Search results for: mixed culture

Authors: Paromik Bhattacharyya, Vijay Kumar, Johannes Van Staden

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Micropropagation is an important tool for the conservation of threatened and commercially important plant species of which orchids deserve special attention. Ansellia africana is one such medicinally important orchid species having much commercial significance. Thus, development of regeneration protocols for producing clonally stable regenerates using axillary buds is of much importance. However, for large-scale micropropagation to become not only successful but also acceptable by end-users, somaclonal variations occurring in the plantlets need to be eliminated. In the light of the various factors (genotype, ploidy level, in vitro culture age, explant and culture type, etc.) that may account for the somaclonal variations of divergent genetic changes at the cellular and molecular levels, genetic analysis of micropropagated plants using a multidisciplinary approach is of utmost importance. In the present study, the clonal integrity of the long term micropropagated A. africana plants were assessed using advanced molecular marker system i.e. Start Codon Targeted Polymorphism (SCoT). Our studies recorded a clonally stable regeneration protocol for A. africana with a very high degree of clonal fidelity amongst the regenerates. The results obtained from these molecular analyses could help in modifying the regeneration protocols for obtaining clonally stable true to type plantlets for sustainable commercial use.

Keywords: medicinal orchid micropropagation, start codon targeted polymorphism (SCoT), RAP), traditional African pharmacopoeia, genetic fidelity

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Authors: Bruno Gontijo Batista

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This paper analyzes how the Socially Aware Design (SAwD) and the Value-oriented and Culturally Informed Approach (VCIA) design model can be used to develop an edutainment game for children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). The SAwD approach seeks a design that considers new dimensions in human-computer interaction, such as culture, aesthetics, emotional and social aspects of the user's everyday experience. From this perspective, the game development was VCIA model-based, including the users in the design process through participatory methodologies, considering their behavioral patterns, culture, and values. This is because values, beliefs, and behavioral patterns influence how technology is understood and used and the way it impacts people's lives. This model can be applied at different stages of design, which goes from explaining the problem and organizing the requirements to the evaluation of the prototype and the final solution. Thus, this paper aims to understand how this model can be used in the development of an edutainment game for children with ADHD. In the area of education and learning, children with ADHD have difficulties both in behavior and in school performance, as they are easily distracted, which is reflected both in classes and on tests. Therefore, they must perform tasks that are exciting or interesting for them, once the pleasure center in the brain is activated, it reinforces the center of attention, leaving the child more relaxed and focused. In this context, serious games have been used as part of the treatment of ADHD in children aiming to improve focus and attention, stimulate concentration, as well as be a tool for improving learning in areas such as math and reading, combining education and entertainment (edutainment). Thereby, as a result of the research, it was developed, in a participatory way, applying the VCIA model, an edutainment game prototype, for a mobile platform, for children between 8 and 12 years old.

Keywords: ADHD, edutainment, SAwD, VCIA

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Authors: Harry G. Segal

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The idea of the “self” has been essential ever since the early modern period in western culture, especially since the development of psychotherapy, but advances in neuroscience and cognitive theory challenge traditional notions of the self. More specifically, neuroanatomists have found no location of “the self” in the brain; instead, consciousness has been posited to be a rapid combination of perception, memory, anticipation of future events, and judgment. In this paper, a theoretical model is presented to address these neuroanatomical findings and to revise the historical understanding of “selfhood” in the practice of psychotherapy.

Keywords: the self, psychotherapy, the self and the brain

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Authors: Nik Kamariah Nikmat, Noor Hasmini Abdghani

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The Malaysian government had consistently revived its campaign for “Buy Malaysian Goods” from time to time. The purpose of the campaign is to remind consumers to be ethnocentric and patriotic when purchasing product and services. This is necessary to ensure high demand for local products and services compared to foreign products. However, the decline of domestic investment in 2012 has triggered concern for the Malaysian economy. Hence, this study attempts to determine the drivers of actual purchasing behavior, intention to purchase domestic products and ethnocentrism. The study employs the cross-sectional primary data, self-administered on household, selected using stratified random sampling in four Malaysian regions. A nine factor driver of actual domestic purchasing behavior (culture openness, conservatism, collectivism, patriotism, control belief, interest in foreign travel, attitude, ethnocentrism and intention) were measured utilizing 60 items, using 7-point Likert-scale. From 1000 questionnaires distributed, a sample of 486 were returned representing 48.6 percent response rate. From the fit generated structural model (SEM analysis), it was found that the drivers of actual purchase behavior are collectivism, cultural openness and patriotism; the drivers of intention to purchase domestic product are attitude, control belief, collectivism and conservativeness; and drivers of ethnocentrism are cultural openness, control belief, foreign travel and patriotism. It also shows that Malaysian consumers scored high in ethnocentrism and patriotism. The findings are discussed in the perspective of its implication to Malaysian National Agenda.

Keywords: actual purchase, ethnocentrism, patriotism, culture openness, conservatism

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Authors: Biva Samadder, Samita Manna

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India is a melting pot of races, tribes, castes and communities. The population of India can be roughly branched into the huge majority of “Civilized” Indians of the Plains and the minority of Tribal population of the hill area and the forest who constituting almost 16 percent of total population of India. The Kirat community composed of four ethnic tribes: Limbu, Lepcha, Dhimal, and Rai. These Kirat people were found to be rich in indigenous knowledge, skill and practices especially for the use on medicinal plants and livelihood purposes. The “Mundhum" is the oral scripture or the “Bible of the Limbus” which serves as the canon of the codes of the Limbu socialization, their moral values and the very orientation of their lifestyle. From birth till death the Limbus are disciplined in the life with full of religious rituals, traditions and culture governed by community norms with a rich legacy of indigenous knowledge and traditional practices. The present study has been conducted using both secondary as well as primary data by applying social methodology consisting of the social survey, questionnaire, interviews and observations in the Kalimpong Block-I of Darjeeling District of west Bengal of India, which is a heterogeneous zone in terms of its ethnic composition and where the Limbus are pre-dominantly concentrated. Due to their close contact with other caste and communities Limbus are now adjusted with the changing situation by borrowing some cultural traits from the other communities and changes that have taken place in their cultural practices, religious beliefs, economic aspects, languages and in social roles and relationships which is bringing the change in their material culture. Limbu language is placed in the Tibeto- Burman Language category. But due to the political and cultural domination of educationally sound and numerically dominant Bengali race, the different communities in this area forced to come under the one umbrella of the Nepali or Gorkhali nation (nation-people). Their respective identities had to be submerged in order to constitute as a strong force to resist Nepali domination and ensure their common survival. As Nepali is a lingua-franca of the area knowing and speaking Nepali language helps them in procuring economic and occupational facilities. Ironically, present day younger generation does not feel comfortable speaking in their own Limbu tongue. The traditional knowledge about medicinal plants, healing, and health culture is found to be wear away due to the lack of interest of young generation. Not only poverty, along with exclusion due to policies they are in the phase of extinction, but their capabilities are ignored and not documented and preserved especially in the case of Limbus who having a great cultural heritage of an oral tradition. Attempts have been made to discuss the persistence and changes in socioeconomic pattern of life in relation to the social structure, material culture, cultural practices, social relationships, indigenous technology, ethos and their values and belief system.

Keywords: changing social relationship, cultural transition, identity, indigenous knowledge, language

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Authors: Swati Tomar, Sunil Kumar Gupta

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Anammox is a novel and promising technology that has changed the traditional concept of biological nitrogen removal. The process facilitates direct oxidation of ammonical nitrogen under anaerobic conditions with nitrite as an electron acceptor without the addition of external carbon sources. The present study investigated the feasibility of anammox hybrid reactor (AHR) combining the dual advantages of suspended and attached growth media for biodegradation of ammonical nitrogen in wastewater. The experimental unit consisted of 4 nos. of 5L capacity AHR inoculated with mixed seed culture containing anoxic and activated sludge (1:1). The process was established by feeding the reactors with synthetic wastewater containing NH4-H and NO2-N in the ratio 1:1 at HRT (hydraulic retention time) of 1 day. The reactors were gradually acclimated to higher ammonium concentration till it attained pseudo steady state removal at a total nitrogen concentration of 1200 mg/l. During this period, the performance of the AHR was monitored at twelve different HRTs varying from 0.25-3.0 d with increasing NLR from 0.4 to 4.8 kg N/m3d. AHR demonstrated significantly higher nitrogen removal (95.1%) at optimal HRT of 1 day. Filter media in AHR contributed an additional 27.2% ammonium removal in addition to 72% reduction in the sludge washout rate. This may be attributed to the functional mechanism of filter media which acts as a mechanical sieve and reduces the sludge washout rate many folds. This enhances the biomass retention capacity of the reactor by 25%, which is the key parameter for successful operation of high rate bioreactors. The effluent nitrate concentration, which is one of the bottlenecks of anammox process was also minimised significantly (42.3-52.3 mg/L). Process kinetics was evaluated using first order and Grau-second order models. The first-order substrate removal rate constant was found as 13.0 d-1. Model validation revealed that Grau second order model was more precise and predicted effluent nitrogen concentration with least error (1.84±10%). A new mathematical model based on mass balance was developed to predict N2 gas in AHR. The mass balance model derived from total nitrogen dictated significantly higher correlation (R2=0.986) and predicted N2 gas with least error of precision (0.12±8.49%). SEM study of biomass indicated the presence of the heterogeneous population of cocci and rod shaped bacteria of average diameter varying from 1.2-1.5 mm. Owing to enhanced NRE coupled with meagre production of effluent nitrate and its ability to retain high biomass, AHR proved to be the most competitive reactor configuration for dealing with nitrogen laden wastewater.

Keywords: anammox, filter media, kinetics, nitrogen removal

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Authors: Zhe Wang

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The fashion week, as a critical international fashion event in shaping world fashion cities, is one of the most significant world events that serves as the core medium for designers to stage new collections. However, its role in bringing about and shaping design ideologies of major fashion cities have long been neglected from a fashion ecosystem perspective. With the expanding scale of international fashion weeks in terms of culture and commerce, the organizational structures of these fashion weeks are becoming more complex. In the emerging fashion city, typified by Shanghai, a newly-formed 'hodgepodge' transforming the current global fashion ecosystem. A city’s legitimate fashion institutions, typically the organizers of international fashion weeks, have cultivated various cultural characteristics via rules and regulations pertaining to international fashion weeks. Under these circumstances, designers’ participatory behaviors, specifically show design and production, are influenced by the cultural ideologies of official organizers and institutions. This research compares international based Chinese (IBC) independent designers’ participatory behavior in London and Shanghai Fashion Weeks: specifically, the way designers present their clothing and show production. both of which are found to be profoundly influenced by cultural and design ideologies of fashion weeks. They are, to a large degree, manipulated by domestic institutions and organizers. Shanghai fashion week has given rise to a multiple, mass-ended entertainment carnival design and cultural ideology in Shanghai, thereby impacting the explicit cultural codes or intangible rules that IBC designers must adhere to when designing and producing fashion shows. Therefore, influenced by various cultural characteristics in the two cities, IBC designers’ show design and productions, in turn, play an increasingly vital role in shaping the design characteristic of an international fashion week. Through researching the organizational systems and design preferences of organizers of London and Shanghai fashion weeks, this paper demonstrates the embeddedness of design systems in the forming of design ideologies under various cultural and institutional contexts. The core methodology utilized in this research is ethnography. As a crucial part of a Ph.D. project on innovations in fashion shows under a cross-cultural context run by Edinburgh College of Art, School of Design, the fashion week’s organizational culture in various cultural contexts is investigated in London and Shanghai for approximately six months respectively. Two IBC designers, Angel Chen and Xuzhi Chen were followed during their participation of London and Shanghai Fashion Weeks from September 2016 to June 2017, during which two consecutive seasons were researched in order to verify the consistency of design ideologies’ associations with organizational system and culture.

Keywords: institutional ideologies, international fashion weeks, IBC independent designers; fashion show

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Authors: Verónica Muñoz-Rivero

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The historically marginalized indigenous communities in the Atacama Desert continue to experience and struggle curricular hegemony in a prevalent monocultural educational context that denies heritage, culture and epistemologies in a documented attempted knowledge negation by the educational policies, the national curriculum and educational culture. The ancestral indigenous community of Toconce demands a territorial-based intercultural education and a school in their ancestral land to prevent the progressive cultural loss as they reclaim their memory and identity negated. This case study makes use of the intercultural theoretical framework and open qualitative methodology to analyze local socio-educational reality integrating aspects related to the educational experience, education demands for future generations and importance given to formal education. The interlocutors: elders, parents, caretakers and former teachers raised the educational experience for the indigenous childhood as an intergenerational voice that experienced discrimination, exclusion and racism on their K-12 trajectories. By center, the indigenous epistemologies, geography and memory, this research proposes a project-based learning approach anchored to the Limpia de Canales ceremony to develop a situated territorial intercultural curriculum unpacking from the local epistemology and structure thinking. The work on terraces gives students the opportunity to co-create a real-life application with practical purpose and present the importance of reinforcing notions related to the relevance of a situated intercultural curriculum for social justice in the formative development of prospective teachers.

Keywords: cultural studies, decolonial education, epistemic symmetry, intercultural curriculum, multidimensional curriculum

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Authors: Nikolaos Katsoulas, Sofia Faliagka, George Kountrias, Eleni Dimitriou, Eleftheria Pechlivani

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The challenges to feed the world in 2050 are becoming more and more apparent. This calls for producing more with fewer inputs (most of them under scarcity), higher resource efficiency, minimum or zero effect on the environment, and higher sustainability. Therefore, increasing the circularity of production systems is highly significant for their sustainability. Protected horticulture offers opportunities for maximum resource efficiency across various levels within and between farms and at the regional level), high-quality production, and contributes significantly to the nutrition security as part of the world food production. In greenhouses, closed soilless cultivation systems give the opportunity to increase the water and nutrient use efficiency and reduce the environmental impact of the cultivation system by the reuse of the drained water and nutrients. However, due to the low quality of the water used in the Mediterranean countries, a completely closed system is not feasible. Partial discharge of the drainage nutrient solution when the levels of electrical conductivity (EC) or of the toxic ions in the system are reached is still a necessity. Thus, in the frame of the circular economy concept, this work presents the utilisation of the drainage solution of soilless cultivation systems for microalgae and biofertilisers production. The system includes a greenhouse equipped with a soilless cultivation system, a drainage solution collection tank, a closed bioreactor for microalgae production, and a biocatalysis tank. The bioreactor tested in the frame of this work includes two closed tube loops of a capacity of 1000 L each where, after the initial inoculation, the microalgae is developed using as a growth medium the drainage solution collected from the greenhouse crops. The bioreactor includes light and temperature control while pH is still manually regulated. As soon as the microalgae culture reaches a certain density level, 20% of the culture is harvested, and the culture system is refiled by a drainage nutrient solution. The microalgae produced goes through a biocatalysis process, which leads to the production of a rich aminoacids (and nitrogen) biofertiliser. The produced biofertiliser is then used for the fertilisation of greenhouse crops. The complete production cycle along with the effects of the biofertiliser produced on crop growth and yield are presented and discussed in this manuscript. Acknowledgment: This work was carried out under the PestNu project that has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Green Deal grant agreement No. 101037128 — PestNu.

Keywords: soilless, water use efficiency, nutrients use efficiency, biostimulant

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Authors: Marc Bachelet, Abhijit Kumar Chatterjee, José Manuel Avila

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Data quality is a key component of any data-driven organization. Without data quality, organizations cannot effectively make data-driven decisions, which often leads to poor business performance. Therefore, it is important for an organization to ensure that the data they use is of high quality. This is where the concept of data mesh comes in. Data mesh is an organizational and architectural decentralized approach to data management that can help organizations improve the quality of data. The concept of data mesh was first introduced in 2020. Its purpose is to decentralize data ownership, making it easier for domain experts to manage the data. This can help organizations improve data quality by reducing the reliance on centralized data teams and allowing domain experts to take charge of their data. This paper intends to discuss how a set of elements, including data mesh, are tools capable of increasing data quality. One of the key benefits of data mesh is improved metadata management. In a traditional data architecture, metadata management is typically centralized, which can lead to data silos and poor data quality. With data mesh, metadata is managed in a decentralized manner, ensuring accurate and up-to-date metadata, thereby improving data quality. Another benefit of data mesh is the clarification of roles and responsibilities. In a traditional data architecture, data teams are responsible for managing all aspects of data, which can lead to confusion and ambiguity in responsibilities. With data mesh, domain experts are responsible for managing their own data, which can help provide clarity in roles and responsibilities and improve data quality. Additionally, data mesh can also contribute to a new form of organization that is more agile and adaptable. By decentralizing data ownership, organizations can respond more quickly to changes in their business environment, which in turn can help improve overall performance by allowing better insights into business as an effect of better reports and visualization tools. Monitoring and analytics are also important aspects of data quality. With data mesh, monitoring, and analytics are decentralized, allowing domain experts to monitor and analyze their own data. This will help in identifying and addressing data quality problems in quick time, leading to improved data quality. Data culture is another major aspect of data quality. With data mesh, domain experts are encouraged to take ownership of their data, which can help create a data-driven culture within the organization. This can lead to improved data quality and better business outcomes. Finally, the paper explores the contribution of AI in the coming years. AI can help enhance data quality by automating many data-related tasks, like data cleaning and data validation. By integrating AI into data mesh, organizations can further enhance the quality of their data. The concepts mentioned above are illustrated by AEKIDEN experience feedback. AEKIDEN is an international data-driven consultancy that has successfully implemented a data mesh approach. By sharing their experience, AEKIDEN can help other organizations understand the benefits and challenges of implementing data mesh and improving data quality.

Keywords: data culture, data-driven organization, data mesh, data quality for business success

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Authors: Susan C. Graham

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Islands have a long established allure for travellers the world over. From earliest accounts of human history, travellers were drawn by the sense of islandness embodied by these destinations. The concept of islandness describes the essence of what makes islands unique relative to non-islands and extends beyond geographic interpretations by attempting to capture the specific sense of self-exhibited by islanders in relation to their connection to place. The themes most strongly associated with islandness include a) a strong connection to water as both the life blood and a physical barrier, b) a unique culture and robust arts community that is deeply linked to both the island and islanders, c) an appreciation of and for nature, d) a rich sense of history and tradition connected to the place, e) a sense of community and belonging that arose through shared triumphs and struggles, and f) a profound awareness of independence, separateness, and uniqueness derived from both physical and social experience. The island brand, like all brands, is a marketing tactic designed to succinctly express a specific value proposition in simplistic ways which might include a brand symbol, logo, slogan, or representation meant to distinguish one brand from another. If a value proposition is the identification of attributes that separate one brand from another by highlighting the brand’s uniqueness, then presumably island brands may, at least in part, emphasize islandness as part of the destination brand. Yet it may in naïve to expect all islands to brand themselves using similar themes when islands can differ so substantially in terms of population, geography, political climate, economy, culture, and history. Of particular interest is the increased focus on tourism among 'cold-water' islands. This paper will examine the incorporation of themes related to islandness in tourism branding among cold-water, warm-water, and temperate-water islands. The tourism logos of 83 islands were collected and assessed for the use of themes related to islandness, namely water, arts and culture, nature, history and tradition, community and belongingness, and independence, separateness, and uniqueness. The ratings for each theme related to islandness for each of the 83 island destinations were then analyzed to identify if differences exist between cold-water, warm-water, and temperate-water islands. A general consensus of what constitutes 'cold-water' destinations is lacking, therefore a water temperature of 15C was adopted using the guidelines from the National Center for Cold Water Safety. Among these 83 islands, the average high and average low water temperatures of 196 specific locations, including the capital, northern, and southern most points of each island, was recorded to determine if the location was a cold-water (average high and low below 15C), warm-water (average high and low above 15C), or temperate-water (average high above 15C and low below 15C) location.

Keywords: branding, cold-water, islands, tourism

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Authors: Luisa Villani

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The proposal aims to express concerns about the connection between mind, body, society, and environment in the Flyers’ dance, a very well-known rotatory dance in Mexico, to create meanings and to make the apprehension of the world possible. The interaction among the brain, mind, body, and environment, and the intersubjective relation among them, means the world creates and recreates a social interaction. The purpose of this methodology, based on the embodied cognition theory, which was named “A Performance-Embodied Theory” is to find the principles and patterns that organize the culture and the rules of the apprehension of the environment by Totonac people while the dance is being performed. The analysis started by questioning how anthropologists can interpret how Totonacs transform their unconscious knowledge into conscious knowledge and how the scheme formation of imagination and their collective imagery is understood in the context of public-facing rituals, such as Flyers’ dance. The problem is that most of the time, researchers interpret elements in a separate way and not as a complex ritual dancing whole, which is the original contribution of this study. This theory, which accepts the fact that people are body-mind agents, wants to interpret the dance as a whole, where the different elements are joined to an integral interpretation. To understand incorporation, data was recollected in prolonged periods of fieldwork, with participant observation and linguistic and extralinguistic data analysis. Laban’s notation for the description and analysis of gestures and movements in the space was first used, but it was later transformed and gone beyond this method, which is still a linear and compositional one. Performance in a ritual is the actualization of a potential complex of meanings or cognitive domains among many others in a culture: one potential dimension becomes probable and then real because of the activation of specific meanings in a context. It can only be thought what language permits thinking, and the lexicon that is used depends on the individual culture. Only some parts of this knowledge can be activated at once, and these parts of knowledge are connected. Only in this way, the world can be understood. It can be recognized that as languages geometrize the physical world thanks to the body, also ritual does. In conclusion, the ritual behaves as an embodied grammar or a text in movement, which, depending on the ritual phases and the words and sentences pronounced in the ritual, activates bits of encyclopedic knowledge that people have about the world. Gestures are not given by the performer but emerge from the intentional perception in which gestures are “understood” by the audio-spectator in an inter-corporeal way. The impact of this study regards the possibility not only to disseminate knowledge effectively but also to generate a balance between different parts of the world where knowledge is shared, rather than being received by academic institutions alone. This knowledge can be exchanged, so indigenous communities and academies could be together as part of the activation and the sharing of this knowledge with the world.

Keywords: dance, flyers, performance, embodied, cognition

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Authors: Pranee Liamputtong

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Childlessness in non-Western societies has wide-ranging social implications and profoundly affects the gender identity and well-being of women. The aspirations of women in these societies are shaped by various sociocultural expectations, encompassing social norms and their own social standing. Currently, there is limited knowledge regarding the perceptions and experiences of Zimbabwean migrant women living in Australia regarding childlessness and motherhood. This paper explores the cultural perspective on children in Zimbabwean society and investigates the personal and social consequences of infertility, as well as the cultural expectations of motherhood among Zimbabwean migrant women residing in Australia. The perceptions and experiences of this migrant community are of utmost importance in order to prevent misunderstandings about the core essence of motherhood among Zimbabwean women. Ultimately, this will lead to the provision of sensitive and culturally appropriate healthcare and social support for migrants in Australia's multicultural society. The study adopts a constructivist paradigm and employs qualitative methods, including in-depth interviews, drawings, and photo elicitation, involving 15 Zimbabwean women. Thematic analysis was employed to analyze the data. In Zimbabwean culture, the ability to bear a child holds significant meaning for women. Children not only ensure the continuity of society but also provide social security, as parents rely on their children for care in old age. Childlessness jeopardizes a woman's social status and carries social repercussions that have a profound impact on their gender identity and well-being. Cultural expectations of motherhood place the sole responsibility for the emotional and physical care of children on the mother. Despite residing in Australia, the procreative value has not diminished for Zimbabwean women. Raising awareness of the procreative needs of Zimbabwean women in a culturally sensitive manner would enhance the emotional well-being of these women.

Keywords: motherhood, culture, migrant women, Zimbabwe, Australia

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Authors: Esra Turker, Umit Hakan Yildiz, Ahu Arslan Yildiz

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The key of regenerative medicine is mimicking natural three dimensional (3D) microenvironment of tissues by utilizing appropriate biomaterials. In this study, a synthetic biodegradable polymer; poly (L-lactide-co-ε-caprolactone) (PLLCL) and a natural polymer; collagen was used to mimic the biochemical structure of the natural extracellular matrix (ECM), and by means of electrospinning technique the real physical structure of ECM has mimicked. PLLCL/Collagen biocomposite scaffolds enables cell attachment, proliferation and nutrient transport through fabrication of micro to nanometer scale nanofibers. Biocomposite materials are commonly preferred due to limitations of physical and biocompatible properties of natural and synthetic materials. Combination of both materials improves the strength, degradation and biocompatibility of scaffold. Literature studies have shown that collagen is mostly solved with heavy chemicals, which is not suitable for cell culturing. To overcome this problem, a new approach has been developed in this study where polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) is used as co-electrospinning agent. PVP is preferred due to its water solubility, so PLLCL/collagen biocomposite scaffold can be easily and rapidly produced. Hydrolytic and enzymatic biodegradation as well as mechanical strength of scaffolds were examined in vitro. Cell adhesion, proliferation and cell morphology characterization studies have been performed as well. Further, on-chip drug screening analysis has been performed over 3D tumor models. Overall, the developed biocomposite scaffold was used for 3D tumor model formation and obtained results confirmed that developed model could be used for drug screening studies to predict clinical efficacy of a drug.

Keywords: biomaterials, 3D cell culture, drug screening, electrospinning, lab-on-a-chip, tissue engineering

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Authors: Maria T. Cruz, Scott N. Thompson

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In recent years, Canadian federal and provincial law enforcement organizations have implemented numerous mental health strategies in an attempt to address officers’ mental health and wellness needs. Despite these reforms, however, mental illness continues to persist in these populations. Whereas workplace stressors continue to be factored into the development of mental health initiatives, it is proposed that aspects of masculine culture have been overlooked as contributing to the prevalence of mental illness among Canadian officers. By drawing on Michel Foucault’s theory of discourse, this study was conducted to determine if elements of masculine discourse exist as a socio-cultural barrier for officers seeking mental health assistance. This research supported the above hypothesis, and furthermore, identified how masculine discourse works in competition with mental health-related help-seeking discourses. To answer the research question, semi-structured phone interviews with active and retired male officers from Western provincial and municipal policing organizations, and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police were employed. Through thematic analysis of the transcripts, the data revealed three themes: i) masculinity in law enforcement is a determinant of workplace competency; ii) the dominance of masculine culture in law enforcement is problematic for mental health, and iii) improved help-seeking policies complicate how masculinity is expressed in law enforcement organizations. These findings suggest that within the reviewed Canadian law enforcement organizations, aspects of masculinity act as a socio-cultural barrier to officers seeking mental health services, and that the two conflicting discourses of masculinity and mental health-related help-seeking appear to be in competition with each other.

Keywords: competing discourses, dominant discourses, Foucault’s theory of discourse, law enforcement, masculinity, mental health, police officers

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Authors: N. Liu, N. Tuah, D. Ying

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This research aims to identify and test whether serious games can help children learn and pick up healthy eating habits. The practical component takes the form of digitalizing an already existing educational board game called “All you can eat” (AYCE), designed with the nutritious subject matter in mind. This time with the added features of online playability, which will widen its availability and accessibility to reach more players compared to the physical iteration. The game will be deployed alongside the conducting of theoretical research, which also involves teachers leading children to play said digital version. The research methodology utilizes two experiments, such as handing out surveys to gather feedback from both the partners and students. The research was carried out in several countries, namely Brunei, Malaysia, and Taiwan. The results are to be used for validating the concept of “serious games,” particularly when tied to the health aspect of the players, which in this case were children. As for the research outcomes, they can be applied to a variety of serious games that are related to health topics more broadly and not simply limited to healthy eating habits alone, adopting a balanced combination of practical and theoretical considerations. The study will also help other researchers in the correlated fields of serious game development and pediatrics to better comprehend the needs of children. On the theoretical side, these findings can enable further technological advancements to be made possible, a case in point being more serious games, to provide the appropriate social support precisely on the matter of health-related issues. Not just individuals but rather communities could benefit from improved health and well-being as a result of the project, which, when done right, will potentially improve their quality of life and have fun while doing it. AYCE will be demonstrated to support a wide range of health issues as a result of this research case.

Keywords: culture heritage, digital games, digitalization, traditional religious culture

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Authors: Jim Weese

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The Kinesiology, Exercise and Sport Science environment remain excellent venues for leadership research. Prescribed leadership (coaching), emergent leadership (players and organizations), and executive leadership are all popular themes in the research literature. Leadership remains a popular area of inquiry in the sport management domain as well as an interesting area for practitioners who wish to heighten their leadership practices and effectiveness. The need for effective leadership in these areas given competing demands for attention and resources may be at an all-time high. The presenter has extensive research and practical experience in the area and has developed his concept based on the latest leadership literature. He refers to this as the Five ’C’s of Leadership. These components, noted below, have been empirically validated and have served as the foundation for extensive consulting with academic, sport, and business leaders. Credibility (C1) is considered the foundation of leadership. There are two components to this area, namely: (a) leaders being respected for having the relevant knowledge, insights, and experience to be seen as credible sources of information, and (b) followers perceiving the leader as being a person of character, someone who is honest, reliable, consistent, and trustworthy. Compelling Vision (C2) refers to the leader’s ability to focus the attention of followers on a desired end goal. Effective leaders understand trends and developments in their industry. They also listen attentively to the needs and desires of their stakeholders and use their own instincts and experience to shape these ideas into an inspiring vision that is effectively and continuously communicated. Charismatic Communicator (C3) refers to the leader’s ability to formally and informally communicate with members. Leaders must deploy mechanisms and communication techniques to keep their members informed and engaged. Effective leaders sprinkle in ‘proof points’ that reinforce the vision’s relevance and/or the unit’s progress towards its attainment. Contagious Enthusiasm (C4) draws on the emotional intelligence literature as it relates to exciting and inspiring followers. Effective leaders demonstrate a level of care, commitment, and passion for their people and feelings of engagement permeate the group. These leaders genuinely care about the task at hand, and for the people working to make it a reality. Culture Builder (C5) is the capstone component of the model and is critical to long-term success and survival. Organizational culture refers to the dominant beliefs, values and attitudes of members of a group or organization. Some have suggested that developing and/or imbedding a desired culture for an organization is the most important responsibility for a leader. The author outlines his Five ‘C’s’ of Leadership concept and provide direct application to executive leadership in Kinesiology, Exercise and Sport Science.

Keywords: effectiveness, leadership, management, sport

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Authors: Menglu Yang, Ani Beybutyan, Rocio Pina, Miguel Angel Soria

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Domestic violence against women is one of the most serious social problems in the world. Attitudes toward domestic violence against women play an important role in the perpetration of violence against women, the way that victims respond to the violence, and how the community responds to violence against women. China and Spain are countries which have been influenced by the culture which males hold power and dominance over the female for a long time. However, as more connected with other European countries, the legal enforcement related to domestic violence against women developed earlier in Spain, and consequently, social awareness of violence against women evolved differently in two countries. The present study aimed to explore and compare the attitudes toward domestic violence against women across China and Spain, and their influence factors, such as gender equality attitudes and coercive control. Totally 506 participants, 255 from China and 251 from Spain completed questionnaires, including attitudes toward domestic violence against women, definition of violence behavior, justification for violence, gender equity attitudes, and coercive control. Results demonstrated that Chinese participants were less aware of domestic violence against women issue but more agreed that such issue was a crime than Spanish participants. In addition to cultural difference, gender equality attitudes, coercive control, gender, and age also affected attitudes toward domestic violence against women. Our findings imply attitudes toward domestic violence against women differ from countries along with the difference in gender equity attitudes and coercive control; such a difference may arise from cultural, traditional belief and current justice system influence. Despite the developed justice system, male dominance culture may lead to maintain the belief that domestic violence is domestic and private issue which police and justice force may not get involved.

Keywords: cross-cultural differences, domestic violence, public attitudes, violence against women

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Authors: Ajuna B. Henry

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In recent decades, climate change has demanded biological pesticides; more Bt strains are being discovered worldwide, some containing novel insecticidal genes while others have been modified through molecular approaches for increased yield, toxicity, and wider host target. In this study, B. thuringiensis strain AH-2 (Bt-2) was isolated from the soil and tested for insecticidal activity against Aphis gossypii (Hemiptera: Aphididae) and Lepidoptera insect pests: fall webworm (Hyphantria cunea) and diamondback moth (Plutella xylostella). A commercial strain B. thuringiensis subsp. kurstaki (Btk), and a chemical pesticide, imidacloprid (for Hemiptera) and chlorantraniliprole (for Lepidoptera), were used as positive control and the same media (without bacterial inoculum) as a negative control. For aphidicidal activity, Bt-2 caused a mortality rate of 70.2%, 78.1% or 88.4% in third instar nymphs of A. gossypii (3N) at 10%, 25% or 50% culture concentrations, respectively. Moreover, Bt-2 was effectively produced in cost-effective (PB) supplemented with either glucose (PBG) or sucrose (PBS) and maintained high aphicidal efficacy with 3N mortality rates of 85.9%, 82.9% or 82.2% in TSB, PBG or PBS media, respectively at 50% culture concentration. Bt-2 also suppressed adult fecundity by 98.3% compared to only 65.8% suppression by Btk at similar concentrations but was slightly lower than chemical treatment, which caused 100% suppression. Partial purification of 60 – 80% (NH4)2SO4 fraction of Bt-2 aphicidal proteins purified on anion exchange (DEAE-FF) column revealed a 105 kDa aphicidal protein with LC50 = 55.0 ng/µℓ. For Lepidoptera pests, chemical pesticide, Bt-2, and Btk cultures, mortality of 86.7%, 60%, and 60% in 3rd instar larvae of P. xylostella, and 96.7%, 80.0%, and 93.3% in 6th instar larvae of H. cunea, after 72h of exposure. When the entomopathogenic strains were cultured in a cost-effective PBG or PBS, the insecticidal activity in all strains was not significantly different compared to the use of a commercial medium (TSB). Bt-2 caused a mortality rate of 60.0%, 63.3%, and 50.0% against P. xylostella larvae and 76.7%, 83.3%, and 73.3% against H. cunea when grown in TSB, PBG, and PBS media, respectively. Bt-2 (grown in cost-effective PBG medium) caused a dose-dependent toxicity of 26.7%, 40.0%, and 63.3% against P. xylostella and 46.7%, 53.3%, and 76.7% against H. cunea at 10%, 25% and 50% culture concentration, respectively. The partially purified Bt-2 insecticidal proteins fractions F1, F2, F3, and F4 (extracted at different ratios of organic solvent) caused low toxicity (50.0%, 40.0%, 36.7%, and 30.0%) against P. xylostella and relatively high toxicity (56.7%, 76.7%, 66.7%, and 63.3%) against H. cunea at 100 µg/g of artificial diets. SDS-PAGE analysis revealed that a128kDa protein is associated with toxicity of Bt-2. Our result demonstrates a medium and strong larvicidal activity of Bt-2 against P. xylostella and H. cunea, respectively. Moreover, Bt-2 could be potentially produced using a cost-effective PBG medium which makes it an effective alternative biocontrol strategy to reduce chemical pesticide application.

Keywords: biocontrol, insect pests, larvae/nymph mortality, cost-effective media, aphis gossypii, plutella xylostella, hyphantria cunea, bacillus thuringiensi

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Authors: Chris J. Boreham, Dianne S. Edwards, Amber Jarrett, Justin Davies, Robert Poreda, Alex Sessions, John Eiler

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The origins of natural gases in the Amadeus Basin have been assessed using molecular and stable isotope (C, H, N, He) systematics. A dominant end-member thermogenic, oil-associated gas is considered for the Ordovician Pacoota−Stairway sandstones of the Mereenie gas and oil field. In addition, an abiogenic end-member is identified in the latest Proterozoic lower Arumbera Sandstone of the Dingo gasfield, being most likely associated with radiolysis of methane with polymerisation to wet gases. The latter source assignment is based on a similar geochemical fingerprint derived from the laboratory gamma irradiation experiments on methane. A mixed gas source is considered for the Palm Valley gasfield in the Ordovician Pacoota Sandstone. Gas wetness (%∑C₂−C₅/∑C₁−C₅) decreases in the order Mereenie (19.1%) > Palm Valley (9.4%) > Dingo (4.1%). Non-produced gases at Magee-1 (23.5%; Late Proterozoic Heavitree Quartzite) and Mount Kitty-1 (18.9%; Paleo-Mesoproterozoic fractured granitoid basement) are very wet. Methane thermometry based on clumped isotopes of methane (¹³CDH₃) is consistent with the abiogenic origin for the Dingo gas field with methane formation temperature of 254ᵒC. However, the low methane formation temperature of 57°C for the Mereenie gas suggests either a mixed thermogenic-biogenic methane source or there is no thermodynamic equilibrium between the methane isotopomers. The shallow reservoir depth and present-day formation temperature below 80ᵒC would support microbial methanogenesis, but there is no accompanying alteration of the C- and H-isotopes of the wet gases and CO₂ that is typically associated with biodegradation. The Amadeus Basin gases show low to extremely high inorganic gas contents. Carbon dioxide is low in abundance (< 1% CO₂) and becomes increasing depleted in ¹³C from the Palm Valley (av. δ¹³C 0‰) to the Mereenie (av. δ¹³C -6.6‰) and Dingo (av. δ¹³C -14.3‰) gas fields. Although the wide range in carbon isotopes for CO₂ is consistent with multiple origins from inorganic to organic inputs, the most likely process is fluid-rock alteration with enrichment in ¹²C in the residual gaseous CO₂ accompanying progressive carbonate precipitation within the reservoir. Nitrogen ranges from low−moderate (1.7−9.9% N₂) abundance (Palm Valley av. 1.8%; Mereenie av. 9.1%; Dingo av. 9.4%) to extremely high abundance in Magee-1 (43.6%) and Mount Kitty-1 (61.0%). The nitrogen isotopes for the production gases have δ¹⁵N = -3.0‰ for Mereenie, -3.0‰ for Palm Valley and -7.1‰ for Dingo, suggest all being mixed inorganic and thermogenic nitrogen sources. Helium (He) abundance varies over a wide range from a low of 0.17% to one of the world’s highest at 9% (Mereenie av. 0.23%; Palm Valley av. 0.48%, Dingo av. 0.18%, Magee-1 6.2%; Mount Kitty-1 9.0%). Complementary helium isotopes (R/Ra = ³He/⁴Hesample / ³He/⁴Heair) range from 0.013 to 0.031 R/Ra, indicating a dominant crustal origin for helium with a sustained input of radiogenic 4He from the decomposition of U- and Th-bearing minerals, effectively diluting any original mantle helium input. The high helium content in the non-produced gases compared to the shallower producing wells most likely reflects their stratigraphic position relative to the Tonian Bitter Springs Group with the former below and the latter above an effective carbonate-salt seal.

Keywords: amadeus gas, thermogenic, abiogenic, C, H, N, He isotopes

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Authors: Mohd Najib Mansor, Nur Syamilah Md. Noor, Abdul Rahim Anuar, Shazida Jan Mohd Khan, Ahmad Zubir Ibrahim, Badariah Hj Din, Abu Sufian Abu Bakar, Kalsom Kayat, Wan Nurmahfuzah Jannah Wan Mansor

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This study aimed and focused on the behavior of youth entrepreneurs’ especially entrepreneurial self-efficacy and the performance in micro SMEs in Malaysia. Entrepreneurship development calls for support from various quarters, and mostly the need exists to initiate a youth entrepreneurship culture and drive amongst the youth in the society. Although backed up by the government and non-government organizations, micro-entrepreneurs are still facing challenges which greatly delay their progress, growth and consequently their input towards economic advancement. Micro-entrepreneurs are confronted with unique difficulties such as uncertainty, innovation, and evolution. Reviews on the development of entrepreneurial characteristics such as need for achievement, internal locus of control, risk-taking and innovation and have been recognized as highly associated with entrepreneurial behavior. The data in this study was obtained from the Department of Statistics, Malaysia. A random sampling of 830 respondents was distributed to 14 states that involve of micro-entrepreneurs. The study adopted a quantitative approach whereby a set of questionnaire was used to gather data. Multiple regression analysis was chosen as a method of analysis testing. The result of this study is expected to provide insight into the factor affecting entrepreneurial behavior and performance of youth entrepreneurs in micro SMEs. The finding showed that the Malaysian youth entrepreneurs do not have the entrepreneurial self-efficacy within themselves in order to accomplish greater success in their business venture. The establishment of entrepreneurial schools to allow our youth to be exposed to entrepreneurship from an early age and the development of special training focuses on the creation of business network so that the continuous entrepreneurial culture is crafted.

Keywords: youth entrepreneurs, micro entrepreneurs, entrepreneurial self-efficacy, entrepreneurial performance

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Authors: Recep Kesli, Huseyin Bilgin, Yasar Unlu, Gokhan Gungor

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Aim: The aim of this study was to compare diagnostic values of two different molecular-based tests (GenoType® HelicoDR ve Seeplex® H. pylori-ClaR- ACE Detection) in detection presence of the H. pylori from gastric biopsy specimens. In addition to this also was aimed to determine resistance ratios of H. pylori strains against to clarytromycine and quinolone isolated from gastric biopsy material cultures by using both the genotypic (GenoType® HelicoDR, Seeplex ® H. pylori -ClaR- ACE Detection) and phenotypic (gradient strip, E-test) methods. Material and methods: A total of 266 patients who admitted to Konya Education and Research Hospital Department of Gastroenterology with dyspeptic complaints, between January 2011-June 2013, were included in the study. Microbiological and histopathological examinations of biopsy specimens taken from antrum and corpus regions were performed. The presence of H. pylori in all the biopsy samples was investigated by five differnt dignostic methods together: culture (C) (Portagerm pylori-PORT PYL, Pylori agar-PYL, GENbox microaer, bioMerieux, France), histology (H) (Giemsa, Hematoxylin and Eosin staining), rapid urease test (RUT) (CLOtest, Cimberly-Clark, USA), and two different molecular tests; GenoType® HelicoDR, Hain, Germany, based on DNA strip assay, and Seeplex ® H. pylori -ClaR- ACE Detection, Seegene, South Korea, based on multiplex PCR. Antimicrobial resistance of H. pylori isolates against clarithromycin and levofloxacin was determined by GenoType® HelicoDR, Seeplex ® H. pylori -ClaR- ACE Detection, and gradient strip (E-test, bioMerieux, France) methods. Culture positivity alone or positivities of both histology and RUT together was accepted as the gold standard for H. pylori positivity. Sensitivity and specificity rates of two molecular methods used in the study were calculated by taking the two gold standards previously mentioned. Results: A total of 266 patients between 16-83 years old who 144 (54.1 %) were female, 122 (45.9 %) were male were included in the study. 144 patients were found as culture positive, and 157 were H and RUT were positive together. 179 patients were found as positive with GenoType® HelicoDR and Seeplex ® H. pylori -ClaR- ACE Detection together. Sensitivity and specificity rates of studied five different methods were found as follows: C were 80.9 % and 84.4 %, H + RUT were 88.2 % and 75.4 %, GenoType® HelicoDR were 100 % and 71.3 %, and Seeplex ® H. pylori -ClaR- ACE Detection were, 100 % and 71.3 %. A strong correlation was found between C and H+RUT, C and GenoType® HelicoDR, and C and Seeplex ® H. pylori -ClaR- ACE Detection (r:0.644 and p:0.000, r:0.757 and p:0.000, r:0.757 and p:0.000, respectively). Of all the isolated 144 H. pylori strains 24 (16.6 %) were detected as resistant to claritromycine, and 18 (12.5 %) were levofloxacin. Genotypic claritromycine resistance was detected only in 15 cases with GenoType® HelicoDR, and 6 cases with Seeplex ® H. pylori -ClaR- ACE Detection. Conclusion: In our study, it was concluded that; GenoType® HelicoDR and Seeplex ® H. pylori -ClaR- ACE Detection was found as the most sensitive diagnostic methods when comparing all the investigated other ones (C, H, and RUT).

Keywords: Helicobacter pylori, GenoType® HelicoDR, Seeplex ® H. pylori -ClaR- ACE Detection, antimicrobial resistance

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Authors: A. Brach

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The architecture of modern museums in the historical center should refer to a place in a cultural, historical, urban and architectural sense, using adequate and contemporary forms of architecture. The research and architectural analysis of selected museums in Cracow were conducted to illustrate which elements were decisive for the choice of architectural form. The evaluation of selected objects took into the consideration the following aspects: continuation of the historical form, contemporary form referring to the place, the individual-author form omitting the cultural aspect of the place. The presented projects showed the compromise as positive solutions rejecting both the direct imitation or 'historical continuation' as well as an individual form focused on an abstract form. In order to carry out research and confirm the thesis, three designs of Assoc. Prof. Eng. Arch. Krzysztof Ingarden in the historic city of Cracow were selected. Despite being constructed in one city, the neighborhood and cultural contexts of the locations are completely different. The neighborhood of the historical Royal Road and gothic church with unique decorations from the Polish Art Nouveau, artist Stanislaw Wyspianski (Wyspianski Pavilion), the bend of the Vistula hosting the Japanese culture (Museum of Japanese Art and Technology Manggha) and finally the old area of a horse riding school from the Austrian Empire times (Malopolska Garden of Art). All three buildings are dedicated to the culture of Japan, Polish artist Stanislaw Wyspianski, contemporary achievements and the promotion of art at its widest sense. Important fact for this research is that there is one author of all presented projects.

Keywords: adaptation of existing buildings, architecture in cracow, modern architecture, museums located in historic center

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Authors: Ganiyu Rasaq Omokeji

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The growing recognition of the pivotal role of universities in promoting socio-economic development has led to a focus upon the expansion of the sector around the world. As the economy and society become more ‘knowledge intensive’, the role of universities in development is more onerous than just teaching, research, and service. It is to help create the open society upon which the progress of ideas depends on. Driven to fulfill this role, universities are likely to become even more important in building regional networks of their host communities. Currently, there are about 129 universities in Nigeria, with a total number of 37 federal, 36 state, and 56 privately owned universities. Fountain University is among the private universities in Nigeria located in Osogbo, Osun State. The university is committed to the total development of men and women in an enabling environment, through appropriate teaching, research, and service to humanity, influenced by Islamic ethics and culture. The university focuses on educational development and growth that are relevant to the nation’s manpower needs and global competitiveness through a gradual but steady process. This paper examines the role of Private University in the socio-economic development of host community using Fountain University as a case study. The research methodology design for this paper has a total of 200 respondents. The research instrument of data collection was a questionnaire and in-depth interview (IDI). The finding reveals that Fountain University plays an important role in socio-economic and cultural development through their Islamic culture. The paper recommend that universities must bridge the gaps between creative individual with innovative ideas and the application of technology for economic progress and social betterment of their host communities. University also must serve as a bridge that carries the traffic of social and economic development.

Keywords: private university, socio-economic development, host communities, role of universities and community development

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Authors: Amy Buckley

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The purpose of this article is to assess the problem of constitutional hyper-rigidity to consider how it and the associated tensions with democratic constitutionalism can be diminished by means of using digital democratic technologies. In other words, this article examines how digital technologies can assist us in ensuring fidelity to the will of the constituent power without paying the price of hyper-rigidity. In doing so, it is impossible to ignore that digital strategies can also harm democracy through, for example, manipulation, hacking, ‘fake news,’ and the like. This article considers the tension between constitutional hyper-rigidity and democratic constitutionalism and the relevant strengths and weaknesses of digital democratic strategies before undertaking a case study on Canadian e-consultations and drawing its conclusions. This article observes democratic constitutionalism through the lens of the theory of deliberative democracy to suggest that the application of digital strategies can, notwithstanding their pitfalls, improve a constituency’s amendment culture and, thus, diminish constitutional hyper-rigidity. Constitutional hyper-rigidity is not a new or underexplored concept. At a high level, a constitution can be said to be ‘hyper-rigid’ when its formal amendment procedure is so difficult to enact that it does not take place or is limited in its application. This article claims that hyper-rigidity is one problem with ordinary constitutionalism that fails to satisfy the principled requirements of democratic constitutionalism. Given the rise and development of technology that has taken place since the Digital Revolution, there has been a significant expansion in the possibility for digital democratic strategies to overcome the democratic constitutionalism failures resulting from constitutional hyper-rigidity. Typically, these strategies have included, inter alia, e- consultations, e-voting systems, and online polling forums, all of which significantly improve the ability of politicians and judges to directly obtain the opinion of constituents on any number of matters. This article expands on the application of these strategies through its Canadian e-consultation case study and presents them as a solution to poor amendment culture and, consequently, constitutional hyper-rigidity. Hyper-rigidity is a common descriptor of many written and unwritten constitutions, including the United States, Australian, and Canadian constitutions as just some examples. This article undertakes a case study on Canada, in particular, as it is a jurisdiction less commonly cited in academic literature generally concerned with hyper-rigidity and because Canada has to some extent, championed the use of e-consultations. In Part I of this article, I identify the problem, being that the consequence of constitutional hyper-rigidity is in tension with the principles of democratic constitutionalism. In Part II, I identify and explore a potential solution, the implementation of digital democratic strategies as a means of reducing constitutional hyper-rigidity. In Part III, I explore Canada’s e-consultations as a case study for assessing whether digital democratic strategies do, in fact, improve a constituency’s amendment culture thus reducing constitutional hyper-rigidity and the associated tension that arises with the principles of democratic constitutionalism. The idea is to run a case study and then assess whether I can generalise the conclusions.

Keywords: constitutional hyper-rigidity, digital democracy, deliberative democracy, democratic constitutionalism

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Authors: Hanna Gulema, Meaza Demissie, Alemayehu Worku, Tesfaye Assebe Yadeta, Yemane Berhane

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Background: In patriarchal societies, female caregivers decide on food allocation within a family based on prevailing gender and age norms, which may lead to inequality that does not favor young adolescent girls. This study evaluated the effect of a community-based social norm intervention involving female caregivers in West Hararghe, Ethiopia. The intervention was engaging female caregivers along with other adult influential community members to deliberate and act on food allocation social norms in a process referred to as Social Analysis and Action (SAA). Method: We used data from a large quasi-experimental study to compare family eating practices between those who participated in the Social Analyses and Action intervention and those who did not. The respondents were female caregivers in households with young adolescent girls (ages 13 and 14 years). The study’s outcome was the practice of family eating together from the same dish. The difference in difference (DID) analysis with the Mixed effect logistic regression model was used to examine the effect of the intervention. Result: The results showed improved family eating practices in both groups, but the improvement was greater in the intervention group. The DID analysis showed an 11.99 percentage points greater improvement in the intervention arm than in the control arm. The mixed-effect regression produced an adjusted odds ratio of 2.08 (95% CI [1.06–4.09]) after controlling selected covariates, p-value 0.033. Conclusions: The involvement of influential adult community members significantly improves the family practice of eating together in households where adolescent girls are present in our study. The intervention has great potential to minimize household food allocation inequalities and thus improve the nutritional status of young adolescents. Further studies are necessary to evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention in different social norm contexts to formulate policy and guidelines for scale-up.

Keywords: family eating practice, social norm intervention, adolescence girls, caregiver

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Authors: R. Vidhya

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Diasporic writings present a comprehensive view of social, cultural and psychological dualities of immigrants. Isolation and the strong feelings of insecurity and inferiority due to constant marginalization coupled with a nostalgia for their motherland, its customs, culture, language, food and people which keep haunting the minds of immigrants are the major themes that are handled by diasporic writers. In the African diaspora, more than the men, it is the women who face the brunt and burden of the triple jeopardy – the racial, class and gender discrimination. Women writers from Africa have successfully sketched the plight of African women in the diaspora. Buchi Emecheta, a Nigerian woman writer deftly portrays the African Diaspora in her novels. She skillfully weaves her stories with her own experiences as an immigrant in the United Kingdom. She portrays the immigrant life and psychology through numerous themes like exile, geographical shift of locations, transactions of culture, political instability and the dilemma of moral and religious ideologies in her diasporic novels Second-class Citizen, Gwendolyn and Kehinde. The contemporary Nigerian woman writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has also dexterously depicted the diasporic dilemma of her protagonist Ifemelu in Americannah, who initially has the experience of a despondent and a downcast in the United States of America. This paper aims to analyse the diasporic sentiments and sensibilities of the Nigerian Igbo women writers Buchi Emecheta and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie whose women characters finally find emancipation and empowerment in the African Diaspora. This study is based on the Africana Womanist Literary theory propounded by Clenora Hudson-Weems.

Keywords: African Diaspora, Nigerian women writers, Buchi Emecheta, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, emancipation, empowerment

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Authors: Briante Barretto, Haley Carreon, Anesha-Maelene Ignacio

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This research paper explores the dynamic process of cultural resilience within the context of the modern tourism of two traditional island communities (Bali, Indonesia and Guam, Micronesia). It asks the question: How do indigenous people hold on to their foundational values that define their culture while moving forward in the modern world? Both Bali and Guam serve as famous destinations for tourists from all over the world, with millions of visitors on an annual basis. Both are continually being shaped in profound ways by the forces of modernity through globalization. And both are demonstrating cultural resilience while striving to find creative ways to sustain, preserve and strengthen their values and traditions within the context of a thriving modern tourist economy. This research paper, drawing on ethnographic methodologies, and in particular participant observation and in-depth interviews, explores the many challenges both communities face and the strategies and approaches they are learning to employ that help promote sustainable tourism while contributing to cultural preservation. Drawing on the insights gained from field work in both island communities, as well as the growing literature in this field study, the paper posits important lessons that can guide and inform indigenous communities that are being drawn into the global tourism market. One powerful idea emerges in the research and one that seems to guide and shape tourism policy both indigenous communities - that this current generation should be thought of as the ancestors of future generations, and thus they have a weighty responsibility to continue to learn and strive to sustain and preserve their cultures and traditions, their natural environments, and spiritual foundations for the future.

Keywords: bali, culture, environment, guam, tourism, values

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Authors: Li Yang

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Tourism is employed by many countries to facilitate socioeconomic development and to assist in the heritage preservation. An “ethnic culture boom” is currently driving the tourism industry in China. Ethnic minorities, commonly portrayed as primitive, colorful and exotic, have become a big tourist draw. Many cultural attractions have been built throughout China to meet the demands of domestic tourists. Sacred cultural heritage sites have been rehabilitated as a major component of ethnic tourism. The purpose of this study is to examine the interconnected consequences of tourism development and tourism-related leisure property development and, and to discuss, in a broader context, issues and considerations that are pertinent to the management and development of ethnic attractions. The role of real estate in tourism development and its sociocultural consequences are explored. An empirical research was conducted in Yiren Ancient Town (literally, "Ancient Town of Yi People") in Chuxiong City, Yunnan Province, China. Multiple research methods, including in-depth interviews, informal discussions, on-site observations, and secondary data review were employed to measure residents and tourism decision-makers’ perceptions of ethnic tourism and to explore the impacts of tourism on local community. Key informants from government officials, tourism developers and local communities were interviewed individually to gather what they think about benefits and costs of tourism, and what their concerns about and hopes for tourism development are. Yiren Ancient Town was constructed in classical Yi architecture style featuring tranquil garden scenery. Commercial streets, entertainment complexes, and accommodation facilities occupied the center of the town, creating culturally distinctive and visually stimulating places for tourists. A variety of activities are presented to visitors, including walking tours of the town, staged dance shows, musical performances, ethnic festivals and ceremonies, tasting minority food and wedding shows. This study reveals that tourism real estate has transformed the town from a traditional neighborhood into diverse real estate landscapes. Ethnic architecture, costumes, festivals and folk culture have been represented, altered and reinvented through the tourist gaze and mechanisms of cultural production. Tourism is now a new economic driver of the community providing opportunities for the creation of small businesses. There was a general appreciation in the community that tourism has created many employment opportunities, especially for self-employment. However, profit-seeking is a primary motivation for the government, developers, businesses, and other actors involved in the tourism development process. As the town has attracted an increasing number of visitors, commercialization and business competition are intense in the town. Many residents complained about elevated land prices, making the town and the surroundings comparatively high-value locales. Local community is also concerned about the decline of traditional ethnic culture and an erosion of the sense of identity and place. A balance is difficult to maintain between protection and development. The preservation of ethnic culture and heritage should be enhanced if long-term sustainable development of tourism is to occur and the loss of ethnic identities is to be avoided.

Keywords: ancient town, ethnic tourism, local community, real estate, China

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Authors: Nur Azreena Idris, Soh Kheang Loh, Harrison Lau Lik Nang, Yuen May Choo, Eminour Muzalina Mustafa, Vijaysri Vello, Cheng Yau Tan, Siew Moi Phang

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It is estimated that about 0.65-0.67 m3 of palm oil mill effluent (POME) is generated when one tonne of fresh fruit bunches is processed. Owning to the high content of nutrients in POME, it has high potential as a medium for microalgae growth. This study attempted determining the growth rate, biomass productivity and biochemical composition of microalgae (Chlorella sp.) grown in different POME concentrations i.e. 6.25%, 12.5%, 25% and 50% at outdoor conditions using a 200-mL capacity high rate algae pond (HRAP) and 2 closed photobioreactors (PBRs) i.e. annular and flat panel. The strain, Chlorella sp. grown on 12.5% of POME in flat panel PBR exhibited the highest specific growth rate of 0.32/day and biomass productivity (27.1 mg/L/day) followed by those in HRAP and annular PBR. It further showed that a good growth of Chlorella sp. in 12.5% of POME could sufficiently reduce the nutrients of POME such as phosphate (PO4), nitrate (NO3), nitrite (NO2) and chemical oxygen demand (COD). The extracted algal oil from POME culture showed that the saturated fatty acids decreased while polyunsaturated fatty acids increased compared to those cultured in standard culture medium (Bold’s Basal medium). The biochemical compositions of the algae grown in flat panel PBR were the highest with lipid, protein and carbohydrate productivity of 17.91 mg/L/day, 34.65 mg/L/day and 21.44 mg/L/day, respectively. The microalgae cultivation in diluted POME had not only shown potential as biodiesel feedstock based on the fatty acids profile but also the ability to reduce pollutants e.g. PO4, NO3, NO2 and COD in biological wastewater treatment.

Keywords: wastewater treatment, photobioreactors, biomass productivity, specific growth rate

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