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Nutrients and other bioactive constituents of foods may interact with each other and the surrounding food matrix in complex ways. Therefore, associations between single nutrients and chronic disease may be difficult to identify and interpret, but when dietary patterns (DPs) are examined the combination of many food factors will be considered. An explorative literature search of published review articles was conducted to obtain a fuller understanding of current DPs in epidemiological research, to discuss pros and cons of DPs in nutrition research, and to identify results of studies linking DPs to chronic disease risk in adults. Randomized feeding trials providing the experimental diets to study participants have repeatedly demonstrated that diets based on current dietary recommendations are associated with important health benefits. Systematic reviews of feeding trials and prospective population studies of DPs and chronic disease risk reach similar conclusions regardless of the methodology used to construct DPs. However, to date only a few review articles of DP studies have followed a systematic process using independent reviewers with strict inclusion, exclusion, and study quality criteria. Diets with plenty of plants foods, fish, and seafood that preferably include vegetable oils and low-fat dairy products are associated with a lower risk of most chronic diseases. In contrast, Western-type DPs with food products low in essential nutrients and high in energy, like sugar-sweetened beverages, sweets, refined cereals and solid fats (e.g. butter), and high in red and processed meats, are associated with adverse health effects. An emphasis on high-quality original research, and systematic reviews following a structured process to objectively select and judge studies, is needed in order to enforce a strong future knowledge base regarding DPs and chronic disease.

Nutrients and other bioactive constituents of foods may interact with each other and the surrounding food matrix in complex ways. Therefore, associations between single nutrients and chronic disease may be difficult to identify and interpret, but when dietary patterns (DPs) are examined the combination of many food factors will be considered. An explorative literature search of published review articles was conducted to obtain a fuller understanding of current DPs in epidemiological research, to discuss pros and cons of DPs in nutrition research, and to identify results of studies linking DPs to chronic disease risk in adults. Randomized feeding trials providing the experimental diets to study participants have repeatedly demonstrated that diets based on current dietary recommendations are associated with important health benefits. Systematic reviews of feeding trials and prospective population studies of DPs and chronic disease risk reach similar conclusions regardless of the methodology used to construct DPs. However, to date only a few review articles of DP studies have followed a systematic process using independent reviewers with strict inclusion, exclusion, and study quality criteria. Diets with plenty of plants foods, fish, and seafood that preferably include vegetable oils and low-fat dairy products are associated with a lower risk of most chronic diseases. In contrast, Western-type DPs with food products low in essential nutrients and high in energy, like sugar-sweetened beverages, sweets, refined cereals and solid fats (e.g. butter), and high in red and processed meats, are associated with adverse health effects. An emphasis on high-quality original research, and systematic reviews following a structured process to objectively select and judge studies, is needed in order to enforce a strong future knowledge base regarding DPs and chronic disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many cities worldwide are at the frontline of environmental challenges during their future planning. Navi Mumbai presents many opportunities to move a city toward sustainability. The land is scarce for development purposes in Mumbai, which has resulted in the creation of the suburban area of Navi Mumbai. As the latter has numerous water bodies and drainage channels, which lie in the ecosensitive zone, to stop organic development, the environmental suitability index along with the accessibility index needs to be assessed to promote future organized growth. The present study investigated the planning of the new areas and assessed environmental suitability and accessibility for various zones seeking future development. The analytical derivation of the environmental suitability index was based on the parameters, subindex, and attributes of environmental issues in that area. The parameters included (1) soil permeability, (2) water-holding capacity, (3) porosity, (4) properties of groundwater and marine water, (5) properties of air, and (6) noise. The entire area was divided into five zones for the current work. The analytical framework was a developed methodology of indices calculated from five monitoring stations obtained from the City and Industrial Development Corporation of Maharashtra Limited, India (CIDCO). The accessibility parameters of the transportation network were measured using alpha indices (α). Finally, a nondominated sorting algorithm was used to obtain final suitability based on the Pareto optimality condition. The development suitability of an area was obtained by computing the environmental suitability index and accessibility index. This computation decides which of the five stations is best for which type of planning. The study developed a dimension-wise suitability index for Navi Mumbai, aiming to streamline the planning process and integrate policies essential for planning to attain sustainable development for Navi Mumbai. During future planning, policymakers and planners have often ignored environmental aspects in ecofragile areas. Hence, planning for new development in ecofragile areas has often been haphazard, piecemeal, and organic. The framework adopted in this paper, combining the environmental suitability index and the accessibility index, intended to assess the area's health and prescribe future actions to reduce the negative environmental impacts of development and regulate the same. The paper showed how data on soil, water, groundwater, air, and noise can be used in a simple mathematical model to compute the environmental suitability index of an area. Similarly, graph-theoretic measures of the whole transportation network can measure the accessibility index of the area. Finally, the development suitability of the area can be calculated by combining the environmental suitability index and the accessibility index. The level of domination result signifies the most suitable station/node for different types of development. Based on the results, policymakers and planners can determine an ecofragile area's future land use development as required. This model can further be adopted by local governing authorities to plan for zoning, zoning regulations, and approval of a proposed development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Chinese Journal of Agrometeorology is the property of Editorial Board of Chinese Journal of Agrometeorology 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.)

Periodontal disease is the inflammation of the periodontal supporting structures of teeth. An index is an important tool of surveillance system based on the requirements of reliability, simplicity, and validity to screen oral health disease of the population. This paper aims to discuss on various indices formulated to measure periodontal disease from past to present. This paper reviews indices and different recording systems used to measure periodontal diseases at the population level by retrieving articles, selecting, writing, and summarizing the article. The advantages and disadvantages of various indices used for measuring periodontal disease are discussed in this article. Community Periodontal Index is the most widely accepted index used in larger research studies. However, presently, clinical attachment loss is a widely accepted tool for the diagnosis of periodontal disease. Future advances in new screening methods will be able to provide new opportunities in the diagnosis of active and progressive periodontal disease, which will further help in more precise screening of periodontal disease in larger research studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents a methodology for assessing the level of energy security for individual territories in countries. The most significant energy security indices for such an analysis are formulated and used to illustrate a method proposed to obtain an integrated assessment of the energy security state for the regions of Russia. A method for determining the specific weights of indicators in the general system of their value is presented. The application of the developed methodology for analyzing the main trends and the scale of changes in the state of energy security of Russian regions is shown on the example of the Siberian Federal District. Conclusions about the energy security state in these regions are made, and the reasons for the related negative trends are presented. The presented indicative analysis allows identifying the problems in various aspects of energy security in the regions and helps develop measures to improve it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indices are often used to model theoretical concepts in economics and finance. Beyond the econometric models used to test the relationships between these variables, partial least squares path modeling (PLS-PM) allows the study of complex models, but it is an estimator that is still in its infancy in economics and finance research. Thus, the use of PLS-PM for composite analysis needs to be explored further. As one such attempt, this paper is focused on the determination of the indices' optimum weights. For this purpose, the effects of the market potential index (MPI) on foreign direct investment (FDI) and gross domestic product (GDP) were analysed by implementing different weighting schemes. The assessment of the model shows that PLS Mode B leads to better model fit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Economic Annals-XXI / Ekonomìčnij Časopis-XXI is the property of Institute of Society Transformation 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.)

Drought is a global threat to public health. Increasingly, the impact of drought on mental health and wellbeing is being recognized. This paper investigates the relationship between drought and well-being to determine which drought indices most effectively capture well-being outcomes. A thorough understanding of the relationship between drought and well-being must consider the (i) three aspects of drought (duration, frequency, and magnitude); (ii) different types of drought (meteorological, agricultural, etc.); and (iii) the individual context of specific locations, communities, and sectors. For this reason, we used a variety of drought types, drought indices, and time windows to identify the thresholds for wet and dry epochs that enhance and suppress impacts to well-being. Four postcodes in New South Wales (NSW), Australia, are used as case studies in the analysis to highlight the spatial variability in the relationship between drought and well-being. The results demonstrate that the relationship between drought indices and well-being outcomes differs temporally, spatially, and according to drought type. This paper objectively tests the relationship between commonly used drought indices and wellbeing outcomes to establish whether current methods of quantifying drought effectively capture well-being outcomes. For funding, community programs, and interventions to result in successful adaptation, it is essential to critically choose which drought index, time window, and well-being outcome to use in empirical studies. The uncertainties associated with these relationships must be accounted for, and it must also be realized that results will differ on the basis of these decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Technological developments over the last two decades have allowed researchers to employ advanced tracking technologies to collect high-resolution spatial and temporal data. Despite the extensive use of these technologies in tourism research, they have not yet been applied to the existing indicators of tourism demand. The current paper aims to fill this lacuna, proposing the use of tracking technologies to measure tourist activity in destinations and, in particular, extreme conditions such as tourist saturation and overtourism. It introduces a new index for tourism demand, the Intensity-Density Index (IDI), based on high-resolution data in time and space. After presenting an overview of the common indicators for measuring tourism demand, the most common indicators, the Tourism Intensity Rate (TIR) and the Tourism Density Rate (TDR), are calculated twice, using traditional methods and advanced tracking technologies. The second calculation is based on a unique survey conducted in Israel between 2015 and 2017, which included some 3,000 tourists whose activity in the destination was documented entirely on a national level and at high resolution. Finally, the methodology for calculating high-resolution (HR) indicators using GPS data is presented, resulting in the IDI. Advanced tracking technologies' use in calculating the IDI not only helps present tourism activity more accurately in terms of time and space but can also be applied in tourism management to serve as a tool for effective planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Visible–near-infrared–shortwave-infrared (VNIR–SWIR) spectroscopy is one of the most promising sensing techniques to meet ever-growing demands for soil information and data. To ensure the successful application of this technique in the field, efficient methods for tackling detrimental moisture effects on soil spectra are critical. In this paper, mathematical techniques for reducing or removing the effects of soil moisture content (SMC) from spectra are reviewed. The reviewed techniques encompass the most common spectral pre-processing and algorithms, as well as less frequently reported methods including approaches within the remote sensing domain. Examples of studies describing their effectiveness in the search for calibration model improvement are provided. Moreover, the advantages and disadvantages of the different techniques are summarized. Future research including further studies on a wider range of soil types, in-field conditions, and systematic experiments considering several SMC levels to enable the definition of threshold values for the effectiveness of the discussed methods is recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Macroinvertebrates are used as bioindicators worldwide, but the high diversity of macroinvertebrate species and endemism in Latin America (LA) requires greater knowledge of this group to increase the effectiveness of biomonitoring. We examined some of the primary taxonomic and ecological studies on macroinvertebrates in the region, quantified the number of papers that used foreign and local indices, examined alternative approaches to bioassessment that may be more relevant for the region, and explored freshwater ecosystem management in LA. Here, we highlight the need to increase taxonomic knowledge and the number of specialists in local fauna, establish and maintain taxonomic collections in public institutions, and make online databases on the biodiversity in each country available. However, we also demonstrate that taxonomy specialists of different nationalities do collaborate on the generation of fundamental information about biodiversity in LA. We found that 57% of the 215 reviewed scientific articles from LA used foreign but locally adapted indices for biomonitoring aquatic ecosystems. Only 21% of these articles presented local indices developed in LA. New technologies, such as environmental DNA, offer substantial potential for bioassessment but only in regions where sufficient taxonomic knowledge exists and where species-level stressor–response relationships are well described. In the absence of more complete taxonomic records, there could be some value in developing biological trait and multimetric indices, and occupancy models could be developed to analyze the relationship between taxa and stress factors. These tools could be adopted by researchers to generate more accurate biotic indices based on local taxa. Finally, in LA, bioindicators are used to support scientific research more often than as environmental monitoring tools. Environmental laws and regulations that support the biomonitoring of LA freshwaters and unified criteria for evaluating and monitoring aquatic ecosystems are essential to face regional and global challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ficus L. is a genus in Moraceae with 115 taxa from all over India and plays a key role in Indian ethnobotany. The Khasi and Jaintia hill in Meghalaya is rich in flora including the genus Ficus L. and have diverse cultures among local tribes. The uses, coverage, and cultural importance of Ficus can be expressed through several quantitative ethnobiological indices such as TIV, RFC, CI, and UV. This paper highlights the indices for ten species of Ficus used by the tribal people in the Khasi and Jaintia hills of Meghalaya which shows that the genus has higher ethnobotanical value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Liveability is a multi-dimensional and hierarchical concept which consists of various criteria and sub-criteria and may be evaluated in different ways. The aim of this study was to systematically review indicators and methods used for the evaluation of urban liveability in literature. The five-stage methodological framework of Arksey and O'Malley was used to conduct this scoping review. A systematic search of electronic databases, including Scopus, Medline (via PubMed), Embase, Web of Science and EBSCO was done until May 29, 2019. Web searching, searching reference lists and hand searching was also conducted to retrieve more relevant articles. Two reviewers screened the papers for eligibility based on the inclusion criteria and extracted their key data and reported them descriptively. Sixty seven (67) out of 3,599 papers met the selection criteria. This review showed five distinct domains considered to be important components of liveability. These were Economical, Environmental, Institutional, Social, and Governance (Political) domains. The most important subdomains (indices) which were frequently applied in various studies were Environmental friendliness and Sustainability, Socio-Cultural Conditions and Economic Vibrancy and Competitiveness. We also identified seven different methodologies and six ranking tools used for assessing urban liveability. Among the quantitative methods, three methods accounted for 89.6% of the articles. These methods were the Analytical hierarchy process and entropy (AHP; n=24; 50%), Factor analysis & Principle Component Analysis (FA & PCA; n=12; 25%) and Spatial Multi-criteria Decision-making Method (Spatial; n=7; 14.6%). Among the ranking tools used, three ranking tools accounted for 65.4% of the articles. These tools were the Livable City Scientific Evaluation Standards (LCSES; n=9; 34.6%), The Global Liveable Cities Index (GLCI; n=4; 15.4%) and the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU; n=4; 15.4%). This paper discusses and summarizes the latest indicators and methods used for determining urban liveability. The information offered in the review can help future investigators to decide which method suits their purpose and situation better and measure urban liveability more systematically than before. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) are self-rated scales and indices developed to improve the detection of the patients' subjective experience. Given that a considerable number of PROMs are available, it is important to evaluate their validity and usefulness in a specific research or clinical setting. Published guidelines, based on psychometric criteria, do not fit in with the complexity of clinical challenges, because of their quest for homogeneity of components and inadequate attention to sensitivity. Psychometric theory has stifled the field and led to the routine use of scales widely accepted yet with a history of poor performance. Clinimetrics, the science of clinical measurements, may provide a more suitable conceptual and methodological framework. The aims of this paper are to outline the major limitations of the psychometric model and to provide criteria for clinimetric patient-reported outcome measures (CLIPROMs). The characteristics related to reliability, sensitivity, validity, and clinical utility of instruments are critically reviewed, with particular reference to the differences between clinimetric and psychometric approaches. Of note is the fact that PROMs, rating scales, and indices developed according to psychometric criteria may display relevant clinimetric properties. The present paper underpins the importance of the clini-metric methodology in choosing the appropriate PROMs. CLIPROM criteria may also guide the development of new indices and the validation of existing PROMs to be employed in clinical settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Food insecurity elimination is a major focus of the Sustainable Development Goals and addresses one of the most pressing needs in developing countries. With the increasing incidence of food insecurity, poverty, and inequalities, there is a need for realignment of agriculture that aims to empower especially the rural poor smallholders by increasing productivity to improving food security conditions. Repositioning the agricultural sector should avoid general statements about production improvement, instead, it should tailor to location-specific recommendations that fully acknowledge the local spatial diversity of the natural resource base that largely determines production potentials under current low input agriculture. This paper aims to deconstruct the complex and multidimensional aspect of food insecurity and provides policymakers with an approach for mapping the spatial dimension of food insecurity. Using a set of GIS-based indicators, and a small-area approach, we combine Principal Component Analysis and GIS spatial analysis to construct one composite index and four individual indices based on the four dimensions of food security (access, availability, stability, and utilization) to map the spatial dimension of food insecurity in Vihiga County, Kenya. Data were collected by the use of a geocoded household survey questionnaire. The results reveal the existence of a clear and profound spatial disparity of food insecurity. Mapping food insecurity using individual dimension indices provides a more detailed picture of food insecurity as compared to the single composite index. Spatially disaggregated data, a small area approach, and GIS-based indicators prove valuable for mapping local-level causative factors of household food insecurity. Effective policy approaches to combat food insecurity inequalities should integrate spatially targeted interventions for each dimension of food insecurity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to find out whether the sensitivity of occupancy of hotels and pensions in relation to the established seasonal patterns was significantly different in 2022 compared to the pre-pandemic period. For this purpose, pre-pandemic seasonal behaviour patterns of visitors to hotel and other accommodation establishments by region in the Czech Republic are first identified. Subsequently, the relationship between the occupancy of hotels and pensions in individual regions and the seasonal patterns found is modelled. The results show that the regions of the Czech Republic can be divided into several groups in terms of seasonality: no peak, one peak and two peaks. Cultural tourism tends to eliminate more pronounced seasonal dips. Furthermore, the results show that the occupancy of hotels and pensions in relation to the seasonal behaviour of residents is the same in all regions in the post-pandemic period as in the pre-pandemic period. In the case of non-resident visitors, there were slight changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. In the sports field, soccer included, performance is often influenced by a number of factors, such as visual abilities and also agility. Aims. The paper aims to investigate and determine the relationship between the indices of visual reaction and agility in 12-13-year-old soccer players. Methods. The subjects of the research were 26 soccer players aged 12-13 years, from the Otopeni Sports Club. The visual reaction at the lower limbs level was determined using the OptoJump Next Platform. Measured indices: TReac. (reaction time) of left and right foot (sec). For agility - Witty SEM system with smart semaphores. Measured indices (sec): Lap L1-10, mean Laps and Time. Results. Analysis of visual reaction indices revealed a better performance in the right foot compared with the left one. Agility assessment highlights a mean of Laps of 4.82 sec, with significant differences of minimum and maximum values between Laps, indicating diverse levels of agility development in young soccer players. Correlation analysis of the indices of visual reaction and agility shows weak and non-existent connections between them, except for strong correlations at some distinct points. The need for specific training to improve both abilities in 12-13-year-old soccer players is thus demonstrated. Conclusions. The results of the study show that soccer players aged 12-13 years have differences in their visual performance and feet agility, with a faster visual reaction of the right foot. The various levels of agility development highlight the necessity to organize specific training for both abilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: One of the most significant contributors to lower extremity degeneration alterations and its effects on balance and sports performance is dynamic knee valgus (DKV) as a faulty movement pattern. Different exercise interventions have been conducted to improve DKV. Extensive research and meta-objective analysis were conducted to assess how exercise interventions affected people with lower extremity functional indicators of DKV. Methods: The electronic databases Scopus, Web of Science (WoS), PubMed, Google Scholar, and Iranian databases SID and Magiran were systematically searched from inception to September 2021. Only full-text articles published in English/Persian peer-reviewed journals that met this study criterion were tracked. Two researchers evaluated the methodological quality of research findings separately, employing the Downs and Black Checklist. After collecting significant data from eligible studies, the results were integrated by applying a random-effects meta-analysis approach. Results: The final systematic review and meta-analysis comprised seven of the 3470 papers deemed potentially relevant. The outcome illustrates that different exercise interventions may be effective in improving dynamic balance (SD=0.93 degrees, 95%CI: 0.54-1.32, P<0.001) and functional performance (Hedge's g=1.695, 95% CI=1.22-2.17, Z=6.99, P<0.001) in 250 DKV participants. Conclusion: Exercise interventions appear to be an effective method to enhance dynamic balance and functional performance in individuals experiencing DKV; nevertheless, these results should be regarded as preliminary due to the limited number of studies and their limitations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Today purchasing goods or services online is a regular activity. That is why in this paper we have analyzed the evolution of the online purchases of the individuals in the EU countries from 2010 until 2021 in accordance with the latest data provided by the Eurostat Database. For that we used charts, dynamic indices, and dynamic rhythms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many topological indices are closely related to chemical and physical properties, especially types of chemical structures that are characterized by the forms of chains of special chemical structures including hexacyclic, pentagonal, and tetracyclic structures. In 1947, the first chemist to find a relationship between topological index is called the Wiener index which was named after the chemical scientist Harold Wiener. He introduced the Wiener index to find a relationship between physic and chemical properties of chemical structures of molecular graphs. Then, the Hosoya polynomial in chemistry was found by Haruo Hosoya in 1988, through which the Wiener index was found, by finding the derivative of this polynomial and then substituting for the value of the variable with one. Therefore, our aim in this paper was to talk about other topological indices called Schultz and modified Schultz indices with mentioning their polynomials and to find general formulas for each of them for an alternating chain of quaternary and hexagonal rings, which have some applications in chemistry. Also, a program was made using the Mathematica program to find the polynomials, indices, and sketches of them with respect to the Schultz distance. The first researcher to talk about the Schultz index was Harry Schultz in 1989 and the first to talk about the modified Schultz index were Sandi Klav?zar and Ivan Gutman in 1997. Finally, many types of research are found Schultz and modified Schultz to Lots of graphs and operations defined on it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research paper aims to improve the methodology platform and engage language students. The study's main aim is to optimize the effectiveness of the learning process. Therefore, the authors of the article focused on solving the following tasks: 1) to revise the theoretical linguistic semiotics and lingua didactic approaches to understanding the notion of film/cinema; 2) to design the model of the neurolinguistic semiotics structure of a film; 3) to formulate the practical recommendations for applying the criterion of ecological impact to select authentic teaching video materials; 4) to experimentally prove their expediency. We utilize both general scientific research tools and unique experimental methods. We use observation, description, analysis, synthesis, generalization, and systemization, applied neurolinguistic programming (NLP), and lingua didactic techniques. We use the first group of strategies to formulate the theoretical basis of the work, logical arrangement of scientific facts, expression of conclusions, and qualification of actual material. With the help of the second group of methods, we design a model of the neurolinguistic semiotic structure of the film and experimentally verify its effectiveness in the teaching process. The main results: 1) the range of impact varieties is in the following way: weak degree - persuasion, moderate - suggestion, moderate and considerate - manipulation; 2) symbols are oriented to suggestive impact, copies - to suggestive and persuasion impact, indices - to the ability to actualize all impact varieties, including manipulations; 3) the use of publicist documentaries with persuasive and suggestive elements helps to increase student activity in the classroom. The significance of the work is that its results can be helpful to language teachers in the selecting of educational video materials for students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Real estate investment trusts (REITs) are historically considered as attractive assets to investors particularly as the underlying assets are properties which are income-producing. REITs also distribute substantial amount of profits as dividends to shareholders. Stephen and Simon (2005) find that REITs in a mixed asset portfolio of stocks and bonds enhance returns and reduce risk. This paper examines the role a pandemic (COVID-19) plays in the performance of global REITs index and REIT sectors. Design/methodology/approach: To examine the effects of COVID-19 on REITs, the year-to-date (YTD) returns of global returns index and REITs sectors in the United States are observed and a comparative analysis is employed from January 2020 to May 2020. Findings: Based on a three-month return ending 22 May 2020, FTSE EPRA NAREIT index is the biggest loser at −31.83% whilst the FTSE EPRA Asia–Pacific index has the lowest loss at −23.20%. The author examines YTD returns which show disparities on the effect of COVID-19 on REIT sectors. The US market is examined; most REIT sectors suffered big losses as at April 2020; the analysis reveals YTD returns for the top three REIT sector losers are lodging/resort REITs (−45.81%), retail REITs (−41.16%) and office REITs (−22.63%). Data centre REITs are the only sector REITs with positive returns at 17.66%. Practical implications: Most sector REITs during the pandemic have lost considerable value based on YTD returns as at May 2020. Flight to quality is expected during this uncertain period to REITs such as data REITs, grocery-anchored REITs and storage REITs. These REITs are not as adversely affected by COVID-19 in comparison to other REITs. Originality/value: This paper identified the impact of COVID-19 on the performance of global REITs and US sector REITs during the periods from January 2020 to May 2020. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In today's competitive business world, education plays a key role in developing individuals to handle industry challenges. The educational system, therefore, is compelled to ensure that students are capable enough to meet industry needs of being employable. QMS (QMS) is a mechanism which generates quality indices to monitor students' progress in meeting industry demands. Several indices are researched to determine applicability in educational institutions ranging from ranking to quality of student (Ball, 2005; Faini, Riccardo & Heimler, Alberto, 1991). This paper addresses the research gap on the process rather than the product as evinced by literature review. Grounded theory (Glaser & Strauss, 1967) is used in this research methodology while ETVX is used for processes development. Total respondents are 189 and predictive analytics is used for interpretation. Practical steps for implementation of QMS is addendum. The contribution of the study lies in introducing a new approach to outcome based quality indices. The conclusion indicates that outcome is represented in various dimensions which can be addressed by QMS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A flash drought (FD) event is a relatively new form of severe occurrence, described by the quick onset and intensification of drought situations with serious consequences. This paper aims to understand the wide variety of studies and serve as a basis for future research potentials of FDs. An effort has been made to understand the advantages and limitations of the existing indices used for FD identification. A study in India was carried out for the identification of FDs using daily gridded data of soil moisture for eight days (octad). The results reveal that the Indus basin faced around 82% and the Cauvery basin faced about 88% of severe FDs during the monsoon and non-monsoon seasons, respectively. Additionally, the results show that the Indus basin faces FD in the monsoon season since the basin has mostly barren areas and wasteland. This review also highlights the role of humidity, wind and radiation, soil characteristics, climate oscillations, and the relation between FDs and heavy-rainfall-induced flash floods. Furthermore, the paper has depicted some specific research-needs to monitor, forecast, plan, and respond with crucial points. HIGHLIGHTS This study discusses the most extensive indices used to identify FDs.; A study is carried out in India to identify FDs using daily gridded soil moisture data for eight days (octad).; The study briefly explains the factors that need to be included in identifying and monitoring FDs.; The study also depicts the crucial points for future research-needs to monitor, forecast, plan, and respond to FDs.;

Context: Landscape ecology was founded on the idea that there is a reciprocal relationship between spatial pattern and ecological processes. I provide a retrospective look at how the state-of-the-art of landscape pattern analysis has changed since 1998. Objectives: My objective is to show how pattern analysis techniques have evolved and identify some of the key lessons learned. Results: The state-of-the-art in 1998 was derived from information theory, fractal geometry, percolation theory, hierarchy theory and graph theory, relying heavily on the island-patch conceptual model using categorical maps, although point-data analysis methods were actively being explored. We have gradually winnowed down the list of fundamental components of spatial pattern, and have clarified the appropriate and inappropriate use of landscape metrics for research and application. We have learned to let the objectives choose the metric, guided by the scale and nature of the ecological process of interest. The use of alternatives to the binary patch model (such as gradient analysis) shows great promise to advance landscape ecological knowledge. Conclusions: The patch paradigm is often of limited usefulness, and other ways to represent the pattern of landscape properties may reveal deeper insights. The field continues to advance as illustrated by papers in this special issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An index is a tool for comparing a phenomenon or several phenomena dating back to different periods to know the amount of change in the phenomena or the difference between them. For example, we compare the price of a commodity in a particular year with its price in a given year, compare the prices of a group of commodities in one year with their prices in another year, or compare the price of a commodity in two different places. For example, we compare the price of a commodity in one city with its price in another city. This paper presents a study of these Indices from a neutrosophic point of view. Which allows us to study Indices with uncertain or non-welldefined price data. In addition, access to results that determine the extent of the change in prices as accurately as possible, and thus the optimal planning for the next stage and the development of appropriate solutions. An applied example was presented to study the change in the prices of pesticides used to combat the "vine stem borer" insect using the neutrosophic Indices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of multinational business ties among nations, and establishment of closer bilateral cooperation among partner countries, international direct investment (or FDI) has begun to play a more significant role in the world economy. Moderate and large businesses serving as the drivers of the national economy of countries such as China, have been racing to achieve higher competitiveness by proactively establishing foreign branches via OFDI alongside aggressive promotion and marketing of products through international trade. In the context of OFDI, this study first of all, attempts to define international investment competitiveness index (IIC) in terms of a firm's capability of making external investment decisions as well as operating and managing international projects (through foreign branches, and subsidiaries). The IIC puts special emphasis on the following factors: project investment and financing; technology, entrepreneurial management; and brand competitiveness relative to international trade competitiveness that primarily depends on the marketing mix. Second, this study initiates designing of illustration of three kinds of indices that may be used to measure IIC levels of the countries, sectors and firms respectively. These three indices are Investment Market Share (IMS), Investment Competitiveness (IC), and Revealed Investment Competitive Advantage index (RIC). These three indices should show international investment competitiveness from three separate perspectives: the market share, the country advantage, and the industry or sector advantage. Third, the study then applies the measurement of IIC to top ranking investing countries of the world with the available recent data. This paper reports the advantages and shortcomings of country specific FDI strategies using the results of comparative calculations and analyses. Finally, the paper explores further application of the indices in the investment management, investment project assessments, investment risk control and precautions, and investment policy making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many price indices are constructed using bilateral transaction prices. This paper shows how the time series behavior of cross‐sectional price moments can reveal useful information about pricing behavior in bilateral transactions markets. Inference is formalized in a microlevel price determination model that allows for rigid pricing at the level of individual buyer/seller transactions as well as asymmetries in bargaining power. The model is used to estimate pricing rigidities in Norwegian salmon export transactions. Results suggest a high rate of price revisions and an informative salmon price index. The moments suggest price revisions are conducted at fixed time intervals consistent with optimal price revisions under costly information and that price revisions are more likely when transaction prices are below the reference price in the market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The task of computing composite indicators to define and analyze complex social, economic, political, or environmental phenomena has traditionally been the exclusive competence of statistical offices. Nowadays, the availability of increasing volumes of data and the emergence of the open data movement have enabled individuals and businesses affordable access to all kinds of datasets that can be used as valuable input to compute indicators. OpenStreetMap (OSM) is a good example of this. It has been used as a baseline to compute indicators in areas where official data is scarce or difficult to access. Although the extraction and application of OSM data to compute indicators is an attractive proposition, this practice is by no means hassle-free. The use of OSM reveals a number of challenges that are usually addressed with ad-hoc and often overlapping solutions. In this context, this paper proposes MethOSM--a systematic methodology for computing indicators derived from OSM data. By applying MethOSM, the computation task is divided into four steps, with each step having a clear goal and a set of guidelines to apply. In this way, the methodology contributes to an effective and efficient use of OSM data for the purpose of computing indicators. To demonstrate its use, we apply MethOSM to a number of indicators used for real estate valuation of properties in Italy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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1. Freckleton, Watkinson & Rees (2009) criticize a recent paper by ourselves in this journal ( Brooker & Kikvidze 2008 ) as well as our earlier work on competition importance ( Brooker et al. 2005 ). In response, here we clarify our ideas with the aim of defining more clearly the key points of scientific debate, specifically (i) the definition of the importance of competition and (ii) its measurement. 2. Freckleton, Watkinson & Rees (2009) interpret the classic paper by Welden & Slauson (1986) such that importance as a concept relates to long-term, population-level consequences of competition. However, we consider competition importance to be the proportional impact of competition relative to the overall impact of the environment, and our index Cimp expresses changes in competition importance – as defined by ourselves – along productivity gradients. We argue that our definition more accurately reflects the work of Welden & Slauson, as well as a more recent use of the concept ( Grace 1991 ), which precedes the work of Freckleton & Watkinson (2001) . 3. We highlight that Cimp was never proposed as a general index of competition importance, but is readily applicable in certain circumstances. Notably, our index and the approaches to measuring competition importance as set out by Freckleton, Watkinson & Rees (2009) are not unrelated. 4. We also discuss some recent additional responses to both our (2008) paper and that by Freckleton, Watkinson & Rees (2009) , including applications of the concept of competition importance. Although the authors of these papers may not have used our index Cimp, they follow the same definitions for the overall concept of competition importance as ourselves. 5. Synthesis. We conclude that the complex topic of biotic interactions, including the specific issue of the importance of competition, invites a range of approaches. Importantly, these approaches can be complementary and not conflicting. Here, we propose what we see as a sensible resolution to the current debate concerning the definition of competition importance, a resolution which is backed by the original source article, literature precedent and current usage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tourism climate indices (TCI) are commonly used to describe the climate conditions suitable for tourism activities, from the planning, investment or daily operations perspectives. A substantial amount of research has been carried out, in particular with respect to new indices formulae adapted to specific tourism products, and parameters and their weighting, taking into account surveys on the stated preferences of tourists, especially in terms of comfort. This paper illustrates another field of research, which seeks to better understand the different sources of uncertainty associated with indices. Indeed, slight differences in formula thresholds, variations in computation methods, and also the use of multimodel ensembles create nuances that affect the ways in which indices projections are usually presented. Firstly, we assess the impact of differences in preference surveys on the definition of indices thresholds, in particular for thermal comfort. Secondly, we compare computation methods for France, showing the need to better specify detailed data sources and their use to ensure the comparability of results. Thirdly, using multimodel ensembles for the Mediterranean basin, we assess the uncertainty inherent in long-term projections, which are used in modelling the economic impact of climate change. This paper argues in favour of a more cautious use of tourism comfort indices, with more consideration given to the robustness of data (validation, debiasing, uncertainty assessment, etc.) and users' needs, from the climate services perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Algeria forest, particularly in the northeastern region, has undergone profound changes in recent years. The Oued Bouhamdane watershed has a great forest potential, which is threatened by several factors of natural and human origin, resulting in a decrease in forest cover. It requires adequate forest monitoring to support the sustainable forest management of this watershed, which is possible thanks to satellite imagery. The objective of this research is to study the spatiotemporal dynamics of the vegetation cover of the Oued Bouhamdane watershed between 2013 and 2022 using remote sensing data. This study is based on the use of Landsat 8 and 9 images for two dates in 2013 and 2022, and the calculation of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) to identify changes in vegetation cover between 2013 and 2022. The calculation of NDVI and the realization of the vegetation change map showed a regression of the forest cover between 2013 and 2022 with a rate of -5.53% of the total of the study area with a general negative change of 28.62% of the study area. This regression is essentially linked to natural and anthropogenic factors. This work can be a valuable tool for sustainable management of the forest of this watershed; moreover, the method is also adaptable to other watersheds of the northeastern region of Algeria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The continuing phobia for Statistics, especially among learners and at times scholars of disciplines in the built environment, and the resultant difficulties encountered in explaining and/or drawing appropriate inferences from statistical analyses, particularly when contracted out to statisticians, who have little or no knowledge of the purpose of the study is becoming a concern. Against this background, this paper attempts a de-mystifying approach to 'localize' the seemingly 'foreign' statistical techniques in urban and regional studies, with examples of infrastructure-related matters. With background information on the subject and relevant examples and/or illustrations from issues in the built environment disciplines, the paper unveils the philosophy, techniques and use of certain multivariate techniques. It explores issues such as identification, treatment and measurement of data, as well as the operations of specific multivariate techniques. The paper concludes by recommending the need for potential users of such techniques to learn about how data are managed and results discussed, especially when such analyses are carried out using the computer. It also and more importantly recommends the need for users of statistical techniques to adopt such they have control over. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In dentistry, indices are values that are assigned to quantify the incidence, prevalence, and severity of disease. This paper calls attention to a working classification proposed for indices based on its relationship with nine dental specialties with literature search of indices used in dental research in the PubMed database. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Temperature sounding microwave radiometers flown on polar-orbiting weather satellites provide a long-term, global-scale record of upper-atmosphere temperatures, beginning in late 1978 and continuing to the present. The focus of this paper is a lower-tropospheric temperature product constructed using measurements made by the Microwave Sounding Unit channel 2 and the Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit channel 5. The temperature weighting functions for these channels peak in the middle to upper troposphere. By using a weighted average of measurements made at different Earth incidence angles, the effective weighting function can be lowered so that it peaks in the lower troposphere. Previous versions of this dataset used general circulation model output to remove the effects of drifting local measurement time on the measured temperatures. This paper presents a method to optimize these adjustments using information from the satellite measurements themselves. The new method finds a global-mean land diurnal cycle that peaks later in the afternoon, leading to improved agreement between measurements made by co-orbiting satellites. The changes result in global-scale warming [global trend (70°S-80°N, 1979-2016) = 0.174°C decade−1], ~30% larger than our previous version of the dataset [global trend (70°S-80°N, 1979-2016) = 0.134°C decade−1]. This change is primarily due to the changes in the adjustment for drifting local measurement time. The new dataset shows more warming than most similar datasets constructed from satellites or radiosonde data. However, comparisons with total column water vapor over the oceans suggest that the new dataset may not show enough warming in the tropics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]