Search results for: environmental and social impact assessment

Authors: Monique M. Keller, Roline Barnes, Corlia Brandt

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Introduction Scientific evidence on the hand forces and the types of grasps measurement during daily tasks are lacking, leaving a gap in the field of hand rehabilitation and robotics. Measuring the grasp forces and types produced by the individual fingers during daily functional tasks is valuable to inform and grade rehabilitation practices for second to fifth metacarpal fractures with robust scientific evidence. Feix et al, 2016 identified the most extensive and complete grasp study that resulted in the GRASP taxonomy. Covid-19 virus changed data collection across the globe and safety precautions in research are essential to ensure the health of participants and researchers. Methodology A cross-sectional study investigated six healthy adults aged 20 to 59 years, pilot participants’ hand forces during 105 tasks. The tasks were categorized into five sections namely, personal care, transport and moving around, home environment and inside, gardening and outside, and office. The predominant grasp of each task was identified guided by the GRASP Taxonomy. Grasp forces were measured with 13mm force-sensing resistors glued onto a glove attached to each of the dominant and non-dominant hand’s individual fingers. Testing equipment included Flexiforce 13millimetres FSR .5" circle, calibrated prior to testing, 10k 1/4w resistors, Arduino pro mini 5.0v – compatible, Esp-01-kit, Arduino uno r3 – compatible board, USB ab cable - 1m, Ftdi ft232 mini USB to serial, Sil 40 inline connectors, ribbon cable combo male header pins, female to female, male to female, two gloves, glue to attach the FSR to glove, Arduino software programme downloaded on a laptop. Grip strength measurements with Jamar dynamometer prior to testing and after every 25 daily tasks were taken to will avoid fatigue and ensure reliability in testing. Covid-19 precautions included wearing face masks at all times, screening questionnaires, temperatures taken, wearing surgical gloves before putting on the testing gloves 1.5 metres long wires attaching the FSR to the Arduino to maintain social distance. Findings Predominant grasps observed during 105 tasks included, adducted thumb (17), lateral tripod (10), prismatic three fingers (12), small diameter (9), prismatic two fingers (9), medium wrap (7), fixed hook (5), sphere four fingers (4), palmar (4), parallel extension (4), index finger extension (3), distal (3), power sphere (2), tripod (2), quadpod (2), prismatic four fingers (2), lateral (2), large-diameter (2), ventral (2), precision sphere (1), palmar pinch (1), light tool (1), inferior pincher (1), and writing tripod (1). Range of forces applied per category, personal care (1-25N), transport and moving around (1-9 N), home environment and inside (1-41N), gardening and outside (1-26.5N), and office (1-20N). Conclusion Scientifically measurements of finger forces with careful consideration to types of grasps used in daily tasks should guide rehabilitation practices and robotic design to ensure a return to the full participation of the individual into the community.

Keywords: activities of daily living (ADL), Covid-19, force-sensing resistors, grasps, hand forces

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Authors: Christiane H. Kellner, Sarah Reker

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The UN-Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which Germany also ratified, postulates the necessity of user-centred design, especially when it comes to evaluating the individual needs and wishes of all citizens. Therefore, a multidimensional approach is required. Based on this insight, the structure of the town-like centre in Schönbrunn - a large residential complex and service provider for persons with disabilities in the outskirts of Munich - will be remodelled to open up the community to all people as well as transform social space. This strategy should lead to more equal opportunities and open the way for a much more diverse community. The research project “Index for participation development and quality of life for persons with disabilities” (TeLe-Index, 2014-2016), which is anchored at the Technische Universität München in Munich and at the Franziskuswerk Schönbrunn supports this transformation process called “Vision 2030”. In this context, we have provided academic supervision and support for three projects (the construction of a new school, inclusive housing for children and teenagers with disabilities and the professionalization of employees using person-centred planning). Since we cannot present all the issues of the umbrella-project within the conference framework, we will be focusing on one sub-project more in-depth, namely “The Person-Centred Think Tank” [Arbeitskreis Personenzentriertes Denken; PZD]. In the context of person-centred thinking (PCT), persons with disabilities are encouraged to (re)gain or retain control of their lives through the development of new choice options and the validation of individual lifestyles. PCT should thus foster and support both participation and quality of life. The project aims to establish PCT as a fundamental approach for both employees and persons with disabilities in the institution through in-house training for the staff and, subsequently, training for users. Hence, for the academic support and supervision team, the questions arising from this venture can be summed up as follows: (1) has PCT already gained a foothold at the Franziskuswerk Schönbrunn? And (2) how does it affect the interaction with persons with disabilities and how does it influence the latter’s everyday life? According to the holistic approach described above, the target groups for this study are both the staff and the users of the institution. Initially, we planned to implement the group discussion method for both target-groups. However, in the course of a pretest with persons with intellectual disabilities, it became clear that this type of interview, with hardly any external structuring, provided only limited feedback. In contrast, when the discussions were moderated, there was more interaction and dialogue between the interlocutors. Therefore, for this target-group, we introduced structured group interviews. The insights we have obtained until now will enable us to present the intermediary results of our evaluation. We analysed and evaluated the group interviews and discussions with the help of qualitative content analysis according to Mayring in order to obtain information about users’ quality of life. We sorted out the statements relating to quality of life obtained during the group interviews into three dimensions: subjective wellbeing, self-determination and participation. Nevertheless, the majority of statements were related to subjective wellbeing and self-determination. Thus, especially the limited feedback on participation clearly demonstrates that the lives of most users do not take place beyond the confines of the institution. A number of statements highlighted the fact that PCT is anchored in the everyday interactions within the groups. However, the implementation and fostering of PCT on a broader level could not be detected and thus remain further aims of the project. The additional interviews we have planned should validate the results obtained until now and open up new perspectives.

Keywords: person-centered thinking, research with persons with disabilities, residential complex and service provider, participation, self-determination.

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Authors: F. Varga, Z. Liber, J. Jakše, A. Turudić, Z. Šatović, I. Radosavljević, N. Jeran, M. Grdiša

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Dalmatian pyrethrum (Tanacetum cinerariifolium (Trevir.) Sch. Bip.; Asteraceae), a source of the commercially dominant plant insecticide pyrethrin, is a species endemic to the eastern Adriatic. Genetic diversity of T. cinerariifolium was previously studied using amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) markers. However, microsatellite markers (single sequence repeats - SSRs) are more informative because they are codominant, highly polymorphic, locus-specific, and more reproducible, and thus are most often used to assess the genetic diversity of plant species. Dalmatian pyrethrum is an outcrossing diploid (2n = 18) whose large genome size and high repeatability have prevented the success of the traditional approach to SSR markers development. The advent of next-generation sequencing combined with the specifically developed method recently enabled the development of, to the author's best knowledge, the first set of SSRs for genomic characterization of Dalmatian pyrethrum, which is essential from the perspective of plant genetic resources conservation. To evaluate the effectiveness of the developed SSR markers in genetic differentiation of Dalmatian pyrethrum populations, a preliminary genetic diversity study was conducted on 30 individuals from three geographically distinct natural populations in Croatia (northern Adriatic island of Mali Lošinj, southern Adriatic island of Čiovo, and Mount Biokovo) based on 12 SSR loci. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) by randomization test with 10,000 permutations was performed in Arlequin 3.5. The average number of alleles per locus, observed and expected heterozygosity, probability of deviations from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, and inbreeding coefficient was calculated using GENEPOP 4.4. Genetic distance based on the proportion of common alleles (DPSA) was calculated using MICROSAT. Cluster analysis using the neighbor-joining method with 1,000 bootstraps was performed with PHYLIP to generate a dendrogram. The results of the AMOVA analysis showed that the total SSR diversity was 23% within and 77% between the three populations. A slight deviation from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium was observed in the Mali Lošinj population. Allele richness ranged from 2.92 to 3.92, with the highest number of private alleles observed in the Mali Lošinj population (17). The average observed DPSA between 30 individuals was 0.557. The highest DPSA (0.875) was observed between several pairs of Dalmatian pyrethrum individuals from the Mali Lošinj and Mt. Biokovo populations, and the lowest between two individuals from the Čiovo population. Neighbor-joining trees, based on DPSA, grouped individuals into clusters according to their population affiliation. The separation of Mt. Biokovo clade was supported (bootstrap value 58%), which is consistent with the previous study on AFLP markers, where isolated populations from Mt. Biokovo differed from the rest of the populations. The developed SSR markers are an effective tool for assessing the genetic diversity and structure of natural Dalmatian pyrethrum populations. These preliminary results are encouraging for a future comprehensive study with a larger sample size across the species' range. Combined with the biochemical data, these highly informative markers could help identify potential genotypes of interest for future development of breeding lines and cultivars that are both resistant to environmental stress and high in pyrethrins. Acknowledgment: This work has been supported by the Croatian Science Foundation under the project ‘Genetic background of Dalmatian pyrethrum (Tanacetum cinerariifolium /Trevir./ Sch. Bip.) insecticidal potential’- (PyrDiv) (IP-06-2016-9034) and by project KK.01.1.1.01.0005, Biodiversity and Molecular Plant Breeding, at the Centre of Excellence for Biodiversity and Molecular Plant Breeding (CoE CroP-BioDiv), Zagreb, Croatia.

Keywords: Asteraceae, genetic diversity, genomic SSRs, NGS, pyrethrum, Tanacetum cinerariifolium

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Authors: Marthinus Conradie

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The conversational dynamics of democratically orientated deliberation continue to stimulate critical scholarship for its potential to bolster robust engagement between different sections of pluralist societies. Several axes of deliberation that have attracted academic attention include face-to-face vs. online interaction, and citizen-to-citizen communication vs. engagement between citizens and political elites. In all these areas, numerous researchers have explored deliberative procedures aimed at achieving instrumental goals such a securing consensus on policy issues, against procedures that prioritise expressive outcomes such as broadening the range of argumentative repertoires that discursively construct and mediate specific political issues. The study that informs this paper, works in the latter stream. Drawing its data from the reader-comments section of a South African broadsheet newspaper, the study investigates online, citizen-to-citizen deliberation by analysing the discursive practices through which competing understandings of social problems are articulated and contested. To advance this agenda, the paper deals specifically with user-generated comments posted in response to news stories on questions of race and racism in South Africa. The analysis works to discern and interpret the various sets of discourse practices that shape how citizens deliberate contentious political issues, especially racism. Since the website in question is designed to encourage the critical comparison of divergent interpretations of news events, without feeding directly into national policymaking, the study adopts an analytic framework that traces how citizens articulate arguments, rather than the instrumental effects that citizen deliberations might exert on policy. The paper starts from the argument that such expressive interactions are particularly crucial to current trends in South African politics, given that the precise nature of race and racism remain contested and uncertain. Centred on a sample of 2358 conversational moves in 814 posts to 18 news stories emanating from issues of race and racism, the analysis proceeds in a two-step fashion. The first stage conducts a qualitative content analysis that offers insights into the levels of reciprocity among commenters (do readers engage with each other or simply post isolated opinions?), as well as the structures of argumentation (do readers support opinions by citing evidence?). The second stage involves a more fine-grained discourse analysis, based on a theorisation of argumentation that delineates it into three components: opinions/conclusions, evidence/data to support opinions/conclusions and warrants that explicate precisely how evidence/data buttress opinions/conclusions. By tracing the manifestation and frequency of specific argumentative practices, this study contributes to the archive of research currently aggregating around the practices that characterise South Africans’ engagement with provocative political questions, especially racism and racial inequity. Additionally, the study also contributes to recent scholarship on the affordances of Web 2.0 software by eschewing a simplistic bifurcation between cyber-optimist vs. pessimism, in favour of a more nuanced and context-specific analysis of the patterns that structure online deliberation.

Keywords: online deliberation, discourse analysis, qualitative content analysis, racism

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Authors: Marija Mihajlovic Pereira

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Teaching and learning a musical instrument is challenging for both teachers and students. Teachers generally use diverse strategies to resolve students' particular issues in a one-to-one context. Considering individual sessions as a supportive educational context, the teacher can play a decisive role in stimulating and promoting self-regulated learning strategies, especially with beginning learners. The teachers who promote self-controlling behaviors, strategic monitoring, and regulation of actions toward goals could expect their students to practice more qualitatively and consciously. When encouraged to adopt self-regulation habits, students' could benefit from greater productivity on a longer path. Founded on Bary Zimmerman's cyclical model that comprehends three phases - forethought, performance, and self-reflection, this work aims to articulate self-regulated and music learning. Self-regulated learning appeals to the individual's attitude in planning, controlling, and reflecting on their performance. Furthermore, this study aimed to present an observation grid for perceiving teaching instructions that encourage students' controlling cognitive behaviors in light of the belief that conscious promotion of self-regulation may motivate strategic actions toward goals in musical performance. The participants, two teachers, and two students have been involved in the social inclusion project in Lisbon (Portugal). The author and one independent inter-observer analyzed six video-recorded string instrument lessons. The data correspond to three sessions per teacher lectured to one (different) student. Violin (f) and violoncello (m) teachers hold a Master's degree in music education and approximately five years of experience. In their second year of learning an instrument, students have acquired reasonable skills in musical reading, posture, and sound quality until then. The students also manifest positive learning behaviors, interest in learning a musical instrument, although their study habits are still inconsistent. According to the grid's four categories (parent codes), in-class rehearsal frames were coded using MaxQda software, version 20, according to the grid's four categories (parent codes): self-regulated learning, teaching verbalizations, teaching strategies, and students' in-class performance. As a result, selected rehearsal frames qualitatively describe teaching instructions that might promote students' body and hearing awareness, such as "close the eyes while playing" or "sing to internalize the pitch." Another analysis type, coding the short video events according to the observation grid's subcategories (child codes), made it possible to perceive the time teachers dedicate to specific verbal or non-verbal strategies. Furthermore, a coding overlay analysis indicated that teachers tend to stimulate. (i) Forethought – explain tasks, offer feedback and ensure that students identify a goal, (ii) Performance – teach study strategies and encourage students to sing and use vocal abilities to ensure inner audition, (iii) Self-reflection – frequent inquiring and encouraging the student to verbalize their perception of performance. Although developed in the context of individual string instrument lessons, this classroom observation grid brings together essential variables in a one-to-one lesson. It may find utility in a broader context of music education due to the possibility to organize, observe and evaluate teaching practices. Besides that, this study contributes to cognitive development by suggesting a practical approach to fostering self-regulated learning.

Keywords: music education, observation grid, self-regulated learning, string instruments, teaching practices

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Authors: Ziyad S. Haidar

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Millions of teeth are removed annually, and dental extraction is one of the most commonly performed surgical procedures globally. Whether due to caries, periodontal disease or trauma, exodontia and the ensuing wound healing and bone remodeling processes of the resultant socket (hole in the jaw bone) usually result in serious deformities of the residual alveolar osseous ridge and surrounding soft tissues (reduced height/width). Such voluminous changes render the placement of a proper conventional bridge, denture or even an implant-supported prosthesis extremely challenging. Further, most extractions continue to be performed with no regard for preventing the onset of alveolar osteitis (also known as dry socket, a painful and difficult-to-treat/-manage condition post-exodontia). Hence, such serious resorptive morphological changes often result in significant facial deformities and a negative impact on the overall Quality of Life (QoL) of patients (and oral health-related QoL), alarming, particularly for the geriatric with compromised healing and in light of the thriving longevity statistics. Opportunity: Despite advances in tissue/wound grafting, serious limitations continue to exist, including efficacy and clinical outcome predictability, cost, treatment time, expertise and risk of immune reactions. For cases of dry sockets, specifically, the commercially-available and often-prescribed home remedies are highly lacking. Indeed, most are not recommended for use anymore. Alveogyl is a fine example. Hence, there is a great market demand and need for alternative solutions. Solution: Herein, SockGEL/PLUG (patent pending), an all-natural, drug-free and injectable stimuli-responsive hydrogel, was designed, formulated, characterized and evaluated as an osteogenic, angiogenic, anti-microbial and pain-soothing suture-free intra-alveolar dressing, safe and efficacious for use in several oro-dental and cranio-maxillo-facial interventional applications; for example: in fresh dental extraction sockets, immediately post-exodontia. It is composed of FDA-approved, biocompatible and biodegradable polymers, self-assembled electro-statically to formulate a scaffolding matrix to (a) prevent the onset of alveolar osteitis via securing the fibrin-clot in situ and protecting/sealing the socket from contamination/infection; and (b) endogenously promote/accelerate wound healing and bone remodeling to preserve the volume of the alveolus. Findings: The intrinsic properties of the SockGEL/PLUG hydrogel were evaluated physico-chemico-mechanically for safety (cell viability), viscosity, rheology, bio-distribution and essentially, capacity to induce wound healing and osteogenesis (small defect, in vivo) without any signaling cues from exogenous cells, growth factors or drugs. The performed animal model of cranial critical-sized and non-vascularized bone defects shall provide vitally critical insights into the role and mechanism of the employed natural bio-polymer blend and gel product in endogenous reparative regeneration of soft tissues and bone morphogenesis. Alongside, the fine-tuning of our modified formulation method will further tackle appropriateness, reproducibility, scalability, ease and speed in producing stable, biodegradable and sterilizable stimuli (thermo-sensitive and photo-responsive) matrices (3-dimensional interpenetrating yet porous polymeric network) suitable for an intra-socket application, and beyond. Conclusions and Perspective: Findings are anticipated to provide sufficient evidence to translate into pilot clinical trials and validate the bionanomaterial before engaging the market for feasibility, acceptance and cost-effectiveness studies. The SockGEL/PLUG platform is patent pending: SockGEL is a bio-inspired drug-free hydrogel; SockPLUG is a drug-loaded hydrogel designed for complex indications.

Keywords: hydrogel, injectable, dentistry, craniomaxillofacial complex, bioinspired, nanobiotechnology, biopolymer, sol-gel, stimuli-responsive, matrix, tissue engineering, regenerative medicine

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Authors: Katie M. Clark, Adriana A. Tienda, Krista C. Paffenroth, Lindsey N. Brigante, Daniel C. Colvin, Jose Maldonado, Erin S. Calipari, Fiona E. Harrison

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Manganese (Mn) is an essential trace element required for human health and is important in antioxidant defenses, as well as in the development and function of dopaminergic neurons. However, chronic low-level Mn exposure, such as through contaminated drinking water, poses risks that may contribute to neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative conditions, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Pharmacological inhibition of the dopamine transporter (DAT) blocks reuptake, elevates synaptic dopamine, and alleviates ADHD symptoms. This study aimed to determine whether Mn exposure in juvenile mice modifies their response to DAT blockers, amphetamine, and methylphenidate and utilize neuroimaging methods to visualize and quantify Mn distribution across dopaminergic brain regions. Male and female heterozygous DATᵀ³⁵⁶ᴹ and wild-type littermates were randomly assigned to receive control (2.5% Stevia) or high Manganese (2.5 mg/ml Mn + 2.5% Stevia) via water ad libitum from weaning (21-28 days) for 4-5 weeks. Mice underwent repeated testing in locomotor activity chambers for three consecutive days (60 mins.) to ensure that they were fully habituated to the environments. On the fourth day, a 3-hour activity session was conducted following treatment with amphetamine (3 mg/kg) or methylphenidate (5 mg/kg). The second drug was administered in a second 3-hour activity session following a 1-week washout period. Following the washout, the mice were given one last injection of amphetamine and euthanized one hour later. Using the ex-vivo brains, magnetic resonance relaxometry (MRR) was performed on a 7Telsa imaging system to map T1- and T2-weighted (T1W, T2W) relaxation times. Mn inherent paramagnetic properties shorten both T1W and T2W times, which enhances the signal intensity and contrast, enabling effective visualization of Mn accumulation in the entire brain. A subset of mice was treated with amphetamine 1 hour before euthanasia. SmartSPIM light sheet microscopy with cleared whole brains and cFos and tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) labeling enabled an unbiased automated counting and densitometric analysis of TH and cFos positive cells. Immunohistochemistry was conducted to measure synaptic protein markers and quantify changes in neurotransmitter regulation. Mn exposure elevated Mn brain levels and potentiated stimulant effects in males. The globus pallidus, substantia nigra, thalamus, and striatum exhibited more pronounced T1W shortening, indicating regional susceptibility to Mn accumulation (p<0.0001, 2-Way ANOVA). In the cleared whole brains, initial analyses suggest that TH and c-Fos co-staining mirrors behavioral data with decreased co-staining in DATT356M+/- mice. Ongoing studies will identify the molecular basis of the effect of Mn, including changes to DAergic metabolism and transport and post-translational modification to the DAT. These findings demonstrate that alterations in T1W relaxation times, as measured by MRR, may serve as an early biomarker for Mn neurotoxicity. This neuroimaging approach exhibits remarkable accuracy in identifying Mn-susceptible brain regions, with a spatial resolution and sensitivity that surpasses current conventional dissection and mass spectrometry approaches. The capability to label and map TH and cFos expression across the entire brain provides insights into whole-brain neuronal activation and its connections to functional neural circuits and behavior following amphetamine and methylphenidate administration.

Keywords: manganese, environmental toxicology, dopamine dysfunction, biomarkers, drinking water, light sheet microscopy, magnetic resonance relaxometry (MRR)

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Authors: Thaveesha Dheerasekera, Dileeka Sandamali Alwis

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The escalating prevalence of mental health issues, such as depression and suicidal ideation, is a matter of significant global concern. It is plausible that a variety of factors, such as life events, social isolation, and preexisting physiological or psychological health conditions, could instigate or exacerbate these conditions. Traditional approaches to diagnosing depression entail a considerable amount of time and necessitate the involvement of adept practitioners. This underscores the necessity for automated systems capable of promptly detecting and diagnosing symptoms of depression. The PsyVBot system employs sophisticated natural language processing and machine learning methodologies, including the use of the NLTK toolkit for dataset preprocessing and the utilization of a Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) model. The PsyVBot exhibits a remarkable ability to diagnose depression with a 94% accuracy rate through the analysis of user input. Consequently, this resource proves to be efficacious for individuals, particularly those enrolled in academic institutions, who may encounter challenges pertaining to their psychological well-being. The PsyVBot employs a Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) model that comprises a total of three layers, namely an embedding layer, an LSTM layer, and a dense layer. The stratification of these layers facilitates a precise examination of linguistic patterns that are associated with the condition of depression. The PsyVBot has the capability to accurately assess an individual's level of depression through the identification of linguistic and contextual cues. The task is achieved via a rigorous training regimen, which is executed by utilizing a dataset comprising information sourced from the subreddit r/SuicideWatch. The diverse data present in the dataset ensures precise and delicate identification of symptoms linked with depression, thereby guaranteeing accuracy. PsyVBot not only possesses diagnostic capabilities but also enhances the user experience through the utilization of audio outputs. This feature enables users to engage in more captivating and interactive interactions. The PsyVBot platform offers individuals the opportunity to conveniently diagnose mental health challenges through a confidential and user-friendly interface. Regarding the advancement of PsyVBot, maintaining user confidentiality and upholding ethical principles are of paramount significance. It is imperative to note that diligent efforts are undertaken to adhere to ethical standards, thereby safeguarding the confidentiality of user information and ensuring its security. Moreover, the chatbot fosters a conducive atmosphere that is supportive and compassionate, thereby promoting psychological welfare. In brief, PsyVBot is an automated conversational agent that utilizes an LSTM model to assess the level of depression in accordance with the input provided by the user. The demonstrated accuracy rate of 94% serves as a promising indication of the potential efficacy of employing natural language processing and machine learning techniques in tackling challenges associated with mental health. The reliability of PsyVBot is further improved by the fact that it makes use of the Reddit dataset and incorporates Natural Language Toolkit (NLTK) for preprocessing. PsyVBot represents a pioneering and user-centric solution that furnishes an easily accessible and confidential medium for seeking assistance. The present platform is offered as a modality to tackle the pervasive issue of depression and the contemplation of suicide.

Keywords: chatbot, depression diagnosis, LSTM model, natural language process

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Authors: Ziara Carmelli G. Tan, Irene Carmelle S. Tan

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Background: Trichotillomania (TTM) and Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) are two psychiatric conditions that frequently co-occur, presenting a significant challenge for treatment due to their complex interplay. TTM involves repetitive hair-pulling, leading to noticeable hair loss and distress, while MDD is characterized by persistent low mood and loss of interest or pleasure, leading to dysfunctionality. This case report examines the intricate relationship between TTM and MDD in a young adult female, emphasizing the need for a comprehensive, multifaceted therapeutic approach to address both disorders effectively. Case Presentation: The patient is a 21-year-old female college student and youth church leader who presented with chronic hair-pulling and depressive symptoms. Her premorbid personality was marked by low self-esteem and a strong need for external validation. Despite her academic and social responsibilities and achievements, she struggled with managing her emotional distress, which was exacerbated by her family dynamics and her role within her church community. Her hair-pulling and mood symptoms were particularly triggered by self-esteem threats and feelings of inadequacy. She was diagnosed with Trichotillomania, Scalp and Major Depressive Disorder. Intervention/Management: The patient’s treatment plan was comprehensive, incorporating both pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions. Initial pharmacologic management was Fluoxetine 20mg/day up, titrated to 40mg/day with no improvement; hence, shifted to Escitalopram 20mg/day and started with N-acetylcysteine 600mg/day with noted significant improvement in symptoms. Psychotherapeutic strategies played a crucial role in her treatment. These included supportive-expressive psychodynamic psychotherapy, which helped her explore and understand underlying emotional conflicts. Cognitive-behavioral techniques were employed to modify her maladaptive thoughts and behaviors. Grief processing was integrated to help her cope with significant losses. Family therapy was done to address conflicts and collaborate with the treatment process. Psychoeducation was provided to enhance her understanding of her condition and to empower her in her treatment journey. A suicide safety plan was developed to ensure her safety during critical periods. An interprofessional approach, which involved coordination with the Dermatology service for co-management, was also a key component of her treatment. Outcome: Over the course of 15 therapy sessions, the patient demonstrated significant improvement in both her depressive symptoms and hair-pulling behavior. Her active engagement in therapy, combined with pharmacological support, facilitated better emotional regulation and a more cohesive sense of self. Her adherence to the treatment plan, along with the collaborative efforts of the interprofessional team, contributed to her positive outcomes. Discussion: This case underscores the significance of addressing both TTM and its comorbid conditions to achieve effective treatment outcomes. The intricate interplay between TTM and MDD in the patient’s case highlights the importance of a comprehensive treatment plan that includes both pharmacological and psychotherapeutic approaches. Supportive-expressive psychodynamic psychotherapy, Cognitive-behavioral techniques, and Family therapy were particularly beneficial in addressing the complex emotional and behavioral aspects of her condition. The involvement of an interprofessional team, including dermatology co-management, was crucial in providing holistic care. Future practice should consider the benefits of such a multidisciplinary approach to managing complex cases like this, ensuring that both the psychological and physiological aspects of the disorders are adequately addressed.

Keywords: cognitive-behavioral therapy, interprofessional approach, major depressive disorder, psychodynamic psychotherapy, trichotillomania

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Authors: Jonathan Adeyemi

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Context: This study focuses on El Anatsui and his global acclaim in the art world despite his origins from the global artworld’s margins. It addresses the disparities in the treatment between Western and non-Western artists and questions whether Anatsui’s consecration is a result of exoticism or the growing consensus on decolonization. Research Aim: The aim of this study is to investigate how El Anatsui achieved global acclaim from the margins of the art world and determine if his consecration represents a mark of decolonization or the typical Western desire for exoticism. Methodology: The study utilizes a case study approach, literature analysis, and in-depth interviews. The artist, the organizers of the Venice Biennale, the relevant curators at Tate Modern London, and the October Gallery in London, and other galleries in Nigeria, which represent the artist were interviewed for data collection. Findings: The study seeks to determine the authenticity of the growing consensus on decolonization, inclusion, and diversity in the global artistic field. Preliminary findings show that domestic socio-economic and political factors debilitated the mechanisms for local validation in Nigeria, weakening the domestic foundation for international engagement. However, alternative systems of exhibition, especially in London and the USA contributed critically to providing the initial international visibility, which formed the foundation for his global acclaim. Out of the 21 winners of the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement since its inception at the 47th Venice Biennale in 1997, American artists have dominated with 10 recipients, 8 recipients from Europe, 2 recipients from Africa (2007 and 2015) and 1 from Asia. This aligns with Bourdieu’s concept of cultural and economic capital, which prevented Africa countries from participation until recently. Moreover, while the average age of recipients is 76 years, Anatsui received the award at the age of 71, while Malick Sidibé (Mali) was awarded at 72. Thus, the Venice Biennale award for El Anatsui incline more towards a commitment to decolonisation than exoticism. Theoretical Importance: This study contributes to the field by examining the dynamics of the art world's monopoly of legitimation and the role of national, ethnicity and cultural differences in the promotion of artists. It aims to challenge the Westernized hierarchy of valorization and consecration in the art world. The research supports Bourdieu’s artistic field theory, which emphasises the importance of cultural, economic and social capital in determining agents’ position and access to the field resources (symbolic capital). Bourdieu also established that dominated agents can change their position in the field’s hierarchy either by establishing or navigating alternative systems. Data Collection and Analysis Procedures: The opacity of art world’s operations places the required information within the purview of the insiders (agents). Thus, the study collects data through in-depth interviews with relevant and purposively selected individuals and organizations. The data was/will be analyzed using qualitative methods, such as thematic analysis and content analysis. The interpretive analytical approach adopted facilitated the construction of meanings that may not be apparent in the data or responses. Questions Addressed: The study addresses how El Anatsui achieved global acclaim despite being from the margins, whether his consecration represents decolonization or exoticism, and the extent to which the global artistic field embraces decolonization, inclusion, and diversity. Conclusion: The study will contribute to knowledge by providing insights into the extent of commitment to decolonization, inclusion, and diversity in the global artistic field. It also shed light on the mechanisms behind El Anatsui's rise to global acclaim and challenge Western-dominated artistic hierarchies.

Keywords: decolonisation, exorticism, artistic field, culture game

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Authors: Olga Kononova, Sergey Lyapin

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Global information society requirements are transparency and reliability of data, as well as ability to manage information resources independently; particularly to search, to analyze, to evaluate information, thereby obtaining new expertise. Moreover, it is satisfying the society information needs that increases the efficiency of the enterprise management and public administration. The study of structurally organized thematic and semantic contexts of different types, automatically extracted from unstructured data, is one of the important tasks for the application of information technologies in education, science, culture, governance and business. The objectives of this study are the contextual knowledge typologization, selection or creation of effective tools for extracting and analyzing contextual knowledge. Explication of various kinds and forms of the contextual knowledge involves the development and use full-text search information systems. For the implementation purposes, the authors use an e-library 'Humanitariana' services such as the contextual search, different types of queries (paragraph-oriented query, frequency-ranked query), automatic extraction of knowledge from the scientific texts. The multifunctional e-library «Humanitariana» is realized in the Internet-architecture in WWS-configuration (Web-browser / Web-server / SQL-server). Advantage of use 'Humanitariana' is in the possibility of combining the resources of several organizations. Scholars and research groups may work in a local network mode and in distributed IT environments with ability to appeal to resources of any participating organizations servers. Paper discusses some specific cases of the contextual knowledge explication with the use of the e-library services and focuses on possibilities of new types of the contextual knowledge. Experimental research base are science texts about 'e-government' and 'computer games'. An analysis of the subject-themed texts trends allowed to propose the content analysis methodology, that combines a full-text search with automatic construction of 'terminogramma' and expert analysis of the selected contexts. 'Terminogramma' is made out as a table that contains a column with a frequency-ranked list of words (nouns), as well as columns with an indication of the absolute frequency (number) and the relative frequency of occurrence of the word (in %% ppm). The analysis of 'e-government' materials showed, that the state takes a dominant position in the processes of the electronic interaction between the authorities and society in modern Russia. The media credited the main role in these processes to the government, which provided public services through specialized portals. Factor analysis revealed two factors statistically describing the used terms: human interaction (the user) and the state (government, processes organizer); interaction management (public officer, processes performer) and technology (infrastructure). Isolation of these factors will lead to changes in the model of electronic interaction between government and society. In this study, the dominant social problems and the prevalence of different categories of subjects of computer gaming in science papers from 2005 to 2015 were identified. Therefore, there is an evident identification of several types of contextual knowledge: micro context; macro context; dynamic context; thematic collection of queries (interactive contextual knowledge expanding a composition of e-library information resources); multimodal context (functional integration of iconographic and full-text resources through hybrid quasi-semantic algorithm of search). Further studies can be pursued both in terms of expanding the resource base on which they are held, and in terms of the development of appropriate tools.

Keywords: contextual knowledge, contextual search, e-library services, frequency-ranked query, paragraph-oriented query, technologies of the contextual knowledge extraction

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Authors: Kimberly Winnie Achieng Otieno

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The Nairobi Hospital plays a pivotal role in healthcare provision in East and Central Africa, yet it faces challenges in providing accessible dialysis care. This paper explores strategic interventions to enhance dialysis care, improve access and streamline health information management, with an aim of fostering an integrated and patient-centered healthcare system in our region. Challenges at The Nairobi Hospital The Nairobi Hospital currently grapples with insufficient dialysis machines which results in extended turn around times. This issue stems from both staffing bottle necks and infrastructural limitations given our growing demand for renal care services. Our Paper-based record keeping system and fragmented flow of information downstream hinders the hospital’s ability to manage health data effectively. There is also a need for investment in expanding The Nairobi Hospital dialysis facilities to far reaching communities. Setting up satellite clinics that are closer to people who live in areas far from the main hospital will ensure better access to underserved areas. Community Outreach and Education Implementing education programs on kidney health within local communities is vital for early detection and prevention. Collaborating with local leaders and organizations can establish a proactive approach to renal health hence reducing the demand for acute dialysis interventions. We can amplify this effort by expanding The Nairobi Hospital’s corporate social responsibility outreach program with weekend engagement activities such as walks, awareness classes and fund drives. Enhancing Efficiency in Dialysis Care Demand for dialysis services continues to rise due to an aging Kenyan population and the increasing prevalence of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Present at this years International Nursing Conference are a diverse group of caregivers from around the world who can share with us their process optimization strategies, patient engagement techniques and resource utilization efficiencies to catapult The Nairobi Hospital to the 21st century and beyond. Plans are underway to offer ongoing education opportunities to keep staff updated on best practices and emerging technologies in addition to utilizing a patient feedback mechanisms to identify areas for improvement and enhance satisfaction. Staff empowerment and suggestion boxes address The Nairobi Hospital’s organizational challenges. Current financial constraints may limit a leapfrog in technology integration such as the acquisition of new dialysis machines and an investment in predictive analytics to forecast patient needs and optimize resource allocation. Streamlining Health Information Management Fully embracing a shift to 100% Electronic Health Records (EHRs) is a transformative step toward efficient health information management. Shared information promotes a holistic understanding of patients’ medical history, minimizing redundancies and enhancing overall care quality. To manage the transition to community-based care and EHRs effectively, a phased implementation approach is recommended. Conclusion By strategically enhancing dialysis care access and streamlining health information management, The Nairobi Hospital can strengthen its position as a leading healthcare institution in both East and Central Africa. This comprehensive approach aligns with the hospital’s commitment to providing high-quality, accessible, and patient-centered care in an evolving landscape of healthcare delivery.

Keywords: Africa, urology, diaylsis, healthcare

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Authors: Cory B. Portner, Julie A. Grauert, Lisa M. Stromme, Shelby D. Anderson, Franji H. Mayes

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Introduction: WASHINGTON state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States is internationally known for its technology industry, fisheries, agriculture, and vistas. On January 21, 2020, Washington state also became known as the first state with a confirmed COVID-19 case in the United States, thrusting the state into the international spotlight as the world came to grips with the global threat of this disease presented. Tourism is Washington state’s fourth-largest industry. Tourism to the state generates over 1.8 billion dollars (USD) in local and state tax revenue and employs over 180,000 people. Communicating with residents, stakeholders, and visitors on the status of disease activity, prevention measures, and response updates was vital to stopping the pandemic and increasing compliance and awareness. Significance: In order to communicate vital public health updates, guidance implementation, and safety measures to the public, the Washington State Department of Health established routine live virtual media briefings to reach audiences via social media, internet television, and broadcast television. Through close partnership with regional broadcast news stations and the state public affairs news network, the Washington State Department of Health hosted 95 media briefings from January 2020 through September 2022 and continues to regularly host live virtual media briefings to accommodate the needs of the public and media. Methods: Our methods quickly evolved from hosting briefings in the cement closet of a military base to being able to produce and stream the briefings live from any home-office location. The content was tailored to the hot topic of the day and to the reporter's questions and needs. Virtual media briefings hosted through inexpensive or free platforms online are extremely cost-effective: the only mandatory components are WiFi, a laptop, and a monitor. There is no longer a need for a fancy studio or expensive production software to achieve the goal of communicating credible, reliable information promptly. With minimal investment and a small learning curve, facilitators and panelists are able to host highly produced and engaging media availabilities from their living rooms. Results: The briefings quickly developed a reputation as the best source for local and national journalists to get the latest and most factually accurate information about the pandemic. In the height of the COVID-19 response, 135 unique media outlets logged on to participate in the briefing. The briefings typically featured 4-5 panelists, with as many as 9 experts in attendance to provide information and respond to media questions. Preparation was always a priority: Public Affairs staff for the Washington State Department of Health produced over 170 presenter remarks, including guidance on talking points for 63 expert guest panelists. Implication For Practice: Information is today’s most valuable currency. The ability to disseminate correct information urgently and on a wide scale is the most effective tool in crisis communication. Due to our role as the first state with a confirmed COVID-19 case, we were forced to develop the most accurate and effective way to get life-saving information to the public. The cost-effective, web-based methods we developed can be applied in any crisis to educate and protect communities under threat, ultimately saving lives from a laptop.

Keywords: crisis communications, public relations, media management, news media

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Authors: Brandy Yee, Dianne Yee

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Through the exploration of the lived experiences, beliefs and values of instructional leaders, teachers and students in Finland, Germany and Canada, we investigated the factors which contribute to developmentally responsive, intellectually engaging middle-level learning environments for early adolescents. Student-centred leadership dimensions, effective instructional practices and student agency were examined through the lens of current policy and research on middle-level learning environments emerging from the Canadian province of Manitoba. Consideration of these three research perspectives in the context of early adolescent learning, placed against an international backdrop, provided a previously undocumented perspective on leading, teaching and learning in the middle years. Aligning with a social constructivist, qualitative research paradigm, the study incorporated collective case study methodology, along with constructivist grounded theory methods of data analysis. Data were collected through semi-structured individual and focus group interviews and document review, as well as direct and participant observation. Three case study narratives were developed to share the rich stories of study participants, who had been selected using maximum variation and intensity sampling techniques. Interview transcript data were coded using processes from constructivist grounded theory. A cross-case analysis yielded a conceptual framework highlighting key factors that were found to be significant in the establishment of developmentally responsive, intellectually engaging middle-level learning environments. Seven core categories emerged from the cross-case analysis as common to all three countries. Within the visual conceptual framework (which depicts the interconnected nature of leading, teaching and learning in middle-level learning environments), these seven core categories were grouped into Essential Factors (student agency, voice and choice), Contextual Factors (instructional practices; school culture; engaging families and the community), Synergistic Factors (instructional leadership) and Cornerstone Factors (education as a fundamental cultural value; preservice, in-service and ongoing teacher development). In addition, sub-factors emerged from recurring codes in the data and identified specific characteristics and actions found in developmentally responsive, intellectually engaging middle-level learning environments. Although this study focused on 12 schools in Finland, Germany and Canada, it informs the practice of educators working with early adolescent learners in middle-level learning environments internationally. The authentic voices of early adolescent learners are the most important resource educators have to gauge if they are creating effective learning environments for their students. Ongoing professional dialogue and learning is essential to ensure teachers are supported in their work and develop the pedagogical practices needed to meet the needs of early adolescent learners. It is critical to balance consistency, coherence and dependability in the school environment with the necessary flexibility in order to support the unique learning needs of early adolescents. Educators must intentionally create a school culture that unites teachers, students and their families in support of a common purpose, as well as nurture positive relationships between the school and its community. A large, urban school district in Canada has implemented a school cohort-based model to begin to bring developmentally responsive, intellectually engaging middle-level learning environments to scale.

Keywords: developmentally responsive learning environments, early adolescents, middle level learning, middle years, instructional leadership, instructional practices, intellectually engaging learning environments, leadership dimensions, student agency

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Authors: Ghidey Ghebreyohanes, Eltahir Awad Gasim Khalil, Zemenfes Tsighe, Faiza Ali

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Background: reproductive health (RH) is a state of physical, mental and social well-being in all matters relating to the reproductive system at all stages of life. In East Africa including Eritrea, adolescents comprise more than a quarter of the population. The region holds the highest rates of sexually transmitted diseases, HIV, unwanted pregnancy and unsafe abortion with its complications. Young girls carry the highest burden of reproductive health problems due to their risk taking behavior, lack of knowledge, peer pressure, physiologic immaturity and low socioeconomic status. Design: this was a Community-based, randomized, case-controlled and pre-test-post-test intervention study. Setting: Zoba Debub was randomly selected out of the six zobas in Eritrea. The four high schools out of the 26 in Zoba Debub were randomly selected as study target schools. Over three quarter of the people live on farming. The target population was female students attending grade nine with majority of these girls live in the distant villages and walk to school. The study participants were randomly selected (n=165) from each school. Furthermore, the 1 intervention and 3 controls for the study arms were assigned randomly. Objectives: this study aimed to assess the effectiveness of peer reproductive health education in improving knowledge, attitude, and health service use of high school adolescent girls in Eritrea Methods: the protocol was reviewed and approved by the Scientific and Ethics Committees of Faculty of Nursing Sciences, University of Khartoum. Data was collected using pre-designed and pretested questionnaire emphasizing on reproductive health knowledge, attitude and practice. Sample size was calculated using proportion formula (α 0.01; power of 95%). Measures used were scores and proportions. Descriptive and inferential statistics, t-test and chi square at (α .01), 99% confidence interval were used to compare changes of pre and post-intervention scores using SPSS soft ware. Seventeen students were selected for peer educators by the school principals and other teachers based on inclusion criteria that include: good academic performance and acceptable behavior. One peer educator educated one group composed of 8-10 students for two months. One faculty member was selected to supervise peer educators. The principal investigator conducted the training of trainers and provided supervision and discussion to peer educators every two weeks until the end of intervention. Results: following informed consent, 627 students [164 in intervention and 463 in the control group] with a ratio of 1 to 3, were enrolled in the study. The mean age for the total study population was 15.4±1.0 years. The intervention group mean age was 15.3±1.0 year; while the control group had a mean age of 15.4±1.0. The mean ages for the study arms were similar (p= 0.4). The majority (96 %) of the study participants are from Tigrigna ethnic group. Reproductive knowledge scores which was calculated out of a total 61 grade points: intervention group (pretest 6.7 %, post-test 33.6 %; p= 0.0001); control group (pretest 7.3 %, posttest 7.3 %, p= 0.92). Proportion difference in attitude calculated out of 100%: intervention group (pretest 42.3 % post test 54.7% p= 0.001); controls group (pretest 45%, post test 44.8 p= 0.7). Proportion difference in Practice calculated out of 100 %: intervention group (pretest 15.4%, post test 80.4 % p= 0.0001); control group (pretest 16.8%, posttest 16.9 % p= 0.8). Mothers were quoted as major (> 90 %) source of reproductive health information. All focus group discussants and most of survey participants agreed on the urgent need of reproductive health information and services for adolescent girls. Conclusion: reproductive health knowledge and use of facilities is poor among adolescent girls in sub-urban Eretria. School-based peer reproductive health education is effective and is the best strategy to improve reproductive health knowledge and attitudes.

Keywords: reproductive health, adolescent girls, eretria, health education

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Authors: C. M. Kalleshwaraswamy, G. S. Sathisha, A. S. Vidyashree, H. B. Pavithra

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Isoptera are an interesting group of social insects with different castes and division of labour. They are primarily wood-feeders, but also feed on a variety of other organic substrates, such as living trees, leaf litter, soil, lichens and animal faeces. The number of species and their biomass are especially large in tropics. In natural ecosystems, they perform a beneficial role in nutrient cycles by accelerating decomposition. The magnitude and dimension of ecological role played by termites is a function of their diversity, population density, and biomass. Termite assemblage composition has a strong response to habitat disturbance and may be indicative of quantitative changes in the decomposition process. Many previous studies in Western Ghat region of India suggest increased anthropogenic activities that adversely affect the soil macrofauna and diversity. Shivamogga district provides a good opportunity to study the effect of topography, cropping pattern, human disturbance on the termite fauna, thereby acquiring accurate baseline information for conservation decision making. The district has 3 distinct agro-ecological areas such as maidan area, semi-malnad and Western Ghat region. Thus, the district provides a unique opportunity to study the effect of varied climate and anthropogenic disturbance on the termite diversity. The standard protocol of belt transects method developed by Eggleton et al. (1997) was used for sampling termites. Sampling was done at monthly interval from September-2014 to August-2015 in Western Ghats, semi-malnad and maidan habitats. The transect was 100m long and 2m wide and divided into 20 contiguous sections, each 5 x 2m in each habitat. Within each section, all the probable microhabitats of termites were searched, which include dead logs, fallen tree, branch, sticks, leaf litter, vegetation etc.,. All the castes collected were labelled, preserved in 80% alcohol, counted and identified to species level. The number of encounters of a species in the transect was used as an indicator of relative abundance of species. The species diversity, species richness, density were compared in three different habitats such as Western Ghats, semi-malnad and maidan region. The study indicated differences in the species composition in the three different habitats. A total of 15 species were recorded which belonging to four sub family and five genera in three habitats. Eleven species viz., Odontotermes obesus, O. feae, O. anamallensis, O. bellahunisensis, O. adampurensis, O. boveni, Microcerotermes fletcheri, M. pakistanicus, Nasutitermes anamalaiensis, N. indicola, N. krishna were recorded in Western Ghat region. Similarly, 11 species viz., Odontotermes obesus, O. feae, O. anamallensis, O. bellahunisensis, O. hornii, O. bhagwathi, Microtermes obesi, Microcerotermes fletcheri, M. pakistanicus, Nasutitermes indicola and Pericapritermes sp. were recorded in semi-malnad habitat. However, only four species viz., O. obesus, O. feae, Microtemes obesi and Pericapritermes sp. species were recorded in maidan area. Shannon’s wiener diversity index (H) showed that Western Ghats had more species dominance (1.56) followed by semi- malnad (1.36) and lowest in maidan (0.89) habitats. Highest value of simpson’s index (D) was observed in Western Ghats habitat (0.70) with more diverse species followed by semi-malnad (0.58) and lowest in maidan (0.53). Similarly, evenness was highest (0.65) in Western Ghats followed by maidan (0.64) and least in semi-malnad habitat (0.54). Menhinick’s index (Dmn) value was ranging from 0.03 to 0.06 in different habitats in the study area. Highest index was observed in Western Ghats (0.06) followed by semi-malnad (0.05) and lowest in maidan (0.03). The study conclusively demonstrated that Western Ghat had highest species diversity compared to semi-malnad and maidan habitat indicating these two habitats are continuously subjected to anthropogenic disturbances. Efforts are needed to conserve the uncommon species which otherwise may become extinct due to human activities.

Keywords: anthropogenic disturbance, isoptera, termite species diversity, Western ghats

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Authors: Volker Wannack

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Regional, national, and international strategies focusing on hydrogen (H₂) and blockchain are driving significant advancements in hydrogen and blockchain technology worldwide. These strategies lay the foundation for the groundbreaking "Blockchain Based Hydrogen Market (BBH₂)" project. The primary goal of this project is to develop a functional Blockchain Minimum Viable Product (B-MVP) for the hydrogen market. The B-MVP will leverage blockchain as an enabling technology with a common database and platform, facilitating secure and automated transactions through smart contracts. This innovation will revolutionize logistics, trading, and transactions within the hydrogen market. The B-MVP has transformative potential across various sectors. It benefits renewable energy producers, surplus energy-based hydrogen producers, hydrogen transport and distribution grid operators, and hydrogen consumers. By implementing standardized, automated, and tamper-proof processes, the B-MVP enhances cost efficiency and enables transparent and traceable transactions. Its key objective is to establish the verifiable integrity of climate-friendly "green" hydrogen by tracing its supply chain from renewable energy producers to end users. This emphasis on transparency and accountability promotes economic, ecological, and social sustainability while fostering a secure and transparent market environment. A notable feature of the B-MVP is its cross-border operability, eliminating the need for country-specific data storage and expanding its global applicability. This flexibility not only broadens its reach but also creates opportunities for long-term job creation through the establishment of a dedicated blockchain operating company. By attracting skilled workers and supporting their training, the B-MVP strengthens the workforce in the growing hydrogen sector. Moreover, it drives the emergence of innovative business models that attract additional company establishments and startups and contributes to long-term job creation. For instance, data evaluation can be utilized to develop customized tariffs and provide demand-oriented network capacities to producers and network operators, benefitting redistributors and end customers with tamper-proof pricing options. The B-MVP not only brings technological and economic advancements but also enhances the visibility of national and international standard-setting efforts. Regions implementing the B-MVP become pioneers in climate-friendly, sustainable, and forward-thinking practices, generating interest beyond their geographic boundaries. Additionally, the B-MVP serves as a catalyst for research and development, facilitating knowledge transfer between universities and companies. This collaborative environment fosters scientific progress, aligns with strategic innovation management, and cultivates an innovation culture within the hydrogen market. Through the integration of blockchain and hydrogen technologies, the B-MVP promotes holistic innovation and contributes to a sustainable future in the hydrogen industry. The implementation process involves evaluating and mapping suitable blockchain technology and architecture, developing and implementing the blockchain, smart contracts, and depositing certificates of origin. It also includes creating interfaces to existing systems such as nomination, portfolio management, trading, and billing systems, testing the scalability of the B-MVP to other markets and user groups, developing data formats for process-relevant data exchange, and conducting field studies to validate the B-MVP. BBH₂ is part of the "Technology Offensive Hydrogen" funding call within the research funding of the Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection in the 7th Energy Research Programme of the Federal Government.

Keywords: hydrogen, blockchain, sustainability, innovation, structural change

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Authors: Gertraud Koch, Teresa Stumpf, Alejandra Tijerina García

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Discourse analysis research approaches belong to the central research strategies applied throughout the humanities; they focus on the countless forms and ways digital texts and images shape present-day notions of the world. Despite the constantly growing number of relevant digital, multimodal discourse resources, digital humanities (DH) methods are thus far not systematically developed and accessible for discourse analysis approaches. Specifically, the significance of multimodality and meaning plurality modelling are yet to be sufficiently addressed. In order to address this research gap, the D-WISE project aims to develop a prototypical working environment as digital support for the sociology of knowledge approach to discourse analysis and new IT-analysis approaches for the use of context-oriented embedding representations. Playing an essential role throughout our research endeavor is the constant optimization of hermeneutical methodology in the use of (semi)automated processes and their corresponding epistemological reflection. Among the discourse analyses, the sociology of knowledge approach to discourse analysis is characterised by the reconstructive and accompanying research into the formation of knowledge systems in social negotiation processes. The approach analyses how dominant understandings of a phenomenon develop, i.e., the way they are expressed and consolidated by various actors in specific arenas of discourse until a specific understanding of the phenomenon and its socially accepted structure are established. This article presents insights and initial findings from D-WISE, a joint research project running since 2021 between the Institute of Anthropological Studies in Culture and History and the Language Technology Group of the Department of Informatics at the University of Hamburg. As an interdisciplinary team, we develop central innovations with regard to the availability of relevant DH applications by building up a uniform working environment, which supports the procedure of the sociology of knowledge approach to discourse analysis within open corpora and heterogeneous, multimodal data sources for researchers in the humanities. We are hereby expanding the existing range of DH methods by developing contextualized embeddings for improved modelling of the plurality of meaning and the integrated processing of multimodal data. The alignment of this methodological and technical innovation is based on the epistemological working methods according to grounded theory as a hermeneutic methodology. In order to systematically relate, compare, and reflect the approaches of structural-IT and hermeneutic-interpretative analysis, the discourse analysis is carried out both manually and digitally. Using the example of current discourses on digitization in the healthcare sector and the associated issues regarding data protection, we have manually built an initial data corpus of which the relevant actors and discourse positions are analysed in conventional qualitative discourse analysis. At the same time, we are building an extensive digital corpus on the same topic based on the use and further development of entity-centered research tools such as topic crawlers and automated newsreaders. In addition to the text material, this consists of multimodal sources such as images, video sequences, and apps. In a blended reading process, the data material is filtered, annotated, and finally coded with the help of NLP tools such as dependency parsing, named entity recognition, co-reference resolution, entity linking, sentiment analysis, and other project-specific tools that are being adapted and developed. The coding process is carried out (semi-)automated by programs that propose coding paradigms based on the calculated entities and their relationships. Simultaneously, these can be specifically trained by manual coding in a closed reading process and specified according to the content issues. Overall, this approach enables purely qualitative, fully automated, and semi-automated analyses to be compared and reflected upon.

Keywords: entanglement of structural IT and hermeneutic-interpretative analysis, multimodality, plurality of meaning, sociology of knowledge approach to discourse analysis

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Authors: Istvan Csarnovics, Attila Bonyar, Miklos Veres, Laszlo Himics, Attila Csik, Judit Kaman, Julia Burunkova, Geza Szanto, Laszlo Balazs, Sandor Kokenyesi

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In this work, the performance of gold nanoparticles were investigated for stimulation of photosensitive materials for photonic applications. It was widely used for surface plasmon resonance experiments, not in the last place because of the manifestation of optical resonances in the visible spectral region. The localized surface plasmon resonance is rather easily observed in nanometer-sized metallic structures and widely used for measurements, sensing, in semiconductor devices and even in optical data storage. Firstly, gold nanoparticles on silica glass substrate satisfy the conditions for surface plasmon resonance in the green-red spectral range, where the chalcogenide glasses have the highest sensitivity. The gold nanostructures influence and enhance the optical, structural and volume changes and promote the exciton generation in gold nanoparticles/chalcogenide layer structure. The experimental results support the importance of localized electric fields in the photo-induced transformation of chalcogenide glasses as well as suggest new approaches to improve the performance of these optical recording media. Results may be utilized for direct, micrometre- or submicron size geometrical and optical pattern formation and used also for further development of the explanations of these effects in chalcogenide glasses. Besides of that, gold nanoparticles could be added to the organic light-sensitive material. The acrylate-based materials are frequently used for optical, holographic recording of optoelectronic elements due to photo-stimulated structural transformations. The holographic recording process and photo-polymerization effect could be enhanced by the localized plasmon field of the created gold nanostructures. Finally, gold nanoparticles widely used for electrochemical and optical sensor applications. Although these NPs can be synthesized in several ways, perhaps one of the simplest methods is the thermal annealing of pre-deposited thin films on glass or silicon surfaces. With this method, the parameters of the annealing process (time, temperature) and the pre-deposited thin film thickness influence and define the resulting size and distribution of the NPs on the surface. Localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) is a very sensitive optical phenomenon and can be utilized for a large variety of sensing purposes (chemical sensors, gas sensors, biosensors, etc.). Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is an analytical method which can significantly increase the yield of Raman scattering of target molecules adsorbed on the surface of metallic nanoparticles. The sensitivity of LSPR and SERS based devices is strongly depending on the used material and also on the size and geometry of the metallic nanoparticles. By controlling these parameters the plasmon absorption band can be tuned and the sensitivity can be optimized. The technological parameters of the generated gold nanoparticles were investigated and influence on the SERS and on the LSPR sensitivity was established. The LSPR sensitivity were simulated for gold nanocubes and nanospheres with MNPBEM Matlab toolbox. It was found that the enhancement factor (which characterize the increase in the peak shift for multi-particle arrangements compared to single-particle models) depends on the size of the nanoparticles and on the distance between the particles. This work was supported by GINOP- 2.3.2-15-2016-00041 project, which is co-financed by the European Union and European Social Fund. Istvan Csarnovics is grateful for the support through the New National Excellence Program of the Ministry of Human Capacities, supported by the ÚNKP-17-4 Attila Bonyár and Miklós Veres are grateful for the support of the János Bolyai Research Scholarship of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences.

Keywords: light sensitive nanocomposites, metallic nanoparticles, photonic application, plasmonic nanostructures

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Authors: Maria João Ferreira, Natalia Sierra-Garcia, Javier Cremades, Carla António, Ana M. Rodrigues, Helena Silva, Ângela Cunha

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Salicornia ramosissima, a halophyte that grows naturally in coastal areas of the northern hemisphere, is often considered the most promising halophyte candidate for extensive crop cultivation and saline agriculture practices. The expanding interest in this plant surpasses its use as gourmet food and includes their potential application as a source of bioactive compounds for the pharmaceutical industry. Despite growing well in saline soils, sustainable and ecologically friendly techniques to enhance crop production and the nutritional value of this plant are still needed. The root microbiome of S. ramosissima proved to be a source of taxonomically diverse plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB). Halotolerant strains of Bacillus, Salinicola, Pseudomonas, and Brevibacterium, among other genera, exhibit a broad spectrum of plant-growth promotion traits [e.g., 3-indole acetic acid (IAA), 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) deaminase, siderophores, phosphate solubilization, Nitrogen fixation] and express a wide range of extracellular enzyme activities. In this work, three plant growth-promoting bacteria strains (Brevibacterium casei EB3, Pseudomonas oryzihabitans RL18, and Bacillus aryabhattai SP20) isolated from the rhizosphere and the endosphere of S. ramosissima roots from different saltmarshes along the Portuguese coast were inoculated in S. ramosissima seeds. Plants germinated from inoculated seeds were grown for three months in pots filled with a mixture of perlite and estuarine sediment (1:1) in greenhouse conditions and later transferred to a growth chamber, where they were maintained two months with controlled photoperiod, temperature, and humidity. Pots were placed on trays containing the irrigation solution (Hoagland’s solution 20% added with 10‰ marine salt). Before reaching the flowering stage, plants were collected, and the fresh and dry weight of aerial parts was determined. Non-inoculated seeds were used as a negative control. Selected dried stems from the most promising treatments were later analyzed by GC-TOF-MS for primary metabolite composition. The efficiency of inoculation and persistence of the inoculum was assessed by Next Generation Sequencing. Inoculations with single strain EB3 and co-inoculations with EB3+RL18 and EB3+RL18+SP20 (All treatment) resulted in significantly higher biomass production (fresh and dry weight) compared to non-inoculated plants. Considering fresh weight alone, inoculation with isolates SP20 and RL18 also caused a significant positive effect. Combined inoculation with the consortia SP20+EB3 or SP20+RL18 did not significantly improve biomass production. The analysis of the profile of primary metabolites will provide clues on the mechanisms by which the growth-enhancement effect of the inoculants operates in the plants. These results sustain promising prospects for the use of rhizospheric and endophytic PGPB as biofertilizers, reducing environmental impacts and operational costs of agrochemicals and contributing to the sustainability and cost-effectiveness of saline agriculture. Acknowledgments: This work was supported by project Rhizomis PTDC/BIA-MIC/29736/2017 financed by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT) through the Regional Operational Program of the Center (02/SAICT/2017) with FEDER funds (European Regional Development Fund, FNR, and OE) and by FCT through CESAM (UIDP/50017/2020 + UIDB/50017/2020), LAQV-REQUIMTE (UIDB/50006/2020). We also acknowledge FCT/FSE for the financial support to Maria João Ferreira through a PhD grant (PD/BD/150363/2019). We are grateful to Horta dos Peixinhos for their help and support during sampling and seed collection. We also thank Glória Pinto for her collaboration providing us the use of the growth chambers during the final months of the experiment and Enrique Mateos-Naranjo and Jennifer Mesa-Marín of the Departamento de Biología Vegetal y Ecología, the University of Sevilla for their advice regarding the growth of salicornia plants in greenhouse conditions.

Keywords: halophytes, PGPB, rhizosphere engineering, biofertilizers, primary metabolite profiling, plant inoculation, Salicornia ramosissima

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