Importance Of Environmental Factors Research Articles

Does Inequality Shape Human Character? Cross-Cultural Associations between Character Strengths and the Gini Index in 68 Countries

Environmental factors are crucial in shaping individual characteristics. One key contextual factor is economic inequality, which is increasing in most OECD countries and negatively impacting individuals and societies, including personality traits. To date, no studies examined the relationship between economic inequality and positive personality traits such as character strengths. In a large cross-cultural study (N = 980,807, 68 countries) we investigated the relationship between country-level economic inequality and the level of the 24 character strengths. Across countries, we found consistent, robust evidence that economic inequality is positively linked to 22 character strengths, even after controlling for the Human Development Index, population density, urbanization, and climate of each country. On average, inequality explained 34% of the between-country variance in character strengths. Different alternative explanations for such unexpected effects, including increased competitiveness or resilience in the face of adversity, are discussed. Our research provides novel insights into the importance of environmental factors in shaping human character.

The Diagnosis and Treatment of Anorexia Nervosa in Childhood and Adolescence.

Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a serious disease with a lifetime prevalence of up to 3.6% in women and 0.3% in men. Abnormally low weight and the associated starvation partly account for its somatic and mental manifestations. This review is based on publications retrieved by a selective search concerning AN in childhood and adolescence. The peak age of onset of AN is 15.5 years. The frequency of inpatient treatment for AN rose by 40% during the COVID pandemic, indicating the importance of environmental factors; the heritability of AN is estimated at 0.5. The ICD-11 sets the threshold for AN-associated underweight at the fifth percentile for age of the body mass index, as long as the remaining diagnostic criteria are met. The main goal of the multiprofessional treatment of AN is the return to normal body weight, which is a central prerequisite for regaining somatic and mental health. The mean duration of AN is 3.4 years, and approximately twothirds of patients recover from the disease over the long term. Marked weight loss in childhood and adolescence can trigger AN in the presence of a predisposition to this disease. Patients and their families should receive psychoeducation regarding the symptoms of starvation and their overlap with those of AN. Important objectives are to shorten the duration of the illness, minimize mortality and the risk of chronic illness, and to identify pharmacological approaches to treatment.

Contralaterally controlled functional electrical stimulation video game therapy for hand rehabilitation after stroke: a randomized controlled trial

Purpose To estimate the effect of integrating custom-designed hand therapy video games (HTVG) with contralaterally controlled functional electrical stimulation (CCFES) therapy. Methods Fifty-two stroke survivors with chronic (>6 months) upper limb hemiplegia were randomized to 12 weeks of CCFES or CCFES + HTVG. Treatment involved self-administration of technology-mediated therapy at home plus therapist-administered CCFES-assisted task practice in the lab. Pre- and post-treatment assessments were made of hand dexterity, upper limb impairment and activity limitation, and cognitive function. Results No significant between-group differences were found on any outcome measure, and the average magnitudes of improvement within both groups were small. The incidence of technical problems with study devices at home was greater for the CCFES + HTVG group. This negatively affected adherence and may partially explain the absence of effect of HTVG. At end-of-treatment, large majorities of both treatment groups had positive perceptions of treatment efficacy and expressed enthusiasm for the treatments. Conclusion This study makes an important contribution to the research literature on the importance of environmental factors, concomitant impairments, and technology simplification when designing technology-based therapies intended to be self-administered at home. This study failed to show any added benefit of HTVG to CCFES therapy. Clinicaltrials.gov (NCT03058796).

Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Campylobacter Species Contamination in Poultry, Meat, and Processing Environments in South Korea.

Campylobacter spp. constitute a significant global threat as a leading cause of foodborne illnesses, with poultry meat as a prominent reservoir for these pathogens. South Korea is known for its diverse poultry consumption habits, and continuous outbreaks make it a matter of concern to perform a meta-analysis to identify the primary source of contamination. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to assess and compare the prevalence of Campylobacter in various poultry and meat types while also considering the importance of environmental factors in South Korea. The meta-analysis revealed that duck meat exhibited the highest prevalence of Campylobacter, with a pooled estimate of 70.46% (95% CI: 42.80% to 88.38%), followed by chicken meat at a pooled prevalence of 36.17% (95% CI: 26.44% to 47.91%). Additionally, our analysis highlighted the predominance of C. jejuni and C. coli in South Korea. These findings underscore the importance of implementing rigorous food safety measures and establishing robust surveillance programs in the poultry industry to mitigate the risk of Campylobacter-related foodborne illnesses associated with meat consumption in South Korea.

Biodiversity estimation by environment drivers using machine/deep learning for ecological management

Biodiversity is a crucial indicator of the health and resilience of ecosystems. Accurate estimation and prediction of biodiversity can support effective ecological management practices. This study aimed to estimate and predict biodiversity based on Environmental Factors (EFs), using Machine Learning (ML) including Deep Learning (DL) algorithms. First, the importance of EFs, including Mean Annual Precipitation (MAP), slope, aspect, and elevation, in influencing biodiversity was evaluated using Minimum Redundancy Maximum Relevance (MRMR) and Recursive Feature Elimination with Relief Feature Selection (RReliefF), and their correlations with multi-spatial biodiversity indices were analyzed. Our findings revealed that MAP was the most important environmental variable in estimating biodiversity, followed by slope, aspect, and elevation. Next, the ability of four ML algorithms (multiple linear regression, decision tree, random forest, support vector machine) and a deep neural network (DNN) to estimate biodiversity was evaluated by the coefficient of determination (r-square) and the root-mean-square error (RMSE) metrics. The DNN model achieved the highest accuracy (r-square: 0.884) among the ML algorithms and was further optimized to determine the optimal level of model complexity. These findings highlight the potential of DNN to effectively estimate biodiversity and suggest that using EF features with DL algorithms can improve our understanding of the relationships between environmental drivers and biodiversity, providing valuable insights for conservation and management decision-making towards sustainable development.

UPAYA REHABILITASI EKOSISTEM TERUMBU KARANG TERDAMPAK TUMPAHAN MINYAK DI DESA FAEKHUNA, KECAMATAN AFULU, KABUPATEN NIAS UTARA

Faekhuna'a Village is one of the villages affected by asphalt oil spills. The oil spillage that has polluted the waters has led to a decline in the income of fishermen, due to the damage to coral reefs. To address this problem, direct implementation of the "one house, one coral transplantation" initiative using science and technology (IPTEK) can help mitigate the issues. The objective is to address the problem of asphalt oil spills through the application of IPTEK, optimize the role of the community, educate the community, and create a mindset among the community regarding the importance of environmental factors in the local economy. The method conducted by outreach and simulation. The stages are preparation, participation in the activities by the Faekhuna'a Village officials, 15 members of fisherman group (KUB), PPK 15 students of ORMAWA team and one supervising lecturer, lecturers and students from the University of North Sumatra's Off-Campus Study Program (PSDKU) in North Nias, and support from National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS) of North Nias Regency. Through the program, providing education and awareness about the ecological aspects of life. The application of science and technology (IPTEK) has been warmly received by the community, who have actively contributed to ecosystem restoration through the PPK ORMAWA program. The fishermen has been educated about the crucial role of the coral reef ecosystem in improving the livelihoods. The use of IPTEK, specifically coral transplantation, has proven to be a viable, efficient, complex, adaptable, and compatible approach that is easily implementable.

Emerging Technologies for Preventing the ‘New’ Dementia: Ambiguous Optimism in the Canadian Context

ABSTRACT Experts’ views on the use of mostly digital technologies for dementia prevention are characterized by a simultaneity of “gerontechnological optimism” and skeptical hesitancy. Despite the hope for progress in dementia prevention through preventive technologies, experts also point to the complexity of prevention, the importance of environmental factors and public health policies, and the danger of an excessive focus on individual interventions. Without questioning the positive impact such technologies can have on many people, we claim that the experts’ ambiguity reveals a deeper concern, a kind of “cruel optimism” that is based on a fantasy of “supported autonomy”.

Impact of Environmental Factors on Student’s Educational Background and Their Future Performance

This study examine the impact of environmental factors on student’s educational background and their future performance among 500 male and female students of high school classes four tehsils of district Bhakkar. Environmental factors have both type of impacts positive and negative impacts on students educational development and their future development such as physical, moral, Socioeconomic status , Parental involvement and Peer influences .In this study objectives were to investigate (1).Identifying strategies to create a conducive learning environment (3) Developing interventions to mitigate negative environmental impacts (4) Raising awareness about the importance of environmental factors in education hypotheses and research questions were designed for the purpose of testing and answering through the collected empirical data from the sample group and these objectives testified by hypotheses. The population of the study included all the govt high school from which the researcher selected 500 respondents through stratified random sampling techniques. The design selected for the study was survey. The researcher designed research instruments for data collection from the respondents of the study, one was a Likert scale questionnaire

The Importance of Environmental Factors in Prostate Biopsy Related Infection

The Importance of Environmental Factors in Prostate Biopsy Related Infection

Effects of Dioxin on DNA Damage in the Testes of Adult Male Mice

Background: Given the importance of environmental factors and the impact of environmental pollutants, such as dioxins, on organ systems, especially the reproductive system, it is necessary to study these issues and the mechanisms of their effects. Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the effects of different doses of dioxins on DNA damage in the testes of adult male mice. Methods: In this experimental study, 32 male Naval Medical Research Institute (NMRI) rats were randomly divided into four groups: The control group received normal saline, and the dioxin groups were treated with different doses (0.1, 0.5, and 1 µg/kg) for two weeks. Apoptosis in the testes was then examined using a TUNEL assay kit. Results: The mean number of TUNEL-positive spermatogonia cells was 5.91±5.28 in the dioxin group 1, 7.20±10.03 in the dioxin group 2, and 8.73±4.63 in the dioxin group 3, which was higher than that in the control group (0.16±0.40; P=0.073, P=0.034, and P=0.007, respectively). The mean number of TUNEL-positive spermatocyte cells was 5.16±1.99 in the dioxin group 1, 2.50±4.62 in the dioxin group 2, and 3.33±2.94 in the dioxin group 3, which was higher than that in the control group (P=0.034, P=0.14, and P=0.037, respectively). The mean number of TUNEL-positive spermatocyte cells in the dioxin group 1 was significantly higher than that in the dioxin group 2 (2.50±4.62, P=0.047). The average number of TUNEL-positive spermatid cells was 11.58±6.90 in the dioxin group 1, 11.10±12.19 in the dioxin group 2, and 10.20±7.32 in the 3-dioxin group, which was higher than that in the control group (0.16±0.40; P=0.008, P=0.014, and P=0.015, respectively). Conclusion: The results of the present study showed that dioxin caused dose-dependent apoptosis in the testes.

A multilevel logistic regression model for identifying the relevance of environmental risk factors on Gestational Diabetes Mellitus

The overarching goal of this research is to determine whether a woman’s risk of developing Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) is affected by environmental factors. The importance of environmental factors is an important question for public health policy across many diseases. Moreover, this paper focuses on highlighting several methodological challenges specific to the types of data commonly available to address this and related research questions.Medicaid health insurance claims information for Indiana was used to identify pregnant women from the study period, an outcome variable of GDM and demographic control variables. The Medicaid location data was available at the region level (three digit ZIP code) and corresponding regional environmental factors were rolled up to the ZIP-3 level from public county data. We fit a multilevel logistic regression model (MLM) to account for the correlation caused by the clustering of women within the same regions. Model results generally align with known risk factors and additionally a region’s racial makeup, number of birthing hospitals, food environment index, and amount of air pollution were found to be risk factors of GDM.This is, to the best of our knowledge, the first research that tests the association of multiple environmental factors with GDM. Despite the appropriateness of the model to the structure of the data, we see several challenges that must be overcome to realize the full utility of MLM using currently available data. (1) Some form of data triangulation is necessary to overcome false negatives in the outcome variable due to the use of health insurance claims. (2) A more favorable data use agreement is necessary to allow for more granular identification of patient location to avoid obscuring relationships between region level variables and GDM risk. (3) The impact of sample balancing on the inference of multilevel logistic model coefficients remains an open question.

Diversifying modelling techniques to disentangle the complex patterns of species richness and diversity in the protected afromontane grasslands

Ecological research has focused on the importance of environmental factors on spatial biodiversity variations and organisation. This is important because of scant conservation resources. We used stepwise backward selection and random feature selection (RFE) to identify a parsimonious model that can predict species richness and diversity metrics in response to three models; biotic, abiotic, and topo-edaphic. Our results show that both metrics are good predictors of one another, mainly because species diversity is a combination of species richness and abundance, and further highlights the importance of biotic variables in predicting species distribution. The two modelling techniques selected soil texture and its interactions with topographic variables as the most important variables. However, random forest performed worse than multiple linear regression in the prediction of diversity metrics. This research highlights the importance of topographically controlled edaphic factors as drivers of species richness and diversity in mountainous grasslands where topography inherently controls the geomorphic, hydrological, and, as a result, ecological processes.

A crossroads between dietary habits, alcohol consumption, and smoking in the clinical course of psoriasis: a narrative review.

Psoriasis is a chronic autoimmune disease that affects 1-3% of the population. The pathomechanism of psoriasis development is complex, but genetic (non-modifiable) factors play a key role. However, the importance of environmental factors and lifestyle choices, such as the diet, alcohol consumption, and smoking, is increasing. The objective of this review was to analyse the influence of dietary habits, alcohol consumption, and smoking on the clinical course of psoriasis. Stress, a poor diet, alcohol abuse, and smoking can trigger psoriasis or cause its exacerbation. Therefore, in addition to the correct selection of therapy, it is extremely important to educate patients about the impact of these factors on the onset and progression of psoriasis. This literature review confirms that a holistic and multidisciplinary approach is required for patients with psoriasis, further emphasizing Hippocrates' thesis, "Let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food".

The importance of environmental factors in the development of pneumonia in children

This article is devoted to modern innovative diagnostics, immunological tests for community-acquired pneumonia in young children. The main points for improving the diagnosis and differential diagnosis of pneumonia in children is the timely detection of a sick child with complicated course of the disease. According to the authors of the article, the content of cytokines IL 1 and IL4, interferons in the blood serum of sick children with community-acquired pneumonia depends on the period of the disease and the severity of the pathological process.

HEREDITY AND ENVIRONMENT AS DETERMINING FACTORS IN THE GAME OF WATER POLO

Heredity is the biological attribute specific to the human being, in conjunction with the environment, be it internal or external, but also with other dependent or independent factors of society such as family, education, political system, and religion. The literature review highlights two elementary stages, one during puberty when the family environment and its influences are more relevant and easier to observe (internal environment), and the second when the individual begins to absorb information from the external environment, thus creating a mixture between the family environment and the one encompassing the information acquired from the outside. From a genetic point of view, the human being inherits certain sets of predispositions or potentialities that are closely related to the environment in which the person lives and which can enhance them or not, depending on education. In the present paper, we aim to emphasise the importance of heredity and environment in the game of water polo correlated with other sports disciplines, as well as the importance of environmental factors and their significance in developing a culture of the game of water polo at the national level. Our analysis includes world-class water polo players and specialists whose activity is correlated with the water polo activity in Romania, regardless of gender, age or ethnicity. The conclusions drawn from the analysis show that Romania really has biological and environmental potential, but it can reach the world podium in the game of water polo only through a scientific development that takes into account all the factors presented above.

Disease burden of chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases in China from 1990 to 2019

Objective: To examine the trend of the burden on chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD) and epidemiologic transition on related risk factors among the Chinese population from 1990 to 2019. Methods: Based on the data from the Global Burden of Disease 2019 Study, we used the indicator numbers such as disability-adjusted life year (DALY), years of life lost (YLD), years lived with disability (YLL), and prevalence rate to describe the changes of COPD burden stratified by different sex and age groups from 1990 to 2019. We applied population attribution faction (PAF) to analyze the burden attributed to risk factors and epidemiological transition. Results: In 2019, the age-standard rate for DALY, YLD, and YLL and prevalence rate for COPD were 1 102.77/100 000 population,862.37/100 000 population, 240.40/100 000 population, and 2 404.41/100 000. Both age-standardized DALY and YLL rates for COPD in males were higher than in females, except for the YLD rate in females. COPD's top five risk factors were particulate matter pollution, smoking, occupational particulate matter, gases, and fumes, low temperature, and secondhand smoke. Smoking surpassed environmental particulate pollution in 1994 and became the first factor causing the disease burden of COPD. Since then, the order of risk factors has not changed. The PAF of environmental particulate pollutants increased by 1.78% annually, from 15.22% in 1990 to 25.37%, and the PAF of household air pollution from solid fuels decreased by 5.59% annually, from 40.30% in 1990 to 7.59%. Conclusions: From 1990 to 2019, the per person health loss caused by COPD in China showed an overall downward trend. The PAF of relevant risk factors has also changed, the importance of environmental factors is relatively declined, and the status of smoking and other related risk behaviors has become increasingly prominent. The prevention and control of COPD can focus on screening high-risk groups (≥40 years old, smoking, heavy air pollution, having occupational exposure), smoking cessation, and environmental treatment.

How do people feel while walking in the city? Using walking-triggered e-diaries to investigate the association of social interaction and environmental greenness during everyday life walking.

BackgroundLight to moderate physical activity, which includes walking, is associated with positive effects on physical and mental health. However, concerning mental health, social and physical environmental factors are likely to play an important role in this association. This study investigates person-place interactions between environmental characteristics (greenness, social interaction) and momentary affective states during walking episodes. A within-subject design is implemented, in which affective states and environmental characteristics are assessed while participants are walking outside.MethodsOn smartphones, coupled with a motion sensor (move3), e-diaries were triggered as soon as people walked 100 m outside. E-diaries assessed momentary affective states (valence, calmness, energetic arousal), and social interaction (walking alone; seeing other people while walking; interacting with other people; walking with a known person) between 6 am and 10 pm over nine days. The percentage of greenness was determined afterward from recorded GPS and GIS data. Demographics were collected in advance via an online questionnaire. Multilevel models were calculated with R for 46 individuals (age = 41.2, ± 13.2; 52% female).ResultsAffective state dimension energetic arousal showed a significant association with social interaction and greenness, i.e., participants rated energetic arousal lower when walking alone, and if there was less greenness vs. when interacting shortly with someone while walking (β = 0.13, p = 0.02), and being in situations with more greenness (β = 0.08, p = 0.02). Furthermore, associations with social interaction and greenness were found for dimension calmness: walking together with someone was associated with higher calmness (β = 0.16, p = 0.02), and the higher the proportion of surrounding greenness during a walk, the higher calmness was rated, i.e., participants were calmer (β = 0.09, p = 0.01). Significant associations with valence were not present.ConclusionThe findings indicate that the affective states varied significantly due to different social and physical environmental factors. In the future, the importance of environmental factors should be further investigated, e.g., by assessing environmental factors right in situations contrary to a subsequent imputation. Within-subject designs, and in particular triggered assessments with the addition of GPS, can aid in developing interventions for health-promoting urban environments.

Insulin-resistance in paediatric age: Its magnitude and implications.

Insulin resistance (IR) is insulin failure in normal plasma levels to adequately stimulate glucose uptake by the peripheral tissues. IR is becoming more common in children and adolescents than before. There is a strong association between obesity in children and adolescents, IR, and the metabolic syndrome components. IR shows marked variation among different races, crucial to understanding the possible cardiovascular risk, specifically in high-risk races or ethnic groups. Genetic causes of IR include insulin receptor mutations, mutations that stimulate autoantibody production against insulin receptors, or mutations that induce the formation of abnormal glucose transporter 4 molecules or plasma cell membrane glycoprotein-1 molecules; all induce abnormal energy pathways and end with the development of IR. The parallel increase of IR syndrome with the dramatic increase in the rate of obesity among children in the last few decades indicates the importance of environmental factors in increasing the rate of IR. Most patients with IR do not develop diabetes mellitus (DM) type-II. However, IR is a crucial risk factor to develop DM type-II in children. Diagnostic standards for IR in children are not yet established due to various causes. Direct measures of insulin sensitivity include the hyperinsulinemia euglycemic glucose clamp and the insulin-suppression test. Minimal model analysis of frequently sampled intravenous glucose tolerance test and oral glucose tolerance test provide an indirect estimate of metabolic insulin sensitivity/resistance. The main aim of the treatment of IR in children is to prevent the progression of compensated IR to decompensated IR, enhance insulin sensitivity, and treat possible complications. There are three main lines for treatment: Lifestyle and behavior modification, pharmacotherapy, and surgery. This review will discuss the magnitude, implications, diagnosis, and treatment of IR in children.

Applying Biomod2 for modeling of species suitable habitats:a case study of Paeonia lactiflora in China

Paeonia lactiflora is an important medicinal resource in China. It is of great significance for the protection and cultivation of P. lactiflora resources to find the suitable habitats. The study was based on the information of 98 distribution sites and the data of 20 current environmental factors of wild P. lactiflora in China. According to the correlation and importance of environmental factors, we selected the main environmental factors affecting the potential suitable habitats. Then, BCC-CSM2-MR model was employed to predict the distribution range and center change of potential suitable habitat of wild P. lactiflora in the climate scenarios of SSP1-2.6, SSP2-4.5, SSP3-7.0, and SSP5-8.5 during 2021-2100. The ensemble model combined with GBM, GLM, MaxEnt, and RF showed improved prediction accuracy, with TSS=0.85 and AUC=0.95. Among the 20 environmental factors, annual mean temperature, monthly mean diurnal range of temperature, temperature seasonality, mean temperature of the warmest quarter, precipitation of the wettest month, precipitation seasonality, precipitation of the driest quarter, and elevation were the main factors that affected the suitable habitat distribution of P. lactiflora. At present, the potential suitable habitats of wild P. lactiflora is mainly distributed in Inner Mongolia, Heilongjiang, Jilin, Liaoning, Hebei, Beijing, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Shandong, Gansu, Xinjiang, Tibet, and Ningxia, and concentrated in the northeastern Inner Mongolia, central Heilongjiang, and northern Jilin. Under future climate conditions, the highly sui-table area of wild P. lactiflora will shrink, and the potential suitable habitat will mainly be lost to different degrees. However, in the SSP5-8.5 scenario, the low suitable area of wild P. lactiflora will partially increase in the highlands and mountains in western China including Xinjiang, Tibet, and Qinghai during 2061-2100. The distribution center of wild P. lactiflora migrated first to the northeast and then to the southwest. The total suitable habitats were stable and kept in the high-latitude zones. The prediction of the potential geo-graphical distribution of P. lactiflora is of great significance to the habitat protection and standardized cultivation of this plant in the future.

Importance of environmental factors on plantings of wild-simulated American Ginseng

American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius L.) is an herbaceous perennial plant native to the forests of eastern North America with a long history of use and harvest, and with a significant international market. To supply international demand, the plant is grown in the USA and Canada under artificial shade cloth. However, wild and wild-appearing ginseng roots command prices up to 100 times greater than roots cultivated in a field: $550–2200 (US$ dry kg) vs. $20–70 (US$ dry kg). Growing ginseng in a forested environment using a “wild-simulated” forest farming approach, where growers introduce ginseng into a forested environment and then let it grow with little to no intervention, allows forest farmers to access these higher prices and meet international demand. As climate change shifts growing conditions globally, there will be increasing opportunities for the forest farming of American ginseng internationally. In this study, we examined the main drivers of ginseng growth and development in a wild-simulated ginseng forest farm. We measured the range of environmental conditions and built statistical models to examine which factors were most important for ginseng vigor. We found that the amount of sunlight, even under highly shaded conditions, was the most important driver of ginseng establishment on the landscape, as well as ginseng plant size and development. Prior research indicates that additional factors including soil nutrient levels, moisture, and texture are important for the survival, growth, and development of wild and planted American ginseng, but our study did not show significant patterns of importance at this site. Our findings suggest that integrating silvicultural techniques such as forest thinning may enhance the productivity of wild-simulated ginseng operations while providing additional forest-based income with minimal impact on natural forest ecosystems.