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Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475–1564) presented some of the most spectacular artworks of all times in frescos on the ceiling and behind the altar of the Sistine Chapel. While Michelangelo's presentations depict events described in the Bible, there is broad consensus that Michelangelo was conveying his knowledge and theoretical ideas gleaned from his experiences with anatomic dissection. Michelangelo appears to have communicated several ideas about the brain in the images of the Days of Creation and the Last Judgment. Taking the Days of Creation and the Last Judgment together, Michelangelo appears to be symbolizing that God is in the brain, specifically the brainstem, and the brain performs mental functions. The five images on the ceiling of the chapel showing Days of Creation may be interpreted as reflecting the course of vertebrate brain evolution. There are further suggestions about brain function, including perceiving light and complex images and giving spirit to Adam. Furthermore, on the front wall of the Sistine Chapel behind the altar, within the work titled the Last Judgment, the central ellipse, in which Jesus is sitting, appears to represent a midcoronal cross section of a human brain, suggesting that it is the brain that renders judgments about good and evil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indigenous foods are used to prepare delicious delicacies (Imefino) in South Africa, and are consumed for their medicinal, food security, and nutritional value. Many of them are rich in macro- and micronutrients and contribute to improving the households' income. However, the commercialization of many indigenous foods remains problematic with poor market penetration. This study investigates the commercialization status and determinants of indigenous floral food (IFF) commercialization using descriptive statistics, and the double- and triple-hurdle analysis. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect cross-sectional data from 240 rural households in Amathole District Municipality in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. The result shows that most (60%) of the rural households rely solely on agriculture and agricultural-related activities as their source of employment. Ironically, among the rural household heads who are solely engaged in agriculture, most (83%) do not sell IFFs despite being involved solely in agriculture. More so, there is poor commercialization of IFF with the evidence of a low-commercialization index and low-income generation from IFF. However, IFF consumed for medicinal value has a higher commercialization index. Indigenous foods show potential for commercialization if well harnessed. The results also show that if the rural householder is a male and adds value to indigenous floral foods, he is more likely to make a decision that entails him being involved in the commercialization of indigenous floral foods. The result further proves that the influence of households' willingness to pay for the improved seed of IFFs will not necessarily affect the intensity of IFF commercialization. Household size is among the determinants of IFF commercialization. Commercialization indicators reveal that rural household heads are committing to IFF commercialization. Based on the study's overall findings, factors such as seasonality, price, demand fluctuation, and other identified challenges in this study affect IFF commercialization. Programs addressing value addition and the domestication of indigenous floral foods, application of marketing philosophy, and marketing mix, among others, are recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper mobilises a personal experience of participation in a population-based health screen to explore wider aspects of subjectivity, choice and freedom. The screen is a familiar feature of contemporary society and represents a broader 'health imperative'. It intrinsically enforces a binary choice and thus, within its own remit, produces two reductive modes of being its subject characterised, respectively, by assent and refusal. Merleau-Ponty's account of a 'conditioned freedom' operating within a primordial, embodied subjectivity, however, allows a recuperation of aspects of my enactment of choice that tend otherwise to be eclipsed within the screen's binary logic. The thinking of two more recent writers deepens my understanding of how this freedom might play out within experience. David Abram helps me grasp the extent to which I encounter the screen as an ageing animal. Meanwhile a contrast with a very different historical and inter-cultural confrontation explored by Eduardo De Castro raises far-reaching questions around the bindingness of decision and the self/other relation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Chongqing University of Technology (Natural Science) is the property of Chongqing University of Technology 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.)

Introduction: Considering the importance of the Asian Games, the purpose of this research was to predict the number of medals Iran will win in the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou using time series. Methods: The research method is descriptive analytical and the type of research is applied. The statistical population of the study included the medals that acquired by Iranian from the first course (New Delhi-1951) to eighteenth course (Jakarta -2018) of Asian games. The collection of information was carried out in the form of library that includes books, magazine, journal, Iranian and foreign journal, net and site, with this sources we predicted the result of the sport. In order to test and analyze the data in this research, a descriptive statistic was used to draw tables and charts to predict the medals of Asian games in Hangzhou by 2022 by using the time series statistic. Results: The result of this study with time series statistics showed that Iran in Hangzhou 2022 Asian games will receive fifty-eight medals and will be in the seventh place in Hangzhou 2022 Asian games. Conclusion: Sports managers and decision-makers should invest in top disciplines such as: wrestling, weightlifting, non-active disciplines and women's sports disciplines, so that Iran can win more medals in the upcoming Asian Games. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Berliner Journal für Soziologie is the property of Springer Nature 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.)

Background: Breastfeeding is the gold standard in infant nutrition. Successful breastfeeding depends on many factors, including the help of medical personnel in teaching breastfeeding, the need for professional work, and breastfeeding-friendly places in public spaces. The main goal was to identify various barriers among mothers to breastfeeding. Methods: This study used a quantitative descriptive research design. We recruited 419 mothers aged at least 18 years old through social media. Results were analysed using Pearson's chi-squared and Fisher's tests of independence for pairs of dependent and independent variables. Results: Most often, women gave birth at the age of 25–30, had one or two children, and attended higher education. Almost half of them lived in a large city and gave birth to a child by caesarean section. A total of 83.1% of mothers planned to breastfeed, but not all of them were able to do so for various reasons. One-third of them felt sorry for themselves that they had to change their feeding method. The majority of mothers did not receive sufficient help in the hospital in terms of learning how to breastfeed (61%), did not use the help of a lactation consultant (67%), and answered that there was no lactation consultant in their place of residence (65%). Only 43.2% of mothers returned to work without ceasing breastfeeding. A total of 42% of mothers experienced feelings of embarrassment when breastfeeding in a public place. The most frequently indicated barrier to breastfeeding in a public place was the lack of a suitable location where a woman would feel comfortable, calm, and intimate. Conclusion: There are various barriers towards breastfeeding: too few lactation consultants, problems with breastfeeding when the mother wants to return to work, and unfriendly places for breastfeeding in public spaces. Efforts must be made to support mothers in breastfeeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study aims to analyze the effects of digital marketing and Electronic Word of Mouth (E-WOM) on brand image, then examine the effects of digital marketing and Electronic Word of Mouth on the decision to be an Islamic bank customer and analyze the effects of digital marketing and Electronic Word of Mouth on the decision to be an Islamic bank customer through brand image as a mediating variable. The research type used in the present study was quantitative, using primary data obtained by distributing questionnaires. By distributing questionnaires, 100 respondent data was found and analyzed using SPSS version 26. The sampling techniques used by the author were the snowball sampling technique and nonprobability sampling. The criteria for the research sample were Islamic bank customers and social media users. Because the size of the research population was unknown, the present study used Lemeshow’s formula. The research results showed that digital marketing had a significant effect on brand image, Electronic Word of Mouth had a considerable effect on brand image, and digital marketing significantly affected the decision to become an Islamic bank customer. In contrast, Electronic Word of Mouth did not significantly affect the decision to be an Islamic bank customer. Brand image positively and significantly affects the decision to become a customer.

Classical economic analysis is based on the hypothesis of perfect rationality attributed to economic agents. Their behavior is considered, according to this analysis, in a narrow sense represented by Homo-oeconomicus. The latter is a calculating agent in the true meaning of the term, who calculates to optimize his choice and maximize a utility function. However, in a decision-making process, the economic agent finds himself interacting with a complex and uncertain environment. To decide, he adapts his choice behavior to an end, considering the constraints of this environment. He does not always seek the optimal solution, but he can be satisfied with the solution that he considers satisfactory. This solution highlights the role of deliberation, which considers the norms and customs of society, as well as environmental constraints. This work revisits rationality by examining the assumptions underlying decision-making behaviors. This analysis considers the real motivations of the decision-maker and their implications in his decision-making process, both in the individual context and in that of the organization. It studies the sources of the limitation of rationality and seeks to know why the decision-maker abandons optimization and is interested in satisfactory solutions in his choice. The results of this analysis recommend that bounded rational behavior can still be considered when motivations are considered. They advocate that their understanding is fundamental to refound the economic behavior of choice on hypotheses, which correspond well to the social and economic context of the decision.

Taking real-time and effective preventive maintenance measures on in-service roads can reduce traffic congestion, eliminate potential road safety hazards, and greatly reduce road maintenance costs. Therefore, based on the Persson friction theory, this study first determines the evaluation indicators for the anti slip ability of asphalt pavement. And based on vehicle dynamics and contact friction between tires and road surface, the anti-skid thresholds of road surfaces for different road conditions and vehicle models are solved through simulation. This study utilizes Python and neural network algorithms to establish a decision-making model for anti-slip recovery technology of asphalt pavement. The experiment shows that the model trained by Back Propagation neural network has high accuracy. The training accuracy of the model is stable at around 0.90, and the training loss value is around 0.34, which can be used for decision-making in anti slip recovery technology. When the speed is less than 60 km/h, the increase in the threshold of dynamic friction coefficient is significant. The maximum difference in growth rate is 47.9%. When the speed exceeds 60 km/h, the increase in the threshold of dynamic friction coefficient gradually slows down. Therefore, at lower speeds, it is more essential to consider the variable value of the dynamic friction coefficient. When the speed is high, more consideration needs to be given to its reference value. This study provides a scientific basis for ensuring that the anti slip ability of the road surface always meets the requirements of driving safety, and has important engineering practical value, economic and social benefits.

Abstract Background Many married women of reproductive age with husbands or partners are less cooperative in using contraceptives, often resulting in unintended pregnancies or secret contraceptive use. This private use of contraceptives causes women to suffer from side effects without proper support, and many women in Ethiopia die due to unintended pregnancies. However, the involvement of husbands or partners in the contraceptive decision-making process in Ethiopia is often neglected. There is also a lack of evidence regarding the determinants of husbands’ or partners’ decision-making power on contraceptive use in Ethiopia. Objective This study aimed to assess the determinants of low involvement of husbands/partners in women’s contraceptive use decision-making processes in Ethiopia. Methods This study was based on Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey data, collected from January 18 to June 27, 2016. Weighted samples of 3,669 reproductive-age women were included. Husbands’/partners’ independent decision-making was measured by whether the husband/partner decided independently or alone about contraceptive use, categorized as “Yes” or “No”. A multilevel logistic regression model was fitted, and ICC (Intra-class Correlation Coefficient), MOR (Median Odds Ratio), PCV (Proportion Change in Variance), and deviance were used to assess model fitness and comparison. Variables with a p-value of ≤ 0.2 in the bivariate analysis were considered candidates for multivariable multilevel analysis. An adjusted odds ratio with a 95% confidence interval was used to determine both the direction and strength of the association, and a p-value of

Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) play a crucial role in the global economy, but often face challenges in compiling and understanding financial statements. This study aims to identify effective financial reporting models for MSMEs in supporting the sustainability of their businesses in Indonesia. This qualitative field research focuses on MSME actors in the handicraft sector, household accessories retail, and laundry services. Through interviews, observations, and analysis of financial statement documents, it was found that the “3-in-1” financial statement model that integrates balance sheet, profit and loss, and cash flow in one worksheet provides significant benefits for MSMEs. This model offers a concise, easy-to-understand, and integrated presentation of financial information, allowing MSME actors to comprehensively understand the financial performance of their business. The results show that after 14 months of implementing the “3-in-1” model, the assets of one of the MSMEs increased by more than 1 billion rupiah. In addition, an informant in the retail sector reported a change from a loss of 16 million Rupiah to a profit of 44 million rupiah after improving the pricing procedure based on the “3-in-1” report. In the laundry service sector, the implementation of the “3-in-1” model allows business owners to pay themselves 50 thousand rupiah every day. This model has proven to be effective in supporting the sustainability of MSMEs by providing easy-to-understand financial reports, saving time and resources, and encouraging business growth. This study contributes to improving MSME financial literacy, better business decision-making, and encouraging innovation in financial reporting for the MSME sector.

Communication can be studied from a subjective perspective, which focuses on the participants of communication and their decision-making. Human action can be considered in theoretical, practical, and artistic dimensions. In all of these, the human being is the agent, which means that they are dependent on their will. Therefore, communicative actions, which particularly distinguish humans from other actions they undertake, deserve attention. In communication, various aspects of individual and social life are concentrated, expressed in human decisions. These decisions can be understood through the message, which contains individual personal experience. The interpersonal relationship that forms in this way can deepen through communication. Then, the concept of “co-participation” becomes significant, indicating the structure of this process. Co-participation thus becomes the key to understanding interpersonal communication. The goal of the article is to show the way humans function through communication, especially by highlighting the key moment that reveals the meaning of communication in social relations.

The purpose of the Article is to analyze and compare certain aspects which define the limits of permissible interference with a person's private life in the legislation of Ukraine and other countries of the world in terms of ensuring the balance of interests of participants in criminal proceedings during covert measures to obtain information related to interference with a person’s private life. The Article uses general scientific and special research methods, in particular comparative legal, scientific categories, definitions and approaches, formal dogmatic (legal), dialectical. On the basis of the conducted research, generalized conclusions were made regarding general trends in the field of reforming the legal regulation of special measures for covertly obtaining information, and ways of their improvement. The forms and methods of departmental, judicial, and public control over the covert activities of law enforcement agencies have been determined separately, and the influence of terrorist threats and military actions on ensuring the balance of interests of participants in criminal proceedings has been investigated. According to the results of the research, ways of solving problematic issues of the regulation of criminal procedural legislation have been determined in order to ensure the balance of the interests of the participants in criminal proceedings during the organization, conduct, recording, storage, and use of the results of covert information-gathering activities. A comparative analysis of the ways of solving a number of legal regulation issues in the field of the use of informal forms of obtaining information, the determination of different approaches to the separation of departmental, judicial, and public control is being carried out for the first time and will provide a comprehensive and systematic approach to the improvement of legislation in the specified field in the conditions of martial law or during anti-terrorist activities.

Background: Many married women of reproductive age with husbands or partners are less cooperative in using contraceptives, often resulting in unintended pregnancies or secret contraceptive use. This private use of contraceptives causes women to suffer from side effects without proper support, and many women in Ethiopia die due to unintended pregnancies. However, the involvement of husbands or partners in the contraceptive decision-making process in Ethiopia is often neglected. There is also a lack of evidence regarding the determinants of husbands' or partners' decision-making power on contraceptive use in Ethiopia. Objective: This study aimed to assess the determinants of low involvement of husbands/partners in women's contraceptive use decision-making processes in Ethiopia. Methods: This study was based on Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey data, collected from January 18 to June 27, 2016. Weighted samples of 3,669 reproductive-age women were included. Husbands'/partners' independent decision-making was measured by whether the husband/partner decided independently or alone about contraceptive use, categorized as "Yes" or "No". A multilevel logistic regression model was fitted, and ICC (Intra-class Correlation Coefficient), MOR (Median Odds Ratio), PCV (Proportion Change in Variance), and deviance were used to assess model fitness and comparison. Variables with a p-value of ≤ 0.2 in the bivariate analysis were considered candidates for multivariable multilevel analysis. An adjusted odds ratio with a 95% confidence interval was used to determine both the direction and strength of the association, and a p-value of < 0.05 was used to declare statistical significance. Results: Husbands'/partners' independent decision-making in women's contraceptive use was found to be 5.41% [4.72-6.19%]. Significant factors associated with this included: Husbands/partners aged 31–59 years (Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR) = 1.3; Confidence Interval (CI) 2.3–5.4) and over 59 years (AOR = 2.3; CI 1.2–4.3), Educational level of husbands/partners: primary education (AOR = 3.2; CI 2.9–4.3), secondary education (AOR = 3.9; CI 2.7–4.4), and higher education (AOR = 4.3; CI 2.8-5.0), Media exposure (AOR = 4.5; CI 2.2–5.4), History of pregnancy termination (AOR = 3.3; CI 2.6–4.1), Perception that distance to health facilities is not a significant problem (AOR = 3.0; CI 1.7–4.7) and Urban residency (AOR = 3.5; CI 1.6–4.2). Conclusions: In Ethiopia, the involvement of husbands/partners in the contraceptive use decision-making process is low. To increase their decision-making power, attention should be given to factors such as age, educational level, media exposure, history of pregnancy termination, distance to health facilities, and urban residency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper discusses issues not touched upon in legal literature, namely the legal status and consequences of comfort letters issued by the European Commission in State aid cases. The European Commission has exclusive competence to examine the compliance of support provided by Member States to domestic undertakings with State aid rules. Under EU law, the Commission's final position on the State aid character of the assessed measure must take the form of a decision. However, sometimes, the proceedings are concluded not by a decision but by a comfort letter. It presents the final position of the European Commission and, in many cases, ends the procedure. However, the legal character of the Commission's comfort letters may raise doubts. The article explains the concept of comfort letters issued in State aid cases, their legal status, and the consequences they bring to interested parties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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

The goal of decision‐making is to select one option and disregard the others. However, deliberation can also create a memory association between the chosen and unchosen options. This study aims to investigate how choice and deliberation affect the memory of postdecision options and the underlying mechanisms. Using event‐related potentials (ERPs), we examined item recognition (Experiment 1) and associative recognition (Experiment 2) following certain and uncertain decisions. In Experiment 1, items that were chosen in certain decisions were remembered better than unchosen items. There was no difference between chosen and unchosen items in uncertain decisions. Moreover, a late recollection‐related LPC (a late positive component) old/new effect was larger for chosen items than unchosen items in certain decisions. The early familiarity‐related FN400 and the late recollection‐related LPC old/new effects were significant for chosen and unchosen items in uncertain decisions. In Experiment 2, there was no difference in performance on associative memory. A FN400 old/new effect (an index of integration) in certain or uncertain decisions was not observed. Although significant LPC old/new effects were found in both certain and uncertain decisions, no difference was found between them. These results propose that decision‐making can enhance item memory performance through two distinct processes: value and elaboration. Elaboration involves focusing on the details within items rather than integrating items into a cohesive whole. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we introduce an analytic approach for assessing effects of multilevel interventions on disparity in health outcomes and health-related decision outcomes (i.e., a treatment decision made by a healthcare provider). We outline common challenges that are encountered in interventional health disparity research, including issues of effect scale and interpretation, choice of covariates for adjustment and its impact on effect magnitude, and the methodological challenges involved with studying decision-based outcomes. To address these challenges, we introduce total effects of interventions on disparity for the entire sample and the treated sample, and corresponding direct effects that are relevant for decision-based outcomes. We provide weighting and g-computation estimators in the presence of study attrition and sketch a simulation-based procedure for sample size determinations based on precision (e.g., confidence interval width). We validate our proposed methods through a brief simulation study and apply our approach to evaluate the RICH LIFE intervention, a multilevel healthcare intervention designed to reduce racial and ethnic disparities in hypertension control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pure voluntarism is the claim that we have the same voluntary control over intentions as we do decisions. The Toxin Puzzle is often taken to challenge pure voluntarism by supporting a reasons constraint on intentions. According to this constraint, one cannot voluntarily intend to do something that one lacks a practical reason to do. We present the results of three experiments stemming from this puzzle demonstrating that the concept does not support a reasons constraint and suggests that intentions are regarded as voluntary to the same degree that decisions are. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article problematizes the recent comeback of the exceptionalist jargon as it is conjured by both critics and sympathizers. While in the last decades governments across the globe had recourse to emergency measures to cope with far-reaching emergencies, from terrorism to the COVID-19 pandemic, the received view has it that political power takes advantage of states of emergency as they put themselves in the position to circumvent constitutional limitations. Carl Schmitt is claimed to be the major advocate of this conception of emergency politics in that he elaborated on the concept of the state of exception as the heart of the state political power. This article contends that the received view is doubly wrong. First, soon after his espousal of exceptionalism, Schmitt realized that emergency legislation is an ineffective and costly governmental device that should be transitory and is as unstable as the crisis it is meant to overcome. Second, the received view neglects how Schmitt came to his model of ultraconservative substantive constitutionalism as he maintained that the main task of politics is to protect the normative life of a limited set of state-sponsored institutions as well as the substantive contents they produce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several theorists maintain that a consideration is a reason to ϕ (where ϕ-ing is an act-type) if and only if that consideration is a reason to intend to ϕ, and some hold as well that a consideration is a reason not to ϕ if and only if that consideration is a reason to intend not to ϕ. The claims often stem from views about what it is to be a practical reason. Here it is argued that both equivalence claims are false. Although no view of practical reasons is advanced, views that imply either equivalence claim are shown to be mistaken. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the natural world, animals make decisions on an ongoing basis, continuously selecting which action to undertake next. In the lab, however, the neural bases of decision processes have mostly been studied using artificial trial structures. New experimental tools based on the genetic toolkit of model organisms now make it experimentally feasible to monitor and manipulate neural activity in small subsets of neurons during naturalistic behaviors. We thus propose a new approach to investigating decision processes, termed reverse neuroethology. In this approach, experimenters select animal models based on experimental accessibility and then utilize cutting-edge tools such as connectomes and genetically encoded reagents to analyze the flow of information through an animal's nervous system during naturalistic choice behaviors. We describe how the reverse neuroethology strategy has been applied to understand the neural underpinnings of innate, rapid decision making, with a focus on defensive behavioral choices in the vinegar fly Drosophila melanogaster. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accepted by: Aris Syntetos Exploring the effects of information uncertainty presents an extensive challenge to decision makers. This study presents a set of behavioural experiments that examine the impact of incomplete information on newsvendor decisions. Findings show that orders deviate from normative benchmarks when decision makers have incomplete information and this tendency is stronger when the demand distribution is not known. Comparison of decisions under incomplete information against behavioural benchmarks with full and no information reveal that the availability of price and cost information brings decisions significantly closer to normative levels when the underlying demand distribution is unknown. On the opposite spectrum, when demand information is available, not knowing price or cost does not lead to worse decisions. Analysing newsvendor profits under various information conditions, we find participants capture at most 84% of earnings they could have generated if they ordered the normative quantity in high-profit margin settings; the corresponding percentage is 51% in low-profit margin settings. Our results suggest decreasing uncertainty on the demand distribution has a consistently positive impact on profits, while uncertainty about cost or price does not have a significant effect. Implications of our findings on the differential impact of incomplete information are discussed via the backdrop of the prevalence of newsvendor framework across a wide range of operational decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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

The impartiality of justice is an essential component of the status of judge and a requirement of utmost importance of the fair trial. The lack of impartiality is likely to affect in its substance also the principle of independence, a principle proclaimed at constitutional level as well, but also at the level of some important international documents. A judge who shows partiality cannot be considered as an independent magistrate. The European jurisprudence, as well as the national jurisprudence, evokes two components of impartiality: an objective one (objective impartiality) and a subjective one (subjective impartiality). The latter is also the most subtle and difficult to prove, as it is related to the inner powers of the judge. It can still be proven to the extent that it is shown through significant manifestations that raise suspicions about the impartiality of the judge. That is why, in the jurisprudence of the ECHR it is made reference, judiciously, to a presumption of impartiality of the judge, which can be countered by a contrary evidence from the opposing side. The cases of incompatibility that can cause suspicions about the lack of impartiality of a judge are ruled in the two codes of procedure: civil and criminal. A big part of the practical assumptions that may arise can be found in the corresponding texts in our procedural codes. Life, however, is much more complex and sometimes puts the judge in the situation of making some interpretation efforts to determine whether or not in a specific case we are in a situation of violation of the principle of impartiality. The present study also offers us a perspective on some extremely complex situations, with a special resonance in jurisprudence. In this context, some of the most recent and significant decisions of the European Court of Human Rights are also presented. Some of these solutions force us to rethink some procedural institutions in the future in order to find effective remedies at the level of all jurisdictions, regardless of their nature, so that any suspicion regarding the independence and impartiality of judges can be removed through the procedural mechanism of recusal, but also of abstention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revue Française de Gestion is the property of John Libbey Eurotext Ltd. 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.)

This paper presents an innovative approach to optimize traffic networks in a supplier-customer system based on specific strategies of game theory. The traffic network is represented as a routing configuration in which the arcs represent various possible roads between supplier and customer entities, each route having an associated transport cost for the product unit. The game structure is defined by a matrix of transport costs between the players, supplier and customer, with their corresponding strategies. Based on these costs, the game matrix is built to which the existing quantities in warehouses are added, respectively the quantities requested by the final customers. By solving the game associated to the transportation traffic network, the different strategies are proposed for choosing the optimal solution. The simulation results confirm the effectiveness of the proposed approach and recommend some performant procedures for solving the game, such as Hurwicz, Laplace and Savage, close to optimal solution. This research opens new directions for management optimization in other domains such as comunication, electrical and administrativ networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article offers some reflections on some features of human consciousness that are in need of an explanation. I wish to see if these features could be understood as solutions to design problems, solutions arrived at by evolution, but also, in the individual, as a result of a process of unconscious self-design. I consider this issue in the context of work in AI on the attempt to design intelligent robots-not "bed-ridden" expert systems, but systems that have to act in real time in the real world. How then does one partition the task of the robot so that it is apt to make reliable real time decisions? Any real, finite deliberator must partition the states of its world in such a way as to introduce the concept of possibility. This idea of partitioning the world into "possible" alternatives that remain "open" is very clearly the introduction of a concept of epistemic possibility. The article concludes with some reflections on the Frame Problem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the Article is to analyze and compare certain aspects which define the limits of permissible interference with a person's private life in the legislation of Ukraine and other countries of the world in terms of ensuring the balance of interests of participants in criminal proceedings during covert measures to obtain information related to interference with a person's private life. The Article uses general scientific and special research methods, in particular comparative legal, scientific categories, definitions and approaches, formal dogmatic (legal), dialectical. On the basis of the conducted research, generalized conclusions were made regarding general trends in the field of reforming the legal regulation of special measures for covertly obtaining information, and ways of their improvement. The forms and methods of departmental, judicial, and public control over the covert activities of law enforcement agencies have been determined separately, and the influence of terrorist threats and military actions on ensuring the balance of interests of participants in criminal proceedings has been investigated. According to the results of the research, ways of solving problematic issues of the regulation of criminal procedural legislation have been determined in order to ensure the balance of the interests of the participants in criminal proceedings during the organization, conduct, recording, storage, and use of the results of covert information-gathering activities. A comparative analysis of the ways of solving a number of legal regulation issues in the field of the use of informal forms of obtaining information, the determination of different approaches to the separation of departmental, judicial, and public control is being carried out for the first time and will provide a comprehensive and systematic approach to the improvement of legislation in the specified field in the conditions of martial law or during anti-terrorist activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this article is to show that theorizing in the discipline of public policy has distinctive characteristics. Like other multidisciplinary (or interdisciplinary) fields, it has various theoretical sources and feeds from other fields in social sciences. Social science disciplines are all theoretically intermingled because they all focus on human behavior, so they can have common theoretical roots. But in any case, the question is, what is the distinctive feature of theories of public policy from other disciplines of social science. In other words, what is the special field of expertise in terms of theorizing? If public policy cannot find its distinctive feature, it will suffer from identity disorder. To overcome this difficulty, we introduce three levels of theories in public policy. The first level includes two main theories, namely policy cycle theory and typology theory, which, in a sense, bring structural theories to the field of policy making. The second level of public policy theories is usually focused on the phenomenon of decision-making in the public sector such as Multiple Stream Framework, Punctuated Equilibrium Theory, Narrative Theory, Coalition Theory, Institutionalism Development Theory etc., Even though these theories cannot be considered as exclusive theories of public policy, but they are frequently used in this discipline. The third level is policy theory, or program theory, which includes a set of underlying assumptions of a program, and explains why and how planned activities should lead to predefined goals and objectives through specific variables. Policy theories provide models of intervention in different sector of government. They are indirectly and tacitly extracted from second level of theories. For example, trilaterals model of policy making in labor policy could be referred to Institutionalism Development Theory. In real world policy making in government, what is mostly used is this third level of theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Decision-making in Construction Project Management (CPM) involves numerous ambiguous information and uncertainties due to the nature of construction project. The Soft Computing (SC) approach, which offers several data processing strategies under uncertainty, has been extensively researched in CPM studies for decision problem solving. Decisions that cannot be adequately handled by conventional computer systems are facilitated by the SC approach. The SC approach encompasses a variety of SC techniques that are constantly developing and becoming more widely used to address real construction challenges. This study aims to conduct Systematic Literature Reviews (SLR) on the development of mainstream SC techniques and their current application in construction projects. Using an inventive SLR technique, 83 CPM papers covering the years 2018 to 2023 were selected for this study and then classified into four primary application themes of SC in CPM. The research trend was then described using bibliometric analysis. Afterwards, a topic-based qualitative analysis was conducted to investigate the application of SC approaches in the construction field. Several potential challenges to current research were then elaborated. It also contributed to suggesting future directions for the advancement of SC techniques that would be advantageous for construction research and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Anbar University for Law & Political Sciences is the property of Republic of Iraq Ministry of Higher Education & Scientific Research (MOHESR) 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.)

Copyright of Jurnal Jurisprudence is the property of Jurnal Jurisprudence 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.)

Copyright of Systems Engineering & Electronics is the property of Journal of Systems Engineering & Electronics Editorial Department 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.)

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

The financial audit report is a valuable tool for ensuring financial transparency and integrity within a company. By presenting the audit results in detail, the report contributes to creating a relationship of trust between the company and its stakeholders. By evaluating procedures and systems, auditors can identify risks and deficiencies within the company, creating the opportunity for company management to act to improve processes by effectively managing resources and achieving set goals. Starting from the premise that by presenting correct and reliable financial information, the audit report provides management and shareholders with a solid basis for making well-informed and substantiated decisions, we set out to analyze the decision-makers' perceptions of the role and importance of the financial audit for business continuity companies. The research is qualitative, as it is about the realization of a situation survey, based on a questionnaire within several companies, the respondents being their decision-makers. The conclusions of our study can be a starting point for carrying out research in the field, the issue of the reliability of the financial and accounting information presented in the financial reports remains topical, even though digitalization tends to capture the field of accounting and auditing as well, the standardization of information is one of the consequences this process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper suggests the direction of the development of a systems approach to the development of information technology of intelligent decision-making support in the management of regional investment and construction projects. The technology under consideration represents conceptual and theoretical statements, language means of artificial intelligence, mathematical apparatus, algorithms, software, and mechanisms of machine learning, dialog communication, and the storage and processing of information, providing the solution of tasks set by the user. Drawing on the principle of compliance with the project management loops and the systemic understanding of the decision-making process, the composition and content of this technology are defined, and the scheme of its development is built. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Continued investment in the development and application of mathematical models of poliovirus transmission, economics, and risks leads to their use in support of polio endgame strategy development and risk management policies. This study complements an earlier review covering the period 2000–2019 and discusses the evolution of studies published since 2020 by modeling groups supported by the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) partners and others. We systematically review modeling papers published in English in peer-reviewed journals from 2020–2024.25 that focus on poliovirus transmission and health economic analyses. In spite of the long-anticipated end of poliovirus transmission and the GPEI sunset, which would lead to the end of its support for modeling, we find that the number of modeling groups supported by GPEI partners doubled and the rate of their publications increased. Modeling continued to play a role in supporting GPEI and national/regional policies, but changes in polio eradication governance, decentralized management and decision-making, and increased heterogeneity in modeling approaches and findings decreased the overall impact of modeling results. Meanwhile, the failure of the 2016 globally coordinated cessation of type 2 oral poliovirus vaccine use for preventive immunization and the introduction of new poliovirus vaccines and formulation, increased the complexity and uncertainty of poliovirus transmission and economic models and policy recommendations during this time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study is to highlight that the use of technology, specifically artificial intelligence, used in all areas of human life and especially in education, is supported by the power of philosophy, bringing human nature closer to technology. The ethical theories of ancient and modern philosophers underline that education can play an important role in creating and defining an ethical programming and control of artificial intelligence. Under the light of moral philosophy, a role of the moral and spiritual leader in education is emerged, along with the role of educators and the use of artificial intelligence, where the moral human will be required and guided by wisdom to prevent risks and ensure benefits. On the other hand, it is necessary to train students in skills and abilities that will help them utilize the philosophy of artificial intelligence, after having previously acquired a philosophy of education that is humanoriented in terms of values, choices, decisions and actions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of certified quality seeds is critical to increasing agricultural productivity. However, its use still needs to be improved in Bengkayang Regency, especially in hilly areas that pose unique challenges to agricultural practices. This study analyzed the influence of farmers' attitudes on their decision to use certified quality seed in the region. The research method used a mixed approach, combining descriptive analysis to collect data through a comprehensive questionnaire from farmers who have and have not used certified quality seeds. The sample consisted of 111 farmers in the Bengkayang district, representing a wide range of farming backgrounds and experiences. Fishbein's multi-attribute analysis and structural equation modeling (SEM) were used for in-depth data analysis, which provided vital insights into the factors influencing farmers' decisions. The results showed that farmers positively evaluated several attributes of certified quality seed, indicating confidence in its reliability, yield potential, and relevance to local conditions. These positive attitudes are mainly driven by agricultural motivation, perceived economic benefits, and careful decision evaluation. It is important to note that effective, cognitive, and cognitive attitudes jointly influence farmers' decision-making in selecting certified quality seed, indicating the complexity of the adoption process involving emotional, rational, and behavioral aspects. The results of this study provide valuable information for rice farmers and policymakers at the government level to design effective strategies to increase the use of quality seeds. Recommendations are developing targeted extension programs, improving access to quality seeds, and implementing incentives to encourage wider adoption among farmers in Bengkayang Regency.

Copyright of Actualités Pharmaceutiques is the property of Elsevier B.V. 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.)

Outsourcing is a complex process as many external and internal factors that look convincing in the first place might, however, lead to a failure in the long run. Motivated by this, we wanted to get a holistic understanding of such outsourcing decisions. Thus, we created a comprehensive System Dynamics simulation model including all relevant variables to examine the dynamic nature of outsourcing in a holistic manner and over time that consists of more than 200 interrelated variables. Our results show, amongst others, that higher process specialisation that requires substantial investments by the supplier appears to be favourable for an outsourcing company and shifting a larger quantity to such a supplier achieves better cost savings and thus accounts for a better overall outsourcing result. On an operational level, we identified an innovation trap, a bargaining power shift, a plagiarism trap, and a knowledge trap. Based on that, we give specific managerial recommendations to tackles these aspects. We conclude that, amongst others, it is important for innovative companies with rather complex processes and parts to carefully plan which and how many employees to release so as not to lose the knowledge on those outsourced processes and parts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]