Suchergebnisse

Differentiation in political trust attitudes occurs when citizens distinguish between different political institutions in terms of their trustworthiness. This article explores patterns of citizens' (non-)differentiation between the local, national and European Union governance levels with regard to political trust. With unique Dutch data, we find that trust evaluations of each pair of governments (local–national/national–European Union/local–European Union) follows a distinct pattern. This suggests that citizens: (1) form more than one political trust attitude; and (2) use different cognitive mechanisms (like cognitive proximity and subjective rationality) to make sense of the political complexities in multilevel governance systems. Although general patterns found at the population level were largely reproduced at the subgroup level, that is, low and high political sophistication groups produced similar patterns of (non-)differentiation, highly politically sophisticated citizens tended to differentiate more – they are more likely to evaluate each governance level 'on its own merits'. Our results are especially relevant in an era of declining trust, where governments want to regain citizens' trust but are very much in the dark about which government level (if any) is the main culprit. Points for practitioners Citizens, particularly those with higher political interest, more exposure to political information and higher education, tend to differentiate in their trust orientations towards different governments. This suggests that citizens, to some extent, judge different governments in the multilevel system 'on their own merits'. Therefore, politicians and public managers confronted with declining trust in their jurisdiction should seriously consider whether such a negative trend might not reflect citizens' dissatisfaction with their governments' lack of responsiveness to the specific demands of its citizens.

The current investigation aimed to test the alterations of the levels of obestatin hormone, lipid profile and cardiac function markers in relation to hyperglycemia in patients with non-insulin diabetes mellitus. The study included 118 diabetic subjects (56 males, 62 females) and 60 healthy non-diabetic subjects (30 males, 30 females). Diabetic and healthy subjects were age-matched. Serum levels of obestatin, lipid profile markers including total cholesterol (STC), triglycerides (STG), low and high density lipoproteins (LDL-C and HDL-C), as well as cardiac function markers including, creatine kinase and lactate dehydrogenase enzymes were determined in all subjects. The findings revealed a remarkable decrease in the level of serum obestatin in both diabetic males and females with both age ranges (40-59 and 60-80 years). On the other hand, the results showed that serum STC, LDL-C, and STG levels were statistically significantly elevated, while that for HDL-C was significantly decreased in diabetic males and females with both age ranges. Concerning the cardiac markers, the results found out that the levels of CK-MB and LDH were significantly increased in type 2 diabetic males and females with both age ranges. The results suggested that a low concentration of obestatin is a significant risk factor for type 2 DM, with a key role for this hormone in the pathogenesis. Accordingly, altered levels of obestatin could be used as an important indicator for type 2 DM. The current study also suggests a direct relationship between lipid profiles, except for HDL, the decreased obestatin level, the increased cardiac function markers, and hyperglycemic status in type 2 DM.

Objective Evaluate and model the advantage of a situation awareness (SA) supported by an augmented reality (AR) display for the ground-based joint terminal attack Controller (JTAC), in judging and describing the spatial relations between objects in a hostile zone. Background The accurate world-referenced description of relative locations of surface objects, when viewed from an oblique slant angle (aircraft, observation post) is hindered by (1) the compression of the visual scene, amplified at a lower slang angle, (2) the need for mental rotation, when viewed from a non-northerly orientation. Approach Participants viewed a virtual reality (VR)-simulated four-object scene from either of two slant angles, at each of four compass orientations, either unaided, or aided by an AR head-mounted display (AR-HMD), depicting the scene from a top-down (avoiding compression) and north-up (avoiding mental rotation) perspective. They described the geographical layout of four objects within the display. Results Compared with the control condition, that condition supported by the north-up SA display shortened the description time, particularly on non-northerly orientations (9 s, 30% benefit), and improved the accuracy of description, particularly for the more compressed scene (lower slant angle), as fit by a simple computational model. Conclusion The SA display provides large, significant benefits to this critical phase of ground-air communications in managing an attack—as predicted by the task analysis of the JTAC. Application Results impact the design of the AR-HMD to support combat ground-air communications and illustrate the magnitude by which basic cognitive principles "scale up" to realistically simulated real-world tasks such as search and rescue.

This article examines online educational products developed by museums both independently and in cooperation with educational institutions. The analysis revealed a pool of museum online products, including mass open online courses (MOOCs), specialized professional online courses (SPOCs), educational games, mobile apps, and podcasts. The authors identify advantages and features of each type of the museum online products (MOPs) and determine the prospects for their inclusion in the educational process.The study aims to reveal the activity of different kinds of museums and museum communities in the development and implementation of educational online products both in their own educational activities, carried out by an increasing number of museums, and in the process of formal and non-formal education in cooperation with universities, schools, and further education institutions that implement it. The study discovered that museums develop both MOOCs that are traditional for the system of higher professional education, and educational online products, such as educational games, podcasts, and mobile applications with educational content, that are not widely used at present, but are promising for formal and, especially, non-formal education. An important result of the study was the conclusion about the common practice of cooperation between museums and universities in the joint development of online products, as well as about the feasibility of deploying such work with institutions of secondary general and vocational education.The authors' analysis of the system of museum educational online products allowed us to conclude that new players — museums — have appeared in the online education market in the role of organizations that create and use various online resources in their activities, including those that can be used in the field of education.

The paper aims to explore how culture, family and community-women have shaped women councillors' representation and participation in South Africa. It investigates the extent to which women ward councillors are gaining support from their male counterparts; other women councillors irrespective of political affiliation when women-related issues are raised in council meetings. The paper identifies reasons contributing to the non-support by key stakeholders when women-related issues are raised and when performing their duties. Post-1994 in South Africa, women's participation in politics is still a struggle. The number of women ward councillors have been fluctuating since the local government was reformed between 1995/96. Ward councillors are elected by local communities to represent their respective wards, to be accountable to the community that elected them. The paper is exploratory and qualitative in nature. It focuses on 104 Ward and Proportional Representative (PR) councillors from local municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape Provinces. Face-to-face and telephonic interviews were employed. Findings were analyzed using content analysis and themes were induced from the data. The paper revealed that culture is gradually changing due to laws introduced. Also, family support depends on a woman marital status and family involvement in politics. However, males did not support women-related issues, but women ward councillors supported each other irrespective of political affiliation on gender issues. Community-women support councillors through women's groups and community structures. The factors contributing to the non-support of gender-related matters include women competing with each other and political party influence.

Received: 27 January 2021 / Accepted: 15 April 2021 / Published: 10 May 2021

AbstractQuantum games represent the really twenty-first century branch of game theory, tightly linked to the modern development of quantum computing and quantum technologies. The main accent in these developments so far was made on stationary or repeated games. In this paper, we aim at initiating the truly dynamic theory with strategies chosen by players in real time. Since direct continuous observations are known to destroy quantum evolutions (so-called quantum Zeno paradox), the necessary new ingredient for quantum dynamic games must be the theory of non-direct observations and the corresponding quantum filtering. Apart from the technical problems in organizing feedback quantum control in real time, the difficulty in applying this theory for obtaining mathematically amenable control systems is due partially to the fact that it leads usually to rather non-trivial jump-type Markov processes and/or degenerate diffusions on manifolds, for which the corresponding control is very difficult to handle. The starting point for the present research is the remarkable discovery (quite unexpected, at least to the author) that there exists a very natural class of homodyne detections such that the diffusion processes on projective spaces resulting by filtering under such arrangements coincide exactly with the standard Brownian motions (BM) on these spaces. In some cases, one can even reduce the process to the plain BM on Euclidean spaces or tori. The theory of such motions is well studied making it possible to develop a tractable theory of related control and games, which can be at the same time practically implemented on quantum optical devices.

Abstract
Since workforce is greying, increasing pressure has been put on many sectors, including the public sector, to raise legal retirement age. Nevertheless, older workers, and specifically teachers, usually retire much earlier. In the organizational and educational literature, most studies regarding later career have been applying a deficit perspective: reporting on senior teachers' challenges and difficulties. Only a limited amount of studies considers senior teachers' potentials, learning, and further career development. In this present article, we approach late-career teachers from a non-deficit perspective. This article aims to contribute to a better understanding of senior teachers at work, by analyzing HR practices that target them. Inspired by a strengths use perspective, we focus on end-of-career teachers' knowledge and expertise exchange and their position within the school's network. In particular, we conducted a comparative mixed-methods case study (interviews, social network analysis) in 2 secondary schools with a sample of 10 end-of-career teachers, 4 younger teachers, and 2 principals. The results illustrate that older teachers hold central positions in their workplace and have, in accordance with the socio-emotional selectivity theory, limited but strong bounds with colleagues. Moreover, school principals in both schools seem to benefit from older teachers' organizational knowledge by involving them in decision-making processes. Nevertheless, results show that the principals in the 2 schools mainly apply remedial measures to deal with changes due to aging. This paper ends with some implications for school principals: Applying a non-deficit developmental approach is key for sustainable HR management in schools across the lifespan.

Background: Non-Alcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH) is an aggressive form of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver disease (NAFLD), with liver inflammation and scarring. Due to a lack of clinical biomarkers and asymptomatic nature, NASH is often under-diagnosed. It is the most common cause of chronic liver disease in the USA. Liver biopsy is the gold standard to diagnose NASH, but it is invasive and life-threatening and histologic evaluation of a liver biopsy sample is imperfect as a reference because of sampling variability due to the irregular distribution of fibrosis. Aim: Validating AST/ALT ratio as a stand-alone scoring system in NASH is scarce and so this study aims to establish a correlation between FibroScan values and AST/ALT ratio. Methodology: All NASH patients, who underwent FibroScan were included. Their demographics, FibroScan, AST, ALT values were recorded in M S Excel and Pearson correlation between FibroScan values and AST/ALT ratios of 150 NASH patients was calculated using SPSS. Results: Out of 150 NASH patients, 72% were males and 57.33% belonged to 40-50 years age group. FibroScan values and AST/ALT ratio showed positive Pearson correlation of 0.245, (p value=0.003). FibroScan values and splenic size also showed a positive Pearson correlation of 0.289 (p value<0.001). Conclusion: Males of 40-50 years age group had higher distribution of NASH, so middle aged males should be screened routinely as they are at a higher risk. FibroScan value with AST/ALT ratio and splenic size showed a positive correlation, thus showing that AST/ALT ratio and splenic size increases with increase in liver stiffness.

The shadow economy, as an interdisciplinary phenomenon, generates many controversies and difficulties for researchers. Economic entities operating within the non-observed (hidden) economy strive to escape official records, therefore a direct estimation of the extent of the phenomenon remains unobtainable. The aim of this article is to present the results of the estimation of the size of the shadow economy in Poland on the basis of the differences between GDP calculated according to the 'production' and the 'expenditure' approaches. The authors propose an original technique based on the idea of residual methods. In the course of the study, two models describing the dependencies between the growth of GDP and the growth of indicators used in the in the above-mentioned approaches to GDP calculation were established. The identified differences between the value of this measure calculated according to the production and expenditure approaches were used for the estimation of the size of the shadow economy in Poland, presented as a share in GDP. The analysis was carried out on the basis of panel data reflecting the values of selected macroeconomic indicators measured on the voivodship scale in the years 2000–2017, drawn from the Local Data Bank of Statistics Poland. The obtained results resemble to a large extent the estimates of the shadow economy by Statistics Poland and EY, and also partly that by United Nations Global Compact. The analysis presented in the paper is part of the research conducted by the Centre for Non-Observed Economy Srudies (OGN) at the Statistical Office in Kielce, whose aim is to improve the methodology currently used by official statistics in Poland.

Background: Various studies have shown that low body mass index co-relates with the severity of Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The reduced body mass index in these patients is thought to be due to nutritional abnormality and raised circulating inflammatory markers. The study is aimed to find the association of body mass index with respiratory failure in patient with chronic obstructive pulmunory disease.Methods: 142 patients who attended emergency /out-patient-department in Sir Sundarlal Hospital from August 2018 to July 2020 were enrolled for the study. 81 patients in one group had chronic obstructive pulmonary disease exacerbation with Type II respiratory failure. Among this group low and normal body mass index subgroup was categorized.61 patients in another group had chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Non-invasive ventilation was applied to case group. Categorization of body mass index was done <18.5(Low BMI) and 18.5-24.9 (Normal BMI ). Results: The mean age of the study group was (63.53±9.021). There was a significant difference in the body mass index between the groups ( p=<0.001,t=15.40). Severity of respiratory failure was compared using ph and pco2 in the between the groups which showed no significant difference (p=1,chi square 0.000), (p=0.40,chi square=0.72) however it did affect the outcome.Conclusions: Our study shows that overall respiratory failure was common in low body mass index cases compared to Control. Nevertheless there was no difference among severity of respiratory failure among low and normal body mass index subgroups and however it did affect the outcome.Keywords: Brain natriuretic peptide; chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases; non-invasive ventilation

The hepatitis A virus (HAV, Hepatovirus A) in humans has a relevant impact on public health, especially in geographic regions with poor basic sanitation, such as the Brazilian Amazon. Isolates related to hepatoviruses have been described in non human primates, chiropterans, marsupials, rodents, marmots, shrews, and terrestrial hedgehogs. However, the circulation of these viruses in the Amazonian mammal fauna remains unexplored. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of antibodies against this hepatovirus in captive and free-living wild mammals belonging to the orders Didelphimorphia, Primates, Carnivora, and Artiodactyla. Serum samples from 71 animals, from three municipalities in the State of Pará (Belém, Santarém, and Capitão-Poço) were tested for total anti-HAV and anti-HAV IgM through enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Total anti-HAV antibodies were detected in 29.5% (21/71) of non-human primates, 8.4% (6/71) of carnivores, and 5.6% (4/71) of didelphos. All tayassuidos 0% (0/2) were seronegative. Anti-HAV IgM antibodies were not detected in any of the samples tested. The highest total anti-HAV seropositivity in the municipalities studied was in Santarém with 54.24% (12/22), followed by Capitão Poço with 50% (15/30), and then Belém with 21.05% (4/19). Among the seropositive animals, animals kept in exposure cages showed 43.9% (18/41), quarantined animals with 60% (9/15), and free-living animals with 26.6% (4/15). The serological results indicated a profile of previous exposure to hepatovirus among these animals. Therefore, additional studies to characterize HAV-related viruses in captive and free living wild animals need to be conducted to better understand the impact of the circulation of this virus on human and animal health.

AbstractResource depletion and environmental pollution have seriously restricted the sustainable development of China's economy in recent years. How to transform the extensive growth mode to the intensive growth mode and realize the green development of economy is a great challenge for China. In this paper, we use the non‐radial and non‐angle Slack‐based Model (SBM) considering the undesired output, combined with the Malmquist–Luenberger productivity index, to measure regional green total factor productivity (GTFP). By constructing the green output density function, the theoretical model of the relationship between regional GTFP and industrial agglomeration is deduced, and the theoretical mechanism of the influence of industrial agglomeration on regional GTFP is analyzed. Based on panel data of 243 cities at the prefecture level in China from 2010 to 2019, this article employs the dynamic spatial panel model to empirically estimate the impact of industrial agglomeration on regional GTFP. The empirical results show that regional GTFP shows significant spatial autocorrelation and spatial clustering characteristics. The manufacturing agglomeration has significant negative impact on regional GTFP and produces negative spatial spillover effect on the surrounding regions, but does not produce congestion effect. The producer services agglomeration significantly improves regional GTFP and produces positive spatial spillover effect on the surrounding regions, and leads to congestion effect. The co‐agglomeration of producer services and manufacturing has significantly promoted the improvement of regional GTFP and produces positive spatial spillover effect on the surrounding regions. Finally, this article puts forward policy suggestions on how to promote regional GTFP and achieve green development from the perspective of industrial agglomeration.

AbstractMost research on weight‐related social difficulties in adolescence emphasizes categorical measures of weight status (e.g., overweight/obese vs. non‐overweight/non‐obese). However, teens who are not overweight can also experience weight‐related social adjustment problems, and girls may be at higher risk for maladjustment due to weight‐related stigmatization than their male counterparts. The current study modeled trajectories of BMI z‐score (zBMI), a continuous measure of BMI relative to U.S. reference standards for child age and sex, for boys and girls from ages 9 to 15. The sample of 938 adolescents, drawn from the Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development, contained proportions of normal weight and overweight/obese teens that approximate the U.S. population. Latent growth curve modeling was used to establish quadratic models describing zBMI change in boys and girls separately using measurements collected at ages 9, 10.5, 11.5, 12.5, 13.5, and 15.5. zBMI growth parameters were used to predict a latent social adjustment variable indicated by mother and adolescent reports of adaptive social functioning at age 15. Controlling for pubertal timing, socioeconomic status, race/ethnicity, the proportion of measurements at which children were classified as overweight, and age 9 social adjustment, girls' more rapid BMI gains across the pubertal transition, and greater acceleration of these growth rates relative to national norms were associated with lower age 15 social adjustment. Findings suggest that a better understanding of weight‐related social adjustment may require broadening the scope of research and intervention efforts to normal‐weight teens, particularly normal‐weight girls.

Abstract
Background Organized chronic subdural hematoma (CSDH) is a special type of CSDH. However, the optimal surgical procedure has not been established. We present our experience here to discuss the surgical procedure in treatment of organized CSDH.
Methods Thirty-three patients with organized CSDH were admitted between January 1, 2008 and January 1, 2018. Age, gender, clinical symptoms, imaging data, type of surgical procedure, Barthel index (BI), and postoperative complications were collected and retrospectively analyzed. The BI was assessed both pre and postoperatively (1 week and 1 month after surgery).
Results Overall, 14 patients underwent large craniotomy and 19 patients underwent small craniotomy. No significant differences in gender, age, initial clinical symptoms, and preoperative BI were found between the groups (p > 0.05). Among the 14 patients who underwent large craniotomy, 2 patients developed epilepsy after the operation, while 1 patient had postoperative aphasia. None of the patients had recurrence in 6 months postoperatively. Among the 19 patients who underwent small craniotomy, 1 patient developed an acute subdural hematoma and 1 patient developed aphasia. No obvious complications were found in the remaining 18 patients and none of the 19 patients had recurrence in 6 months postoperatively. BI scores of the small craniotomy group were significantly better than those of the large craniotomy group at 1 week postoperatively (p < 0.05). However, there was no significant difference in the 1-month results (p > 0.05).
Conclusion According to our single-center experience, a small craniotomy for treating organized CSDH can be considered as an alternative to a larger craniotomy.

The high urgency of reporting by business and public sector entities in Ukraine and the EU is confirmed by the fact that out of 34 speakers at the IFRS Forum – 2020 "Through Transparency to Sustainable Development: New Realities of the Profession" almost one in four chose it as the topic of their report. With this in mind, the main problematic aspects of reporting of domestic business entities in various sectors of the economy are researched, its development against the background of globalization, composition of the internal public sector researched. The requirements for the composition of the administration report and the management report in the context of the current legal framework are systematized. In recent years, integrated reporting has been gaining momentum in Europe, which should combine the information of disparate reports in order to be able to compare it by different subjects and periods. The composition of voluntary annual reporting of legal entities in Europe is considered and an assessment of their impact on the achievement of sustainable development goals is provided. One of the clearest trends over the last four years has been the increasing use of the term«integrated report» and the statement that reports have been prepared in accordance with the IIRC Conceptual Framework. The issue of complication of international financial reporting standards is considered and the analysis of standardization of non-financial reporting is carried out. It is determined that the reform of accounting and reporting in budgetary institutions is impossible without the introduction of the budget reporting system at the level of united territorial communities, districts and regions in parallel with decentralization and widespread use of non-financial reporting.