Search results for: rural migrant children

Authors: Giuseppina Anna Giorgio, Angela Lorusso, Maria Ragosta, Vito Telesca

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Climate change is a major public health threat due to the effects of extreme weather events on human health and on quality of life in general. In this context, mean temperatures are increasing, in particular, extreme temperatures, with heat waves becoming more frequent, more intense, and longer lasting. In many cities, extreme heat waves have drastically increased, giving rise to so-called Urban Heat Island (UHI) phenomenon. In an urban centre, maximum temperatures may be up to 10° C warmer, due to different local atmospheric conditions. UHI occurs in the metropolitan areas as function of the population size and density of a city. It consists of a significant difference in temperature compared to the rural/suburban areas. Increasing industrialization and urbanization have increased this phenomenon and it has recently also been detected in small cities. Weather conditions and land use are one of the key parameters in the formation of UHI. In particular surface urban heat island is directly related to temperatures, to land surface types and surface modifications. The present study concern a UHI analysis of Matera city (Italy) based on the analysis of temperature, change in land use and land cover, using Corine Land Cover maps and satellite Landsat images. Matera, located in Southern Italy, has a typical Mediterranean climate with mild winters and hot and humid summers. Moreover, Matera has been awarded the international title of the 2019 European Capital of Culture. Matera represents a significant example of vernacular architecture. The structure of the city is articulated by a vertical succession of dug layers sometimes excavated or partly excavated and partly built, according to the original shape and height of the calcarenitic slope. In this study, two meteorological stations were selected: MTA (MaTera Alsia, in industrial zone) and MTCP (MaTera Civil Protection, suburban area located in a green zone). In order to evaluate the increase in temperatures (in terms of UHI occurrences) over time, and evaluating the effect of land use on weather conditions, the climate variability of temperatures for both stations was explored. Results show that UHI phenomena is growing in Matera city, with an increase of maximum temperature values at a local scale. Subsequently, spatial analysis was conducted by Landsat satellite images. Four years was selected in the summer period (27/08/2000, 27/07/2006, 11/07/2012, 02/08/2017). In Particular, Landsat 7 ETM+ for 2000, 2006 and 2012 years; Landsat 8 OLI/TIRS for 2017. In order to estimate the LST, Mono Window Algorithm was applied. Therefore, the increase of LST values spatial scale trend has been verified, in according to results obtained at local scale. Finally, the analysis of land use maps over the years by the LST and/or the maximum temperatures measured, show that the development of industrialized area produces a corresponding increase in temperatures and consequently a growth in UHI.

Keywords: climate variability, land surface temperature, LANDSAT images, urban heat island

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Authors: Rory Austin Clark

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This primary research represents an ongoing two year inductive mixed-methods project endeavouring to unravel the subjective reality of hyperconnected young adults in Western societies who have come of age with social media and smartphones. It is to be presented as well as analyzed and contextualized through a written master’s thesis as well as a documentary/mockumentary meshed with a Web 2.0 app providing the capacity for prosumer, 'audience 2.0' functionality. The media component seeks to explore not only thematic issues via real-life research interviews and fictional narrative but technical issues within the format relating to the quest for intimate, authentic connection as well as compelling dissemination of scholarly knowledge in an age of ubiquitous personalized daily digital media creation and consumption. The overarching hypothesis is that the aforementioned individuals process and make sense of their world, find shared meaning, and formulate notions-of-self in ways drastically different than pre-2007 via hyper-mediation-of-self and surroundings. In this pursuit, research questions have progressed from examining how young adult digital natives understand their use of social media to notions relating to the potential functionality of Web 2.0 for prosocial and altruistic engagement, on and offline, through the eyes of these individuals no longer understood as simply digital natives, but social media natives, and at the conclusion of that phase of research, as 'neoliberalized social media natives' (NSMN). This represents the two most potent macro factors in the paradigmatic shift in NSMS’s worldview, that they are not just children of social media, but of the palpable shift to neoliberal ways of thinking and being in the western socio-cultures since the 1980s, two phenomena that have a reflexive æffective relationship on their perception of figure and ground. This phase also resulted in the working hypothesis of 'social media comparison anxiety' and a nascent understanding of NSMN’s habitus and habitation in a subjective reality of fully converged online/offline worlds, where any phenomena originating in one realm in some way are, or at the very least can be, re-presented or have effect in the other—creating hyperreal reception. This might also be understood through a 'society as symbolic cyborg model', in which individuals have a 'digital essence'-- the entirety of online content that references a single person, as an auric living, breathing cathedral, museum, gallery, and archive of self of infinite permutations and rhizomatic entry and exit points.

Keywords: affect, hyperreal, neoliberalism, postmodernism, social media native, subjective reality, Web 2.0

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Authors: Mumtaz Ali, Hamzullah Khan, Khalid Khanzada, Shahid Ayub, Aurangzeb Wazir

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Objective: To analyse the death of patients treated in neuro-surgical ICU for severe head injuries from different perspectives. The evaluation of the data so obtained to help improve the health care delivery to this group of patients in ICU. Study Design: It is a descriptive study based on retrospective analysis of patients presenting to neuro-surgical ICU in Lady Reading Hospital, Peshawar. Study Duration: It covered the period between 1st January 2009 to 31st December 2009. Material and Methods: The Clinical record of all the patients presenting with the clinical radiological and surgical features of severe head injuries, who expired in neuro-surgical ICU was collected. A separate proforma which mentioned age, sex, time of arrival and death, causes of head injuries, the radiological features, the clinical parameters, the surgical and non surgical treatment given was used. The average duration of stay and the demographic and domiciliary representation of these patients was noted. The record was analyzed accordingly for discussion and recommendations. Results: Out of the total 112 (n-112) patients who expired in one year in the neuro-surgical ICU the young adults made up the majority 64 (57.14%) followed by children, 34 (30.35%) and then the elderly age group: 10 (8.92%). Road traffic accidents were the major cause of presentation, 75 (66.96%) followed by history of fall; 23 (20.53%) and then the fire arm injuries; 13 (11.60%). The predominant CT scan features of these patients on presentation was cerebral edema, and midline shift (diffuse neuronal injuries). 46 (41.07%) followed by cerebral contusions. 28 (25%). The correctable surgical causes were present only in 18 patients (16.07%) and the majority 94 (83.92%) were given conservative management. Of the 69 (n=69) patients in which CT scan was repeated; 62 (89.85%) showed worsening of the initial CT scan abnormalities while in 7 cases (10.14%) the features were static. Among the non surgical cases both ventilatory therapy in 7 (6.25%) and tracheostomy in 39 (34.82%) failed to change the outcome. The maximum stay in the neuro ICU leading upto the death was 48 hours in 35 (31.25%) cases followed by 31 (27.67%) cases in 24 hours; 24 (21.42%) in one week and 16 (14.28%) in 72 hours. Only 6 (5.35%) patients survived more than a week. Patients were received from almost all the districts of NWFP except. The Hazara division. There were some Afghan refugees as well. Conclusion: Mortality following the head injuries is alarmingly high despite repeated claims about the professional and administrative improvement. Even places like ICU could not change the out come according to the desired aims and objectives in the present set up. A rethinking is needed both at the individual and institutional level among the concerned quarters with a clear aim at the more scientific grounds. Only then one can achieve the desired results.

Keywords: Glasgow Coma Scale, pediatrics, geriatrics, Peshawar

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Authors: Dercan Gencbas, Hatice Bebis, Sue Moorhead

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In the nursing process, many of the nursing classification systems were created to be used in international. From these, NANDA-I, Nursing Outcomes Classification (NOC) and Nursing Interventions Classification (NIC). In this direction, the main objective of this study is to establish a model for caregivers in hospitals and communities in Turkey and to ensure that nursing outputs are assessed by NOC-based measures. There are many scales to measure Urinary Incontinence (UI), which is very common in children, in old age, vaginal birth, NOC scales are ideal for use in the nursing process for comprehensive and holistic assessment, with surveys available. For this reason, the purpose of this study is to evaluate the validity of the NOC outputs and indicators used for UI NANDA-I. This research is a methodological study. In addition to the validity of scale indicators in the study, how much they will contribute to recovery after the nursing intervention was assessed by experts. Scope validations have been applied and calculated according to Fehring 1987 work model. According to this, nursing inclusion criteria and scores were determined. For example, if experts have at least four years of clinical experience, their score was 4 points or have at least one year of the nursing classification system, their score was 1 point. The experts were a publication experience about nursing classification, their score was 1 point, or have a doctoral degree in nursing, their score was 2 points. If the expert has a master degree, their score was 1 point. Total of 55 experts rated Fehring as a “senior degree” with a score of 90 according to the expert scoring. The nursing interventions to be applied were asked to what extent these indicators would contribute to recovery. For coverage validity tailored to Fehring's model, each NOC and NOC indicator from specialists was asked to score between 1-5. Score for the significance of indicators was from 1=no precaution to 5=very important. After the expert opinion, these weighted scores obtained for each NOC and NOC indicator were classified as 0.8 critical, 0.8 > 0.5 complements, > 0.5 are excluded. In the NANDA-I / NOC / NIC system (guideline), 5 NOCs proposed for nursing diagnoses for UI were proposed. These outputs are; Urinary Continence, Urinary Elimination, Tissue Integrity, Self CareToileting, Medication Response. After the scales are translated into Turkish, the weighted average of the scores obtained from specialists for the coverage of all 5 NOCs and the contribution of nursing initiatives exceeded 0.8. After the opinions of the experts, 79 of the 82 indicators were calculated as critical, 3 of the indicators were calculated as supplemental. Because of 0.5 > was not obtained, no substance was removed. All NOC outputs were identified as valid and usable scales in Turkey. In this study, five NOC outcomes were verified for the evaluation of the output of individuals who have received nursing knowledge of UI and variant types. Nurses in Turkey can benefit from the outputs of the NOC scale to perform the care of the elderly incontinence.

Keywords: nursing outcomes, content validity, nursing diagnosis, urinary incontinence

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Authors: Chethana V. Casiker, Jagadishakumara B., Sunil G. M., Chaithra K., M. Soubadra Devy

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A majority of the world’s food crops depends on insects for pollination, among which bees are the most dominant taxon. Bees pollinate vegetables, fruits and oilseeds which are rich in essential micronutrients. Besides being a prerequisite for a nutritionally secure diet, agrarian economies such as India depend heavily on pollination for good yield and quality of the product. As cities all over the world expand rapidly, large tracts of green spaces are being built up. This, along with high usage of agricultural chemicals has reduced floral diversity and shrunk bee habitats. Indeed, pollinator decline is being reported from various parts of the world. Further, the FAO has reported a huge increase in the area of land under cultivation of pollinator-dependent crops. In the light of increasing demand for pollination and disappearing natural habitats, it is critical to understand whether and how urban spaces can support pollinators. To this end, this study investigates the influence of landscape and local habitat quality on bee community dynamics. To capture the dynamics of expanding cityscapes, the study employs a space for time substitution, wherein a transect along the gradient of urbanization substitutes a timeframe of increasing urbanization. This will help understand how pollinators would respond to changes induced by increasing intensity of urbanization in the future. Bengaluru, one of the fastest growing cities of Southern India, is an excellent site to study impacts associated with urbanization. With sites moving away from the Bengaluru’s centre and towards its peripheries, this study captures the changes in bee species diversity and richness along a gradient of urbanization. Bees were sampled under different land use types as well as in different types of vegetation, including plantations, croplands, fallow land, parks, lake embankments, and private gardens. The relationship between bee community metrics and key drivers such as a percentage of built-up area, land use practices, and floral resources was examined. Additionally, data collected using questionnaire interviews were used to understand people’s perceptions towards and level of dependence on pollinators. Our results showed that urban areas are capable of supporting bees. In fact, a greater diversity of bees was recorded in urban sites compared to adjoining rural areas. This suggests that bees are able to seek out patchy resources and survive in small fragments of habitat. Bee abundance and species richness correlated positively with floral abundance and richness, indicating the role of vegetation in providing forage and nesting sites which are crucial to their survival. Bee numbers were seen to decrease with increase in built-up area demonstrating that impervious surfaces could act as deterrents. Findings from this study challenge the popular notion of cities being biodiversity-bare spaces. There is indeed scope for conserving bees in urban landscapes, provided that there are city-scale planning and local initiative. Bee conservation can go hand in hand with efforts such as urban gardening and terrace farming that could help cities urbanize sustainably.

Keywords: bee, landscape ecology, urbanization, urban pollination

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Authors: Richard Byrne, Emma Mulliner

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Smart cities are a vision for the future that is increasingly becoming a reality. While a key concept of the smart city is the ability to capture, communicate, and process data that has long been produced through day-to-day activities of the city, much of the assessment models in place neglect this fact to focus on ‘smartness’ concepts. Although it is true technology often provides the opportunity to capture and communicate data in more effective ways, there are also human processes involved that are just as important. The growing importance with regards to the use and ownership of data in society can be seen by all with companies such as Facebook and Google increasingly coming under the microscope, however, why is the same scrutiny not applied to cities? The research area is therefore of great importance to the future of our cities here and now, while the findings will be of just as great importance to our children in the future. This research aims to understand the influence data is having on organisations operating throughout the smart cities sector and employs a mixed-method research approach in order to best answer the following question: Would a data-based evaluation model for smart cities be more appropriate than a smart-based model in assessing the development of the smart city? A fully comprehensive literature review concluded that there was a requirement for a data-driven assessment model for smart cities. This was followed by a documentary analysis to understand the root source of data integration to the smart city. A content analysis of city data platforms enquired as to the alternative approaches employed by cities throughout the UK and draws on best practice from New York to compare and contrast. Grounded in theory, the research findings to this point formulated a qualitative analysis framework comprised of: the changing environment influenced by data, the value of data in the smart city, the data ecosystem of the smart city and organisational response to the data orientated environment. The framework was applied to analyse primary data collected through the form of interviews with both public and private organisations operating throughout the smart cities sector. The work to date represents the first stage of data collection that will be built upon by a quantitative research investigation into the feasibility of data network effects in the smart city. An analysis into the benefits of data interoperability supporting services to the smart city in the areas of health and transport will conclude the research to achieve the aim of inductively forming a framework that can be applied to future smart city policy. To conclude, the research recognises the influence of technological perspectives in the development of smart cities to date and highlights this as a challenge to introduce theory applied with a planning dimension. The primary researcher has utilised their experience working in the public sector throughout the investigation to reflect upon what is perceived as a gap in practice of where we are today, to where we need to be tomorrow.

Keywords: data, planning, policy development, smart cities

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Authors: Li Wang, Dan Shu, Shiguang Pang, Lixiu Wang, Bing Xiang Yang, Qian Liu

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Background: Cancer is one of the most severe diseases in childhood; long-term treatment and its side effects significantly impact the patient's physical, psychological, social functioning and quality of life while also placing substantial physical and psychological burdens on caregivers and families. Family resilience is crucial for children with cancer, helping them cope better with the disease and supporting the family in facing challenges together. As a family-level variable, family resilience requires information from multiple family members. However, to our best knowledge, there is currently no research investigating family resilience from both the perspectives of pediatric cancer patients and their caregivers. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the family resilience and quality of life of pediatric cancer patients from a patient–caregiver dyadic perspective. Methods: A total of 149 dyads of patients diagnosed with pediatric cancer patients and their principal caregivers were recruited from oncology departments of 4 tertiary hospitals in Wuhan and Taiyuan, China. All participants completed questionnaires that identified their demographic and clinical characteristics as well as assessed their family resilience and quality of life for both the patients and their caregivers. K-means cluster analysis was used to identify different clusters of family resilience based on the reports from patients and caregivers. Multivariate logistic regression and linear regression are used to analyze the factors influencing family resilience and quality of life, as well as the relationship between the two. Results: Three clusters of family resilience were identified: a cluster of high family resilience (HR), a cluster of low family resilience (LR), and a cluster of discrepant family resilience (DR). Most (67.1%) families fell into the cluster with low resilience. Characteristics such as the types of caregivers perceived social support of the patient were different among the three clusters. Compared to the LR group, families where the mother is the caregiver and where the patient has high social support are more likely to be assigned to the HR. The quality of life for caregivers was consistently highest in the HR cluster and lowest in the LR cluster. The patient's quality of life is not related to family resilience. In the linear regression analysis of the patient's quality of life, patients who are the first-born have higher quality of life, while those living with their parents have lower quality of life. The participants' characteristics were not associated with the quality of life for caregivers. Conclusions: In most families, family resilience was low. Families with maternal caregivers and patients receiving high levels of social support are more inclined to be higher levels of family resilience. Family resilience was linked to the quality of life of caregivers of pediatric cancer patients. The clinical implications of this findings suggest that healthcare and social support organizations should prioritize and support the participation of mothers in caregiving responsibilities. Furthermore, they should assist families in accessing social support to enhance family resilience. This study also emphasizes the importance of promoting family resilience for enhancing family health and happiness, as well as improving the quality of life for caregivers.

Keywords: pediatric cancer, cluster analysis, family resilience, quality of life

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Authors: Ma. Cecilia D. Licuan

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The pandemic situation continues to affect the lives of many people, including children with disabilities and their families, globally, especially in developing countries like the Philippines. The operations of health programs, industries, and economic sectors, as well as academic training institutions, are still challenged in terms of operations and delivery of services. The academic community of the Physical Therapy program is not spared by this circumstance. The restriction posted by the quarantine policies nearly terminated the onsite delivery of training programs for the senior internship level, which challenged the academic institutions to implement flexible learning programs to ensure the continuity of the instructional and learning processes with full consideration of safety and compliance to health protocols. This study aimed to develop a benchmark model that can be used by tertiary-level health institutions in the implementation of the Pediatric Senior Clinical Internship Training Program using Telerehabilitation. It is a descriptive-qualitative paper that utilized documentary analysis and focused on explaining the design, development, and implementation processes used by De La Salle Medical and Health Sciences Institute – College of Rehabilitation Sciences (DLSMHSI-CRS) Physical Therapy Department in its Pediatric Cluster Senior Clinical Internship Training Program covering the pandemic years spanning from the academic year 2020- 2021 to present anchored on needs analysis based on documentary reviews. Results of the study yielded the determination of the Pediatric Telerehabilitation Model; declaration of developed training program outcomes and thrusts and content; explanation of the process integral to the training program’s pedagogy in implementation; and the evaluation procedures conducted for the program. Since the study did not involve human participants, ethical considerations on the use of documents for review were done upon the endorsement of the management of the DLSMHSI-CRS to conduct the study. This paper presents the big picture of how a tertiary-level health sciences institution in the Philippines embraced the senior clinical internship challenges through the operations of its telerehabilitation program. It specifically presents the design, development and implementation processes used by De La Salle Medical and Health Sciences Institute – College of Rehabilitation Sciences Physical Therapy Department in its Pediatric Cluster Senior Clinical Internship Training Program, which can serve as a benchmark model for other institutions as they continue to serve their stakeholders amidst the pandemic.

Keywords: pediatric physical therapy, telerehabilitation, clinical internship, pandemic

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Authors: Prajakta Khare

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There is a huge number of social enterprises operating in India, across all enterprise sizes and forms addressing diverse social issues. Some cases such as such as Aravind eye care, Narayana Hridalaya, SEWA have been studied extensively in management literature and are known cases in social entrepreneurship. But there are several smaller social enterprises in India that are not called so per se due to the lack of understanding of the concept. There is a lack of academic research on social entrepreneurship in India and the term ‘social entrepreneurship’ is not yet widely known in the country, even by people working in this field as was found by this study. The present study aims to identify the most prominent form of social enterprises in India, the profile of the entrepreneurs, challenges faced, the lessons (theory and practices) emerging from their functioning and finally the factors contributing to the enterprises’ success. This is a preliminary exploratory study using primary data from 30 social enterprises in India. The study used snow ball sampling and a qualitative analysis. Data was collected from founders of social enterprises through written structured questionnaires, open-ended interviews and field visits to enterprises. The sample covered enterprises across sectors such as environment, affordable education, children’s rights, rain water harvesting, women empowerment etc. The interview questions focused on founder’s background and motivation, qualifications, funding, challenges, founder’s understanding and perspectives on social entrepreneurship, government support, linkages with other organizations etc. apart from several others. The interviews were conducted across 3 languages - Hindi, Marathi, English and were then translated and transcribed. 50% of founders were women and 65% of the total founders were highly qualified with a MBA, PhD or MBBS. The most important challenge faced by these entrepreneurs is recruiting skilled people. When asked about their understanding of the term, founders had diverse perspectives. Also, their understandings about the term social enterprise and social entrepreneur were extremely varied. Some founders identified the terms with doing something good for the society, some thought that every business can be called a social enterprise. 35% of the founders were not aware of the term social entrepreneur/ social entrepreneurship. They said that they could identify themselves as social entrepreneurs after discussions with the researcher. The general perception in India is that ‘NGOs are corrupt’- fighting against this perception to secure funds is also another problem as pointed out by some founders. There are unique challenges that social entrepreneurs in India face, as the political, social, economic environment around them is rapidly changing; and getting adequate support from the government is a problem. The research in its subsequent stages aims to clarify existing, missing and new definitions of the term to provide deeper insights in the terminology and issues relating to Social Entrepreneurship in India.

Keywords: challenges, India, social entrepreneurship, social entrepreneurs

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Authors: Shashi Mehta, Krishan Kumar Yadav

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This paper presents an overview of issues pertaining to the conservation of the natural environment and factors affecting the coexistence of the forest, wildlife and people. As forests and wildlife together create the basis for economic, cultural and recreational spaces for overall well-being and life-support systems, the adverse impacts of increasing consumerism are only too evident. The IUCN predicts extinction of 41% of all amphibians and 26% of mammals. The major causes behind this threatened extinction are Deforestation, Dysfunctional governance, Climate Change, Pollution and Cataclysmic phenomena. Thus the intrinsic relationship between natural resources and wildlife needs to be understood in totality, not only for the eco-system but for humanity at large. To demonstrate this, forest areas in the Aravalis- the oldest mountain ranges of Asia—falling in the States of Haryana and Rajasthan, have been taken up for study. The Aravalis are characterized by extreme climatic conditions and dry deciduous forest cover on intermittent scattered hills. Extending across the districts of Gurgaon, Faridabad, Mewat, Mahendergarh, Rewari and Bhiwani, these ranges - with village common land on which the entire economy of the rural settlements depends - fall in the state of Haryana. Aravali ranges with diverse fauna and flora near Alwar town of state of Rajasthan also form part of NCR. Once, rich in biodiversity, the Aravalis played an important role in the sustainable co-existence of forest and people. However, with the advent of industrialization and unregulated urbanization, these ranges are facing deforestation, degradation and denudation. The causes are twofold, i.e. the need of the poor and the greed of the rich. People living in and around the Aravalis are mainly poor and eke out a living by rearing live-stock. With shrinking commons, they depend entirely upon these hills for grazing, fuel, NTFP, medicinal plants and even drinking water. But at the same time, the pressure of indiscriminate urbanization and industrialization in these hills fulfils the demands of the rich and powerful in collusion with Government agencies. The functionaries of federal and State Governments play largely a negative role supporting commercial interests. Additionally, planting of a non- indigenous species like prosopis juliflora across the ranges has resulted in the extinction of almost all the indigenous species. The wildlife in the area is also threatened because of the lack of safe corridors and suitable habitat. In this scenario, the participatory role of different stakeholders such as NGOs, civil society and local community in the management of forests becomes crucial not only for conservation but also for the economic wellbeing of the local people. Exclusion of villagers from protection and conservation efforts - be it designing, implementing or monitoring and evaluating could prove counterproductive. A strategy needs to be evolved, wherein Government agencies be made responsible by putting relevant legislation in place along with nurturing and promoting the traditional wisdom and ethics of local communities in the protection and conservation of forests and wild life in the Aravali ranges of States of Haryana and Rajasthan of the National Capital Region, Delhi.

Keywords: deforestation, ecosystem, governance, urbanization

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Authors: Asrarul H. Jeelani

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Arsenic contamination of groundwater and its’ health implications in lower Gangetic plain of Indian states started reporting in the 1980s. The same period was declared as the first water decade (1981-1990) to achieve ‘water for all.’ To fulfill the aim, the Indian government, with the support of international agencies installed millions of hand-pumps through water resources development programs. The hand-pumps improve the accessibility if the groundwater, but over-extraction of it increases the chances of mixing of trivalent arsenic which is more toxic than pentavalent arsenic of dug well water in Gangetic plain and has different physical manifestations. Now after three decades, Bihar (middle Gangetic plain) is also facing arsenic contamination of groundwater and its’ health implications. Objective: This interdisciplinary research attempts to understand the health and social implications of arsenicosis among different castes in Haldi Chhapra village and to find the association of ramifications with water resources development. Methodology: The Study used concurrent quantitative dominant mix method (QUAN+qual). The researcher had employed household survey, social mapping, interviews, and participatory interactions. However, the researcher used secondary data for retrospective analysis of hand-pumps and implications of arsenicosis. Findings: The study found 88.5% (115) household have hand-pumps as a source of water however 13.8% uses purified supplied water bottle and 3.6% uses combinations of hand-pump, bottled water and dug well water for drinking purposes. Among the population, 3.65% of individuals have arsenicosis, and 2.72% of children between the age group of 5 to 15 years are affected. The caste variable has also emerged through quantitative as well as geophysical locations analysis as 5.44% of arsenicosis manifested individual belong to scheduled caste (SC), 3.89% to extremely backward caste (EBC), 2.57% to backward caste (BC) and 3% to other. Among three clusters of arsenic poisoned locations, two belong to SC and EBC. The village as arsenic affected is being discriminated, whereas the affected individual is also facing discrimination, isolation, stigma, and problem in getting married. The forceful intervention to install hand-pumps in the first water decades and later restructuring of the dug well destroyed a conventional method of dug well cleaning. Conclusion: The common manifestation of arsenicosis has increased by 1.3% within six years of span in the village. This raised the need for setting up a proper surveillance system in the village. It is imperative to consider the social structure for arsenic mitigation program as this research reveals caste as a significant factor. The health and social implications found in the study; retrospectively analyzed as the collateral impact of water resource development programs in the village.

Keywords: arsenicosis, caste, collateral impact, water resources

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Authors: Qiang Guo, Ruying Qi

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This project aims to trace the developmental patterns of a child's Mandarin and English from China to Australia from age 3; 03 till 5; 06. In childhood bilingual studies, there is an assumption that age 3 is the dividing line between simultaneous bilinguals and sequential bilinguals. Determining similarities and differences between Bilingual First Language Acquisition, Early Second Language Acquisition, and Second Language Acquisition is of great theoretical significance. Studies on Bilingual First Language Acquisition, hereafter, BFLA in the past three decades have shown that the grammatical development of bilingual children progresses through the same developmental trajectories as their monolingual counterparts. Cross-linguistic interaction does not show changes of the basic grammatical knowledge, even in the weaker language. While BFLA studies show consistent results under the conditions of adequate input and meaningful interactional context, the research findings of Early Second Language Acquisition (ESLA) have demonstrated that this cohort proceeds their early English differently from both BFLA and SLA. The different development could be attributed to the age of migration, input pattern, and their Environmental Languages (Lε). In the meantime, the dynamic relationship between the two languages is an issue to invite further attention. The present study attempts to fill this gap. The child in this case study started acquiring L1 Mandarin from birth in China, where the environmental language (Lε) coincided with L1 Mandarin. When she migrated to Australia at 3;06, where the environmental language (Lε) was L2 English, her Mandarin exposure was reduced. On the other hand, she received limited English input starting from 1; 02 in China, where the environmental language (Lε) was L1 Mandarin, a non-English environment. When she relocated to Australia at 3; 06, where the environmental language (Lε) coincided with L2 English, her English exposure significantly increased. The child’s linguistic profile provides an opportunity to explore: (1) What does the child’s English developmental route look like? (2) What does the L1 Mandarin developmental pattern look like in different environmental languages? (3) How do input and environmental language interact in shaping the bilingual child’s linguistic repertoire? In order to answer these questions, two linguistic areas are selected as the focus of the investigation, namely, subject realization and wh-questions. The chosen areas are contrastive in structure but perform the same semantic functions in the two linguistically distant languages and can serve as an ideal testing ground for exploring the developmental path in the two languages. The longitudinal case study adopts a combined approach of qualitative and quantitative analysis. Two years’ Mandarin and English data are examined, and comparisons are made with age-matched monolinguals in each language in CHILDES. To the author’s best knowledge, this study is the first of this kind examining a Mandarin-English bilingual child's bilingual development at a critical age, in different input patterns, and in different environmental languages (Lε). It also expands the scope of the theory of Lε, adding empirical evidence on the relationship between input and Lε in bilingual acquisition.

Keywords: bilingual development, age, input, environmental language (Le)

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Authors: Azyz Sharafy

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3D Text Toys is an innovative and creative approach that utilizes 3D text objects to enhance creativity, literacy, and basic learning in an enjoyable and gamified manner. By using 3D Text Toys, children can develop their creativity, visually learn words and texts, and apply their artistic talents within their creative abilities. This process incorporates haptic engagement with 2D and 3D texts, word building, and mechanical construction of everyday objects, thereby facilitating better word and text retention. The concept involves constructing visual objects made entirely out of 3D text/words, where each component of the object represents a word or text element. For instance, a bird can be recreated using words or text shaped like its wings, beak, legs, head, and body, resulting in a 3D representation of the bird purely composed of text. This can serve as an art piece or a learning tool in the form of a 3D text toy. These 3D text objects or toys can be crafted using natural materials such as leaves, twigs, strings, or ropes, or they can be made from various physical materials using traditional crafting tools. Digital versions of these objects can be created using 2D or 3D software on devices like phones, laptops, iPads, or computers. To transform digital designs into physical objects, computerized machines such as CNC routers, laser cutters, and 3D printers can be utilized. Once the parts are printed or cut out, students can assemble the 3D texts by gluing them together, resulting in natural or everyday 3D text objects. These objects can be painted to create artistic pieces or text toys, and the addition of wheels can transform them into moving toys. One of the significant advantages of this visual and creative object-based learning process is that students not only learn words but also derive enjoyment from the process of creating, painting, and playing with these objects. The ownership and creation process further enhances comprehension and word retention. Moreover, for individuals with learning disabilities such as dyslexia, ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder), or other learning difficulties, the visual and haptic approach of 3D Text Toys can serve as an additional creative and personalized learning aid. The application of 3D Text Toys extends to both the English language and any other global written language. The adaptation and creative application may vary depending on the country, space, and native written language. Furthermore, the implementation of this visual and haptic learning tool can be tailored to teach foreign languages based on age level and comprehension requirements. In summary, this creative, haptic, and visual approach has the potential to serve as a global literacy tool.

Keywords: 3D text toys, creative, artistic, visual learning for world literacy

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Authors: Paola Molteni, Luigi d’Alonzo

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Background: Sensory issues are now considered one of the key aspects in defining and diagnosing autism, changing the perspectives on behavioural analysis and intervention in mainstream educational services. However, Italian teachers’ training is yet not specific on the topic of autism and its sensory-related effects and this research investigates the teacher’s capability in understanding the student’s needs and his/her challenging behaviours considering sensory perceptions. Objectives: The research aims to analyse mainstream schools teachers’ awareness on students’ sensory perceptions and how this affects classroom inclusion and learning process. The research questions are: i) Are teachers able to identify student’s sensory issues?; ii) Are trained teachers more able to identify sensory problems then untrained ones?; iii) What is the impact of sensory issues on inclusion in mainstream classrooms?; iv) What should teachers know about autistic sensory dimensions? Methods: This research was designed as a pilot study that involves a multi-methods approach, including action and collaborative research methodology. The designed research allows the researcher to catch the complexity of a province school district (from kindergarten to high school) through a deep detailed analysis of selected aspects. The researcher explored the questions described above through 133 questionnaires and 6 focus groups. The qualitative and quantitative data collected during the research were analysed using the Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). Results: Mainstream schools teachers are not able to confidently recognise sensory issues of children included in the classroom. The research underlines: how professionals with no specific training on autism are not able to recognise sensory problems in students on the spectrum; how hearing and sight issues have higher impact on classroom inclusion and student’s learning process; how a lack of understanding is often followed by misinterpretations of the impact of sensory issues and challenging behaviours. Conclusions: As this research has shown, promoting and enhancing the importance of understanding sensory issues related to autism is fundamental to enable mainstream schools teachers to define educational and life-long plans able to properly answer the student’s needs and support his/her real inclusion in the classroom. This study is a good example of how the educational research can meet and help the daily practice in working with people on the autism spectrum and support the training design for mainstream school teachers: the emerging need of designed preparation on sensory issues is fundamental to be considered when planning school district in-service training programmes, specifically declined for inclusive services.

Keywords: autism spectrum condition, scholastic inclusion, sensory overload, teacher's training

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Authors: Abha Gupta, Deepak K. Mishra

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The focus of food security studies in India has been on the adequacy of calories and its linkage with poverty level. India currently being undergoing a massive demographic and epidemiological transition has demonstrated a decline in average physical activity with improved mechanization and urbanization. Food consumption pattern is also changing with decreasing intake of coarse cereals and a marginal increase in the consumption of fruits, vegetables and meat products resulting into a nutrition transition in the country. However, deficiency of essential micronutrients such as vitamins and minerals is rampant despite their growing importance in fighting back with lifestyle and other modern diseases. The calorie driven studies can hardly tackle the complex problem of malnutrition. This paper fills these research lacuna and analyses mean intake of different major and micro-nutrients among different socio-economic groups and adequacy of these nutrients from recommended dietary allowance. For the purpose, a cross-sectional survey covering 304 households selected through proportional stratified random sampling was conducted in six villages of Aligarh district of the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Data on quantity consumed of 74 food items grouped into 10 food categories with a recall period of seven days was collected from the households and converted into energy, protein, fat, carbohydrate, calcium, iron, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin and vitamin C using standard guidelines of National Institute of Nutrition. These converted nutrients were compared with recommended norms given by National Nutrition Monitoring Bureau. Per capita nutrient adequacy was calculated by dividing mean nutrient intake by the household size and then by comparing it with recommended norm. Findings demonstrate that source of both macro and micro-nutrients are mainly cereals followed by milk, edible oil and sugar items. Share of meat in providing essential nutrients is very low due to vegetarian diet. Vegetables, pulses, nuts, fruits and dry fruits are a poor source for most of the nutrients. Further analysis evinces that intake of most of the nutrients is higher than the recommended norm. Riboflavin is the only vitamin whose intake is less than the standard norm. Poor group, labour, small farmers, Muslims, scheduled caste demonstrate comparatively lower intake of all nutrients than their counterpart groups, though, they get enough macro and micro-nutrients significantly higher than the norm. One of the major reasons for higher intake of most of the nutrients across all socio-economic groups is higher consumption of monotonous diet based on cereals and milk. Most of the nutrients get their major share from cereals particularly wheat and milk intake. It can be concluded from the analysis that although there is adequate intake of most of the nutrients in the diet of rural population yet their source is mainly cereals and milk products depicting a monotonous diet. Hence, more efforts are needed to diversify the diet by giving more focus to the production of other food items particularly fruits, vegetables and pulse products. Awareness among the population, more accessibility and incorporating food items other than cereals in government social safety programmes are other measures to improve food security in India.

Keywords: hidden hunger, India, nutrients, recommended norm

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Authors: Natalia Hordynska, Magdalena Szechynska-Hebda, Miroslaw Sobczak, Elzbieta Rozanska, Joanna Troczynska, Zofia Banaszak, Maria Wedzony

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Albinism is a common problem encountered in wheat and triticale breeding programs, which require in vitro culture steps e.g. generation of doubled haploids via androgenesis process. Genetic factor is a major determinant of albinism, however, environmental conditions such as temperature and media composition influence the frequency of albino plant formation. Cold incubation of wheat and triticale spikes induced a switch from gametophytic to sporophytic development. Further, androgenic structures formed from anthers of the genotypes susceptible to androgenesis or treated with cold stress, had a pool of structurally primitive plastids, with small starch granules or swollen thylakoids. High temperature was a factor inducing andro-genesis of wheat and triticale, but at the same time, it was a factor favoring the formation of albino plants. In genotypes susceptible to albinism or after heat stress conditions, cells formed from anthers were vacuolated, and plastids were eliminated. Partial or complete loss of chlorophyll pigments and incomplete differentiation of chloroplast membranes result in formation of tissues or whole plant unable to perform photosynthesis. Indeed, susceptibility to the andro-genesis process was associated with an increase of total concentration of photosynthetic pigments in anthers, spikes and regenerated plants. The proper balance of the synthesis of various pigments, was the starting point for their proper incorporation into photosynthetic membranes. In contrast, genotypes resistant to the androgenesis process and those treated with heat, contained 100 times lower content of photosynthetic pigments. In particular, the synthesis of violaxanthin, zeaxanthin, lutein and chlorophyll b was limited. Furthermore, deregulation of starch and lipids synthesis, which led to the formation of very complex starch granules and an increased number of oleosomes, respectively, correlated with the reduction of the efficiency of androgenesis. The content of other sugars varied depending on the genotype and the type of stress. The highest content of various sugars was found for genotypes susceptible to andro-genesis, and highly reduced for genotypes resistant to androgenesis. The most important sugars seem to be glucose and fructose. They are involved in sugar sensing and signaling pathways, which affect the expression of various genes and regulate plant development. Sucrose, on the other hand, seems to have minor effect at each stage of the androgenesis. The sugar metabolism was related to metabolic activity of microspores. The genotypes susceptible to androgenesis process had much faster mitochondrium- and chloroplast-dependent energy conversion and higher heat production by tissues. Thus, the effectiveness of metabolic processes, their balance and the flexibility under the stress was a factor determining the direction of microspore development, and in the later stages of the androgenesis process, a factor supporting the induction of androgenic structures, chloroplast formation and the regeneration of green plants. The work was financed by Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development within Program: ‘Biological Progress in Plant Production’, project no HOR.hn.802.15.2018.

Keywords: androgenesis, chloroplast, metabolism, temperature stress

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Authors: Hari K. Adhikari, Keshab Sharma, K. C. Apil

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The Gorkha Nepal earthquake of moment magnitude (Mw) 7.8 hit the central region of Nepal on April 25, 2015; with the epicenter about 77 km northwest of Kathmandu Valley. This paper aims to explore challenges of reconstruction in the rural earthquake-stricken areas of Nepal. The Gorkha earthquake on April 25, 2015, has significantly affected the livelihood of people and overall economy in Nepal, causing severe damage and destruction in central Nepal including nation’s capital. A larger part of the earthquake affected area is difficult to access with rugged terrain and scattered settlements, which posed unique challenges and efforts on a massive scale reconstruction and rehabilitation. 800 thousand buildings were affected leaving 8 million people homeless. Challenge of reconstruction of optimum 800 thousand houses is arduous for Nepal in the background of its turmoil political scenario and weak governance. With significant actors involved in the reconstruction process, no appreciable relief has reached to the ground, which is reflected over the frustration of affected people. The 2015 Gorkha earthquake is one of most devastating disasters in the modern history of Nepal. Best of our knowledge, there is no comprehensive study on reconstruction after disasters in modern Nepal, which integrates the necessary information to deal with challenges and opportunities of reconstructions. The study was conducted using qualitative content analysis method. Thirty engineers and ten social mobilizes working for reconstruction and more than hundreds local social workers, local party leaders, and earthquake victims were selected arbitrarily. Information was collected through semi-structured interviews and open-ended questions, focus group discussions, and field notes, with no previous assumption. Author also reviewed literature and document reviews covering academic and practitioner studies on challenges of reconstruction after earthquake in developing countries such as 2001 Gujarat earthquake, 2005 Kashmir earthquake, 2003 Bam earthquake and 2010 Haiti earthquake; which have very similar building typologies, economic, political, geographical, and geological conditions with Nepal. Secondary data was collected from reports, action plans, and reflection papers of governmental entities, non-governmental organizations, private sector businesses, and the online news. This study concludes that inaccessibility, absence of local government, weak governance, weak infrastructures, lack of preparedness, knowledge gap and manpower shortage, etc. are the key challenges of the reconstruction after 2015 earthquake in Nepal. After scrutinizing different challenges and issues, study counsels that good governance, integrated information, addressing technical issues, public participation along with short term and long term strategies to tackle with technical issues are some crucial factors for timely and quality reconstruction in context of Nepal. Sample collected for this study is relatively small sample size and may not be fully representative of the stakeholders involved in reconstruction. However, the key findings of this study are ones that need to be recognized by academics, governments, and implementation agencies, and considered in the implementation of post-disaster reconstruction program in developing countries.

Keywords: Gorkha earthquake, reconstruction, challenges, policy

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Authors: Louise Reyntjens

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In response to Islamic-inspired terrorism and the growing trend of foreign fighters, European governments are increasingly relying on the deprivation of citizenship as a security tool. This development fits within a broader securitization of immigration, where the terrorist threat is perceived as emanating from abroad. As a result, immigration law became more and more ‘securitized’. The European migration crisis has reinforced this trend. This research evaluates the deprivation of citizenship from a human rights perspective. For this, the author selected four European countries for a comparative study: Belgium, France, the United Kingdom and Sweden. All these countries face similar social and security issues, vitalizing (the debate on) deprivation of citizenship as a counterterrorism tool. Yet, they adopt a very different approach on this: The United Kingdom positions itself on the repressive side of the spectrum. Sweden on the other hand, also ‘securitized’ its immigration policy after the recent terrorist hit in Stockholm but remains on the tolerant side of the spectrum. Belgium and France are situated in between. This contribution evaluates the deprivation of citizenship in Belgium. Belgian law has provided the possibility to strip someone of their Belgian citizenship since 1919. However, the provision long remained a dead letter. The 2015 Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris sparked a series of legislative changes, elevating the deprivation measure to a key security tool in Belgian law. Yet, the measure raises profound human rights issues. Firstly, it infringes the right to private and family life. As provided by Article 8 (2) European Court of Human Right (ECHR), this right can be limited if necessary for national security and public safety. Serious questions can however be raised about the necessity for the national security of depriving an individual of its citizenship. Behavior giving rise to this measure will generally be governed by criminal law. From a security perspective, criminal detention will thus already provide in removing the individual from society. Moreover, simply stripping an individual of its citizenship and deporting them constitutes a failure of criminal law’s responsibility to prosecute criminal behavior. Deprivation of citizenship is also discriminatory, because it differentiates, without a legitimate reason, between those liable to deprivation and those who are not. It thereby installs a secondary class of citizens, violating the European Court of Human Right’s principle that no distinction can be tolerated between children on the basis of the status of their parents. If followed by expulsion, deprivation also seriously jeopardizes the right to life and prohibition of torture. This contribution explores the human rights consequences of citizenship deprivation as a security tool in Belgium. It also offers a critical view on its efficacy for protecting national security.

Keywords: Belgium, counterterrorism strategies, deprivation of citizenship, human rights, immigration law

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Authors: Kadidiatou Toure

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Mali has started experimentation of teaching the national languages at school through the convergent pedagogy in 1987. Then, it is in 1994 that it will become widespread with eleven of the thirteen former national languages used at primary school. The aim was to improve the Malian educational system because the use of French as the only medium of instruction was considered a contributing factor to the significant number of student dropouts and the high rate of repetition. The Convergent pedagogy highlights the knowledge acquired by children at home, their vision of the world and especially the knowledge they have of their mother tongue. That pedagogy requires the use of a specific medium only during classroom practices and teachers have been trained in this sense. The specific medium depends on the learning content, which sometimes is French, other times, it is the national language. Research has shown that bilingual learners do not only use the required medium in their learning activities, but they code switch. It is part of their learning processes. Currently, many scholars agree on the importance of CS in bilingual classes, and teachers have been told about the necessity of integrating it into their classroom practices. One of the challenges of the Malian bilingual education curriculum is the question of ‘effective languages management’. Theoretically, depending on the classrooms, an average have been established for each of the involved language. Following that, teachers make use of CS differently, sometimes, it favors the learners, other times, it contributes to the development of some linguistic weaknesses. The present research tries to fill that gap through a tentative model of didactization of CS, which simply means the practical management of the languages involved in the bilingual classrooms. It is to know how to use CS for effective learning. Moreover, the didactization of CS tends to sensitize the teachers about the functional role of CS so that they may overcome their own weaknesses. The overall goal of this research is to make code switching a real tool for bilingual education. The specific objectives are: to identify the types of CS used during classroom activities to present the functional role of CS for the teachers as well as the pupils. to develop a tentative model of code-switching, which will help the teachers in transitional classes of bilingual schools to recognize the appropriate moment for making use of code switching in their classrooms. The methodology adopted is a qualitative one. The study is based on recorded videos of teachers of 3rd year of primary school during their classroom activities and interviews with the teachers in order to confirm the functional role of CS in bilingual classes. The theoretical framework adopted is the typology of CS proposed by Poplack (1980) to identify the types of CS used. The study reveals that teachers need to be trained on the types of CS and the different functions they assume and on the consequences of inappropriate use of language alternation.

Keywords: bilingual curriculum, code switching, didactization, national languages

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Authors: Güler Duru Aşiret

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Introduction: Poor sleep quality is a common problem among the older people living in nursing homes. Our study aimed at assessing the effect of individual reminiscence therapy on the sleep quality of the elderly living in nursing homes. Methods: The study had 22 people in the intervention group and 24 people in the control group. The intervention group had reminiscence therapy once a week for 12 weeks in the form of individual sessions of 25-30 minutes. In our study, we first determined the dates suitable for the intervention group and researcher and planned the date and time of individual reminiscence therapies, which would take 12 weeks. While preparing this schedule, we considered subjects’ time schedules for their regular visits to health facilities and the arrival of their visitors. At this stage, the researcher informed the participants that their regular attendance in sessions would affect the intervention outcome. One topic was discussed every week. Weekly topics included: introduction in the first week; childhood and family life, school days, starting work and work life (a day at home for housewives), a fun day out of home, marriage (friendship for the singles), plants and animals they loved, babies and children, food and cooking, holidays and travelling, special days and celebrations, assessment and closure, in the following weeks respectively. The control group had no intervention. Study data was collected by using an introductory information form and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Results: In our study, participants’ average age was 76.02 ± 7.31. 58.7% of them were male and 84.8% were single. All of them had at least one chronic disease. 76.1% did not need help for performing their daily life activities. The length of stay in the institution was 6.32 ± 3.85 years. According to the participants’ descriptive characteristics, there was no difference between groups. While there was no statistically significant difference between the pretest PSQI median scores (p > 0.05) of both groups, PSQI median score had a statistically significant decrease after 12 weeks of reminiscence therapy (p < 0.05). There was no statistically significant change in the median scores of the subcomponents of sleep latency, sleep duration, sleep efficiency, sleep disturbance and use of sleep medication before and after reminiscence therapy. After the 12-weeks reminiscence therapy, there was a statistically significant change in the median scores for the PSQI subcomponents of subjective sleep quality (p<0.05). Conclusion: Our study found that reminiscence therapy increased the sleep quality of the elderly living in nursing homes. Acknowledgment: This study (project no 2017-037) was supported by the Scientific Research Projects Coordination Unit of Aksaray University. We thank the elderly subjects for their kind participation.

Keywords: nursing, older people, reminiscence therapy, sleep

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Authors: Nicola G. G. Cecca

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In Italian IPSSEOAs, high schools that give a vocational education to students that will work in the field of Enogastronomy and Hotel Management, the course of Food Science allows the students to start and see food as a mixture of substances that they will transform during their profession. These substances are characterized not only by a chemical composition but also by a molecular structure that makes them nutritionally active. But the increasing number of new products proposed by Food Industry, the modern techniques of production and transformation, the innovative preparations required by customers have made many information reported in the most wide spread Food Science textbooks not up-to-date or too poor for the people who will work in catering sector. Often Authors offer information aged to Bohr’s Atomic Model and to the ‘Octet Rule’ proposed by G.N. Lewis to describe the Chemical Bond, without giving any reference to new as Orbital Atomic Model and Molecular Orbital Theory that, in the meantime, start to be old themselves. Furthermore, this antiquated information precludes an easy understanding of a wide range of properties of nutritive substances and many reactions in which the food constituents are involved. In this paper, our attention is pointed out to use GEOMAG™ to represent the dynamics with which the chemical bond is formed during the synthesis of the molecules. GEOMAG™ is a toy, produced by the Swiss Company Geomagword S.A., pointed to stimulate in children, aged between 6-10 years, their fantasy and their handling ability and constituted by metallic spheres and metallic magnetic bars coated by coloured plastic materials. The simulation carried out with GEOMAG™ is based on the similitude existing between the Coulomb’s force and the magnetic attraction’s force and in particular between the formulae with which they are calculated. The electrostatic force (F in Newton) that allows the formation of the chemical bond can be calculated by mean Fc = kc q1 q2/d2 where: q1 e q2 are the charge of particles [in Coulomb], d is the distance between the particles [in meters] and kc is the Coulomb’s constant. It is surprising to observe that the attraction’s force (Fm) acting between the magnetic extremities of GEOMAG™ used to simulate the chemical bond can be calculated in the same way by using the formula Fm = km m1 m2/d2 where: m1 e m2 represent the strength of the poles [A•m], d is the distance between the particles [m], km = μ/4π in which μ is the magnetic permeability of medium [N•A-2]. The magnetic attraction can be tested by students by trying to keep the magnetic elements of GEOMAG™ separate by hands or trying to measure by mean an appropriate dynamometric system. Furthermore, by using a dynamometric system to measure the magnetic attraction between the GEOMAG™ elements is possible draw a graphic F=f(d) to verify that the curve obtained during the simulation is very similar to that one hypnotized, around the 1920’s by Linus Pauling to describe the formation of H2+ in according with Molecular Orbital Theory.

Keywords: chemical bond, molecular orbital theory, magnetic attraction force, GEOMAG™

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Authors: Jonathan Nii Laryea Ashong, Samuel Opare

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Current sustainable cities debate focuses on the formidable problems for the Ghana’s largest urban and rural agglomerations, the majority of all urban dwellers continue to reside in far smaller urban settlements. It is estimated that by year 2030, almost all the Ghana’s population growth will likely be intense in urban areas including Nkawkaw in the Kwahu West Municipality of Ghana. Nkawkaw is situated on the road and former railway between Accra and Kumasi, and lies about halfway between these cities. It is also connected by road to Koforidua and Konongo. According to the 2013 census, Nkawkaw has a settlement population of 61,785. Many international agencies, government and private architectures’ are been asked to adequately recognize the naming of streets and property addressing system among the 170 districts across Ghana. The naming of streets and numbering of properties is to assist Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies to manage the processes for establishing coherent address system nationally. Street addressing in the Nkawkaw in the Kwahu West Municipality which makes it possible to identify the location of a parcel of land, public places or dwellings on the ground based on system of names and numbers, yet agreement on how to progress towards it remains elusive. Therefore, reliable and effective development control for proper street naming and property addressing systems are required. The Intelligent Addressing (IA) technology from the UK is being used to name streets and properties in Ghana. The intelligent addressing employs the technique of unique property Reference Number and the unique street reference number which would transform national security and other service providers’ ability to respond rapidly to distress calls. Where name change is warranted following the review of existing streets names, the Physical Planning Department (PPDs) shall, in consultation with the relevant traditional authorities and community leadership (or relevant major stakeholders), select a street name in accordance with the provisions of the policy and the processes outlined for street name change for new development. In the case of existing streets with no names, the respective PPDs shall, in consultation with the relevant traditional authorities and community leadership (or relevant major stakeholders), select a street name in accordance with the requirements set out in municipality. Naming of access ways proposed for new developments shall be done at the time of developing sector layouts (subdivision maps) for the designated areas. In the case of private gated developments, the developer shall submit the names of the access ways as part of the plan and other documentation forwarded to the Municipal District Assembly for approval. The names shall be reviewed first by the PPD to avoid duplication and to ensure conformity to the required standards before submission to the Assembly’s Statutory Planning Committee for approval. The Kwahu West Municipality is supposed to be self-sustaining, providing basic services to inhabitants as a result of proper planning layouts, street naming and property addressing system that prevail in the area. The implications of these future projections are discussed.

Keywords: Nkawkaw, Kwahu west municipality, street naming, property, addressing system

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Authors: Giovana Privatte Maciera, Jair Izaías Kappann

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Introduction: The violence against woman is a complex phenomenon that accompanies the woman throughout her life and is a result of a social, cultural, political and religious construction, based on the differences among the genders. Those differences are felt, mainly, because of the patriarchal system that is still present which just naturalize and legitimate the asymmetry of power. As consequence of the women’s lasting historical and collective effort for a legislation against the impunity of violence against women in the national scenery, it was ordained, in 2006, a law known as Maria da Penha. The law was created as a protective measure for women that were victims of violence and consequently for the punishment of the aggressor. Methodology: Analysis of police inquiries is established by the Police Station of Defense of the Woman of Assis city, by formal authorization of the justice, in the period of 2013 to 2015. For the evaluating of the results will be used the content analysis and the theoretical referential of Psychoanalysis. Results and Discussion: The final analysis of the inquiries demonstrated that the violence against women is reproduced by the society and the aggressor, in most cases it is a member of their own family, mainly the current or former-spouse. The most common kinds of aggression were: the threat bodily harm, and the physical violence, that normally happens accompanied by psychological violence, being the most painful for the victims. The biggest part of the aggressors was white, older than the victim, worker and had primary school. But, unlike the expected, the minority of the aggressors were users of alcohol and/or drugs and possessed children in common with the victim. There is a contrast among the number of victims who already admitted have suffered some type of violence earlier by the same aggressor and the number of victims who has registered the occurrence before. The aggressors often use the discourse of denial in their testimony or try to justify their act like the blame was of the victim. It is believed in the interaction of several factors that can influence the aggressor to commit the abuse, including psychological, personal and sociocultural factors. One hypothesis is that the aggressor has a violence history in the family origin. After the aggressor being judged, condemned or not, usually there is no rehabilitation plan or supervision that enable his change. Conclusions: It has noticed the importance of studying the aggressor’s characteristics and the reasons that took him to commit such violence, making possible the implementation of an appropriate treatment to prevent and reduce the aggressions, as well the creation of programs and actions that enable communication and understanding concerning the theme. This is because the recurrence is still high, since the punitive system is not enough and the law is still ineffective and inefficient in certain aspects and in its own functioning. It is perceived a compulsion in repeat so much for the victims as for the aggressors, because they end involving, almost always, in disturbed and violent relationships, with the relation of subordination-dominance as characteristic.

Keywords: aggressors' profile, gender equality, Maria da Penha law, violence against women

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Authors: Gergely Horvath

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The study analyzes the special provisions of the highest level of national agricultural legislation in the Fundamental Law of Hungary (25 April 2011) with descriptive, analytic and comparative methods. The agriculturally relevant articles of the constitution are very important, because –in spite of their high level of abstraction– they can determine and serve the practice comprehensively and effectively. That is why the objective of the research is to interpret the concrete sentences and phrases in connection with agriculture compared with the methods of some other relevant constitutions (historical-grammatical interpretation). The major findings of the study focus on searching for the appropriate provisions and approach capable of solving the problems of sustainable food production. The real challenge agricultural law must face with in the future is protecting or conserving its background and subjects: the environment, the ecosystem services and all the 'roots' of food production. In effect, agricultural law is the legal aspect of the production of 'our daily bread' from farm to table. However, it also must guarantee the safe daily food for our children and for all our descendants. In connection with sustainability, this unique, value-oriented constitution of an agrarian country even deals with uncustomary questions in this level of legislation like GMOs (by banning the production of genetically modified crops). The starting point is that the principle of public good (principium boni communis) must be the leading notion of the norm, which is an idea partly outside the law. The public interest is reflected by the agricultural law mainly in the concept of public health (in connection with food security) and the security of supply with healthy food. The construed Article P claims the general protection of our natural resources as a requirement. The enumeration of the specific natural resources 'which all form part of the common national heritage' also means the conservation of the grounds of sustainable agriculture. The reference of the arable land represents the subfield of law of the protection of land (and soil conservation), that of the water resources represents the subfield of water protection, the reference of forests and the biological diversity visualize the specialty of nature conservation, which is an essential support for agrobiodiversity. The mentioned protected objects constituting the nation's common heritage metonymically melt with their protective regimes, strengthening them and forming constitutional references of law. This regimes also mean the protection of the natural foundations of the life of the living and also the future generations, in the name of intra- and intergenerational equity.

Keywords: agricultural law, constitutional values, natural resources, sustainability

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Authors: Farhana Nosheen, Maleeha Fatima

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This study on Afghan refugee women living in Punjab, Pakistan, shows a strong relationship between poor socio-economic status and lower nutritional health status. Pakistan is one of the significant countries accepting refugees from the Afghan war. Universally, refugees are vulnerable to food security and basic life necessities. The in-hand study aimed to investigate food insecurity among afghan refugees who recently migrated to Pakistan. Purposive sampling technique was employed to collect the data from afghan women refugees settled in refugee camp settled in Capital city Islamabad, Pakistan. Data was collected through an interview tool. It revealed from data that the majority of women were underweight, about 74.7% in their reproductive years, which is an alarming situation for the forthcoming children and families. It is also shown that There’s a strong impact of their income level, education, dietary habits and food insecurity on their overall health status. It can also be observed in their Body Mass Index and in their physical appearance; they also show extremely poor levels of hemoglobin which is directly indicated anemic condition, especially iron deficiency anemia among the young Afghan refugee women. The illiteracy rate is about 93.33% among the selected participants as well as a majority of this population has 10-12 family size in comparison with their income level of about 10,000-15,000 Pakistani rupees per month, which can hardly meet their daily food expenditure. Adequate food is rarely accessible to young girls and women due to fewer national and international food aids program available in Pakistan. The majority have pale yellowish skin color (due to low iron content) along with clear white eyes (low hemoglobin level), thin hairs (protein deficiency) and spoon-shaped nails (a direct indicator of low iron level). Data showed a significant relation between appetite and BMI as their appetite is very low, which is directly indicated in their underweight body condition. About 56.67% of the participants had Urinary Tract Infections. The main causes included personal unhygienic conditions and lack of washrooms as well as drinking water facilities in their refugee camps. It is suggested that National and international food aid programs should cater to the nutritional demands of women refugees in the world to protect them from food insecurities as well as future researchers should find out better ways of analysis and treatment plans for such kind of communities who are highly prone to nutritional deficiencies and lack of basic supplies.

Keywords: food insecurity, refugees, women, vulnerable

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Authors: Carmen J. Savelli, Romy Conzade

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Background: Access to sufficient amounts of safe and nutritious food is a basic human necessity, required to sustain life and promote good health. Food safety and food security are therefore inextricably linked, yet the importance of food safety in this relationship is often overlooked. Methodologies: A literature review and desk study were conducted to examine existing frameworks for discussing food security, especially from an international perspective, to determine the entry points for enhancing considerations for food safety in national and international policies. Major Findings: Food security is commonly understood as the state when all people at all times have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life. Conceptually, food security is built upon four pillars including food availability, access, utilization and stability. Within this framework, the safety of food is often wrongly assumed as a given. However, in places where food supplies are insufficient, coping mechanisms for food insecurity are primarily focused on access to food without considerations for ensuring safety. Under such conditions, hygiene and nutrition are often ignored as people shift to less nutritious diets and consume more potentially unsafe foods, in which chemical, microbiological, zoonotic and other hazards can pose serious, acute and chronic health risks. While food supplies might be safe and nutritious, if consumed in quantities insufficient to support normal growth, health and activity, the result is hunger and famine. Recent estimates indicate that at least 842 million people, or roughly one in eight, still suffer from chronic hunger. Even if people eat enough food that is safe, they will become malnourished if the food does not provide the proper amounts of micronutrients and/or macronutrients to meet daily nutritional requirements, resulting in under- or over-nutrition. Two billion people suffer from one or more micronutrient deficiencies and over half a billion adults are obese. Access to sufficient amounts of nutritious food is not enough. If food is unsafe, whether arising from poor quality supplies or inadequate treatment and preparation, it increases the risk of foodborne infections such as diarrhoea. 70% of diarrhoea episodes occurring annually in children under five are due to biologically contaminated food. Conclusions: An integrated approach is needed where food safety and nutrition are systematically introduced into mainstream food system policies and interventions worldwide in order to achieve health and development goals. A new framework, “Food for Health” is proposed to guide policy development and requires all three aspects of food security to be addressed in balance: sufficiency, nutrition and safety.

Keywords: food safety, food security, nutrition, policy

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Authors: Amrit Gupta, Suchi Rani, Vineeta Agarwal, Swast Tiwari, Anup Kumar, Sachin Sharma

Abstract:

Pregnancy is a unique state in which a balance of immune tolerance and suppression is necessary to protect the fetus without compromising the mother’s health. Human papilloma virus (HPV) is viral infection which mainly gets transmitted through sexual contact. The HPV infection can cause infections in the placenta and increase the inflammatory response in the mother, affecting pregnancy outcomes. This may result in adverse maternal and neonatal outcomes. The objectives of this research are to evaluate the effect on clinical course in pregnancy and maternal outcome in pregnant women with HPV infection and to evaluate the effect on neonatal health in terms of adverse clinical effects. Methodology: The prospective cohort study was done in a tertiary care institution over two years. In this study, 250 participants were recruited. The study included pregnant women who attended the antenatal clinic for routine check-ups. Written informed consent was obtained from each participant. Participants were asked to fill out a detailed questionnaire about their lifestyle, including demographic characteristics, sexual behaviors, past gynecological history, and medical and surgical history. HPV was the preliminary screening method, and a Pap smear was done in patients who came out to be HPV positive. Samples were collected with the cotton stick or HC2 sampler brush. Cyto-brush was rotated 3–5 times in the region of ecto-cervix. After the collection of the sample, it was dissolved in PBS buffer and stored at − 80° for HPV DNA analysis. HPV DNA was detected using a hybrid capture assay (marketed as Digene HC2 high-risk HPV DNA test; Cat. No./ID: 5199–1220). The cohort was divided into two study groups: 1) those who were HPV positive and 2) those who were HPV negative. The chi-square test is used to compare categorical variables across groups. AQ5 Unpaired t-tests and independent sample tests are used to test the statistical significance of intergroup mean differences. P-values are considered significant if they are less than 0.05. In MS Windows, SPSS20 (IBM Corporation; NY, USA) was used for statistical analysis of all data. Results: Out of 228 pregnant women, 27.63% (n=63) of pregnant women were found positive for the HPV DNA test. In comparing the HPV-positive (N=63) and HPV-negative (N=165) groups using chi-square tests, several demographic variables exhibited statistically significant differences. Habitat distribution shows a significant difference (p<0.001), with 28.6% of HPV-positive individuals residing in rural areas compared to 8.5% of HPV-negative individuals. The presence of morbidity besides HPV infection differed significantly (p<0.001), with HPV-positive participants more likely to have additional morbidities (54%) compared to HPV-negative participants (32.1%). The mode of delivery showed significant differences (p<0.05), particularly in emergency lower segment cesarean section (HPV+: 41.3%, HPV-: 23.6%). Gestational age at delivery was significantly lower in the HPV-positive group (median 37.28 weeks, IQR 36.43-37.85) compared to the HPV-negative group (median 37.71 weeks, IQR 37.14-38.42), with a P-value of 0.003. Finally, birth weight was significantly lower in the HPV-positive group (median 2.75 kg, IQR 2.5-2.9425) compared to the HPV-negative group (median 2.9 kg, IQR 2.67-3.25) with a P-value of 0.001. Conclusion: In summary, our study offers valuable insights into the relationship between HPV infection during pregnancy, basic demographic factors and maternal and neonatal health outcomes.

Keywords: human papilloma virus, maternal health, fetal outcome, pregnancy

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Authors: Mita Sirait

Abstract:

Everyday Jakarta produces 7,000 tons of solid waste and only about 5,200 tons delivered to landfill out of the city by 720 trucks, the rest are left yet manageable, as reported by Government of Clean Sector. CLEAN Jakarta Project is aimed at empowering community to achieve healthy environment for children and families in urban slum in Semper Barat and Penjaringan sub-district of North Jakarta that consisted of 20,584 people. The project applies Community Based Total Sanitation, an approach to empowering community to achieve total hygiene and sanitation behaviour by triggering activities. As regulated by Ministry of Health, it has 5 pillars: (1) open defecation free, (2) hand-washing with soaps, (3) drinking-water treatment, (4) solid-waste management and (5) waste-water management; and 3 strategic components: 1) demand creation, 2) supply creation and 3) enabling environment. Demand creation is generated by triggering community’s reaction to their daily sanitation habits by exposing them to their surrounding where they can see faeces, waste and other environmental pollutant to stimulate disgusting, embarrassing and responsibility sense. Triggered people then challenged to commit to improving their hygiene practice such as to stop littering and start waste separation. In order to support this commitment, and for supply creation component, the project initiated waste bank with community working group. It facilitated capacity-building trainings, waste bank system formulation and meetings with local authorities to solicit land permit and waste bank decree. As it is of a general banking system, waste bank has customer service, teller, manager, legal paper and provides saving book and money transaction. In 8 months, two waste banks have established with 148 customers, 17 million rupiah cash, and about 9 million of stored recyclables. Approximately 2.5 tons of 15-35 types of recyclable are managed in both waste banks per week. On enabling environment, the project has initiated sanitation working group in community and multi sectors government level, and advocated both parties. The former is expected to promote behaviour change and monitoring in the community, while the latter is expected to support sanitation with regulations, strategies, appraisal and awards; to coordinate partnering and networking, and to replicate best practices to other areas.

Keywords: urban community, waste management, Jakarta, community based total sanitation (CBTS)

Procedia PDF Downloads 280

Authors: Alene Toulany, Elizabeth Dettmer, Seena Grewal, Kaley Roosen, Andrea Regina, Cathleen Steinegger, Kate Stadelman, Melissa Chambers, Lindsay Lochhead, Kelsey Gallagher, Alissa Steinberg, Andrea Leyser, Allison Lougheed, Jill Hamilton

Abstract:

Obesity and psychiatric disorders occur together so frequently that the combination has been coined an epidemic within an epidemic. Youth living with obesity are at increased risk for trauma, depression, anxiety and disordered eating. Although symptoms of binge eating disorder are common in paediatric obesity management programs, they are often not identified or addressed within treatment. At The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids), a tertiary care paediatric hospital in Toronto, Canada, adolescents with obesity are treated in an interdisciplinary outpatient clinic (1-2 hours/week). This intensity of care is simply not enough to help these extremely complex patients. Existing day treatment programs for eating, and psychiatric disorders are not well suited for patients with obesity. In order to address this identified care gap, a unique collaboration was formed between the obesity, psychiatry, and eating disorder programs at SickKids in 2015. The aim of this collaboration was to provide an enhanced treatment arm to our general psychiatry day hospital program that addresses both the mental health issues and the lifestyle challenges common to youth with obesity and binge eating. The program is currently in year-one of a two-year pilot project and is designed for a length of stay of approximately 6 months. All youth participate in daily group therapy, academics, and structured mealtimes. The groups are primarily skills-based and are informed by cognitive/dialectical behavioural therapies. Weekly family therapy and individual therapy, as well as weekly medical appointments with a psychiatrist and a nurse, are provided. Youth in the enhanced treatment arm also receive regular sessions with a dietitian to establish normalized eating behaviours and monthly multifamily meal sessions to address challenges related to behaviour change and mealtimes in the home. Outcomes that will be evaluated include measures of mental health, anthropometrics, metabolic status, and healthcare satisfaction. At the end of the two years, it is expected that we will have had about 16 youth participants. This model of care delivery will be the first of its kind in Canada and is expected to inform future paediatric treatment practices.

Keywords: adolescent, binge eating, mental illness, obesity

Procedia PDF Downloads 335

Authors: M. Keršič, M. Lužnik, J. Lužnik

Abstract:

Cervical dilatation and membrane herniation before 26th week of gestation poses very high risk for extremely and very premature childbirth. Cerclage with mesh cap (mesh cerclage, MC) can greatly diminish this risk and provide additional positive effects. Between 2005 and 2014, MC has been performed in 9 patients with singleton pregnancies who had prolapsed membranes beyond external cervical/uterine os before 25th week of pregnancy (one in 29th). With patients in general anaesthesia, lithotomy and Trendelenburg position (about 25°) prolapsed membranes were repositioned in the uterine cavity, using tampon soaked in antiseptic solution (Skinsept mucosa). A circular, a type of purse-string suture (main band) with double string Ethilon 1 was applied at about 1 to 1.5 cm from the border of the external uterine os - 6 to 8 stitches were placed, so the whole external uterine os was encircled (modified McDonald). In the next step additional Ethilon 0 sutures were placed around all exposed parts of the main double circular suture and loosely tightened. On those sutures, round tailored (diameter around 6 cm) mesh (Prolene® or Gynemesh* PS) was attached. In all 9 cases, gestation was prolonged on average for 9 weeks and 4 days (67 days). In four cases maturity was achieved. Mesh was removed in 37th–38th week of pregnancy or if spontaneous labour began. In two cases, a caesarean section was performed because of breech presentation. In the first week after birth in 22nd week one new born died because of immaturity (premature birth was threatening in 18th week and then MC was placed). Ten years after first MC, 8 of 9 women with singleton pregnancy and MC performed have 8 healthy children from these pregnancies. Mesh cerclage successfully closed the opened cervical canal or uterine orifice and prevented further membrane herniation and membrane rupture. MC also provides a similar effect as with occluding the external os with suturing but without interrupting the way for excretion of abundant cervical mucus. The mesh also pulls the main circular band outwards and thus lowers the chance of suture cutting through the remaining cervix. MC prolonged gestation very successfully (mean for 9 weeks and 4 days) and thus increased possibility for survival and diminished the risk for complications in very early preterm delivered survivors in cases with cervical dilatation and membrane herniation before 26th week of gestation. Without action possibility to achieve at least 28th or 32nd week of gestation would be poor.

Keywords: cervical insufficiency, mesh cerclage, membrane protrusion, premature birth prevention, physical exam-indicated cerclage, rescue cerclage

Procedia PDF Downloads 177