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In the field of renewable energies, the logistical intricacies of production, as well as the use and storage of photovoltaic energy, have become critical issues. In addition to sheer quantity, the stability of this type of energy is a crucial factor in ensuring the reliability and consistency of power generation. This paper defines Solar Irradiance Stability Factors (SISFs) as indicators complementing electricity production. When planning solar energy production in each geographical area, both the quantity and stability of solar irradiance are necessary for exploitation and determining the quality of solar irradiance. While the average production of solar energy per unit area in each time interval is a widely used parameter in daily practice, the observation of the amplitude of solar irradiance and its influence on energy production in the observed time interval is currently still rare. The SISFs defined in this article are new metrics that mainly depend on the meteorological variability in an area, and the observed time intervals should be in the range of seconds, minutes, or even hours. Larger time intervals are not helpful for the stability of solar irradiance in energy production and logistics from the source to the destination. They provide a complementary and more accurate measure of how suitable a particular geographical area is for producing solar energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The study aimed to assess the equity of access to free maternal and child health services among reproductive- age women in Delta State, Nigeria Design: the study adopted a descriptive cross-sectional survey design Participants: The population for the study were 368 women of reproductive age (15-49 years) who had given birth between April 2015 and December 2015 in two randomly selected senatorial districts of Delta State. Data were collected using a pre-tested interviewer-administered questionnaire. Results: 368 women were recruited for the study, consisting of 73.3% (N =270) from the urban setting and 26.7% (N=98) from the rural setting. 54.1% (N=199) had completed secondary school, while 28.8% (N=106) had completed tertiary education. Most respondents were aged 21 to 30 years 217(59.0%). 20% of respondents belonged to the poorest, poor and least poor socioeconomic status (SES) groups and 19.8% to average poor and rich SES groups. The results showed equity between different SES (0.014) and educational (0.027) backgrounds, as indicated in concentration curves. However, the concentration index between the geographical areas (-0.0200) indicates inequity in access in favour of urban dwellers. Conclusion: Free maternal and child health services (FMCHS) were equitable across the different SES groups and educational levels. However, there was inequity in access due to distance to the hospitals among the women of childbearing age in the communities. This study is relevant to all healthcare professionals, especially those in public health, because it will encourage them to exercise their energy towards home care to reduce maternal and child mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influence of the geographical location on the chemical composition of commercial Sauvignon Blanc wines was investigated. The assay was carried out on Sauvignon Blanc wines from three cold-climate valleys in Central Chile, Casablanca, Leyda, and San Antonio. The analyses revealed clear variations in some chemical parameters, especially in titratable acidity, which was higher in the geographical areas closest to the Pacific Ocean, such as the Leyda and San Antonio valleys. Regarding the composition of low-molecular-weight phenolic compounds, 17 compounds were found, and the results show that the Casablanca valley exhibits a greater abundance of monomeric flavanols, such as (+)-catechin, whereas the Leyda valley shows a higher abundance in flavonols and phenolic acids esterified with tartaric acid. Concerning the aromatic compound profile, the wines from the Casablanca valley showed a greater abundance of esters, C13 norisoprenoids, and some terpenes. The PLS-DA analysis revealed some differences, especially between wines from Casablanca and Leyda, demonstrating that the difference in the chemical composition of the wines was influenced by the geographical area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Background: Tuberculosis (TB) continues to be a major public health issue, with high mortality rates reported worldwide. It is worth noting that most of the hospitalizations for tuberculosis in the Sicilian region involve Italian-born individuals, underscoring the need to address this problem. Recent research on the geographic area and seasonality of infectious diseases, including tuberculosis, may aid in developing effective preventive measures. Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the impact of the season and geographical area on tuberculosis disease prevalence in the Sicilian region. Methods: A retrospective study from January 2018 to May 2023 was conducted on patients with tuberculosis in the Sicilian region by analyzing computerized records on the Infectious Diseases Information System, currently named the Italian National Notification System (NSIS), of the Epidemiology Unit at Policlinico Paolo Giaccone University Hospital of Palermo and the Regional Reference Laboratory for Tuberculosis Surveillance and Control. Results: Eastern and Western Sicily were the geographical Sicilian areas with the highest frequency of patients with tuberculosis (52.2% and 42.6%, respectively). In comparison, Central Sicily had a significantly lower frequency of patients with tuberculosis (5.2%). Regarding the season, autumn was the season with the highest number of notification cases (28.9%), while spring was the season with the lowest frequency of patients with tuberculosis (19.7%). In autumn, we found significantly fewer patients with tuberculosis from Eastern Sicily (39.3%) and Central Sicily (1.5%), while Western Sicily had more patients with tuberculosis (59.3%). In spring, we found significantly more patients with tuberculosis from Eastern Sicily (64.1%), while Western and Central Sicily had significantly fewer patients with tuberculosis (23.9% and 12%, respectively). The presence of patients with tuberculosis did not significantly differ between geographical regions in summer and winter. Conclusions: Geographical area and seasonality significantly impact the distribution of tuberculosis cases in Sicily. These factors may be linked to different climatic conditions across the various geographical areas considered. Our findings suggest that climate can play a critical role in the spread of airborne infectious diseases, such as tuberculosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents an exhaustive comparative investigation into the accuracy of gender identification across diverse geographical regions, employing a deep learning classification algorithm for speech signal analysis. In this study, speech samples are categorized for both training and testing purposes based on their geographical origin. Category 1 comprises speech samples from speakers outside of India, whereas Category 2 comprises live-recorded speech samples from Indian speakers. Testing speech samples are likewise classified into four distinct sets, taking into consideration both geographical origin and the language spoken by the speakers. Significantly, the results indicate a noticeable difference in gender identification accuracy among speakers from different geographical areas. Indian speakers, utilizing 52 Hindi and 26 English phonemes in their speech, demonstrate a notably higher gender identification accuracy of 85.75% compared to those speakers who predominantly use 26 English phonemes in their conversations when the system is trained using speech samples from Indian speakers. The gender identification accuracy of the proposed model reaches 83.20% when the system is trained using speech samples from speakers outside of India. In the analysis of speech signals, Mel Frequency Cepstral Coefficients (MFCCs) serve as relevant features for the speech data. The deep learning classification algorithm utilized in this research is based on a Bidirectional Long Short-Term Memory (BiLSTM) architecture within a Recurrent Neural Network (RNN) model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: The nutritional composition of stingless bee honey (SBH) can be affected by different climates and soil composition across different geographical areas. However, the range of attributes set for a honey quality standard should be inclusive. This study analysed the sugar profile's physiochemical properties, including quantifying the rare sugar trehalulose, organic acid and mineral composition of SBH collected from inland, and west and east coasts of Peninsular Malaysia. Forty‐three SBH (Heterotrigona itama) samples were collected and labelled as <20 and <40 West Coast (<20WC, <40WC), <20 and <40 East Coast (<20EC, <40EC) and Inland, according to their distance from the coasts. RESULTS: The moisture, pH and sugar composition of all SBH samples adhered to the Malaysian Kelulut Honey Standard (MS2683:2017) but not to the International Codex Standard (CODEX) for honey. Trehalulose presence in all samples, regardless of geographical area, was predominant alongside fructose and glucose. Only hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) content and electrical conductivity (EC) results complied with both standards. The principal component analysis biplot showed that the discrimination of SBH according to the five different areas was not feasible, indicating sample homogeneity. CONCLUSION: The physicochemical evaluation of SBH from Peninsular Malaysia shows mainly homogeneous attributes of samples across geographical locations. These findings demonstrated that the current MS2683:2017 is relevant and accommodates all SBH of H. itama species produced in Peninsular Malaysia. Furthermore, the trehalulose range calculated in this study can be implemented as a new benchmark for the indicator of SBH honey quality standard by national and international food standard committees. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the field of renewable energies, the logistical intricacies of production, as well as the use and storage of photovoltaic energy, have become critical issues. In addition to sheer quantity, the stability of this type of energy is a crucial factor in ensuring the reliability and consistency of power generation. This paper defines Solar Irradiance Stability Factors (SISFs) as indicators complementing electricity production. When planning solar energy production in each geographical area, both the quantity and stability of solar irradiance are necessary for exploitation and determining the quality of solar irradiance. While the average production of solar energy per unit area in each time interval is a widely used parameter in daily practice, the observation of the amplitude of solar irradiance and its influence on energy production in the observed time interval is currently still rare. The SISFs defined in this article are new metrics that mainly depend on the meteorological variability in an area, and the observed time intervals should be in the range of seconds, minutes, or even hours. Larger time intervals are not helpful for the stability of solar irradiance in energy production and logistics from the source to the destination. They provide a complementary and more accurate measure of how suitable a particular geographical area is for producing solar energy.

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Purpose: Given the relevance of operationalizing the concept of churning in the area of human resources, a concept related to the costs resulting from the replacement of workers who have voluntarily decided to leave the organization, and given that this concept is associated with various contexts, the aim of this literature review was to analyse the influence that geographical location and sectors of activity have on the churning, as well as their influence on society. Methodology: As far as methodology is concerned, a narrative review was used, as it provides an overview of the topics covered, in order to combine perspectives and synthesise articles that have already been published. Results: After analysing the literature, it was found that the highest percentage of human resource churning occurs in organisations located in large cities, as there is a greater concentration of population, which is more likely to have to compete with several organisations, increasing the likelihood of churning occurring. As for the sector of activity most susceptible to human resource churning, this is centred on the services sector, which is due to this particular sector being mostly located in large cities. In view of the above, it can be predicted that the sectors of activity are implemented by geographical area, given the volume of population, the existing labour force and the available resources, which have a different impact on the rate of human resource churning. Research limitations: The scarcity of relevant literature on the subject, as well as empirical studies. Another limitation is that an empirical methodology was not chosen, through which it would have been possible to analyse the relationship between different variables, formulate hypotheses and test their veracity, which would certainly have contributed to a more robust enrichment of the literature. Originality: Addressing the issue of human resource churning, a multifaceted concept that is still little applied and developed by organisations in terms of human resources. It is therefore pertinent to discuss its occurrence at various levels and in various contexts, in this review specifically in terms of geographical location and sectors of activity, thus emphasising the need for organisations to take measures to optimise human resources and minimise unnecessary costs with human resource replacements resulting from voluntary departures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influence of the geographical location on the chemical composition of commercial Sauvignon Blanc wines was investigated. The assay was carried out on Sauvignon Blanc wines from three cold-climate valleys in Central Chile, Casablanca, Leyda, and San Antonio. The analyses revealed clear variations in some chemical parameters, especially in titratable acidity, which was higher in the geographical areas closest to the Pacific Ocean, such as the Leyda and San Antonio valleys. Regarding the composition of low-molecular-weight phenolic compounds, 17 compounds were found, and the results show that the Casablanca valley exhibits a greater abundance of monomeric flavanols, such as (+)-catechin, whereas the Leyda valley shows a higher abundance in flavonols and phenolic acids esterified with tartaric acid. Concerning the aromatic compound profile, the wines from the Casablanca valley showed a greater abundance of esters, C13 norisoprenoids, and some terpenes. The PLS-DA analysis revealed some differences, especially between wines from Casablanca and Leyda, demonstrating that the difference in the chemical composition of the wines was influenced by the geographical area.

Background. The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in children by their geographic latitude of residence requires follow-up study. This is crucial for implementation of preventive measures that can reduce the risk of developing pathological conditions associated with vitamin D deficiency.Objective. The aim of the study is to study the vitamin D supplementation of 7–8 years old children living in different geographical latitudes of one subject of Russian Federation.Methods. The study included relatively healthy children living in three geographical areas (northern — 52°, central — 50°, southern — 48°) of one region (Khabarovsk Krai). Vitamin D supplementation was evaluated by 25(OH)D serum concentration via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Vitamin D insufficiency was diagnosed at 25(OH)D concentration of 21–30 ng/ml, deficiency — 10–20 ng/ml, severe deficiency — < 10 ng/ml; optimal 25(OH)D concentration was considered as 30–100 ng/ml.Results. The increase in prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency has been revealed with gradual increase from southern (57%) to central (73%) and northern (83%) geographic areas in 7–8 years old children living in the same region. The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency (25(OH)D 30 ng/mL) among children living in the northern geographic area was greater by 3.8-fold (95% confidence interval 1.2–12.7) then among peers living in the southern areas.Conclusion. One factor affecting 25(OH)D serum concentration in children of this region is the insolation level determined by the geographical latitude of residence. The 4°N difference is significant in determining vitamin D status in residents of relatively high latitudes. Further studies of factors associated with 25(OH)D concentration in children living in different latitudes are required (insolation level, number of sunny days per year, food and household characteristics in families).

The article provides information on the comparative shape and composition of the fruits of the species Hippophae rhamnoides L. introduced in different climatic and soil conditions. Research The mass, juice and mass of dry matter of different parts of ripe fruits of chaitikani grown in Gabala and Absheron conditions were comparatively studied. It was clear that no difference was observed in the morphological indicators of the fruits. The weight of 100 chaitikani fruits grown in Absheron is 58.4 g, the juice is 43.1 g, the dry matter in the fruit is 15.0 mg, and the dry matter in the juice is 7.1 mg. The mass of 100 chaitikani fruits grown in Gabala was 60.6 g, the juice was 58.4 mg, the dry matter of the fruit was 16.9 mg, and the dry matter of the juice was 9.4 mg. It was found that climate-soil factors in ecological-geographical areas affect the synthesis of biologically active substances in the fruits of Hippophae rhamnoides L. species. This makes it possible to determine the appropriate period for the full ripening and collection of the product. According to the conducted scientific research, it is possible to get an average of 5-8 kg of fruit from 5-6-year-old chaitikani bushes, and up to 45-50 centners of fruit from one hectare of land. 320 kg of oil is obtained from this amount of products. Oil obtained from fruits and seeds is widely used in medicine for the treatment of various diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phthalates and bisphenol A (BPA) are plasticizers used in many industrial products that can act as endocrine disruptors and lead to metabolic diseases. During the LIFE PERSUADED project, we measured the urinary concentrations of BPA and Di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP) metabolites in 900 Italian women representative of the Italian female adult population (living in the north, centre, and south of Italy in both rural and urban areas). The whole cohort was exposed to DEHP and BPA with measurable levels above limit of detection in more than 99% and 95% of the samples, respectively. The exposure patterns differed for the two chemicals in the three macro-areas with the highest urinary levels for DEHP in south compared to central and northern Italy and for BPA in northern compared to central and southern Italy. BPA levels were higher in women living in urban areas, whereas no difference between areas was observed for DEHP. The estimated daily intake of BPA was 0.11 μg/kg per day, about 36-fold below the current temporary tolerable daily intake of 4 μg/kg per day established by the EFSA in 2015. The analysis of cumulative exposure showed a positive correlation between DEHP and BPA. Further, the reduction of exposure to DEHP and BPA, through specific legislative measures, is necessary to limit the harmfulness of these substances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Nationally, COVID-19 spurred the uptake of telehealth to facilitate patients' access to medical care, especially among individuals living in geographically isolated areas. Despite the potential benefits of telehealth to address health care access barriers and enhance health outcomes, there are still disparities in the accessibility and utilization of telehealth services. Hence, identifying facilitators and barriers to telehealth should be prioritized to ensure that disparities are mitigated rather than exacerbated., Objective: This study aims to identify factors associated with ever use of telehealth in Nebraska, a primarily rural state with a significant portion of its population living in nonmetropolitan areas., Methods: A stratified random sample of Nebraska households (n=5300), with oversampling of census tracts with at least 30% African American, Hispanic, or Native American populations, received a mailed survey (English and Spanish) with web-based response options about social determinants of health and health care access (October 2020-March 2021). Survey weights were used for all calculations. Chi-square tests were used to compare telehealth use (yes or no) by participant sociodemographic, health, and access variables. Robust Poisson regression models were used to compute prevalence odds ratios (POR) with 95% CIs of telehealth use after controlling for socioeconomic, demographic, and health conditions., Results: The overall response rate was 20.8% (1101/5300). About 25.5% of Nebraska adults had ever used telehealth (urban 26.4%, rural 20.8%), despite 97% of respondents reporting internet access (98.3% urban, 90.5% rural). In the chi-square analysis, telehealth use was statistically significantly more common (P<.05) among those who are aged <45 years (32.4%), female (30.7%), and non-Hispanic (25.9%); with at least a bachelor's degree (32.6%); who had a routine checkup (30.2%) or health care visit other than a routine checkup (34.2%); and with any chronic health conditions (29.6%) but did not differ (P≥.05) by race, marital status, income, insurance, having a primary care provider, or 1-way travel time for medical visits. In univariate models, internet access, age, sex, ethnicity, education, any health care visit in the past year, and no chronic health condition were significant (P<.05). When adjusted, education (POR 1.87, 95% CI 0.33-10.63) and sex (1.38, 0.93-2.04) were not significant, but internet access (5.43, 1.62-18.16), age <45 (5.33, 2.22-12.81) and 45-64 years (9.05, 2.37-34.62), non-Hispanic ethnicity (7.40, 2.39-22.90), any health care visit (2.43, 1.23-4.79), and any chronic condition (1.73, 1.09-2.76) were significantly associated with having ever used telehealth., Conclusions: This study highlights disparities in telehealth use. Despite high coverage, internet access was a significant predictor of telehealth use, highlighting the role of the digital divide in telehealth access and use. Telehealth use was significantly less prevalent among older adults, people without chronic health conditions, and Hispanic individuals. Targeted interventions that address barriers to telehealth use and improve health care access are warranted., (©Lisa C Smith, George Johnson, Snehal Jadhav, Josiane Kabayundo, Muskan Ahuja, Hongmei Wang, Kendra L Ratnapradipa. Originally published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research (https://www.jmir.org), 28.11.2024.)

This study was aimed (i) to examine the effect of living setting (rural vs. urban), geographical area (North vs. Center vs. South), and gender (boys vs. girls) on weight status, motor coordination, and physical activity (PA) level of Italian school-age children; (ii) to examine differences in the neighborhood walkability of different school areas from different geographical areas and living settings; and (iii) to examine whether motor coordination, PA level, geographical areas, living setting, neighborhood walkability, and gender could predict children's weight status. We assessed anthropometric parameters, gross motor coordination, and PA level in 1,549 children aged between 8 and 13 years. Results revealed that Central children had higher BMI than Northern and Southern children (η2 = 0.01). Moreover, Northern children showed the highest motor quotient (η2 = 0.148) and PA level (η2 = 0.02), followed by Southern and Central children, respectively. Children from the South of Italy attended schools located in neighborhoods with the highest Walk Score®. Urban children attended schools located in neighborhoods with a higher Walk Score® than rural children. Lower motor quotient (MQ), lower PA level, and living in a rural setting and in a car-dependent neighborhood were associated with a higher relative risk for obesity. Being a girl was associated with a lower relative risk for obesity. The alarming high percentage of overweight and obesity in children as well as motor coordination impairments revealed the urgent need of targeted PA interventions in pediatric population.

Misuse and improper parceling of land, such as: the construction of houses in topographically unsuitable areas, due to the lack of planning or public policies, constantly causes human and infrastructure losses in several Brazilian cities. The identification of areas at risk of landslides and flooding, using precision equipment, can contribute to the development of research related to this topic, generating more efficient public policies. Therefore, this research has identified and analyzed risk areas in Cachoeirinha district, in Viçosa, Minas Gerais, with the use of equipment such as: Global Navigation Satellite System GNSS / Real Time Kinematics (RTK), to collect control points, Pilot Aircraft Remotely (RPA), for collection of images, methodologies and tools of the Geographic Information System. As a result, the mapping of vulnerable risk areas was obtained. It was elaborated using multicriteria analysis, with the variables: slope, density of buildings, distance from watercourse and land use and coverage, determined in the field. Material was produced that can serve as a reference for future research and to provide resources for the definition of public policies which contribute to solving this major problem in urban areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research work was performed on olive orchards (Olea europaea L., cv. Chemlali) of different origin areas of olive trees exposed to atmospheric contamination and those growing in a relatively clean area, during two successive years (2015/2016 and 2016/2017). Volatile profile of olive oil samples was carried out by headspace solid-phase micro-extraction coupled with gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (HS-SPME-GC/MS). A total of 93 volatile compounds, belonging to several classes of compounds, such as hydrocarbons, aldehydes, ketones, alcohols, terpenoids, and esters, were identified. Indeed, the analysis of phenols was performed by high-performance liquid chromatography with absorbance and fluorometric detection. Discriminant analysis confirmed that the pattern of volatile compounds includes enough information to predict sample variety amongst discrete monovarietal olive oil. The results indicate that climatic factors strongly effect volatile formation and phenolic composition and are supposed to be suitable markers of the geographic origin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study proposed a line of research on entrepreneurship based on the analysis of personality traits and geographical area. Its objective is to identify whether certain personality traits or sociocultural variables typical of a particular geographical area influence those who have already started an entrepreneurial activity to keep it up, in other words, to maintain their entrepreneurial intention. The research results reach a sample of 479 entrepreneurs from two Iberian Peninsula geographical areas. The analyse of the psychometric properties on the Entrepreneurial Orientation Questionnaire (EOQ) identified five dimensions of the enterprising personality. They also evidence that geographical location is a factor that contributes to the development of the entrepreneurial intentions that determine the business profile. The results show that entrepreneurs in the northern area tend to maintain their business than those in the central zone.

This study proposed a line of research on entrepreneurship based on the analysis of personality traits and geographical area. Its objective is to identify whether certain personality traits or sociocultural variables typical of a particular geographical area influence those who have already started an entrepreneurial activity to keep it up, in other words, to maintain their entrepreneurial intention. The research results reach a sample of 479 entrepreneurs from two Iberian Peninsula geographical areas. The analyse of the psychometric properties on the Entrepreneurial Orientation Questionnaire (EOQ) identified five dimensions of the enterprising personality. They also evidence that geographical location is a factor that contributes to the development of the entrepreneurial intentions that determine the business profile. The results show that entrepreneurs in the northern area tend to maintain their business than those in the central zone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Assessing children's early development can help health and social policymakers to improve children's well-being. This study aims to develop an early childhood composite index for measuring early childhood care and education among Iranian children considering each child's geographical area, socioeconomic status and gender. Methods: In this cross-sectional secondary study, the data come from Iran's Multiple Indicator Demographic and Health Survey 2010. Of the 9,345 eligible children whose information had been collected, 3,532 fulfilled the inclusion criterion of being 3 or 4 years old at the time of the interview. We examined a composite index and three subscales of early childhood development including "Quality of Care", "Early Childhood Care and Education", and "Overall Developmental Status". Factor analysis and latent class analysis were used for analyzing the data. Results: The results indicate that of the children in the sample, 47.3% were in the "low early child development" class, 6% were in the "middle early child development" class, and 46.7% were in the "high early child development" class. The means of the three subscales and the composite index were significantly different across geographical areas (P < 0.01) and between the socioeconomic classes (P < 0.0001), with children from poorer families having lower scores. The composite index was significantly higher for girls (M = 11.28, SD = 3.96) than boys (M = 10.99, SD = 3.87, P = 0.029). Conclusions: The study presents significant differences in childhood development based on geographical divisions, quartile classes and gender. We suggest that future research is needed to explore the robustness of findings in this study over time and diversity between and within various Iranian populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Plants are among the most important units of natural ecosystem that are examined for natural resource management. Therefore, identifying the plant assemblage of each region is very important. The purpose of this study was to identify and introduce the floristic composition, biological form, species status and geographical distribution of plants in Robat Kouh area of Bazoft. According to results, 343 species, 238 genera and 63 families, including the largest families named Asteraceae, Lamiaceae, Poaceae, Brassicaceae and Leguminosae having 54, 35, 29, 23 and 22 species, were recognized, respectively. The Astragalus possessing 11 species, Centaurea with 9 species, Silene, Salvia, and Stachys with 6 species, and Allium with 5 species were the largest genera in the region. Hemicryptophytes with 51.31% had the most abundant biological forms followed by therophytes with 23.03%, cryptophytes with 13.41%, phanerophytes with 5.83%, and chasmophyte with 5.54%. In terms of geographical distribution, Iranian-Turonian elements had the highest number of species (66.18%) and other species belonged to two, three or more geographical areas. Conservation of plant elements was classified according to the principles of IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature), with 45 species in the low-risk class, 2 species in the vulnerable class, and 3 species in the endangered class. There was insufficient information about 6 species. Moreover, there were 45 endemic Iranian and 158 medicinal species. The results showed the importance of the plant species and the richness of the flora of the region. Key words: Floristic Composition, Robat Kouh of Bazoft, Geographical area, IUCN.

Snakebite is a global health problem; yet, most of the cases are rarely discussed in depth. Snakebite is also known to cause high morbidity and mortality rates. This research is an observational analytic research with the cross-sectional approach taken from January to December 2016. The data are obtained from the medical record of snakebite patients at Emergency Department of Dr. Koesnadi Bondowoso General Hospital, East Java, Indonesia. A total of 56 snakebite cases (patients) are included in this study. Most types of snake venom found are Callaselasma rhodostoma (39.7%) followed by Bungarus fasciatus (34.5%) and Naja sputratix (25.9%). 81% cases of snakebite incidence occurred in untrained areas while the 19% of it occurred in trained areas. It is known that the most frequent pre-hospital handling of snakebite is string strap (32.8%) and wounding or immobilization (19%). There are many cases of poisonous snakebite. The factor that affects the outcomes of venomous snakebite cases is pre-hospital management (early handling of immobilization).

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The association between socioeconomic disadvantage and increased risk of depressive symptoms in adulthood is well established. We tested 1) the contribution of early exposure to neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage to later depressive symptoms throughout life, 2) the persistence of the potential association between early exposure and depressive symptoms, and 3) the contributions of other known risk factors to the association. Data were collected from the Young Finns Study, a prospective, population-based 32-year follow-up study that included participants aged 3–18 years at baseline in 1980. Participants were followed up with repeated measurements of depressive symptoms between 1992 and 2012 (n  = 2,788) and linked to national grid data on neighborhood disadvantage via residential addresses. We examined the associations in mixed models separately for the 5-, 10-, 15-, and 20-year follow-ups. Living in a disadvantaged neighborhood during childhood and adolescence was associated with a higher level of depressive symptoms in adulthood during all follow-up periods (β = 0.07, P = 0.001) than living in a nondisadvantaged area. Individual adulthood socioeconomic status mediated the associations. These findings suggest that living in a socioeconomically disadvantaged area during childhood and adolescence has a long-lasting negative association with mental health irrespective of family-related risks, partially due to socioeconomic adversity later in life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Football is a game in which anthropometric characteristics are important factors for specific player positions, where morphological characteristics differ in relation to the competitive level and the position in the game. Body composition is an important indicator of the physical fitness and general health of athletes so today its often discussed in scientific literature. The aim of the research was to determine the differences in the anthropometric characteristics of the professional football players in relation to the player's position and to determine their importance in the game. Material: Twenty-nine male football players of the national team of Serbia participated in the research, in which the body height, weight and Body mass index were measured. Results: The results of the study indicate that statistically significant differences in body height and body weight were recorded between goalkeepers and midfielders (p

The present work aimed to use geoprocessing tools to identify areas suitable for the construction of landfill in Esmeraldas-MG. For this, the ideal landfill allocation area was calculated through population projection and project sizing. In addition, to map the regions suitable for the implementation of the landfill, the overlap of the maps and the subtraction of the buffer's elaborated for each analyzed variable was used. The results allowed to verify six potential areas for implementation of the enterprise. Thus, aiming at mitigating the complexity that involves the selection of areas for the construction of sanitary landfills, the use of geoprocessing techniques proved to be an effective tool for the preliminary identification of ideal areas for the implementation of this type of project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Background: Assessing children's early development can help health and social policymakers to improve children's well-being. This study aims to develop an early childhood composite index for measuring early childhood care and education among Iranian children considering each child's geographical area, socioeconomic status and gender. Methods: In this cross-sectional secondary study, the data come from Iran's Multiple Indicator Demographic and Health Survey 2010. Of the 9,345 eligible children whose information had been collected, 3,532 fulfilled the inclusion criterion of being 3 or 4 years old at the time of the interview. We examined a composite index and three subscales of early childhood development including “Quality of Care”, “Early Childhood Care and Education”, and “Overall Developmental Status”. Factor analysis and latent class analysis were used for analyzing the data. Results: The results indicate that of the children in the sample, 47.3% were in the “low early child development” class, 6% were in the “middle early child development” class, and 46.7% were in the “high early child development” class. The means of the three subscales and the composite index were significantly different across geographical areas (P < 0.01) and between the socioeconomic classes (P < 0.0001), with children from poorer families having lower scores. The composite index was significantly higher for girls (M = 11.28, SD = 3.96) than boys (M = 10.99, SD = 3.87, P = 0.029). Conclusions: The study presents significant differences in childhood development based on geographical divisions, quartile classes and gender. We suggest that future research is needed to explore the robustness of findings in this study over time and diversity between and within various Iranian populations.

Since "being poor" is not the same as "feeling poor", the objective of this paper is to provide a subjective measurement of poverty along the lines laid down by Kapteyn and Deeleck, as well as to obtain both subjective and objective indicators calculated for different household sizes, and according to population density. The data were taken from the Living Conditions Survey (LCS) in Spain for the years 2008, 2012 and 2016. It was concluded that households that feel poor are more numerous than those that are poor, due to the overestimation of Kapteyn's and Deeleck's subjective rates. Similar subjective poverty thresholds were obtained for the most frequent household sizes. Households were and felt less poor in the most densely populated geographical areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays with the help of Location-Based Social Networks (LBSNs), users of Point-of-Interest (POI) recommendation service in LBSNs are able to publish their geo-tagged information and physical locations in the form of sign-ups and share their experiences with friends on POI, which can help users to explore new areas and discover new points-of-interest, and promote advertisers to push mobile ads to target users. POI recommendation service in LBSNs is attracting more and more attention from all over the world. Due to the sparsity of users’ activity history data set and the aggregation characteristics of sign-in area, conventional recommendation algorithms usually suffer from low accuracy. To address this problem, this paper proposes a new recommendation algorithm based on a novel Preference-Content-Region Model (PCRM). In this new algorithm, three kinds of information, that is, user's preferences, content of the Point-of-Interest and region of the user’s activity are considered, helping users obtain ideal recommendation service everywhere. We demonstrate that our algorithm is more effective than existing algorithms through extensive experiments based on an open Eventbrite data set. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: It is unknown whether newer, mainly selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, and older tricyclic antidepressants are used similarly regardless of the geographical area of residence and education.Methods: We included four randomly sampled cohorts of the Finnish working aged population (n = 998,540-1,033,135). The sampling (Dec 31st in 1995, 2000, 2004 and 2010) resulted in non-overlapping time windows where each participant was followed up for four years for the first antidepressant use. Using Cox proportional hazards models, we examined whether the hazard of antidepressant use differed between the capital area and three other areas (Southern, Western and Northern/Eastern Finland). Educational differences were examined using four sub-groups: capital area/high education (reference category); other areas/high education; capital area/low education; and other areas/low education.Results: Hazard ratios for the use of newer antidepressants were significantly lower in all other areas compared to the capital area after adjustment for age, sex, marital status, employment status, education, income, and area-level unemployment. Findings remained consistent in all time windows, differences increasing slightly. In the sub-group analysis those with low education had the lowest level of use in all areas, also within the capital area. The results were opposite for older antidepressants in all but the last time window.Limitations: Some degree of unmeasured confounding and exposure misclassification is likely to exist.Conclusions: Newer antidepressants were more commonly used in the capital than in the other areas, and among those with high versus low education. These differences in antidepressant use suggest socioeconomic inequalities in the mental health treatment quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Proper evaluation of polyphenols intake at the population level is a necessary step in order to establish possible associations with health outcomes. Available data are limited, and so far no study has been performed in people with diabetes. The aim of this work was to document the intake of polyphenols and their major food sources in a cohort of people with type 2 diabetes and in socio-demographic subgroups.Methods: We studied 2573 men and women aged 50-75 years. Among others, anthropometry was measured by standard protocol and dietary habits were investigated by food frequency questionnaire (EPIC). The intake of polyphenols was evaluated using US Department of Agriculture and Phenol-Explorer databases.Results: The mean total polyphenol intake was 683.3 ± 5.8 mg/day. Non-alcoholic beverages represented the main food source of dietary polyphenols and provided 35.5% of total polyphenol intake, followed by fruits (23.0%), alcoholic beverages (14.0%), vegetables (12.4%), cereal products and tubers (4.6%), legumes (3.7%) and oils (2.1%); chocolate, cakes and nuts are negligible sources of polyphenols in this cohort. The two most important polyphenol classes contributing to the total intake were flavonoids (47.5%) and phenolic acids (47.4%). Polyphenol intake increased with age and education level and decreased with BMI; furthermore, in the northern regions of Italy, the polyphenol intake was slightly, but significantly higher than in the central or southern regions.Conclusions: The study documents for the first time the intake of polyphenols and their main food sources in people with diabetes using validated and complete databases of the polyphenol content of food. Compared with published data, collected in people without diabetes, these results suggest a lower intake and a different pattern of intake in people with diabetes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spore-forming bacteria, principally Bacillus species, are important contaminants of milk. Because of their high heat resistance, Bacillus species spores are capable of surviving the heat treatment process of milk and lead to spoilage of the final product. To determine the factors influencing the contamination of milk, sporeforming bacteria occurrence throughout the UHT milk production line during winter, spring, and summer was studied. The obtained results confirm that the total viable rate decreases rapidly throughout the production line of UHT milk showing the efficiency of thermal treatments used. However, the persistent high rate of spore-forming bacteria indicates their high heat resistance, especially in spring and summer. In addition, a significant variation of the quality of raw milk according to the location of the collecting centers was revealed. The molecular identification showed a high degree of diversity of heat-resistant Bacillus species, which are isolated from different milk samples. The distribution of Bacillus species in raw milk, stored milk, bactofuged milk, pasteurized milk, and UHT milk were 28, 10, 16, 13, and 33%, respectively. Six Bacillus spp. including Bacillus licheniformis (52.38%), Bacillus pumilus (9.52%), Bacillus sp. (4.76%), Bacillus sporothermodurans (4.76%), Terribacillus aidingensis (4.76%), and Paenibacillus sp. (4.76%) were identified in different milk samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aspalathus linearis is cultivated in the Western Cape and Northern Cape provinces of South Africa for the production of rooibos, a herbal tea with a global footprint. A total of 208 samples, spanning the two production areas, three production years and three quality grades, were collected to delineate the effect of production area and year on rooibos sensory properties, as well as to ensure large variation, required for revision of the rooibos sensory wheel. The samples were analysed using descriptive sensory analysis to provide comprehensive profiling of aroma, flavour, taste and mouthfeel attributes. The primary aroma characteristic profile of rooibos, previously described as “rooibos-woody”, “fynbos-floral” and “honey” was confirmed. Other aroma attributes that were perceived frequently and at high intensity in the sample set were “fruity-sweet”, “caramel” and “apricot”. Although not occurring as commonly as those of the primary aroma profile of rooibos, these attributes, manifested in samples from both production areas, forming a secondary aroma profile. In the present study the “hay/dried grass” aroma note appeared in 99% of the rooibos samples at low intensities and could therefore be considered to be part of the “characteristic” aroma profile of rooibos. No clear differences between production areas were evident, but production years could be distinguished based on differences in perceived aroma attribute intensities. The aroma wheel is more user-friendly as it will provide users, at a glance, with the relative importance of attributes (as determined by intensity and occurrence frequency). This is achieved by varying slice width according to the relative mean attribute intensity and the use of accompanying bar graphs indicating relative occurrence frequency of attributes. This quality control and “communication” tool can be used by industry to aid in the grading and marketing of rooibos tea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study is to provide theoretical description of certain habitable problems in the population of Northern Kazakhstan in the Bronze Age. The theoretical conclusions regarding the economy are based on archaeological sources, at the entrance to the Shagalaly II excavation settlement. The author provides a preliminary reconstruction of the life-supporting systems of the ancient population, which rendered the territory of the Shagalaly river valley habitable. The question of a chronology of the building of Shagalaly II settlement horizons remains; for each chronological period, the author proposes the concept of ‘mobile communities', which, in turn, is divided into categories. A significant part of the work was the diversification of the economy, a change that was oriented to the ecological situation of the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports the quality indices, the volatile components, phenolic compounds and the oxidative stability of monovarietal Tunisian cultivar (cv. Neb Jmel) extra-virgin olive oils cultivated in eight regions. Headspace solid-phase microextraction and HPLC-DAD were applied to analyze and quantify the volatile and phenolic compounds of the obtained extra-virgin olive oils. Twenty compounds have been identified and quantified, revealing the complex profile of Neb Jmel EVOO, composed, in order of abundance, by secoiridoids, phenolic alcohols, lignans, flavonoids and phenolic acids. A total of 40 volatile compounds belonging mainly to esters, aldehydes, ketones, aliphatic alcohols and hydrocarbons were determined. Significant differences in the proportions of volatile and phenolic constituents of oils from different geographical origins were observed. The major volatile component was the C aldehyde (hexanal and ( E)-2-hexenal) fraction, whose content was highly variable between the areas studied. The content of ( E)-2-hexenal ranged from 50.9 % in the Melloulech EVOO to approximately 39.8 % for El-Ala EVOO. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]