High Change Research Articles

Impact of Covid-19 Pandemic on Consumer behaviour and Preference: Modern or Traditional Medicines?

Backgorund: The COVID-19 pandemic also affects people's behavior (consumers) in Indonesia. To avoid COVID-19, people often consume natural or herbal medicine in addition to chemical medicines. Objective: To analyze the consumers behavior and preference in purchasing modern and traditional medicines during pre and mid pandemic of Covid-19 in East Kalimantan province. Methods: 540 East Kalimantan residents participated in a cross-sectional online survey from December 2021 to February 2022. The survey instrument included demographic information, 4 items on purchasing modern and traditional medicine pre and mid Covid-19. Results: Purchase of traditional medicine prior to the Covid-19 pandemic was 43.7% and mid the covid-19 was 51.5%. Purchase of modern medicine prior to the Covid-19 pandemic was 59.6% and mid the covid-19 was 72.2%. The wilcoxon test for the purchase of traditional and modern medicines before and during covid is <0.001. Conclusion: Consumers in East Kalimantan experienced changes in behavior before the COVID-19 pandemic compared to mid-COVID-19; the highest change was in purchasing modern medicines, and this change in behavior was statistically significant.

Pemanfaatan Hidrotherapy Jahe Merah untuk Menurunkan Tekanan Darah pada Keluarga di Kelurahan Legok

Based on profile data from Jambi Province, it shows that the incidence of hypertension ranks first from 2018 to 2020. The increasing incidence of hypertension requires community nurses to teach the public how to treat it with red ginger hydrotherapy. Research Before results show that red ginger hydrotherapy has an effect on blood pressure. For this reason, it is necessary to carry out community service regarding the use of red ginger hydrotherapy to treat hypertension problems. This service aims to provide education to the public on how to treat hypertension with red jehe hydrotherapy. This service will be carried out on 22-25 May 2022 to 15 people in Legok Village, Jambi City. The method for implementing this activity is 1). Pretest 2). Providing education about how to treat hypertension with red ginger hydrotherapy, 3). Post test. Education is carried out for 60 minutes. Based on the results of checking the highest systolic blood pressure before treatment was 180 mmHg and the lowest 140 mmHg, while the results of measuring diastolic blood pressure it can be concluded that the highest blood pressure before treatment was 100 and after giving hydrotherapy there was the highest change, namely 80 mmHg. These results indicate that there was a change in blood pressure after administering red ginger hydrotherapy. So red ginger hydrotherapy can be recommended as a therapy for hypertensive patients. For further service, research on red ginger and salt hydrotherapy to treat hypertension is recommended

Realization of dual-functional resistive switching characteristics in Ag−In−Zn−S/sericin peptide-based memristive device

Employing suitable materials and device engineering is one of the crucial methods toward the realization of multifunctional memristive devices for constructing bioinspired neuromorphic systems. In this work, dual-functional memristors composed of eco-friendly natural silk sericin, coexistently enabling the achievement of threshold switching and memory switching triggered by adjusting the compliance current value, have been fabricated with a specific two-terminal device structure: Ag/Ag−In−Zn−S/silk sericin/W. Experimentally, the as-manufactured memristors exhibit several desirable qualities, such as low switching voltage (< 0.7 V), relatively small cycle-to-cycle and device-to-device variabilities, nonvolatile multilevel storage characteristics, and rapid switching speed (40 ns). Beyond these qualities, fundamental synaptic behaviors, such as paired-pulse facilitation and spike-timing-dependent plasticity (STDP), have been mimicked. This was made possible by a filamentary mechanism based on Ag migration. The fitted time constants corresponding to the STDP potentiation and depression are about 30 ms, and the highest changes in synaptic weight for positive and negative voltage pulses are 84.4% and 61.7%, respectively. Furthermore, the typical coincidence detection task has been executed, demonstrated by simulation based on the fitted STDP's parameters of the sericin-based device. The results from this study indicate that the sericin-based memristors, as designed, have the potential to be employed in the creation of versatile neuromorphic devices for neuromorphic computing systems.

Mycophenolate mofetil versus cyclophosphamide plus in patients with connective tissue disease-associated interstitial lung disease: Efficacy and safety analysis.

The decision for definitive therapy for the treatment of patients with connective tissue disease-associated interstitial lung disease (CTD-ILD) is difficult. Patients with CTD-ILD received 0.5 g twice a day of mycophenolate mofetil for 2 years (MMF cohort, n = 105) or cyclophosphamide 50 mg once every other day, and the cumulative dose of cyclophosphamide should not exceed 10 g (CYC cohort, n = 140). After complete of treatment (EL), % forced vital capacity (FVC) and % diffusing capacity of the lungs for carbon monoxide were increased in both the MMF and CYC cohorts as compared to before treatment (p < 0.001 for all). There were higher changes in % FVC values and a greater number of patients with significant change in % FVC (>10% change) in the CYC cohort than in the MMF cohort (p < 0.0001 for both) at EL. Patients in the CYC cohort had higher rates of leukopenia, thrombocytopenia, serious adverse effects related to treatment(s), and death than those in the MMF cohort (p < 0.05 for all). Cyclophosphamide plus prednisolone superiorly improved % FVC compared to mycophenolate mofetil plus prednisolone. Mycophenolate mofetil and cyclophosphamide improved pulmonary function. Mycophenolate mofetil is less toxic and increased patient survival.

Abstract 18420: Appropriateness and Cost Analysis of Adult Inpatient Transthoracic Echocardiograms in a Community Hospital

Introduction: Although inpatient transthoracic echocardiograms (TTEs) are important for guiding patient management, their overuse could be a concern leading to delayed discharges, unnecessary burden on hospital staff, and increased hospital costs. We analyzed the appropriateness, benefits, cost expenditure and unnecessary burden of TTE testing. Methods: A retrospective cohort analysis of a subset of patients undergoing TTEs in 2022 from a community hospital was performed. Appropriateness of use criteria (AUC) in accordance with American Society of Echocardiography and alteration in medical management was evaluated by 3 independent reviewers. Hospital cost analysis was performed based on median TTE cost ($682), yearly total adult TTEs performed (n=4,636), AUC criteria, and alteration in management under Maryland all-payer insurance model. Results: In 234 TTEs matched by age, gender, and race, AUC was not met in 32.5% of patients. Most TTEs were indicated for LV function assessment and ACS (Figure). Change in management was significantly higher in patients who met vs. not meeting AUC (54 vs. 11%, p&lt;0.001). In patients meeting AUC, men had a higher change in management compared to women (61 vs. 46%, p = 0.05). No significant differences were found in the percentage of patients who benefitted from inpatient TTE by subgroups based on indications, except for cardiac trauma. Inappropriate TTE testing led to a yearly loss of approximately $313,000 in hospital revenue and an additional loss of $150,000/year for every 5% of patients who meet AUC with no alteration in medical management. Conclusion: In this community hospital analysis, nearly one-third of adult inpatient TTEs were obtained outside the recommendations of established guidelines. Strategies to improve adherence to ASE guidelines and patient selection for TTE testing are warranted to reduce unnecessary resource utilization and healthcare costs.

Monitoring Seasonal Fluctuations in Saline Lakes of Tunisia Using Earth Observation Data Processed by GRASS GIS

This study documents the changes in the Land Use/Land Cover (LULC) in the region of saline lakes in north Tunisia, Sahara Desert. Remote sensing data are a valuable data source in monitoring LULC in lacustrine landscapes, because variations in the extent of lakes are visible from space and can be detected on the images. In this study, changes in LULC of the salt pans of Tunisia were evaluated using a series of 12 Landsat 8-9 Operational Land Imager (OLI) and Thermal Infrared (TIRS) images. The images were processed with the Geographic Resources Analysis Support System (GRASS) Geographic Information System (GIS) software. The study area included four salt lakes of north Tunisia in the two regions of the Gulf of Hammamet and Gulf of Gabès: (1) Sebkhet de Sidi el Hani (Sousse Governorate), (2) Sebkha de Moknine (Mahdia Governorate), (3) Sebkhet El Rharra and (4) Sebkhet en Noual (Sfax). A quantitative estimate of the areal extent analysed in this study is 182 km × 185 km for each Landsat scene in two study areas: Gulf of Hammamet and Gulf of Gabès. The images were analysed for the period 2017–2023 on months February, April and July for each year. Spatio-temporal changes in LULC and their climate–environmental driving forces were analysed. The results were interpreted and the highest changes were detected by accuracy assessment, computing the class separability matrices, evaluating the means and standard deviation for each band and plotting the reject probability maps. Multi-temporal changes in LULC classes are reported for each image. The results demonstrated that changes in salt lakes were determined for winter/spring/summer months as detected changes in water/land/salt/sand/vegetation areas. The accuracy of the classified images was evaluated using pixel rejection probability values, which were filtered out using the ‘r.mapcalc’ module of GRASS GIS. The confidence levels were computed and visualised with a series of maps along with the error matrix and measured convergence level of classified pixels. This paper contributes to the environmental monitoring of Tunisian landscapes and analysis of climate effects on LULC in landscapes of north Africa.

The impact of forest cover decrease on the wind regime changes for the territory of Ukraine based on data of the global numerical experiment LUMIP

The article analyses and estimates the influence of partial deforestation on wind regime based on the global numerical experiment Land Use Model Intercomparison Project (LUMIP). This experiment is one of the components of the global project Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP 6). LUMIP aims to evaluate changes in climate characteristics and biogeochemical cycles due to partial global deforestation withsubsequent grassland establishment. A given period of retrospective modelling is divided into two subperiods. The first covers a time frame of 1850—1899 and a so-called subperiod with a minimum anthropogenic influence. During these modelled 50 years, the partial forest cover shrinkagewas conducted with a trend of 1 % per year the nodes where the forest cover exceeded 30 %. In the second subperiod (1900—1929), the forest cover was stable. Our previous papers concerned the influence of partial deforestation on the radiation, temperature, and moisture regimes in Ukraine. The present paper continues the analysis and is dedicated to the impact of partial deforestation on changes in the mean monthly wind surface speed based on data from available Global Climate Models (GCMs).Deforestation caused quantitative changes in wind speed during all months of the year for all GCMs used in the research, however, with a different sensitivity. Maximum changes were obtained from the model with the biggest step in forest cover shrinkage among all GCMs, approximately 1.6 % a node. It should be emphasized that the biggest changes occurredin the nodes where the forest was substituted with grassland. The obtained correlations of the deforestation and mean monthly wind speed were moderately or highly negative for all seasons. The maximum wind speed and the highest changes are during the winter. In January, for example,the maximum changes can reach up to 0.3 m/s per 10 years. During spring and autumn, such tendencies generallyvary up to 0.1—0.2 m/s per 10 years. The differences in wind speed between the subperiod of stable forest cover and the partial deforestation are up to 1.2 m/s at a particular grid point on the territory of Ukraine.

Exploring antiproliferative activities and kinase profile of ortho-substituted N-(4-(2-(benzylamino)-2-oxoethyl)phenyl)benzamides.

Designing kinase inhibitors that bind to the substrate site of oncogenic kinases in a promising, albeit less explored, approach to kinase inhibition as it was sought to avoid the issue of untoward off-target modulations. Our previously identified compound KAC-12 with a meta-chlorophenyl substitution was an example of this approach. While it showed confirmed inhibitory activity against cancer cells, this substitution shifted the profile of affected targets away from Src/tubulin which were seen with the parent KX-01. In this paper, we synthesized compounds with ortho-substitutions, and we investigated the effect of such substitutions on their cellular and subcellular activities. The compound N-(4-(2-(benzylamino)-2-oxoethyl)phenyl)-2-(morpholine-4-carbonyl)benzamide (4) exhibited substantial activities against cell lines such HCT116 (IC50 of 0.97 μM) and IC50 HL60 (2.84 μM). Kinase profiling showed that compound 4 trended consistently with KAC-12 as it did not affect Src, but it had more impact on members of the Src family of kinases (SFK) such as Yes, Hck, Fyn, Lck, and Lyn. Both compounds exhibited profound downregulation effects on Erk1/2 but differed on others such as GSK3α/β and C-Jun. Collectively, this study further support to the hypothesis that small structural changes might bring higher changes in their kinome profile.

Analysis of Land Value in the Area Surrounding the Central Business District (CBD) of Simpang Lima, Semarang City Using Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR)

According to the Regional Spatial Plan (RTRW) for the City of Semarang in 2011–2031, the area around Simpang Lima is part of City Area 1, with a function as the Central Business District (CBD). Losch (1954) suggests that the value of a parcel of land tends to decrease if it is away from the central business area. Therefore, this study investigated the relationship between changes in land value and the presence of CBD around the Simpang Lima CBD. The methods employed in this study are the calculation of the Average Indicated Value (NIR), analyzing changes in land value in 2012–2023, and the Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR). Based on an analysis of changes in land value for 2012–2023, it shows that the highest change in land value zone for 2012–2018 was in zone 166, with an increase of IDR 20,446,000, and the lowest change in land value was in zone 163, with a decrease of IDR 3,956,000. Meanwhile, the highest change in land value zone for 2018–2023 was in zone 84, with an increase of IDR 28,852,000, and the lowest change in land value was in zone 37, with an increase of IDR 217,000. The results of statistical tests using GWR show that the influence of the distance from the CBD on changes in land values in 2012–2023 is 84%, indicating a high correlation. The results of the T-test performed on each variable indicate that the variables significantly influencing changes in land value are shopping centers and road widths. Shopping centers have a negative correlation. On the other hand, the road width is positively correlation.

Teacher! Please Light My Way: Effect of Providing Individual Feedback on Achievement in Social Studies Education

Feedback in education is messages that contain information about how close the student’s current behavior in the learning process is to the expected behavior, what deficiencies and mistakes exist, and how they can be eliminated, and messages that contain information about the last level reached. Feedback guides students’ learning and is an important component of assessment. In this study, the type of individual feedback was discussed. The research aims to determine the effect of the individual feedback provided to the students from the social studies course on their exam success. The research was conducted with three different social studies teachers and their six different students at three different socio-economic levels. After the teachers were given effective feedback training, two students in their classes were asked to give individual feedback on their lessons. At the end of the process, the exam scores of the students before receiving feedback and the exam scores after receiving feedback were compared according to the class averages. In addition, the opinions of the teachers in this process were also taken in the research. As a result of the research, it was determined that the exam scores of the students who received individual feedback increased and there was a higher change in their scores compared to the class average. According to the teachers, individual feedback increased the students’ interest in the lesson. Finally, teachers suggested to their colleagues that they should receive training on feedback and emphasized that every teacher should be good feedback literacy. Based on these results of the study, it is suggested that teachers should be trained about feedback and that their feedback literacy levels should be increased.

Transduction of Amine-Phosphate Supramolecular Interactions and Biosensing of Acetylcholine through PEDOT-Polyamine Organic Electrochemical Transistors.

Organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs) are important devices for the development of flexible and wearable sensors due to their flexibility, low power consumption, sensitivity, selectivity, ease of fabrication, and compatibility with other flexible materials. These features enable the creation of comfortable, versatile, and efficient portable devices that can monitor and detect a wide range of parameters for various applications. Herein, we present OECTs based on PEDOT-polyamine thin films for the selective monitoring of phosphate-containing compounds. Our findings reveal that supramolecular single phosphate-amino interaction induces higher changes in the OECT response compared to ATP-amino interactions, even at submillimolar concentrations. The steric character of binding anions plays a crucial role in OECT sensing, resulting in a smaller shift in maximum transconductance voltage and threshold voltage for bulkier binding species. The OECT response reflects not only the polymer/solution interface but also events within the conducting polymer film, where ion transport and concentration are affected by the ion size. Additionally, the investigation of enzyme immobilization reveals the influence of phosphate species on the assembly behavior of acetylcholinesterase (AchE) on PEDOT-PAH OECTs, with increasing phosphate concentrations leading to reduced enzyme anchoring. These findings contribute to the understanding of the mechanisms of OECT sensing and highlight the importance of careful design and optimization of the biosensor interface construction for diverse sensing applications.

Analisis Kinerja Keuangan Perusahaan Sektor Consumer Cyclicals dan Sektor Transportation &amp; Logistic sebelum dan saat Pandemi Covid-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the business activities of all industrial sectors in Indonesia. One of the sectors affected is the transportation &amp; logistics sector, which experienced a 30% decrease in turnover compared to before the pandemic, as well as the consumer cyclicals sector. This study analyzes the financial performance of consumer cyclicals sector and transportation &amp; logistics sector before and during the pandemic in 2018-2021. The sampling technique used was purposive sampling. The data analysis methods used are paired sample t-test and Wilcoxon signed rank test, which previously carried out a normality test. The results of this study indicate that for the consumer cyclical sector, financial performance as measured by current ratio, quick ratio, debt to asset ratio, and debt to equity ratio does not have a significant difference between before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, while net profit margin, return on assets, total asset turnover and working capital turnover have a significant difference between before and during the pandemic. For companies engaged in the transportation &amp; logistics sector, debt to equity ratio and working capital turnover do not have significant differences between before and during the pandemic, while the current ratio, quick ratio, net profit margin, return on assets, debt to asset ratio, and total asset turnover have significant differences between before and during the covid-19 pandemic. The findings conclude that the transportation &amp; logistics sector experienced higher changes in liquidity-related financial performance compared to the consumer cyclicals sector, while the consumer cyclicals sector experienced significant changes in profit performance before and during the pandemic.

Ecological gradients in a marine cave revisited 26 years after

Marine caves are unique and vulnerable habitats threatened by multiple global and local pressures. Changes in the sessile epibenthic community of the Grotta Azzurra of Capo Palinuro (Salerno, Italy) during the last 26 years have been evaluated using growth forms and trophic guilds as non-taxonomic descriptors, informative of the structure and the functioning of the cave ecosystem, respectively. Photographic samples were collected in 1992 and 2018 to investigate the stability of the ecosystem response to the three main environmental gradients occurring inside the cave: i) confinement, ii) depth, and iii) light. Benthic communities were well spatially distributed along the three gradients inside the cave according to both the morphology and the feeding strategy of organisms, although the zonation was less marked considering trophic guilds. Gradients persisted and zones remained distinct through time, notwithstanding significant changes in community composition. The trophic organization was preserved throughout the cave, but significant changes in the spatial organization of benthic assemblages were widely observed, mainly due to 3-dimensional growth forms replaced by 2-dimensional (i.e., encrusting) growth forms and by increased sedimentation, thus causing the structural homogenization of the cave community. The outermost and the deepest sectors of the cave experienced higher changes compared to the most confined, blind-ended, sector and to the shallowest depths, which resulted comparatively more stable. From a functional point of view, filter feeders always dominated the communities (even considering their shift from erect to encrusting morphologies) and the few observed changes were due to the reduction of photophilic autotrophs and active ciliate without lophophore and the increase of mixotrophic sponges. As local human pressures remained low through the period considered, the changes observed are likely to be mainly due to global warming, which caused increased sea surface water temperatures and repeated summer heat waves (reported in 1994, 2003, 2008, 2012, and 2015). Regular monitoring programs on marine caves should be promoted to create historical series of data precious to better understand magnitude and pattern of change in the long-term evolution, and to estimate the recovery time of such priority habitats.

Longitudinal MR-based proton-density fat fraction (PDFF) and T2* for the assessment of associations between bone marrow changes and myelotoxic chemotherapy

ObjectivesMR imaging-based proton density fat fraction (PDFF) and T2* imaging has shown to be useful for the evaluation of degenerative changes in the spine. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the influence of myelotoxic chemotherapy on the PDFF and T2* of the thoracolumbar spine in comparison to changes in bone mineral density (BMD).MethodsIn this study, 19 patients were included who had received myelotoxic chemotherapy (MC) and had received a MR imaging scan of the thoracolumbar vertebrates before and after the MC. Every patient was matched for age, sex, and time between the MRI scans to two controls without MC. All patients underwent 3-T MR imaging including the thoracolumbar spine comprising chemical shift encoding-based water-fat imaging to extract PDFF and T2* maps. Moreover, trabecular BMD values were determined before and after chemotherapy. Longitudinal changes in PDFF and T2* were evaluated and compared to changes in BMD.ResultsAbsolute mean differences of PDFF values between scans before and after MC were at 8.7% (p = 0.01) and at −0.5% (p = 0.57) in the control group, resulting in significantly higher changes in PDFF in patients with MC (p = 0.008). BMD and T2* values neither showed significant changes in patients with nor in those without myelotoxic chemotherapy (p = 0.15 and p = 0.47). There was an inverse, yet non-significant correlation between changes in PDFF and BMD found in patients with myelotoxic chemotherapy (r = −0.41, p = 0.12).ConclusionTherefore, PDFF could be a useful non-invasive biomarker in order to detect changes in the bone marrow in patients receiving myelotoxic therapy.Clinical relevance statementUsing PDFF as a non-invasive biomarker for early bone marrow changes in oncologic patients undergoing myelotoxic treatment may help enable more targeted countermeasures at commencing states of bone marrow degradation and reduce risks of possible fragility fractures.Key PointsQuantifying changes in bone marrow fat fraction, as well as T2* caused by myelotoxic pharmaceuticals using proton density fat fraction, is feasible.Proton density fat fraction could potentially be established as a non-invasive biomarker for early bone marrow changes in oncologic patients undergoing myelotoxic treatment.

Dietary approach to stop hypertension and healthy eating index 2015, modify the association between FTO polymorphisms and obesity phenotypes

This study aimed to investigate the interaction of the healthy eating index (HEI) and the dietary approach to stop hypertension (DASH) diet scores with FTO polymorphisms in relation to change in obesity traits. A total of 4480 subjects aged ≥ 18 years were selected from participants of the Tehran lipid and glucose study and followed-up 3 years. Selected polymorphisms (rs1421085, rs1121980, rs8050136) were genotyped and genetic risk score (GRS) was computed. HEI and DASH scores were computed based on dietary data. Changes in body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), waist to hip ratio (WHR) and visceral adiposity index (VAI) were measured. Higher adherence to both DASH and HEI scores were increased with higher ages. Individuals with high GRS had a lower change in BMI when they had higher adherence to HEI, compared to subjects with lower HEI score (P trend = 0.01). Change in WC in participants in the fourth quartile of HEI score in minor allele carriers of FTO variants was lower compared to the first quartile; conversely, higher adherence to the DASH score by this genotypic group was related to increase in WC. No significant interaction was seen between FTO polymorphisms and both diet scores regarding changes in any of obesity traits. In conclusion, in individuals with high GRS higher adherence to HEI score was associated with lower change in BMI and WC, while higher adherence to DASH diet was associated with higher change in WC, compared to individuals with lower adherence to both scores.

The difference of Bishop score change and labor event between oral and vaginal misoprostol in pregnancy beyond 41 weeks

HIGHLIGHTS Oral misoprostol is more effective than vaginal misoprostol in cervical ripening as a part of induction of labor. Oral misoprostol is as safe as vaginal misoprostol. ABSTRACT Objective: To compare Bishop score changes and labor event between oral and vaginal misoprostol in pregnancy beyond 41 weeks. Materials and Methods: A total of 52 pregnant women with more than 41 weeks of gestation, had a Bishop score less than 5, and were undergoing induction labor were randomly divided into two groups: oral and vaginal misoprostol. In the oral misoprostol group, participants were given 25 mg of misoprostol in a solution with a concentration of 1 ug/ml every 2 hours. In the vaginal misoprostol group, a 25 mg misoprostol tablet was inserted into the posterior fornix every 6 hours. The two groups were compared in terms of Bishop score during the first 6 hours, changes in Bishop score, labor at term events, neonatal outcomes, complications, and side effects after the administration of misoprostol. Results: The oral group showed significantly higher changes in Bishop score compared to the vaginal group (5.5 vs 3.6; p=0.0001). The median interval times for induction of labor at term, induction at stage II, and induction at birth were found to be shorter in the oral misoprostol group compared to the vaginal group (7.3 hours vs 10.6 hours, 14.0 hours vs 16.8 hours, and 14.6 hours vs 17.6 hours; p=0.002, 0.003, 0.002). Labor at term occurred much more frequently in the oral group (53.8% vs 15.4%). Additionally, the oral misoprostol group had a 3.5 times higher likelihood of experiencing labor at term within the first 6 hours after the initial administration compared to the vaginal group (OR 3.5, 95% CI 1.33-9.23). Conclusion: Oral administration of misoprostol for cervical ripening has been demonstrated to be more effective than vaginal administration, greater bishop score changes while maintaining an equivalent level of safety.

Elucidating the effects of surface and internal oxidation on material properties of carbon black

This paper investigates the effects of surface and internal oxidation of carbon black (CB) using different oxidizing media, such as ozone, hydrogen peroxide, nitric acid, and potassium permanganate, on CB's porosity, crystallite, and functional groups. The study uses various techniques, such as thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), scanning electron microscopy, N2 adsorption, Raman and infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and zeta potential analysis, to analyse the samples. The results show that internal oxidants cause higher changes in the CB's crystallinity and porosity dynamics than surface oxidation, while surface oxidation predominantly occurs at the CB surface interface. The XRD and fractal analysis of the pore network after oxidation indicate that internal oxidation of the crystallites that make up the CB matter reduces the interlayer distance by compacting their pore networks. This study provides a quantitative analysis of the crystallinity and CB porosity dynamics, which can help in the development of highly porous CB that can act as substitutes for higher grades of CB used in polymer products as reinforcement, activated carbons, or as high-end materials in the development of super-capacitors for battery applications.

Urbanization-induced land use/land cover change and its impact on surface temperature and heat fluxes over two major cities in Western Ethiopia.

Much of the urbanization that occurs in Africa creates the potential for technological development and economic growth but is also a breeding ground for environmental and health problems. This study was undertaken to evaluate the urban-induced land use/land cover (LULC) change and its contribution to the land surface temperature (LST) and urban heat fluxes from 2001 to 2021. More specifically, the study analyzed different scenarios of LULC change and retrieved the LST to evaluate the trends of the urban heat flux (UHI) in response to the urban-induced LULC change. The analysis of LULC change from 2001 to 2021 indicated that built-up and bare land showed the highest rate of increase at the expense of declining open spaces, agricultural land, and vegetation areas. The built-up areas in Nekemte and Jimma City increased by 929.25ha (172.75%) and 2285.64ha (226.93%) over the investigated period, respectively. The highest changes in LULC are seen in built-up areas followed by agricultural land, while the smallest changes are shown by water body followed by bare land. Built-up areas showed the highest net gain, while agricultural land experienced the greatest loss. In areas where the vegetation cover is low, low LST was depicted, and high LST was shown in areas where built-up areas were concentrated in both cities. Due to the LULC changes, the average LST increased by 1.9°C and 2.2°C in Nekemte and Jimma City, respectively, over the last 21years. The urbanization-induced LULC change does not only cause changes in the hydrological process but also changes in the thermal variations and urban heat stress of the two urban centers. The result indicates that the increases in vegetation and green areas are significant in improving the heat stress and thermal characteristics of urban areas. Overall, to achieve sustainable urban development, the integration of land use with urban planning policies could be critical to the resilience of local environment and urban ecosystem.

Violent Conflict and Informal Institutions: Evidence from a Civil Conflict in Pakistan

Conflicts have a variety of economic, social, and institutional consequences. In this study, we analyse the institutional legacies of violent conflicts by providing evidence from a civil conflict which occurred in the district Swat of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Pakistan. We consider three dimensions, i.e. Trust, Participation, and Cooperation, of informal institutions. District Buner—the neighboring district, is taken as the control district. A random sample of 500 households from each district is selected and Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) and Spatial Regression Discontinuity Design (SRDD) are employed for estimation. We find that exposure to violence undermines out-group trust and trust in governmental organisations; however, it promotes within-group trust and trust in Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs). Likewise, conflicts stimulate participation in social organisations, political activities, and nongovernment structures but discourage participation in formal government structures. With regard to cooperation, conflicts have beneficial effects on within-group cooperation, collective problem solution, and cooperation with NGOs. However, they retard cooperation with formal government structures. The intensity of these effects is influenced by the location of the individuals as is shown by the results of SRDD. Alternatively, highly exposed areas exhibit comparatively higher changes in trust, participation, and cooperation as compared to the moderately and least affected areas.

The incidence and mortality of lung cancer in China: a trend analysis and comparison with G20 based on the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019.

Lung cancer is a significant health concern in China. There is limited available data of its burden and trends. This study aims to evaluate the trends of lung cancer across different age groups and genders in China and the Group of Twenty (G20) countries, explore the risk factors, and predict the future trends over a 20-year period. The data were obtained from the GBD study 2019. The number of cases, age standardized rate (ASR), and average annual percentage changes (AAPC) were used to estimate the trend in lung cancer by age, gender, region and risk factor. The trend of lung cancer was predicted by autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) model by the "xtarimau" command. The joinpoint regression analysis was conducted to identify periods with the highest changes in incidence and mortality. Additionally, the relationship between AAPCs and socio-demographic index (SDI) was explored. From 1990 to 2019, both the incidence and mortality of lung cancer in China and G20 significantly increased, with China experiencing a higher rate of increase. The years with the highest increase in incidence of lung cancer in China were 1998-2004 and 2007-2010. Among the G20 countries, the AAPC in incidence and mortality of lung cancer in the Republic of Korea was the highest, followed closely by China. Although India exhibited similarities, its AAPC in lung cancer incidence and mortality rates was lower than that of China. The prediction showed that the incidence in China will continue to increase. In terms of risk factors, smoking was the leading attributable cause of mortality in all countries, followed by occupational risk and ambient particulate matter pollution. Notably, smoking in China exhibited the largest increase among the G20 countries, with ambient particulate matter pollution ranking second. Lung cancer is a serious public health concern in China, with smoking and environmental particulate pollution identified as the most important risk factors. The incidence and mortality rates are expected to continue to increase, which places higher demands on China's lung cancer prevention and control strategies. It is urgent to tailor intervention measures targeting smoking and environmental pollution to contain the burden of lung cancer.