0.00015%) using a filter paper diffusion bioassay. Healthy P. h. capitis adults served as the control. The in vitro bioassays were conducted after 10, 20, 30, and 60 min of exposure. The activities of acetylcholinesterase (AChE), glutathione S-transferase (GST), and oxidase were analyzed. Physical changes in the lice were analyzed using SEM. Results: Permethrin and 6-paradol exhibited low toxicity against the lice. At 60 min, 1% permethrin had killed 36.7% of the lice present, while 6-paradol had killed 66.7-86.7%. Permethrin induced significantly elevated AChE, GST, and oxidase activity; 6-paradol also caused significantly elevated AChE, GST, and oxidase activity. Permethrin did not cause any ultrastructural morphological changes on the lice, while 6-paradol severely damaged the head, thorax, respiratory spiracles, and abdomen of the dead lice. Conclusion: This in vitro experimental of P. h. capitis is the first study to report P. h. capitis in East Jakarta shows complete resistance to permethrin and 6-paradol, and to describe the associated increase in AChE, GST, and oxidase activity. It was observed that 6-paradol severely damaged the head, thorax, respiratory spiracles, and abdomen of the dead lice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bladder cancer (BC) is a heterogeneous disease that a tumor develops in the bladder lining and in some cases, the bladder muscle. Chemotherapy and immunotherapy are commonly used to treat bladder cancer. However, chemotherapy can cause burning and irritation in the bladder while BCG immunotherapy, which is the main type of intravesical immunotherapy for bladder cancer, can also cause burning in the bladder and flu-like symptoms. Thus, drugs originating from natural products have attracted much attention due to the reports that they have anti-cancer properties with low adverse effects. In this study, eighty-seven papers that dealt with natural products preventing or treating bladder cancer were reviewed. The studies were classified into the following mechanism: 71 papers on cell death, 5 papers on anti-metastasis, 3 papers on anti-angiogenesis, 1 paper on anti-resistance, and 7 papers on clinical trials. Most of the natural products that induced apoptosis up-regulated proteins such as caspase-3 and caspase-9. Regarding anti-metastasis, MMP-2 and MMP-9 are regulated frequently. Regarding anti-angiogenesis, HIF-1α and VEGF-A are down-regulated frequently. Nevertheless, the number of papers regarding anti-resistance and clinical trial are too few, so more studies are needed. In conclusion, this database will be useful for future in vivo studies of the anti-bladder cancer effect of natural products, in the process of selecting materials used for the experiment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Relaciones Internacionales (1699-3950) is the property of Autonomous University of Madrid, Spain, International Relations Studies Group (GERI) Law Faculty and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The recent COVID-19 pandemic uncovered some already existing but somewhat hidden inequalities in different countries. Many features of inequalities that pre-existed the COVID-19 pandemic for a long time were uncovered due to this radical shift in living arrangements globally. This paper focuses on one particular feature of these inequalities: housing situation of one Iranian asylum seeker in a heim (refugee accommodation) in Germany. Contributing to an understanding of how political resistance can be exercised through personal biographies, the paper differentiates between the notion of 'unhome' from home by discussing three factors: choice, anchor and the significant of others. The paper contributes to the growing scholarships around home in migration and its intersection with personal narratives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A well-known theorem of Vizing separates graphs into two classes: those which admit proper Δ-edge-colourings, known as class one graphs; and those which do not, known as class two graphs. Class two graphs do admit proper (Δ + 1)-edge-colourings. In the context of snarks (class two cubic graphs), there has recently been much focus on parameters which are said to measure how far the snark is from being 3-edge-colourable, and there are thus many well-known lemmas and results which are widely used in the study of snarks. These parameters, or so-called measurements of uncolourability, have thus far evaded consideration in the general case of k-regular class two graphs for k > 3. Two such measures are the resistance and vertex resistance of a graph. For a graph G, the (vertex) resistance of G, denoted as (rv(G)) r(G), is defined as the minimum number of (vertices) edges which need to be removed from G in order to render it class one. In this paper, we generalise some of the well-known lemmas and results to the k-regular case. For the main result of this paper, we generalise the known fact that r(G) = rv(G) if G is a snark by proving the following bounds for k-regular G: rv(G) = r(G) = ⌈ k/2 ⌉rv(G). Moreover, we show that both bounds are best possible for any even k. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Facultad de Ingeniería Universidad de Antioquia is the property of Universidad de Antioquia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In recent years, an increase of interest has arisen in oats due to their unique health-related properties. Fusarium Head Blight (FHB) is recognized as a major threat to oat production and safety. The Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) assesses the risks of the presence of Fusarium-produced mycotoxins in foods and the tolerable intake level. This paper summarizes updates on Fusarium resistance in oats, describing the advances in phenotyping strategies and diagnostics methods and discussing the role of the infection process of the microbiome and bioactive compounds peculiar to oats. A special emphasis has been placed on the presentation of new genetic, genomic, and biotechnological knowledge and tools available today and their perspectives on breeding programs aiming to develop FHB-resistant genotypes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SYNOPSIS: Diversity has emerged as a topic of increasing organizational and legislative relevance. Despite forming a burgeoning research field in accounting, little is known about how organizations respond to diversity disclosure legislation. In this paper, we study the introduction of diversity disclosure legislation in the European Union that mandates corporate diversity disclosures, and we analyze how 30 large German companies disclose diversity in their annual reports. Drawing on institutional theory and Oliver's (1991) seminal work on strategic responses to institutional processes, our analysis reveals four mandatory reporting responses: dismissal, concealment, imitation, and transcendence. Overall, our findings show that although diversity has been institutionalized into organizational environments by the European Union through legislative action, organizational responses vary, from resistance to passive conformity or proactive compliance. With these findings, our study adds to the emergent diversity accounting literature, and we conclude by highlighting implications of our work for policymakers, managers, and researchers. Data Availability: Data are available from the public sources cited in the text. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Organizational research has increasingly recognized violence as an instrument for achieving compliance and maintaining the existing order. However, resisters tend to be portrayed as powerless in the face of this violence or engaging in hopeless acts of resistance. In comparison, by examining the context of violent protests, this paper discusses how activists can endure and use violence as part of their resistance. I build on a 15-month ethnography of the gilets jaunes (yellow vest) movement to illuminate the absorptive resisting work involved in deploying resistance to and through violence. This absorptive resisting work included reducing the repressive effects of violent protests and embracing those effects to generate symbolic and discursive resources against police violence, as well as including violent protest tactics in ways that regenerated those resources. Ultimately, my findings reveal that this absorptive work allowed resisters to withstand violent protests in the short term and reframe them in the long term. This paper thus contributes to studies on resistance to violence by showing how people can effectively and collectively catalyze violence to challenge it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Voltage source inverters (VSIs) with vector control based on phase-locked loop (PLL) suffer instability when connecting to a very weak AC grid (short circuit ratio (SCR) $ < $ 1.3). The conventional inductive grid impedance compensation for the PLL by virtually reducing the grid impedance can stabilize this connection. However, the analysis in this paper indicates that its stabilization effectiveness is sensitive to grid impedance variance and, indeed, overcompensation causes the PLL instability. Therefore, in this paper, an improved grid impedance compensation for the PLL is proposed to achieve the same stabilization for very-weak-grid connection and possess a good tolerance of grid impedance variance and overcompensation. A comprehensive small-signal model of the VSI using the proposed PLL’s grid impedance compensation is derived for stability analysis and parameter design. The time-domain simulation for this VSI is built to validate the stability analysis. Comparison studies for both proposed and conventional PLL’s grid impedance compensation are conducted including the stability effectiveness, VSI performance and grid impedance variance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy management strategy (EMS) is the key to the performance of fuel cell / battery hybrid system. At present, reinforcement learning (RL) has been introduced into this field and has gradually become the focus of research. However, traditional EMSs only take the energy consumption into consideration when optimizing the operation economy, and ignore the cost caused by power source degradations. It would cause the problem of poor operation economy regarding Total Cost of Ownership (TCO). On the other hand, most studied RL algorithms have the disadvantages of overestimation and improper way of restricting battery SOC, which would lead to relatively poor control performance as well. To solve these problems, this paper establishes a TCO model including energy consumption, equivalent energy consumption and degradation of power sources at first, then adopt the Double Q-learning RL algorithm with state constraint and variable action space to determine the optimal EMS. Finally, using hardware-in-the-loop platform, the feasibility, superiority and generalization of proposed EMS is proved by comparing with the optimal dynamic programming and traditional RL EMS and equivalent consumption minimum strategy (ECMS) under both training and unknown operating conditions. Results prove that the proposed strategy has high global optimality and excellent SOC control ability regardless of training or unknown conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims and Objectives: The aim of the present paper is to provide a narrative review of the markers and pathways of periodontitis-associated insulin resistance (IR). Materials and Methods: Research papers published in peer-reviewed scientific journals from 2000 to 2021 were searched systematically in Online Cochrane Library, Google Scholar, and MedLine/PubMed database. The medical subject headings (MeSH) terms used for literature search were "diabetes AND periodontal disease," "diabetes AND periodontitis," "inflammation AND insulin resistance," "Insulin resistance AND periodontal disease," and "insulin resistance AND periodontitis." Manual search for applicable work in review article peer-reviewed print journals, and latest editions of standard textbooks of pharmacology and pathology were searched for updated additional information. Relevant papers in English language on the topic and abstracts of pertinent articles after excluding the duplicates, animal studies, and in-vitro studies were also scrutinized thoroughly and finally included as required in this narrative review. Results: Literature search in MedLine/PubMed with MeSH words mentioned above revealed 4,621, 4,993, 19,349, 414, and 434 papers, respectively. Seven out of 13 systematic reviews and a total of 18 randomized clinical trials to evaluate periodontitis-induced IR were short-listed to update current evidences. The current literature in the past two decades has evaluated the effect of periodontal therapy on various type-2 diabetes (T2D) biomarkers following periodontal therapy. These indicators of periodontal disease activity and surrogate biomarkers of T2D in periodontitis may be an important diagnostic tool for the early prediction of complications due to IR. This increased systemic burden of proinflammatory cytokines by periodontitis can be reduced by periodontal therapy, thus improving the patient's overall systemic condition. Conclusion: The inflammatory response in periodontitis is characterized by dysregulated secretion of host-derived mediators of inflammation and tissue breakdown that may lead to IR. It can be comprehended that periodontal disease is a recognized amendable risk factor for T2D. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flexible DC distribution networks have been widely developed because of their advantages of high efficiency, low cost, and easy access to renewable energy. However, as distribution networks have more ends than the two-terminal transmission line, it is more challenging to protect them and locate their faults. Therefore, this paper proposes a modified T-source circuit breaker to protect against DC faults. Based on the proposed circuit breaker, an integral fault location method using double-terminal asynchronous data is proposed. The accuracy of the algorithm is not affected by the fault resistance. There are no differential terms in the algorithm, which greatly reduces the sensitivity to noise. The integral algorithm can remain steady when the voltage and current are zero in oscillation and attenuation periods. This constitutes the main contribution of this paper. Finally, it is verified by simulation and experiment that the proposed circuit breaker can isolate the power source within a short time in the typical DC distribution network. Under a noise of 30 dB for simulation, the location error of the proposed algorithm is <0.4% when the fault resistance is 0.5 Ω–500 Ω. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses procedures for power cable time-dependent rating calculations. Such calculations are required to obtain cable emergency ratings and also to observe the conductor temperature variations with time when subjected to variable loading. The calculation procedure is described in the IEC Standards 60853-1 and 2. A real difficulty in applying those procedures lies in an ability to take into account variation of the electrical resistances of the cable metallic components with temperature. The standard gives an approximate equation, developed by Goldenberg. However, this equation is applicable to a single current step applied to the cable. The paper shows that it cannot be easily applied to multiple current steps and proposes a new approximate algorithm providing an analytical solution to this problem. A comparison with a complex iterative procedure is also offered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This document is an editorial published in the journal Frontiers in Cellular & Infection Microbiology. The editorial focuses on the research implications of microbial virulence factors, resistance, and new therapeutic strategies in the context of future infectious disease therapies. The goal of the research topic is to gather the latest articles addressing these topics and to discuss recent developments and innovative approaches in the field. The editorial highlights several studies, including one on tuberculosis in Poland and northeastern Europe, a transcriptional analysis of human peripheral blood mononuclear cells stimulated with M. tuberculosis, the identification of virulence traits and genes in Kluyvera and Phytobacter, the role of the type VI secretion system in drug resistance in Acinetobacter baumannii, and the antivirulence activity of epigallocatechin-3-gallate against Aeromonas hydrophila. The editorial concludes by stating that the collected papers shed light on selected virulence factors, potential drugs, therapeutic strategies, diagnostics, and the changing epidemiology of microbial infections. [Extracted from the article]

This paper explores the relationship between language and power in the autobiographical novel Akkarmashi by Sharankumar Limbale through a Foucauldian analysis. The study investigates how language functions as a tool of power to control and manipulate individuals and communities in the context of caste-based discrimination in India. The study is guided by Michel Foucault's theories on power and discourse, which emphasize the ways in which language is used to exert control over individuals and shape societal norms. The paper examines the use of language in the novel to reinforce caste-based power dynamics and perpetuate social hierarchies. Through a close analysis of the text, the study uncovers the ways in which language is used to marginalize and stigmatize individuals belonging to lower castes. It also explores how language is used as a means of resistance by the marginalized communities in the book. The paper argues that the novel exposes the power imbalances embedded in language use, and highlights the need to challenge dominant discourses that perpetuate social inequalities. It also underscores the significance of empowering marginalized voices to contest hegemonic power structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The number of used batteries is expected to dramatically increase in the near future due to the expansion of the electric vehicle (EV) market globally. Accordingly, the Korean government has improved the supporting structures for the recycling system for used batteries, and in particular, in the field of repurposing, various studies are being conducted with a focus on effective evaluation methods that can secure the performance and safety of batteries after use. The repurposing of used batteries is mostly adapted in the field of energy storage systems for normally used EV batteries and a total inspection before repurposing is required due to battery characteristics that can vary depending on the operational environments of and accidents involving medium- and large-sized batteries for EVs and energy storage systems (ESSs) that have been occurring continuously for the past few years. Therefore, this paper investigates the operating mechanisms of the internal resistance test method and implements a test device for middle- and large-sized cells and packs. Based on the proposed test method, the internal resistance of nickel manganese cobalt (NMC)-type commercial large batteries is analyzed according to the SOC (state of charge), SOH (state of health), ambient temperature, and connection degradation of batteries. The distribution degrees of the alternative current (AC) internal resistance (IR) and direct current (DC) internal resistance (IR) measurement methods under state of health (SOH) test conditions are about 7% and 50%. It was found that the DC IR measurement method is more effective in diagnosing battery cell degradation. The distribution degree of DC IR measurements for the degraded connection condition shows an increase of less than 1% regardless of the state of charge (SOC), while the distribution degree of the AC IR measurements shows an increase of up to 319%, indicating that the AC IR method is more effective than the DC IR method in identifying connection degradation. It is confirmed that the proposed method is effective in internal resistance measurement and safety evaluations for the repurposing of batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current paper shows colonialism as a concept and how European countries have created colonies in Australia, Asia, Africa, and America, capturing and overexploiting the colonies' natural resources and dominating the colonies' natives. The new nation discoveries accomplished by Europeans stuck in Shakespeare's mind, naming these discoveries the "New World". Shakespeare's The Tempest approaches Prospero's colonial attitude and Caliban's postcolonial standpoint. With that being said, this paper aims to demonstrate that Shakespeare stands in the middle making no approval or disapproval of the European colonization. The Tempest by Shakespeare can be reviewed from a colonial and postcolonial lens. Fanon (1991) establishes that violence-based struggle is a component of the decolonization process represented by Caliban. Towards the end of the paper, key related interpretations of India's overexploitation by Great Britain are adopted to make a piece of evidence that one of the deadly sins of European history rests in colonialism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the extremely competitive environment of shipping, minimizing shipping cost is the key factor for the survival and growth of shipping companies. However, stricter rules and regulations that aim at the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions published by the International Maritime Organization, force shipping companies to increase the operational efficiency of their fleet. The prediction of a ship speed in actual seas with a given power by its engine is the most important performance indicator and thus makes it the "holy grail" in pursuing better efficiency. Traditionally, tank model tests and semi-empirical formulas were the preferred solution for the aforementioned prediction and are still widely applied. However, currently, with the increased computational power that is widely available, novel and more sophisticated methods taking into consideration computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and machine learning (ML) algorithms are emerging. In this paper, we briefly present the different approaches in the prediction of a ship's speed but focus on ML methods comparing a representative number of the latest data-driven models used in papers, to provide guidelines, discover trends and identify the challenges to be faced by researchers. From this comparison, we can distinguish that artificial neural networks (ANN), being used in 73.3% of the reviewed papers, dominate as the algorithm of choice. Researchers mostly rely on physical laws governing the phenomena in the crucial part of data preprocessing tasks. Lastly, most researchers rely on data acquisition systems installed at ships in order to achieve usable results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents findings from a larger study that explored the relationship among Black graduate womxn's (BGW) geospatial and social locations in their academic organizations, their professional socialization processes, and their abilities to access their desired career pipelines upon program completion. More specifically, it is concerned with manners in which Black womxn (co-)construct geographies for their professional growth that (a) retain Black womxnhood at their centers - and in doing so, (b) challenge academia's dominant discourses about students' socialization processes and outcomes. The study took place in a highly ranked college of education ("the College"), at a highly regarded predominatelywhite public research institution in the American Midwest ("Midwest"). I conducted the study using a bricolage approach. Black Critical Race Theory, postcolonialism, and ideas about everyday resistance informed the paper's methodology. The findings illustrate a theorizing of Black womxn's created geographies as sites of resistance, and their liberatory imaginations, against anti-Black and colonial violence in the education academy. They also offer implications for how academia must evolve its understandings, structures, locations, and practices of graduate studies to be more responsive to the evolving needs of a diversifying population of learners and professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The fumigant has been approved by the World Health Organization for use in grain storage, targeting the eradication of pests in areas where grain is stored or transported to reduce insect and mold activities, thereby minimizing storage losses. Phosphine is featured by its economic viability, application readibility, rapid diffusion, and lack of residue, making it advantageous for comprehensive pest control. It demonstrates high efficacy against various harmful organisms in storage, making it one of major fumigants worldwide. However, the elimination of some fumigants has increased dependence on phosphine. The lack of standardized guidance and inappropriate use of phosphine have led to severe resistance among stored grain pests, posing a threat to the effectiveness and sustainability of phosphine treatment. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the current status and trends of phosphine resistance in stored grain pests on the global. It analyzes the genetic basis of resistance, focusing on respiratory and cuticle-related gene expression and detoxification enzyme mechanisms. A comparison of four resistance detection methods--FAO, discriminating does bioassay, rapid knockdown, and molecular identification--is rendered. The study explores key strategies for resistance management, including optimization of fumigation protocols, laboratory and field validations, and application recommendations. The aim is to offer reference information for the scientific and rational use of phosphine and the development of alternative pest control methods in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-grade gliomas are considered an incurable disease. Despite all the various therapy options available, patient survival remains low, and the tumor usually returns. Tumor resistance to conventional therapy and stimulation of the migratory activity of surviving cells are the main factors that lead to recurrent tumors. When developing new treatment approaches, the effect is most often evaluated on standard and phenotypically depleted cancer cell lines. Moreover, there is much focus on the anti-proliferative effect of such therapies without considering the possible stimulation of migratory activity. In this paper, we studied how glioma cell migration changes after exposure to bi-(AID-1-T), an anti-proliferative aptamer. We investigated the effect of this aptamer on eight human glioma cell cultures (Grades III and IV) that were derived from patients' tumor tissue; the difference between primary and recurrent tumors was taken into account. Despite its strong anti-proliferative activity, bi-(AID-1-T) was shown to induce migration of recurrent tumor cells. This result shows the importance of studying the effect of therapeutic molecules on the invasive properties of glioma tumor cells in order to reduce the likelihood of inducing tumor recurrence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mastitis, a highly prevalent disease in dairy cows, is responsible for massive financial losses due to decreased milk yield, milk quality, and costly medication. This research paper investigates antimicrobial susceptibility in cows and the role played by both resistance and virulence gene distribution in bovine mastitis. A total of 984 raw milk samples were collected from five different dairy farms and cultured on sheep blood agar plates. Antimicrobial susceptibility was determined by disc diffusion, and corresponding resistance and virulence genes were detected by PCR. Among the collected milk samples, 73, 32, and 19 isolates of Streptococcus spp., Staphylococcus spp., and coliforms were identified, respectively. The antimicrobial susceptibility results showed that Streptococcus spp. were resistant to tetracycline (86.30%), neomycin (79.45%), and oxacillin (73.97%). Staphylococcus spp. were resistant to tetracycline (59.37%) and oxacillin (53.12%). Lastly, coliforms were resistant to oxacillin (100%) and bacitracin (68.42%). The genotyping results showed that Streptococcus spp. carried the resistance genes tetM (46.57%) against tetracycline, bcrB (41.09%) against bacitracin, and aph(3)-II (39.72%) against neomycin. Staphylococcus spp. carried the resistance genes bcrB (40.62%) and tetM (18.75%), and coliforms carried the resistance genes tetM (42.10%) and bcrB (57.89%). Moreover, 57.53%, 75.0%, and 63.15% of Streptococcus spp., Staphylococcus spp., and coliforms carried lmb, fib, and ompC virulence genes, respectively. All three tested bacterial genera showed no significant association between antimicrobial resistance genes and virulence factors, although they were negatively correlated (p > 0.05). The combination of resistance gene identification and susceptibility tests as components of the diagnosis of bovine mastitis can help in selecting effective antimicrobial agents to treat it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]