21st Century Research Articles

N. Gogol’s story “The Overcoat” in the receptive consciousness of the turn of the XX–XXI centuries. Article 1

N. Gogol’s story “The Overcoat” in the receptive consciousness of the turn of the XX–XXI centuries. Article 1

Therapeutic potential of twenty-first century music for cancer survivorship: from music and conceptual metaphor perspectives to a synergetic effect approach.

This paper examines the therapeutic potential of twenty-first century music as a means of supplementary therapeutic care for cancer survivorship. It presents a study of songs by Rihanna, Beyoncé, Adele, Coldplay, and Imagine Dragons, which combines the analysis of relevant music features and conceptual metaphors in the lyrics to examine the effect of the songs on the audience. The main aim of this study was to highlight the emotional and cognitive impact of these songs on listeners and identify their potential role in improving the psychological condition of patientswith cancer who are downtrodden or reeling from the pain of surgery, chemotherapy, and side effects of treatment. This article adopts the conceptual metaphorical framework proposed by Lakoff and Johnson (1980) and the metaphor identification procedure (MIP) (Pragglejazz group, 2007) to examine the targeted use of metaphors features in the lyrics of the selected songs. The findings show that although there is a therapeutic potential associated with the songs analyzed, there are also potential risks for patientswith cancer. "".

Women’s Labour Market Attachment and the Gender Wealth Gap

Abstract This article examines the evolution of the gender wealth gap in Germany during the first decade of the XXI century. This period is characterized by an increase in labour supply of women and change in occupational structure due to numerous reforms undertaken by the government. We use the Firpo, Fortin, Lemieux detailed decomposition technique throughout the wealth distribution to identify the main factors explaining the gap over time. Findings indicate that an increase in the labour market participation of women and the resulting changes in the occupational structure are accompanied by positive changes in women’s wealth accumulation, which reduce the gender wealth gap. The role of permanent income decreases due to a reduction both in the gender difference in average permanent income and in gender differences in its returns. There remain substantial differences in the way women and men accumulate wealth. Policy interventions to further reduce the gap are discussed.

Spinoza and Spinozism in Twenty-First Century Anglophone Philosophy

In this paper, I survey some prominent developments in Spinoza scholarship in English-speaking countries in the past quarter-century. Picking up where Tom Cook left off in his analysis of the reception of Spinoza in Anglo-American philosophy in the hundred years after the founding of the Vereniging Het Spinozahuis (1897–1997) (“Spinoza's Place in Twentieth Century's Anglo-American Philosophy”), I seek to identify some of the main currents in the rich profusion of twenty-first century Spinoza scholarship in the USA, UK, Canada, and Australia. Scholarship on Spinoza’s metaphysics has continued to blossom, harkening back in some respects to the idealist interpretations with which Cook opens his survey. But whereas there was a notable lack of scholarly works on Spinoza’s moral and political philosophy in the twentieth century, there is now an abundance of scholarship in these fields. I will conclude by examining the reach of Spinozism in the twenty-first century, looking at the ways in which scholars and journalists have presented Spinoza’s philosophy to a non-academic readership, and exploring the ways in which contemporary metaphysicians and philosophers of emotion and cognition have cast their work under the “brand” of Spinozism.

The monumental edition in the digital age: creating a sustainable future

This article presents fresh perspectives on challenges monumental editions face in the twenty-first century along with current efforts to address them. It provides a range of viewpoints, approaches, and case studies about the current state of the most emblematic European Monumenta collections and how their editorial boards are imagining and creating a sustainable future for these editorial enterprises that had, and still have, a fundamental role in shaping how we see and understand today the history of the European music.

The significance of personalized medicine in healthcare services of the 21st century: a brief literature review

In modern healthcare services, patient safety is a primary goal. With technological advancements, the complexity of healthcare services increases, which in turn creates increased pressure on health professionals during decision-making processes and can lead to errors worldwide. Communication gaps, human factors, patient-originated issues, technical failures, and inadequate policies have been identified as the main causes of medical errors. While research shows that errors stem from human nature and are inevitable, it is emphasized that it is possible to develop methods that enhance patient safety. Utilizing digital technologies to improve the quality and efficiency of healthcare services is a crucial strategy. Innovations such as wearable technologies, mobile devices, digital media-delivered education and consulting services, telehealth applications, 3D printers, clinical decision support systems, and implantable biosensors encompass advancements in the digital health field. This research aims to analyze the complex and dynamic structure of healthcare services in the 21st century, especially considering the opportunities presented by the integration of artificial intelligence and genomic data, within the scope of the relevant literature.

Dreaming of AI: environmental sustainability and the promise of participation

AbstractThere is widespread consensus among policymakers that climate change and digitalisation constitute the most pressing global transformations shaping human life in the 21st century. Seeking to address the challenges arising at this juncture, governments, technologists and scientists alike increasingly herald artificial intelligence (AI) as a vehicle to propel climate change mitigation and adaptation. In this paper, we explore the intersection of digitalisation and climate change by examining the deployment of AI in government-led climate action. Building on participant observations conducted in the context of the “Civic Tech Lab for Green”—a government-funded public interest AI initiative—and eight expert interviews, we investigate how AI shapes the negotiation of environmental sustainability as an issue of public interest. Challenging the prescribed means–end relationship between AI and environmental protection, we argue that the unquestioned investment in AI curtails political imagination and displaces discussion of climate “problems” and possible “solutions” with “technology education”. This line of argumentation is rooted in empirical findings that illuminate three key tensions in current coproduction efforts: “AI talk vs. AI walk”, “civics washing vs. civics involvement” and “public invitation vs. public participation”. Emphasising the importance of re-exploring the innovative state in climate governance, this paper extends academic literature in science and technology studies that examines public participation in climate change adaptation by shedding light on the emergent phenomenon of public interest AI.

Ethnomedicines in the 21st century: challenges and opportunities in the contemporary world

Ethnomedicines in the 21st century: challenges and opportunities in the contemporary world

Transportation system models to analyse ports competition and cooperation

AbstractSome global drivers of the shipping market, such as the carriers’ alliance consolidation process and the growing ship sizes have determined critical conditions in standalone ports in the XXI century. The traditional attitude of each port during the XX century was to consider other ports, even if they belong to the same territorial system, as competitors following the postulate of the natural monopoly of access to a territory. However, the necessity to respond to the binding requests of port users and of the ship gigantism brought to different experiences between ports belonging to the same territorial system. New forms of cooperation and competition took place at different levels. The paper presents a theoretical equilibrium model to analyse the competition and/or cooperation scenarios of two, or more, ports belonging to a territorial system. The model is based on the consolidated topological-behavioural paradigm of Transportation System Models (TSMs). The proposed equilibrium model allows to simulate the condition inside a port system, which moves from a competition attitude between ports to a cooperation one, within the same modelling framework. The model could provide to the port authorities, managers, planners and researchers a quantitative tool to understand the competition-cooperation scenarios and to define alternative strategies in relation to the decisions taken by other actors of the market.

Interventions for increasing medication adherence in heart failure patients: A narrative review.

Heart failure is one of the critical and most costly medical challenges of the 21st century. It is a chronic debilitating condition and adherence to medication, a precondition for successful treatment is often poor. There are various interventions for improving the adherence. Depending on the goal of the intervention, these are roughly patient centric, healthcare provider centric and system centric. We provide an overview of these interventions with a focus on effectiveness and appropriateness in different clinical situations. Their use can lead to improved patient outcomes and reduced economic burden of the disease.

Supporting parents in facilitating computational thinking for young children through loose parts construction play

AbstractComputational thinking (CT) as an essential problem‐solving and thinking skill for all students has been the focus of much interest from education systems all over the world (Chen et al., 2023). Unplugged activities like constructing and play with loose parts provide a low‐cost solution to naturally weave in learning of CT skills for young children at home and formal learning environments. Such activities provide opportunities particularly for children from economically disadvantaged backgrounds to access learning of CT skills so they will not be left behind. This article describes the pilot study of a programme that introduced an open‐ended construction play activity using loose‐parts to parent–child dyads from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, with the aim to support parents in facilitating play interactions in ways to promote CT skills for their children using question cards. The cards contained questions that parents could use to foster CT skills like decomposition and algorithmic thinking in their play interactions. Focus group discussions were held before and after the play sessions and parents in the study reported more confidence in supporting their children in play and learning of 21st century skills of teamwork, collaboration and CT skills. The results demonstrate the potential of unplugged pedagogy for promoting CT skills for young children especially in the home environment through engagement with families, with implications for home–school collaborative learning environments and parent education. Recommendations for practice and research are provided accordingly.

Meta-Analysis Study: Expectations of 21st Century Teaching from Pre-Service Teacher Education Programs

This study aims to investigate the expectations of 21st-century teaching from pre-service teacher education programs and to analyze the contemporary status of pre-service teacher education programs in developing 21st-century teaching skills among prospective teachers. The meta-analysis method was used to analyze previously conducted studies in the context of 21st-century teaching. The findings reveal that, to some extent, pre-service teacher education programs contribute to developing the 21st-century teaching skills by imparting theoretical knowledge, but there is a gap in the application of theory and pedagogical practices. Consequently, there is a pressing need to reconsider the pre-service teacher education programs to inculcate the essential teaching skills for 21st-century, such as collaborative learning, reflective thinking, social and emotional competencies, adaptive skills, communication skills, creativity and entrepreneurship skills, critical thinking, problem-solving skills, and ICT skills for teaching and social networking.

Development and Unfolding of the Life Course Movement in the Field of Maternal and Child Health: An Oral History.

A life course perspective in maternal, child, and family health allows for integrated exploration of outcomes, incorporating multifactorial determinants of health to interrogate sources of inequity and identify opportunities for intervention. This article explores the historical development, integration, and implications of the contemporary life course perspective in the field of maternal and child health (MCH), and particularly the people and events which institutionalized the framework as central to national and local MCH practice and research over the last decades. Drawing on an oral history approach, key leaders of the life course movement in MCH were interviewed. Lived experiences and personal recollections of six interviewees were recorded and synthesized using a narrative descriptive approach to portray the social ecology of the movement's origins. We documented systematic efforts made in the first two decades of the 21st century to consciously promote life course through convening a National MCH Life Course Invitational Meeting, incorporating life course as a foundational framework for strategic planning at the Maternal Child Health Bureau, and development of tools and resources by MCH professional organizations. The integration of life course theory into the MCH field signified a major shift towards addressing protective and social factors, which aligns with the field's historical emphasis on social justice and rights-based approaches, and parallels the broader public health movement towards social determinants of health and the need to address structural racism. The ongoing relevance of the life course approach in promoting reproductive justice and addressing inequities in health underscores the historical importance of its adoption and use in the current mainstream of MCH research, policy, and practice.

Social and environmental outcomes of urban street tree bed stewardship

Abstract As projections of exponential urbanization persist, promoting the health of urban populations is one of the most urgent and challenging issues of the 21st century. By taking a planetary health approach and considering the reciprocal relationship between human health and the health of ecosystems, the integration of nature-based solutions into cities can address multiple urban challenges at once. Citizen stewardship of street trees and street tree beds is one such nature-based solution that challenges rapid urbanization while offering a healthier and greener future. Not only does citizen stewardship of street trees play a significant role in tree longevity, but our research suggests that the process of stewardship itself also positively impacts the health and wellbeing of stewards themselves. In this study, we sought to assess the motivations of street tree citizen stewards and the perceived social, environmental, and health effects of stewarding street tree beds in Freiburg, Germany. Based on a questionnaire-based survey and semi-structured interviews with tree stewards, we found that the most common motivations of citizen stewards were modeling positive environmental behavior as well as a desire to help the environment and one’s community. The perceived outcomes included a strong sense of place, a meaningful connection to nature, and the belief that stewarding a street tree bed is good for one’s mental health as well as the environment. Participants also considered street tree beds to be their personal gardens, suggesting that street tree beds may serve as restorative spaces that strengthen public health and social capital while sustaining urban greening. This case study expands the scientific discourse of urban gardening while suggesting that citizen stewardship of street trees and tree beds offers myriad co-benefits for urban ecosystems and public health.

Comparing Medicare Fee-for-Service Beneficiaries with ESKD who Switched to Medicare Advantage versus Remained in Traditional Medicare.

Patients choosing Medicare Advantage vs. Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) differ with respect to race, socioeconomic status, and burden of disease. However, it is unclear whether these differences also occur among patients with kidney failure, who were newly allowed to switch to Medicare Advantage after the 21st Century Cares Act. We used data from the United States Renal Data System (USRDS) to examine differences in characteristics of dialysis patients and kidney transplant recipients who switched from FFS to Medicare Advantage compared with those who stayed with FFS in 2021, the first year such switching was allowed. We used unadjusted and adjusted logistic regression to compare odds of switching among demographic and geographic subgroups. Among 411,513 patients with FFS coverage in 2020, 10.1% switched to Medicare Advantage in 2021. Switchers constituted 12% of the dialysis population and 5% of the kidney transplant population. In the dialysis population, patients of Black race and Hispanic ethnicity were more likely to switch than patients of White race (adjusted OR 1.69, 95% Confidence Interval [CI] 1.64, 1.73 and OR 1.42, 95% CI 1.40, 1.47, respectively), as were patients with dual eligibility for Medicaid (adjusted OR 1.12, 95% CI 1.09, 1.15). Patients living in the South were also more likely to switch to Medicare Advantage than those living in the West (adjusted OR 1.48, 95% CI 1.43, 1.52). Similar differences were observed among kidney transplant recipients. Patients who switched from FFS to Medicare Advantage were disproportionately from historically marginalized groups, including Black, Hispanic, and low income individuals. They were also more likely to live in the South. These differences may threaten the generalizability of USRDS data that relies on FFS insurance claims and suggest that comparisons of outcomes between FFS and MA beneficiaries with kidney failure should be adjusted for key patient characteristics.

Navigating Faith and Politics: The Evolution of Islamic Education and NGOs in the Balkans

This study employs a multi-dimensional approach to analyze the impact of Islamic education on the Balkans’ religious, educational, and socio-political landscapes. Using descriptive, historical, and analytical methods, it examines the evolution and influence of Islamic educational institutions under Ottoman rule and their continued development through the 20th and early 21st centuries. The research evaluates the curricula, teaching methods, and societal roles of these institutions, exploring their contribution to Islamic knowledge dissemination and community building. Further, it investigates the complex interactions between these institutions, Middle Eastern NGOs, state power, and societal changes, aiming to provide a nuanced understanding of their legacy and relevance today. This study addresses the critical role of these institutions and NGOs in shaping Islamic religious education and their broader implications for the Muslim communities in the Balkans.

ENERGY (IN)DEPENDENCE AND NATIONAL SPECIALIZATION AS A FACTOR OF GLOBAL COMPETITIVENESS

The article presents preliminary results of a comprehensive interrelation study of the global competitiveness of the world economy actors with their energy systems and specialization. The article structure is logically split into three parts. The first one presents an attempt of evaluating energy dependence of the largest nations and its dynamics. The author proposes hypotheses regarding origins of different national roles on the world energy market and prospects of their development. The second part is dedicated to researching the nature of economic growth in the first quarter of XXI century and its interconnection with industrial development and specialization on particular goods, including fuel products and energy-intensive manufactures. In the third part the article explores international merchandise trade landscape by merchandise chapters (HS2) and in particular cases by headings (HS4). Finally, the author makes a conclusion and offers prognostic points in terms of the most significant merchandise items as well as in terms of world economy actors.

A systematic review on factors influencing the development of children’s creativity

No one can deny that creativity is essential for survival and a key skill for prosperity in the 21st century. In an era where the skill of creativity is the pathway to development, it is crucial that we nurture children's creativity to better prepare them for academic, professional, and personal success. Systematic reviews on factors that could support or impede children’s creativity is scarce. The present review was conducted to fill this gap. Major electronic databases were searched and studies meeting predetermined selection criteria were analyzed. The search yielded 55 studies published between 2010 to 2022 in English. We classified influencing factors into four types: individual, family, educational, and socio-cultural factors. We concluded by discussing recommendations for parents, educational stakeholders and researchers.

Indian Agriculture Under Climate Change: The Competing Effect of Temperature and Rainfall Anomalies

AbstractThe latest generation of global climate models robustly projects that monsoon rainfall anomalies in India will significantly increase in the 21st century due to global warming. This raises the question of the impact of these changes on the agricultural yield. Based on annual district data for the years 1966-2014, we estimate the relationship between weather indices (amount of seasonal rainfall, number of wet days, average temperature) and the most widely grown kharif crops, including rice, in a flexible non-parametric way. We use the empirical relationship in order to predict district-specific crop yield based on the climate projections of eight evaluated state-of-the-art climate models under two global warming scenarios for the years 2021-2100. We find that the loss in rice yield by the end of the 21st century lies on average between 3 - 22% depending on the underlying emission scenario. For the sustainable scenario impacts range from an increase of 3.2% to a decrease of 12.1% for individual districts. In the worst-case scenario, all districts are negatively affected, with a predicted decrease in rice yield ranging from 34% to a decrease of 11.5% in the long run. Potential gains due to increasing rainfall are more than offset by the negative impacts of increasing temperature. Adaptation efforts in the worst-case global warming scenario would need to cut the negative impacts of temperature by 50% in order to reach the outcome of the sustainable scenario.

Postbiotics in inflammatory bowel disease: efficacy, mechanism, and therapeutic implications.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is one of the most challenging diseases in the 21st century, and more than 10 million people around the world suffer from IBD. Because of the limitations and adverse effects associated with conventional IBD therapies, there has been increased scientific interest in microbial-derived biomolecules, known as postbiotics. Postbiotics are defined as the preparation of inanimate microorganisms and/or their components that confer a health benefit on the host, comprising inactivated microbial cells, cell fractions, metabolites, etc. Postbiotics have shown potential in enhancing IBD treatment by reducing inflammation, modulating the immune system, stabilizing intestinal flora and maintaining the integrity of intestinal barriers. Consequently, they are considered promising adjunctive therapies for IBD. Recent studies indicate that postbiotics offer distinctive advantages, including spanning clinical (safe origin), technological (easy for storage and transportation) and economic (reduced production costs) dimensions, rendering them suitable for widespread applications in functional food/pharmaceutical. This review offers a comprehensive overview of the definition, classification and applications of postbiotics, with an emphasis on their biological activity in both the prevention and treatment of IBD. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry.