Essential Dimension Research Articles

Exploring the intercultural potential of picturebooks in early secondary EFL classrooms in Austria

Abstract Intercultural education has constituted an interdisciplinary teaching principle in Austrian upper and lower secondary curricula since 1992 and was reinforced by a decree in 2017. Literary texts have been identified as promising resources and valuable tools for initiating intercultural learning through their frequently inherent multi-perspectivity encouraging students to empathize with characters, consider different perspectives, contrast viewpoints, relate stories to personal experiences, and reflect on diverse ideas. However, research on the implementation of intercultural teaching and learning using literature in foreign language classrooms has so far mostly focused on upper secondary education and has frequently related to using postcolonial fiction writings. To counter the knowledge gap on the implementation of intercultural learning in lower educational levels, this study adopts a literary science approach to explore the potential of picturebooks in early secondary EFL classrooms. Using The Little Green Jacket (Dee, 2020), it specifically examines perspective-taking as a key dimension of intercultural learning. Through written learner reflections, the research study assesses whether students in two Austrian EFL classrooms (n = 35) can adopt a different viewpoint. The findings show that most students are successful, or at least partly successful, in perspective-taking and mostly describe emotions of sadness but also hopefulness in their reflective writings. Thus, the study suggests that picturebooks have the potential to facilitate perspective-taking as an essential dimension of intercultural education among young EFL learners with low language proficiency, highlighting their largely untapped potential in early language education.

Investigating the effects of barriers and challenges on Logistics 4.0 in the era of evolving digital technology

Purpose This study aims to reveal and prioritize the main barriers and challenges in front of the Logistics 4.0 transformation, which is the extension of Industry 4.0. Also, this study presents a roadmap for a company operating in developing countries to reduce and eliminate challenges and hurdles for each link in their supply chain. Design/methodology/approach A two-stage methodology was used in this study. First, a detailed literature review was conducted to identify the barriers to innovations compatible with Industry 4.0. Hence, barriers have been identified, including nine from the literature review. The best–worst method (BWM) is then used to determine these barriers’ weights and order of importance. To implement BWM, two-stage e-surveys are applied to experts. Findings The “Managerial and Economic Challenges” dimension is the most important, and “Regulatory and social challenges” is the least essential dimension among the main dimension. Moreover, financial constraints or capitals are the most critical barriers among the sub-barriers. This study gives the reader a comprehensive insight into how detected barriers affect digitalization performance. Therefore, this framework is a roadmap designed with a holistic view to guide manufacturers, logistics parties and even policy and decision-makers. Originality/value Theoretically and empirically identifies the potential barriers and challenges in the digital transformation of logistics is already missing at the desired level. From this point of view, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first research that determines barriers based on the Logistics 4.0 model with an industrial perspective. One of the most important limitations of this study is that a total of nine dimensions were examined under only three basic barriers. Different alternatives can be identified for future studies.

Factors associated with attitudes towards sexuality in Venezuelan migrants in Pamplona, Colombia

Introduction: Sexuality is an essential dimension in human beings. Migrants become a vulnerable population in situations that affect their sexual and reproductive rights. Objective: This study aimed to identify the factors associated with attitudes towards sexuality in Venezuelan migrants in Colombia. Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted with a sample of Venezuelan migrants over 18 years of age, selected at convenience. Sociodemographic characteristics were evaluated, and the Trueblood Sexual Attitudes Questionnaire (TSAQ) scale was applied, which evaluates attitudes towards one's sexuality (self) and others. Results: Participated 369 adults. The study group's average TASQ score was 5.81 ± 0.65. By subscale, the highest average occurred in homosexuality (8.39), followed by sexual variation (6.37), autoeroticism (4.93), commercial sex (4.70), and heterosexuality (4.27). Conclusions: Sociodemographic factors such as schooling, having children, occupation, level of study, social stratum, and sexual orientation influence attitudes toward sexuality in migrants.

Antibiotic-resistant bacteria contaminating leafy vegetables in Saudi Arabia’s eastern region

BackgroundFood-associated antibiotic-resistant bacteria can cause infections that may critically impact human health. The objectives of this study were to determine the microbial contamination level of green leafy vegetables and their antibiotic resistance pattern.MethodsSixty-three samples of leafy vegetables were collected from Dammam Central Fruit and Vegetables Market from January to June 2023. The vegetables included lettuce (Lactuca sativa), parsley (Petroselinum crispum), and watercress (Nasturtium officinale). Samples were tested by standard microbiological techniques for identification and antibiotic susceptibility testing.ResultEight types of bacteria belonging to six different genera were detected. Enterobacteriaceae family was represented by four genera: Klebsiella, Proteus, Morganella, and Enterobacter. The other two genera were Pseudomonas and Aeromonas. Enterobacter cloacae was the most abundant organism, followed by Pseudomonas putida and Aeromonas sobria. On the other hand, Morganella morganii, Aeromonas hydrophila, and Proteus mirabilis were the least abundant. The three vegetable types had different levels of bacterial contamination. All isolated organisms were sensitive to penicillin, cephalosporin, aminoglycoside, and fluoroquinolone. However, Klebsiella oxytoca, M. morganii, and K. pneumonia showed resistance to ampicillin. A. hydrophila, Morganella morganii, and E. cloacae showed resistance to amoxicillin. M. morganii and E. cloacae were found to be resistant to cefalotin. Moreover, A. hydrophila, M. morganii, and E. cloacae were resistant to cefoxitin. Again, A. hydrophila was found to be resistant to imipenem. Only M. morganii was resistant to Ciprofloxacin. Two isolates, P. mirabilis and M. morganii were resistant to tigecycline. Another two, M. morganii and P. mirabilis were resistant to Nitrofurantoin. Only M. morganii was found to be resistant to trimethoprim.ConclusionThis study aligns with the broad consensus in the literature about the significance of bacterial contamination in vegetables and the public health implications. The unique focus on antibiotic resistance patterns adds an essential dimension to the existing body of knowledge.

Essential dimension of symmetric groups in prime characteristic

Essential dimension of symmetric groups in prime characteristic

Geometry Interaction Embeddings for Interpolation Temporal Knowledge Graph Completion

Knowledge graphs (KGs) have become a cornerstone for structuring vast amounts of information, enabling sophisticated AI applications across domains. The progression to temporal knowledge graphs (TKGs) introduces time as an essential dimension, allowing for a dynamic representation of entity relationships. Despite their potential, TKGs often suffer from incompleteness, necessitating the development of temporal knowledge graph completion (TKGC) techniques. These methods, particularly focusing on interpolation within the known timeframe, aim to infer missing temporal facts and enhance the predictive capabilities of TKGs. The prevalent reliance on Euclidean space modeling in TKGC methods presents challenges in capturing the complex, hierarchical, and time-varying nature of TKGs. To overcome these limitations, we introduced the attention-based geometry interaction embedding (ATGIE) method, a novel approach that leverages the strengths of multiple geometric spaces, i.e., Euclidean, hyperbolic, and hypersphere, to model the intricacies of TKGs more effectively. ATGIE employs an attention mechanism to dynamically weigh the contributions of different geometric spaces, allowing it to adaptively form reliable spatial structures based on interactive geometric information. This multi-space modeling not only captures the diverse relationships within TKGs but also facilitates a nuanced understanding of how entities and their relationships evolve over time. Through extensive experiments, we demonstrate ATGIE’s superiority in TKGC tasks, showcasing its improvement over existing methods, robustness to noise, and sensitivity to temporal dynamics. The results highlight ATGIE’s potential to advance the state-of-the-art in TKGC, offering a promising direction for research and application in the field.

Commons are cared for: Coexistence between humans and wild birds on the island of Kihnu, Estonia

Abstract Local knowledge is an essential dimension of humanity's relationship with the environment. Investigating the interdependence between humans and wild birds holds value in fostering a mutually beneficial relationship with avian populations. Gathering bird eggs is a significant practice for Kihnu islanders in Estonia. There are very few studies of this age‐old, complex knowledge that assess the topic from the perspective of the local community. This paper investigates the reciprocity and the relationality between people and birds and the position of commons in the local community practice of bird semi‐domestication. Several methods (interviews, participant observation and literature study) were used in data collection. We obtained information on local knowledge concerning 58 bird taxa. Locals named at least 21 bird species from which they have collected eggs. While collecting eggs is a central activity, the relationship surrounding egg collection is far more intricate. Locals take care of nesting boxes in Common Merganser which birds reside, collecting only a few eggs from every box. These nesting boxes are also constructed for passerine birds. Furthermore, caring for birds influences the soundscape of Kihnu and significantly impacts the cultural bond between local communities and the birds. Kihnu islanders are mindful of the changes occurring in the bird population. The intimate relationship between local people and birds is challenged when traditional ways of life are restricted by stricter nature conservation norms (e.g. banning the collection of bird eggs and visiting islets). However, birdlife is very important in ensuring biocultural diversity. Therefore, this study proposes several important future perspectives in promoting the sustainable development of rural life: (1) the introduction of pluralistic nature protection, including the opinion of local communities in the management of natural resources; (2) the promotion of birds as a means of pest control; and (3) reinforcing the reciprocal coexistence of birds and humans on Kihnu. We advocate for community‐centred nature management which takes into consideration Local Ecological Knowledge and its attached expertise, shared responsibility and benefits, sustainable development trajectories and local community‐based governance systems. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

Analysing and evaluating the bilingual adaptation of English graded readers in China: A social semiotic multimodal discourse study

International English-graded readers have been increasingly adapted, rewritten, and localised to cater to the specific needs of learners in different regions. This cross-cultural adaptation of materials has not attracted much scholarly attention, although it is an essential dimension of research on materials for language learning and teaching. The present study explores the textual transformations that occur in the bilingual adaptation of Cambridge English Readers, a series of original fiction books for learners of English, by a Chinese publisher. The analysis is underpinned by social semiotic multimodal discourse theory. Based on the analysis, the study evaluates the pedagogic potential of the bilingual edition of Cambridge English Readers as materials for English language learning and teaching. In doing so, it demonstrates a novel approach to evaluating bilingual adaptations of graded readers. It also shows that the original and bilingually adapted editions reflect different cultures of learning.

The role of military morale as an essential dimension of combat power

This paper focuses on the principles and values that guide human behaviour as well as judgements about what is considered ethical. The objectives of this analysis are threefold: (1) to explore the role of morale as an essential dimension of combat power, (2) to identify perceptions and representations related to the importance of military morale in managing stress during wartime or on a field mission, and (3) to identify possible ways to improve the resilience of military personnel deployed on the battlefield within the organisational culture. This study adopts a mixed-methods approach, including qualitative methodologies to examine the role and impact of psychological training and self-confidence in military settings along with quantitative methodologies that include specific questions regarding demographics and military experiences. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with thirty-two military personnel with direct experience in missions, conflict zones, or theatres of operations. Soldiers’ perceptions, formed by their states of necessity and subjective character, contribute to satisfaction, shaping the scope of motivation, and confirming that soldiers’ morale directly influences their actions on the battlefield. Accomplishing a mission requires not only the precise definition of objectives and the provision of the necessary tools but also an appeal to factors that stimulate, raise awareness, and activate personnel. The findings reveal measures that can be taken to manage stress in combat, including subjective ones, deriving from the military’s confidence and conviction in the legitimacy of the cause and the justice of the war, group integration, personal beliefs and hopes as well as objective ones, such as external mass influences, the media or the states involved, which affect the security of the military. The results of the study emphasise the importance of the initial training of the military at individual and group levels, or under leadership of superiors, together with the solidarity of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and European Union member states in supporting the families of the military and improving their situation from various perspectives: economic, material, orale, civil protection, and child protection.

Exploratory Data Analysis and Searching Cliques in Graphs

The principal component analysis is a well-known and widely used technique to determine the essential dimension of a data set. Broadly speaking, it aims to find a low-dimensional linear manifold that retains a large part of the information contained in the original data set. It may be the case that one cannot approximate the entirety of the original data set using a single low-dimensional linear manifold even though large subsets of it are amenable to such approximations. For these cases we raise the related but different challenge (problem) of locating subsets of a high dimensional data set that are approximately 1-dimensional. Naturally, we are interested in the largest of such subsets. We propose a method for finding these 1-dimensional manifolds by finding cliques in a purpose-built auxiliary graph.

Wellbeing and School Improvement: A Scoping Review

ABSTRACT Over the past decade, the intentional promotion of student and staff wellbeing (i.e., positive states of psychological, cognitive, social and physical being) has become recognized as an essential dimension of quality schooling. This development has coincided with a growing body of research that demonstrates significant correlations between wellbeing and positive school outcomes (i.e., attendance, academic achievement, classroom engagement, disciplinary absences). While this body of literature identifies why wellbeing is important to school improvement, it is not necessarily clear whether it provides insight into how wellbeing may be effectively incorporated into the praxis of school improvement. This paper reports on a scoping review that sought to identify how the construct of wellbeing is presented as an imperative within the school improvement (SI) literature. The review identified that promoting wellbeing in schools as a means of improving school outcomes can be understood through three core concepts: (a) the development of personal wellbeing and academic capability are complementary; (b) significant cultural and structural reform is necessary in schools to enable effective approaches to promoting wellbeing; and (c) a nurturing style leadership is a determining factor in a school’s capability to substantively promote wellbeing. The paper also provides recommendations for further research in this area.

Management control tools for Moroccan industrial companies: Application of Target Costing and Artificial Intelligence

<p>Technological advances and intensified competition on world markets have led to product diversification, forcing companies to adjust their production and marketing strategies using modern management tools. However, to meet the complex challenges posed by cost management and production process optimization, an essential dimension to consider is the integration of artificial intelligence into the Target Costing process. The main objective of this article is to detail the implementation of this Japanese method in the Moroccan context, focusing in particular on Moroccan industrial companies. To achieve our goal, an extensive literature review has been undertaken. However, there is a lack of documentation concerning the understanding of this method and its impact on Moroccan industrial companies. In order to better understand this relationship, we undertook a literature review focusing on the role of this instrument within industrial companies in Morocco, adopting an analytical approach. It should be noted that Target Costing is a mechanism for adapting companies to the Moroccan environment, encouraging organizational change in response to the needs of the Moroccan market while ensuring its sustainability. It also fosters collaboration between stakeholders, as well as compliance with Moroccan regulations and standards, helping to preserve the competitive edge of Moroccan industrial companies. In the Moroccan context, the adoption of artificial intelligence as part of Target Costing could bring significant benefits to industrial companies. These include a better understanding of local market needs, optimization of production processes to meet changing demands, and more informed decision-making when defining product selling prices. This study presents contributions from both academic and managerial perspectives, although it does raise certain limitations linked to the scarcity of articles and publications in the Moroccan context.</p>

Intergenerational Exchange: Connecting Learning Experiences Across Generations

Intergenerational exchange, defined as interaction and communication between different generations, offers the potential for synergy between life experiences and learning. This concept represents an essential dimension of social capital and social learning that goes beyond traditional forms of education. Within this multidimensional phenomenon, intergenerational mentoring is required, where older generations pass on their accumulated experiences to younger generations, thereby facilitating the development of critical thinking and complex social understanding. For the effective implementation of intergenerational exchange, adaptability and flexibility of educational programmes and strategies is a key factor to ensure that the needs of different generations are addressed comprehensively. In this context, it is important to clarify that intergenerational exchange is not just a one-way process but rather an interactive dialogue that can involve different forms of learning, including formal, non-formal and incremental learning. It also includes aspects of social capital and promotes community involvement. This pilot study focuses on theoretical and practical research that explores the impact on social cohesion and mentions potential challenges associated with this process. It also analyses the factors that influence the successful implementation of intergenerational learning and identifies strategies for promoting intergenerational dialogue and learning.

Towards a sociology of the future: An exploration in cognitive social theory

The aim of this article is a sociology of the future. Since the standard sociological practice of extrapolating from everyday semantics of the future and the time-consciousness of modernity is inadequate, an integrated cognitive sociological perspective allied to critical theory is introduced. It makes visible an essential dimension of social life that is either largely taken for granted, misunderstood or ignored by identifying different levels of cognitive structures organising minds, institutions and culture and following their role in societal dynamics. This perspective mediates the sociocultural and naturalistic approaches and introduces the concept of space-time. Centrally, a modal analysis of the key present-past-future sequence is presented, with the focus on the distinct status of the future. It is modally conceptualised, not simply in terms of possibility as is usual, but rather in terms of its modality as a necessary formal generic cultural model that makes the future in the first place conceivable and enables an orientation towards it to be established and maintained. The resulting cognitive sociological account offers a novel theoretical understanding of the future which could facilitate thorough sociological and critical theoretical analyses in the societal space-time field.

Prevention of Preeclampsia in Saudi Arabia: Knowledge about Risk Factors and Aspirin Use among Obstetrical Care Physicians - A National Survey

Objectives: To assess the level of awareness among obstetrical care providers about preeclampsia prevention including risk factors, good practice in aspirin prophylaxis, and to analyze the associated factors. Methods: A cross-sectional study conducted among gynecologists and obstetricians, maternal and fetal medicine specialists, and internal or family medicine physicians working in public or private care centers whom involved in obstetric care in Saudi Arabia. An online-administered questionnaire was designed to assess familiarity of aspirin role in prevention of preeclampsia and fetal growth restriction including proper dose, timing of intake, gestational age to start and discontinuation of treatment as well as the risk factors of PE among set of 13 conditions. An awareness score was calculated and divided into two levels: adequate and inadequate familiarity and knowledge. Practice in PE prevention and attitude towards aspirin use, in addition to participants’ demographic and professional factors, were investigated and analyzed as profound factors. Results: Hundred sixty physicians were participated, 85% were obstetrician/gynecologists and 13.1 were maternal fetal medicine Specialists. Less than half of participants have adequate knowledge and awareness in aspirin role and a minority provided correct answers regarding the recommended aspiring dose, timing of intake, gestational age to start and discontinuation of treatment. However, knowledge about preeclampsia risk factors was relatively acceptable. Maternal fetal medicine specialist and physicians working in teaching hospitals were remarkably with better knowledge compared to their respective counterparts in primary and secondary centers. The existence of institutional guidelines about ASA use in pregnancy did not improve the knowledge level. Conclusion: The overall familiarity and knowledge in that regard was relatively poor, associating misconceptions about the risk factors and substantial gaps regarding the optimal timing and prescribing practice. Formal and continuous medical education curricula should be reviewed to promote good clinical practice in preeclampsia prevention as an essential dimension of maternal and fetal care.

The Association between Working Memory and Divergent Thinking: The Moderating Role of Formal Musical Background.

Divergent thinking (DT) is widely considered an essential cognitive dimension of creativity, which involves goal-oriented processes, including working memory (WM), which allows for retrieving and loading of information into the attentional stream and, consequently, enhancing divergence of thinking. Despite the critical role of WM in DT, little work has been done on the mechanism affecting this interplay. The current study addressed the involvement of a formal musical background in the relationship between WM and DT and was conducted with 83 healthy young adults (M = 19.64 years; SD = 0.52 years; 33 females). The participants were requested to indicate if they had a formal background in music in the conservatory (M = 4.78 years; SD = 5.50 years) as well as perform the digit span forward test (DSFT) and the alternative uses task-AUT from the Torrance test of creative thinking (TTCT). The results indicated that years of formal musical background moderated the association between WM and DT. These findings suggest that music enhances the positive effect of high-order cognitive processes, such as WM, on the ability to think divergently. Theoretical and practical implications as well as limitations were discussed.

Motor skills as the basis of sensorimotor development, an essential dimension according to André Bullinger

In neonatology and pediatric intensive care units, as in pediatric units, development support care practiced according to the approach of psychologist André Bullinger takes into account sensorimotor and psychological aspects. Considering the quality and quantity of movements, from the antenatal period, allows for individualized and early care. Sensitive periods of sensorimotor development, during which brain plasticity is optimal, are decisive for psychomotor and cognitive development. Observation and evaluation of movements, as well as postural support to enable active motor skills, constitute essential elements of the developmental support provided to vulnerable children of all ages.

Câteva aspecte dominante ale gândirii filosofice la omul contemporan

The work systematizes several essential aspects of contemporary man. It reveals his trinitarian structure: body, soul, and spirit. His temporal trivalence - past, present, and future. The process of psycho-intellectual maturation. His essential dimension is ethical orientation. Its culmination is moral. The formation of belief and character are ethical values. Primarily, man is valued for who he is, not for what he has. He is what he is through communion, not through communication. Moral values define human personality. Through empathy, trust, and emotions, we define the human. Our objective is to stop precariousness, primarily the disorder of values.

A critical examination of the entanglement: How political dynamics shape legal Decision-making and reform processes in Pakistan

In this scholarly exploration, we delve into the intricate interplay between political dynamics and legal decision-making within the context of Pakistan. Our analysis draws inspiration from Chantal Mouffe’s agonistic theory of democracy, which posits that inherent conflicts (antagonisms) are an essential dimension of the political landscape. These conflicts, while requiring tempering for the functioning of a pluralist democracy, remain unalienable and ever-present. Within the juridical domain, judges occupy a unique position. Cloaked in legal form, their pronouncements extend beyond mere legal interpretations. Instead, they adjudicate individual instances of ongoing collective conflicts—pitting workers against employers, consumers against traders, tenants against landlords, and moral progressives against traditionalists. These decisions, seemingly juridical, are inherently political. Judges wield a “relative sovereignty,” navigating institutional imperatives while being influenced by ideological currents. However, legal determinacy remains relative. Judges, through rigorous interpretive work, can diverge from prima facie interpretations. The collective conflicts, once juridified, crystallize into temporary hegemonic fixations. Our critical legal scholarship endeavors to destabilize these hegemonies in pursuit of justice. This task necessitates not only external critique but also internal scrutiny. We propose evaluating judicial decisions by considering all plausible alternatives, weighing conflicting interests and ideologies. In summary, our examination underscores the dual nature of judicial decisions—simultaneously juridical and political. By embracing this complexity, we contribute to a nuanced understanding of legal reform processes in Pakistan, advocating for justice beyond mere legal formalism.

Rough set theory applied to finite dimensional vector spaces

In this paper, we study finite dimensional vector spaces using rough set theory (RST) by defining a Boolean information system IB associated with a vector space V for a given basis B. We define an indiscernibility relation on V and investigate different partitions induced on V. We identify that every reduct of the information system is a basis of V and the core is empty in the case of V over field F with |F|≥3. We study the measure of dependency between different subsets of V. Moreover, we define three posets and prove that these posets are isomorphic and complete. We study lower and upper approximations for different subsets of V and determine rough and exact sets. We give the general form of the entries of the discernibility matrix. We determine essential sets and the essential dimension of the information system, and prove that minimal entries of the discernibility matrix coincide with the essential sets. Finally, we demonstrate the use of the developed theory by providing two practical examples.