Entry Points Research Articles

Political Education and Children's Political Cognition in China

Abstract: The importance of children's political cognition as integral to the formation of their political attitudes into adulthood has been well documented in Western contexts. Whether such an association holds in China, however, is less well-known. Building on the political psychology theory of cognitive process, this article utilises the picture association test to analyse how children form their political cognition in China. The authors report five findings. First, the proximity to (a familiarity with) the police and the most prominent political leaders in children's political images are the entry points for children to connect with and enter the political system. Second, despite the shift from recognition of individual authority figures to system cognition in children's political cognition in other countries, Chinese children's political cognition based on leadership figures remains deep-rooted and persistent. Third, children's political cognition is closely related to their cognitive level, as they tend to grasp basic knowledge and political principles by 13 to 14 years old. Fourth, children's political cognition is not only related to their school education but it also has an impact on their subjective social experience. Fifth, children's attitudes and evaluations of authority figures are closely related to Chinese political values that emphasise benevolence and justice, and also to China's hierarchical trust in government.

Managing multiple stressors for sustainable livelihoods in dryland ecosystems: Insights and entry points for resource management

AbstractCommunities in dryland ecosystems face multiple stressors that threaten their livelihood resilience. While community resilience in socio‐ecological systems is largely determined by access to and sustainable management of natural resources, the underlying mechanisms are still poorly understood. This study, which uses grounded theory integrated with discourse analysis, aims to contribute addressing this knowledge gap. First, we explore global literature describing trends and patterns in the various stressors—including climate change, frequent drought, and famine, ecological, socio‐economic, and institutional stressors—that impact the livelihood resilience of these communities, with the goal of summarizing how multiple stressors impact the sustainability of dryland social‐ecological systems. Then, using the sustainable development goals (SDGs) as a reference target, we propose potential entry points to support livelihood resilience pathways. These include land, water, livestock and agroforestry, and institutional and social capital. Lastly, we suggest an integrated multi‐scalar pathway embedded with cross‐sectorial policies and differential cross‐social strategies towards combining resilience with SDGs targets. This research can help stakeholders to adapt to and mitigate the impacts of various stressors, ultimately strengthening livelihood resilience in dryland ecosystems.

In-vehicle network intrusion detection systems: a systematic survey of deep learning-based approaches

Developments in connected and autonomous vehicle technologies provide drivers with many convenience and safety benefits. Unfortunately, as connectivity and complexity within vehicles increase, more entry points or interfaces that may directly or indirectly access in-vehicle networks (IVNs) have been introduced, causing a massive rise in security risks. An intrusion detection system (IDS) is a practical method for controlling malicious attacks while guaranteeing real-time communication. Regarding the ever-evolving security attacks on IVNs, researchers have paid more attention to employing deep learning-based techniques to deal with privacy concerns and security threats in the IDS domain. Therefore, this article comprehensively reviews all existing deep IDS approaches on in-vehicle networks and conducts fine-grained classification based on applied deep network architecture. It investigates how deep-learning techniques are utilized to implement different IDS models for better performance and describe their possible contributions and limitations. Further compares and discusses the studied schemes concerning different facets, including input data strategy, benchmark datasets, classification technique, and evaluation criteria. Furthermore, the usage preferences of deep learning in IDS, the influence of the dataset, and the selection of feature segments are discussed to illuminate the main potential properties for designing. Finally, possible research directions for follow-up studies are provided.

Look before you leap: states’ prevention and anticipation duties under the right to science

ABSTRACT States have under the right to science an obligation to prevent or mitigate harm of scientific progress and its applications. This obligation is derived from the right to be protected against the harmful effects of scientific progress and its applications, a dimension of the right to science. However, preventing the harmful effects of scientific progress and its applications can sometimes conflict with other human rights or with scientific freedom, which is also part of the right to science. In such cases, limitations on one right might be required to protect another, whereby the different interests need to be properly balanced. While the duty to prevent harm is well established in international human rights law, it is yet obscure if the anticipation of potential harms to come is possible under the existing framework of international law. While not a legal concept, entry points for anticipation are already covered under the current international law and can be drawn together by a cross-fertilisation of the obligation to prevent, the precautionary principle and due diligence. The precautionary principle and due diligence can provide guidance on when and under what circumstances situations for anticipation are triggered and conducted. Both concepts involve a necessity and proportionality test, which is also inherent to limitations under international human rights law.

Reverse Lumbar Pedicle Screw in Oblique Lateral Interbody Fusion: A Novel Concept to Restrict Cage Subsidence.

Cage subsidence is a common morbidity after oblique lumbar interbody fusion (OLIF), with risk of compromising clinical and radiographic outcomes. The study aims to describe an innovative reverse lumbar pedicle screw (RLPS) technique in OLIF and compare its effect on restricting cage subsidence with classical lateral fixation (LF) in radiological and clinical evaluation. Consecutive patients having undergone single-level OLIF-LF/RLPS from 2018 to 2020 were retrospectively reviewed. In OLIF-RLPS, the upper entry point was determined at the intersection between one horizontal line (1 cm above inferior endplate) and one vertical line (dissecting anterior and middle thirds of the vertebra) while the inferior entry point between one horizontal line (5 mm below superior endplate) and the same vertical line. Trajectories were from vertebrae reverse into contralateral pedicle. Radiological evaluation included disc height (DH) and segmental lordosis (SL); cage subsidence was evaluated by DH loss. Clinical assessment included visual analogue scale (VAS) and Oswestry disability index (ODI). Student t or Mann-Whitney U test was used for continuous variation according to normality analysis while Chi-square test for category variation. A total of 29 patients had been enrolled in the study including 14 cases in the RLPS group and 15 cases in the LF group. The DH in the OLIF-RLPS group had increased from the preoperative 9.07 ± 1.73 mm to 13.73 ± 1.83 mm postoperatively, without significant difference compared with the OLIF-LF group during the perioperative, but decreased to 12.53 ± 1.74 mm in 3 months and maintained at 12.00 ± 1.45 mm in 12 months, significantly higher than the OLIF-LF group (p < 0.05). At the last follow-up, 7.1% (1/14) cases in the OLIF-RLPS group had shown subsidence of grade I, significantly less than 46.7% (7/15) cases in the OLIF-LF group. Pain and disability had improved similarly in two groups, without significant difference detected between two groups at the last follow-up. RLPS technique with modified entry points and prolonged trajectory could effectively restrict cage subsidence in OLIF postoperatively compared with traditional lateral fixation.

Using a human-factors engineering approach to evaluate environmental cleaning in Veterans' Affairs acute and long-term care facilities: A qualitative analysis.

Environmental cleaning is important in the interruption of pathogen transmission. Although prevention initiatives have targeted environmental cleaning, practice variations exist and compliance is low. Evaluation of human factors influencing variations in cleaning practices can be valuable in developing interventions to standardized practices. We conducted a work-system analysis using a human-factors engineering (HFE) framework to identify barriers and facilitators to environmental cleaning practices in acute and long-term care settings within the Veterans' Affairs health system. We conducted a qualitative study with key stakeholders at 3 VA facilities. We analyzed transcripts for thematic content and mapped themes to the HFE framework. Staffing consistency was felt to improve cleaning practices and teamwork. We found that many environmental management service (EMS) staff were veterans who were motivated to serve fellow veterans, especially to prevent infections. However, hiring veterans comes with regulatory hurdles that affect staffing. Sites reported some form of monitoring their cleaning process, but there was variation in method and frequency. The EMS workload was affected by whether rooms were occupied by patients or were semiprivate rooms; both were reportedly more difficult to clean. Room design and surface finishes were identified as important to cleaning efficiency. HFE work analysis identified barriers and facilitators to environmental cleaning. These findings highlight intervention entry points that may facilitate standardized work practices. There is a need to develop task-specific procedures such as cleaning occupied beds and semiprivate rooms. Future research should evaluate interventions that address these determinants of environmental cleaning.

Book Overview. Repair: Sustainable Design Futures

Repair, a humble act born of necessity, has become in the 21st century an expression of artistic and discursive resistance to humankind’s unmaking of our societies and our environment. As a concrete practice, it serves to bring us together, to re-engage with materiality, and to invite us as consumers back to understanding the contexts of makers and making. As a metaphor and speculative meta-concept, it gives us an alternative and holistic way to attend to and face systemic social and environmental breakdown. To expand upon our respec­tive approaches to repair in concept and practice, we issued a call for reflections on repair thinking and practices in the realm of art and design, resulting in the volume Repair: Sustainable Design Futures (Routledge, 2023), edited by us. This essay provides an overview of the book, highlighting the voices and artwork of the inter­national, interdisciplinary group of authors included in the volume, speaking to multiple forms of brokenness and repair as entry points for sparking novel insights into how we might attend to our broken social and physical worlds. As a constel­lation of reflections on repair thinking and practices, the essays included in the book offer reparative responses to fractured systems, relationships, cities, architecture, and objects. Together they posit repair thinking as a way of addressing and nurturing our broken world.

The Personal and the Planetary: Buddhism, Climate Change, and Anthropocene Time

Dipesh Chakrabarty describes the problem of climate change as in part one of temporal incommensurability. For most of human history, we have enjoyed the primacy of anthropocentric “world-historical” time. But as climate change becomes an increasingly dominant preoccupation in our daily lives, we experience a rupture in everyday world-historical time and the incursion of a new timescale: the inconceivably vast and impersonal scale of “planetary-geologic” time. The incommensurability between the personal scale of human time and the vast planetary scale of climate change has produced an affective crisis, confronting us with the very limits of our imaginative capacity. In this essay, I argue that although the specifics of climate change may be new, human imaginative engagement with deep time is not. Animated by the conviction that Buddhist literature and thought contain robust theoretical and conceptual ideas that can enrich philosophical and ethical thinking, I bring select Buddhist concepts to bear on the problem of temporal incommensurability. Rather than suggest any general “Buddhist” way of thinking about time, I argue that Buddhist sources can offer new conceptual points of entry into the problem of temporal incommensurability itself, specifically addressing how we might differently conceptualize the relationship between the personal and the planetary in order to address the affective crisis identified by Chakrabarty.

Anteromedial Petrous (Gardner's) Triangle: Surgical Anatomy and Relevance for Endoscopic Endonasal Approach to the Petrous Apex and Petroclival Region.

Triangular corridors have been used as reliable surgical entry points for open transcranial approaches to the petrous apex (PA) and petroclival region (PCR). The endoscopic endonasal approaches have grown rapidly in the last decade, and the indications have advanced. The knowledge of accurate and reliable anatomic landmarks through endoscopic endonasal route is essential and remain to be established. The purpose of this study was to describe the feasibility and surgical exposure of the anteromedial petrous (Gardner's) triangle as a novel corridor to the PA and PCR. Five anatomic specimens were dissected. The PA and PCR were accessed through endoscopic endonasal approaches and contralateral transmaxillary approach. The limits of the anteromedial petrous (Gardner's) triangle were identified and dissected and associated measurements performed. The dissection was divided into 6 steps. The limits of the anteromedial petrous (Gardner's) triangle were identified and defined by the paraclival internal carotid artery anterolaterally, the abducens nerve posteromedially, and the petroclival synchondrosis inferiorly. Three lines were established following the limits of the triangle. The mean distance of the anterolateral limit was 10.03 mm (SD = 0.94), of the posteromedial limit was 20.06 mm (SD = 2.90), and of the inferior limit was 17.99 mm (SD = 2.99). The mean area was 87.56 mm 2 (SD = 20.06). The 3 anatomic landmarks with a critical role to safely define the triangle were the pterygosphenoidal fissure, the petrosal process of the sphenoid bone, and the petroclival synchondrosis. The anteromedial (Gardner's) triangle is a well-defined bone corridor which provides access to the entire petrous bone and petroclival junction through endoscopic endonasal route. Regardless of the anatomic variations or tumor location, the landmarks of the abducens nerve, paraclival internal carotid artery, and petroclival synchondrosis are key for understanding lateral access to tumors extending from the clivus.

TCA cycle tailoring facilitates optimal growth of proton-pumping NADH dehydrogenase-dependent Escherichia coli.

The bacterial lifestyle is plastic, requiring transcriptional, translational, and metabolic tailoring for survival. These dynamic cellular processes are energy intensive; therefore, flexible energetics is requisite for adaptive plasticity. An intricate network of complementary and supplementary pathways exists in bacterial energy metabolism. There are two main entry points for electrons in the aerobic electron transport system, NADH dehydrogenase (NDH) and succinate dehydrogenase (SDH), receiving electrons from NADH and succinate, respectively. Aerobic bacterial phyla have a non-proton-pumping NADH dehydrogenase, which is often the primary dehydrogenase under aerobiosis. Here, we report adaptive changes supporting growth restoration in an Escherichia coli strain lacking the primary dehydrogenase. Growth optimization is achieved by reducing the activity of succinate dehydrogenase, and thus we demonstrate a physiological discord between proton-pumping NADH dehydrogenase and succinate dehydrogenase in supporting growth. Beyond the fundamental understanding of the bioenergetic network, identifying this compensatory feature provides impetus to rational antimicrobial combinations for targeting the non-proton-pumping dehydrogenase. IMPORTANCE Energy generation pathways are a potential avenue for the development of novel antibiotics. However, bacteria possess remarkable resilience due to the compensatory pathways, which presents a challenge in this direction. NADH, the primary reducing equivalent, can transfer electrons to two distinct types of NADH dehydrogenases. Type I NADH dehydrogenase is an enzyme complex comprising multiple subunits and can generate proton motive force (PMF). Type II NADH dehydrogenase does not pump protons but plays a crucial role in maintaining the turnover of NAD+. To study the adaptive rewiring of energy metabolism, we evolved an Escherichia coli mutant lacking type II NADH dehydrogenase. We discovered that by modifying the flux through the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, E. coli could mitigate the growth impairment observed in the absence of type II NADH dehydrogenase. This research provides valuable insights into the intricate mechanisms employed by bacteria to compensate for disruptions in energy metabolism.

Safety of Laparoscopic Entry Points in Patients With a History of Abdominal Surgery: A Research Article.

This study aimed to assess the safety of laparoscopic entry sites in patients with previous abdominal surgery who subsequently required re-operation. This is a prospective study wherein the data of 118 patients who had undergone previous abdominal surgery and were subsequently re-operated at our center (Bakırköy Doctor Sadi Konuk Research and Study Hospital) were collected from October 2015 to October 2016. Careful attention was paid to gathering information regarding patients' age, parity, body mass index (BMI), type of previous surgery, type of incision made during previous surgery, and medical history. For this study, the abdomen was topographically divided into nine parts. During the operation, all quadrants were examined and evaluated for adhesion and the content of adhesion. Adhesions were found in 44% (55 out of 118) of the patients, while 56% (66 patients) had no adhesions in the abdomen. The majority of cases (74%) had a history of cesarean section, and 87%had a Pfannenstiel incision. Adhesions were reported in 37.5% (33 out of 88) of the patients with a previous history of cesarean section. A significant proportion of subjects with adhesion (83%) had anterior abdominal wall adhesions, including only the omentum, whereas 11.5% (six subjects) had umbilical adhesions. Subjects with a history of umbilical hernia repair had more adhesions. The present study sought to assess the safety of laparoscopic entry points in individuals with prior abdominal surgery. The rise in laparoscopic surgeries, favored for reduced wound infections and quicker recovery times, brings forth concerns about potential complications in those with previous abdominal operations. Historically, postoperative adhesions have been observed in a significant number of patients after gynecological procedures. Our research, however, found a lower adhesion rate, which could be due to the smaller size of our sample and fewer gynecological cases. Existing adhesions can complicate subsequent surgeries, increasing operational times and posing injury risks. Adhesions also elevate healthcare costs and patient morbidity and mortality. Moreover, complications like Trocar-related injuries, including damageto major organs, are pivotal. While certain trocar insertion techniques may have fewer complications, our results align with previous findings suggesting higher adhesion rates after non-gynecological surgeries. Therefore, alternative entry points or methods, such as the palmer site or direct trocar entry, are recommended for those with an abdominal surgery history. Notably, our study's limited sample size may affect its generalizability, urging future studies for broader insights. Comprehensive pre-surgery assessments are crucial to anticipate complications. Our research supports that laparoscopic surgeries are safe for many with prior abdominal surgery, but for certain patients, non-umbilical entry sites are advised to further mitigate risks. The umbilicus is one of the safest entry sites for primary trocar insertion in patients with a history of Pfannenstiel incision. However, the probability of umbilical adhesions is high in patients who have undergone umbilical mesh repair, median incision, or major abdominal surgery. In these patients, surgeons should prefer other laparoscopic entry sites, especially Palmer's point, rather than the umbilicus.

A study on the “community-hospital-community” model of community nursing practice teaching for undergraduate nursing students

ObjectiveTo improve the quality of community nursing teaching practice and cultivate undergraduate nursing students who meet the quality accreditation standards of our nursing profession, and to explore the establishment of an undergraduate nurse practice model.MethodsUsing the methods of literature review, survey, expert consultation, and discussion, we established the steps and contents of community practice teaching for undergraduate nursing students, and implemented them for the students of Grades 2014, 2015, and 2016, and evaluated the “community-hospital-community” practice model through various forms, such as student self-evaluation, faculty evaluation, exit examination, and evaluation by certified experts.ResultA three-stage community nursing practice model of “community-hospital-community” was established for undergraduate nursing students. After three stages of practice, nursing undergraduates successfully passed the practical assessments and achieved excellent grades in each stage that met the requirements of the training program. In the first stage (community probation), community probation emphasizes a fundamental understanding of the community, using free clinics, health education, and home visits as entry points to effectively cultivate students’ job competence and proficiency in nursing operations and nurse-patient communication skills. In the second stage (internship in the hospital), through nursing internships in various systems, students are trained to integrate theoretical knowledge with practical skills and consolidate their understanding of fundamental knowledge, theory, and techniques. They are capable of preventing, diagnosing, intervening, and providing health education for common, frequent, urgent and critical complications in various clinical systems. They can formulate nursing plans and implement whole-person care. In the third stage (returning to the community for internship), students can master basic skills such as nursing operations and patient communication skills, and then they can enter the community internship.ConclusionThe community nursing practice model of “community- hospital- community” for undergraduate nursing students can systematically train undergraduate nursing students’ ability to work in the community.

Advancing Nutrition and Dietetics Research in Global Food and Nutrition Security: A Roundtable Meeting Report

Food and nutrition security remains a relevant issue globally, impacting nutritional status and other health outcomes. This is further complicated by various environmental factors that impact stable access to, availability of, and utilization of nutritious foods. Nutrition and dietetics practitioners play an important role in the identification and treatment of food and nutrition security and are also well positioned to advance research that can support food and nutrition security solutions. To address this important issue, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics’ Council on Research convened a Global Food and Nutrition Security Research Task Force (Task Force). To leverage existing information and expertise in this area and identify the need for future evidence, the Task Force hosted a virtual roundtable with key internal and external stakeholders. This 2-day event included discussions on research gaps, potential entry points for nutrition and dietetics practitioners, and important equity considerations in the area of food and nutrition security research. The identified research gaps included the need for standardized terminology for consistent data collection, the need for validated screening and assessment tools that can be used across settings and also assess diet quality, additional translational and implementation science research, multi-sectoral and multi-pronged approaches, interdisciplinary collaboration with community partners, incorporation of research into policy development, and additional evidence on food systems approaches to target food and nutrition security. To more clearly identify the entry points for practitioners, five examples from various countries were included to identify food and nutrition security issues and how nutrition and dietetics practitioners can be involved in research to address food and nutrition security. The Task Force would like this information to inform a research agenda and be leveraged by the larger scientific community to drive future funding and research opportunities for food and nutrition professionals on this topic.

Effects of aqueous and ethanolic seed extract of Asparagus racemosus Linn on neurobehavioral pattern of acrylamide induced experimental Zebra fish

A neuropsychological assessment is a test that assesses how well a person's brain functions. Literacy, language use, attention, learning, processing speed, reasoning, memory, problem-solving, personality and other talents are all assessed. The purpose of this study is to assess the effects of aqueous and ethanolic seed extracts of Asparagus racemosus Linn on the neurobehavioral pattern of acrylamide-induced experimental Zebra fish. In the novel tank test, the number of top entries, top remain time, top entry latency and total distance traveled were all greater in the Asparagus racemosus Linn seed extract group than in the acrylamide group, while the number of bottom entries and bottom duration of stay were lower. In the light-dark test, group II Zebrafish treated with 0.75 mM acrylamide showed anxiety by spending less time in the light zone. In our study, Zebrafish pre-treated with aqueous and ethanolic seed extracts of different concentrations of Asparagus racemosus Linn significantly reversed. In the open field test, the Asparagus racemosus Linn seed extract at different doses significantly improved outer zone (s) and inner zone (S) times compared to the acrylamide control group. In the Y-maze test, the Asparagus racemosus Linn seed extract at different dosages exhibited a dose-influenced significant improvement in the number of entry points to new arms and the total distance walked in the maze in comparison to the acrylamide control group. When compared to the acrylamide control, the Asparagus racemosus Linn seeds extract at various doses demonstrated a significant rise in the amount of time spent in the new arm.

Enhancing healthcare security in the digital era: Safeguarding medical images with lightweight cryptographic techniques in IoT healthcare applications

The Internet of Things has allowed for the connectivity of medical imaging devices to the healthcare sector's data backbone. This development, made possible by the IoT, will speed up the diagnosis and treatment phases of medical care. The increasing reliance on interconnected devices and cloud-based systems creates potential entry points for cyber-attacks and unauthorized access to sensitive medical data which not only jeopardize patient privacy but also have serious implications for patient safety and trust in healthcare systems. Medical images are critical assets in healthcare, and their confidentiality, integrity, and availability are paramount for accurate diagnoses, treatment planning, and patient care. This instigated research related to medical image security in IoT healthcare. For this, we investigated the usage of a cryptography-based network for image encryption and decryption, and its potential application to the safe transmission of medical images through deep learning. In the proposed work, we use a key learning network based on the ResNet-50 architecture to do the mapping between various image representations. Due to the incorporation of these “hidden properties” into the learning model, the encryption technique can be fine-tuned for each specific domain. As a first step in decryption, we use reconstructive networks to convert the encrypted image back into its “plaintext” form. Once the hidden entities have been uncovered, a Return on Investment (ROI) framework can be made available, and data mining can be simplified by drawing directly from the user's local information environment. Imaging tools for gauging therapy is a highly reliable by using the proposed system. We used two different kinds of publicly available datasets, and that helped us succeed in our mission. The comprehensive empirical setup and the findings of the security analysis suggest that the suggested method may give an unprecedented level of security and an unprecedentedly powerful outcome.

Mucosal immunity and microbiota change in the rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) gills after being challenged with infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus

Respiratory structures are crucial for vertebrate survival, as they serve not only to perform gas-exchange processes but also as entry points for opportunistic pathogens. Previous studies have demonstrated that fish contain gill mucosal-associated lymphoid tissue, and harbor a large number of commensal bacteria on their surface and contribute to maintaining fish health. However, by far, very limited information is known regarding the effects of viral infection on gill mucosal immunity and microbiota homeostasis. In this study, we conducted an infection model by bath with infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHNV) and revealed a 27 % mortality rate among rainbow trout in the first two weeks after infection. Moreover, we found that diseased fish with the highest IHNV loads in gills exhibiting severe damage, as well as increased goblet cell counts in both primary lamellae (PL) and secondary lamellae (SL). Additionally, RT-qPCR and RNA-seq analyses revealed that IHNV infection induced a strong innate and adaptive antiviral immune responses. Interestingly, an antibacterial immune response was also observed, suggesting that a secondary bacterial infection occurred in trout gills after viral infection. Furthermore, 16S rRNA analysis of trout gills revealed a profound dysbiosis marked by a loss of beneficial taxa and expansion of pathobionts following IHNV infection. Overall, our finding demonstrates that IHNV infection induces significant changes of the microbial community in the fish respiratory surface, thus triggering local antiviral and bacterial mucosal immunity.

Cooperative membership and exposure to role models: Implications for income and asset aspirations

Although it is increasingly recognized that aspirations drive economic behavior and outcomes, it is not fully understood how aspirations are formed (or eroded). However, it has been theoretically established that aspirations are socially constructed and formed under an aspiration window. An aspiration window refers to a cognitive zone of similar individuals based on age, gender, caste, geography, religion, ethnicity, and other social (self-help) groups. In these groups, individuals learn from each other through interaction and experimentation. We examine the relationship between group membership and aspirations. As a proxy for group membership, we use agricultural cooperatives that abound in many developing countries and have been associated with productivity and welfare gains. Given that farmers interact and are exposed to role models in these cooperatives, we also investigate the relationship between exposure to role models and aspirations. We show a positive association between cooperative membership and aspirations as well as between exposure to role models and aspirations. Interacting cooperative membership with exposure to role models, we find a larger association between cooperative membership and aspirations, highlighting the relevance of exposure to role models in these cooperatives. Given the growing evidence regarding the relevance of aspirations in achieving various developmental outcomes, our study highlights some entry points in improving aspirations.

Two formal design solutions for the generalization of network segmentation

Computer networks are getting more and more complex with enormous number of resources, diverse access control policies, and spanning over different platforms and geographical regions. Clearly, these networks have multiple points of entry – as we see in the sliced 5G networks. In networks with multiple entry points shared resources are accessed via several paths through several subnetworks – thus increasing their attack surface and opening it to several vulnerabilities. Hence, a secure design of these networks poses a much greater challenge than the traditional networks with only a single entry point.In this paper, we propose two secure design solutions for the segmentation of networks with multiple entry points. These solutions are based on mathematical formalisms for network segmentation — thus enabling automation and dynamic segmentation of these networks. Finally, we use mininet, a Software Defined Network (SDN) emulator tool, to illustrate the usage of the proposed algorithms to configure and govern networks within three typical SDN architectures.

Visual (data) observation in International Relations: Attentiveness, close description, and the politics of seeing differently

Abstract Has Visual International Relations (IR) become too distant from the content of visual artefacts? This is a paradoxical question. Visual IR is a vibrant and pluralist field exploring visuals in innumerable ways. Nonetheless, the field tends to focus on ‘deep’ readings of the socio-political implications of visual artefacts at the expense of a close and attentive observation and description of the events, situations, or phenomena they may depict. Simply put, visual IR usually analyses visuals-as-visuals rather than seeing them as entry points for studying the social world. But might a video of torture teach us something about the practicality of torture? Might a video of peace negotiations teach us something about their successes or failures? Can we gain a fleeting glimpse of ‘reality’ within visuals? We address these questions by first situating our focus on close ‘visual (data) observation’ in conceptual conversation with the literature’s existing focus on deep interpretation. Second, we outline three approaches to visual observation as they are deployed outside IR. Third, we unpack how those approaches might be of value for IR, especially vis-à-vis the study of practice, materiality, and discourse. Finally, we conclude by asking if visual data observation can retain critical political potentiality.

Assessment of the Implementation of the International Health Regulations during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Portugal as a Case Study.

The International Health Regulations (IHR) were developed to prepare countries to deal with public health emergencies. The spread of SARS-CoV-2 underlined the need for international coordination, although few attempts were made to evaluate the integrated implementation of the IHR's core capacities in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether IHR shortcomings stem from non-compliance or regulatory issues, using Portugal as a European case study due to its size, organization, and previous discrepancies between self-reporting and peer assessment of the IHR's core capacities. Fifteen public health medical residents involved in contact tracing in mainland Portugal interpreted the effectiveness of the IHR's core capabilities by reviewing the publicly available evidence and reflecting on their own field experience, then grading each core capability according to the IHR Monitoring Framework. The assessment of IHR enforcement considered efforts made before and after the onset of the pandemic, covering the period up to July 2021. Four out of nine core IHR capacities (surveillance; response; risk communication; and human resource capacity) were classified as level 1, the lowest. Only two were graded level 3 (preparedness; and laboratory), the highest. The remaining three) (national legislation, policy & financing; coordination and national focal point communication; and points of entry) were classified as level 2. Portugal exemplifies the extent to which implementation of the IHR was not fully achieved, which has resulted in the underperformance of several core capacities. There is a need to improve preparedness and international cooperation in order to harmonize and strengthen the global response to public health emergencies, with better political, institutional, and financial support.