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OBJECTIVE: Internally displaced persons (IDPs) can have limited access to HIV and hepatitis C Virus (HCV) treatment and prevention. IDPs comprise > 7% of Georgian population but prevalence and levels of HIV and HCV knowledge in this population remain unknown. We tested 100 IDPs in Georgia for HIV and HCV, many of whom had drug injecting experience, and interviewed them about their migration experience, sexual and drug injecting practices, and HIV/HCV transmission knowledge. RESULTS: The average age of participants was 37.5 years (range 18-63); 31% were women. Almost half (N = 48) of participants reported ever injecting drugs; 17% of those (N = 8) started injecting drugs within the last year. Anti-HCV and HIV prevalence was 11% and 0%, respectively. Fewer people without drug use experience compared to people who inject drugs correctly answered all questions on the HIV knowledge test (13% vs. 35%, p = 0.015) or knew where to get tested for HIV (67% vs 98%, p

The regional aspect of language education plays a significant role in the development of sociocultural students’ competence. The implementation of the regional component in university education is rarely considered, the issues of determining its content and role in the development of student competencies are not sufficiently developed. The way linguistic disciplines are currently taught in universities is undergoing a qualitative change, helping it meet the requirements of educational modernization, while the content and teaching methods are updated, and a competency-based approach to professional training is developed. The sociocultural competence occupies an important position together with the development of linguistic competence of students. The article presents the project results “Teaching the German language with the regional material” for the students of “45.03.01 Philology: Foreign philology (German language and literature)”. A preliminary survey showed that 76 % of students from 52 respondents were interested in studying regional material in the foreign language. The results discovered that our pedagogical approach increased the level of regional sociocultural competence of students, which contributed to the development of students' competency in the dialogue of cultures.

The problem of finding H∞-regulators in the output control problem is considered. Two approaches for approximate synthesis of the closed loop systems are proposed. The paper considers the problem of finding the H-infinity control of a nonlinear continuous dynamical system output. The system is linear in control and perturbation, with a finite time of the system operation. Methods for finding H-infinity control are used to solve problems of synthesis of controllers, particularly for solving the problem of synthesis of controllers in conditions of incomplete state information. In such problems, it is difficult to find the structure of the regulator and its parameters. Sufficient H∞-control conditions are formulated and proved. Two approximate methods for finding the H-infinity controller of closed loop nonlinear continuous systems were proposed. To illustrate the application of the methods, the problem of stabilization of the ZD559-Lynx helicopter, whose flight takes place during the imposed time period of the system operation, was considered.

How seemingly natural public space generated by the TV, is really natural? The author states that the real public space is almost entirely supplanted by a virtual public space – in particular, television: with extras instead of society and professional speakers. It seems that these are the «new frontiers», which, having replaced the old ones, replaced the model of public space with quasimodel, being translated now by Russian TV channels of the extremely involving media. Насколько, казалось бы, естественное публичное пространство, порождаемое ТВ, на самом деле естественно? Автор констатирует, что реальное публичное пространство практически вытеснено виртуальным публичным пространством – в частности, телевизионным: со статистами вместо общества, с профессиональными выступающими. Представляется, что это такие «новые границы», которые, заменив старые, подменили модель публичного пространства на квазимодель, которая и транслируется теперь с экранов российского ТВ – чрезвычайно вовлекающего СМИ.

This IRB-approved qualitative case study was grounded in Vygotsky's (1978; 1987) socio-cultural constructivism theory and New London Group (1996) postulates of multiliteracies. The participants in this project were 12 domestic and international polylingual English as an Additional Language students at a public university in one of the north-eastern states in the United States of America. The data was collected via site and participant observations, analytical notes and memos, surveys, audio-recorded and transcribed interviews, and artifacts in the forms of the reading comprehension tests to two different texts. One of the texts was supported by an audio recording, another one had a video support with the sound track. All the data was coded using Saldaña's (2012) thematic and value coding and triangulated in the process of analysis. The findings of this study indicated that all 12 research participants strongly relied on the means of multimodality while reading the texts and working with the comprehension test questions. All participants in this study found video mode as most helpful to them, followed by the auditory one in the process of their meaning making of the text, which they found complex. Major implication of this study is that multimodality needs to be embedded in the higher education curriculums in order to assist students, including but not limited to the polylingual EAL leaners with reading and meaning making.

Abstract Tongue cancer at a young age demonstrates an increase in incidence, aggressiveness, and poor response to therapy. Classic etiological factors for head and neck tumors such as tobacco, alcohol, and human papillomavirus are not related to early-onset tongue cancer. Mechanisms of development and progression of this cancer remain unclear. In this study, we performed spatial whole-transcriptome profiling of tongue cancer in young adults compared with older patients. Nine patients with tongue squamous cell carcinoma (T2-3N0-1M0) were included and divided into two groups: younger (n = 5) and older than 45 years (n = 4). Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) and fresh frozen (FF) samples of tumor tissue from 4 young and 5 older patients, respectively, were used for spatial transcriptomic profiling using the 10 × Genomics Visium. The findings were validated using SeekGene single cell full-length RNA sequencing (1 young vs 1 older patient) and TCGA data (15 young vs 70 older patients). As a result, we performed the first successful integration of spatial transcriptomics data from FF and FFPE samples and revealed distinctive features of tongue cancer in young adults. Oxidative stress, vascular mimicry, and MAPK and JAK-STAT pathways were enriched in early-onset tongue cancer. Tumor microenvironment demonstrated increased gene signatures corresponding to myeloid-derived suppressor cells, tumor-associated macrophages, and plasma cells. The invasive front was accompanied by vascular mimicry with arrangement of tumor-associated macrophages and aggregations of plasma cells and lymphocytes organized into tertiary lymphoid structures. Taken together, these results indicate that early-onset tongue cancer has distinct transcriptomic features and molecular mechanisms compared to older patients.

Background. The acne is a chronic inflammatory skin disease that affects all age groups of the population and has a serious impact on the quality of life of patients. Various endogenous and exogenous factors are involved in the pathogenesis of dermatosis. The increasing of usage of digital media and the Internet has an impact on people's sleep habits and, with changes in sleep quality, symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress may increase, which leads to a more severe course of chronic dermatoses, including acne. Aim. To evaluate the relationship between somnological disorders (SLD) and the frequency of smartphone use before bedtime in patients with mild to moderate acne (MMA). Materials and methods. A single-center observational prospective study was conducted from 2023 to 2024: 130 patients aged 18 to 30 years (average age 23.32±2.75 years) diagnosed with MMA were observed. The data on the severity of acne were assessed using the Global Acne Grading System (GAGS), the degree of sleep disturbance was determined using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and the quality of life of patients was determined according to the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI). Taking into account indicators on the use of a smartphone with the iOS or Android operating system included calculating average screen time, assessing addiction and the fact of using a smartphone 1 hour before bedtime. The statistical processing was carried out using the Jamovi version 2.3.21 program. Results. The SLD were identified in 85 (65.38%) patients with MMA. The dermatosis had a strong impact on quality of life (DLQI20) in 82.31% (n=107). In group I of patients "poor sleeping" there was a direct correlation between SLD (PSQI) and the severity of dermatosis (ρ=0.533; p0.001) and the duration of screen time (ρ=0.628; p0.001) spent on a smartphone per day. The patients of group I had a greater dependence on a smartphone compared to group II of patients "well sleeping": 15.94±1.89 points versus 7.71±1.96 points (p0.001). Conclusion. It has been established that the level of SLD has a high incidence in the group of patients with MMA. There is a pronounced correlation between dyssomnia and the severity of dermatosis; in patients with disturbed sleep, a high dependence on the phone and a correlation with the duration of screen time spent on a smartphone per day were revealed. This study demonstrates the need to pay attention to the presence of disturbances in the quality of sleep in people suffering from skin diseases, in particular acne.

Abstract Objective Internally displaced persons (IDPs) can have limited access to HIV and hepatitis C Virus (HCV) treatment and prevention. IDPs comprise > 7% of Georgian population but prevalence and levels of HIV and HCV knowledge in this population remain unknown. We tested 100 IDPs in Georgia for HIV and HCV, many of whom had drug injecting experience, and interviewed them about their migration experience, sexual and drug injecting practices, and HIV/HCV transmission knowledge. Results The average age of participants was 37.5 years (range 18–63); 31% were women. Almost half (N = 48) of participants reported ever injecting drugs; 17% of those (N = 8) started injecting drugs within the last year. Anti-HCV and HIV prevalence was 11% and 0%, respectively. Fewer people without drug use experience compared to people who inject drugs correctly answered all questions on the HIV knowledge test (13% vs. 35%, p = 0.015) or knew where to get tested for HIV (67% vs 98%, p

The authors considered a methodology for the automated design of cylindrical broach structures consisting of the following stages: forming a 3D-parametric geometrical broach image, assessing a broach structure stress-strain state during operation. The paper presents the results of software implementation of the algorithm for forming a broach structure parametric model from 3D-geometrical prototypes in the system Solidworks. To assess a stress-strain state of tools with the numerical method of finite elements in Solidworks Simulation, the authors formed an analytical design model taking into account strain of geometric prototypes. A series of numerical experiments was aimed at researching a stress-strain state of broach teeth under cutting forces action. According to the results of numerical experiments, by means of the least square method the authors obtained analytical expressions to estimate the influence of geometrical and design parameters of the broach teeth structure on elastic displacements of cutting edges vertice and equivalent stresses of the most loaded teeth components. The authors developed recommendations on the change of the teeth section parameters allowing for the extension of the broach structure operation life and reducing the tool life consumption for the batch of parts.

The paper analyses the value mindsets of pre-service teachers in terms of the digital learning environment (DLE). DLE is considered to be both a system of new tools and methods for teaching activity and a prospective educational eco-system for learning. The DLE value model is based on a psychodidactic approach, which concerns three main constructs--digital content values, communication values, and management values. The research involved 200 pre-service teachers who were asked to complete a questionnaire, evaluating 27 DLE values and opportunities. The results show that pre-service teachers value digital learning content but are not sufficiently ready for its creation; they develop tolerance in communication yet do not have enough skills to show empathy; they appreciate independence in learning management and still need training in professional digital self-presentation. Consequently, professional training and especially internships for pre-service teachers should include a synthesis of traditional (face-to-face) and virtual communication and interaction with children to facilitate mastering an expanded set of competencies for successful professional self-realisation. The findings can be beneficial in terms of e-learning practices, DLE design, and the organisation of internships.