In-depth Scientific Knowledge Research Articles

The reasons for the disqualification of horses from equestrian distance running competitions, depending on the length of the distance

Equestrian distance running is a non-Olympic sport, but it continues to gain popularity in Russia. The rules for conducting competitions and allowing animals to start are strictly regulated by the Equestrian Federation of Russia (FKSR) and the International Federation (FEI). However, veterinary aspects are taken into account very superficially in the regulations, which requires the introduction of in-depth scientific knowledge about injury prevention, diagnosis and treatment of horses participating in endurance competitions. The article provides information about the reasons for the disqualification of horses that participate in endurance competitions. In total, 120 animals were examined at major competitions in Russia and the Netherlands. The result of the conducted research has shown that most often horses are disqualified due to lameness and the symptom complex of colic, and in isolated cases, at long distances from 120 km, myoglobinuria is detected in horses, which is a very dangerous condition for the life and health of animals. Myoglobinuria in our studies was detected mainly in the hot season. There are also literature data that indicate that the results of equestrian distance running competitions are influenced by climate, weather conditions, and soil quality. At competitions, depending on the level of training and qualification, horses run distances from 40 to 160 km in 1 day. It is obvious that the body of animals is subjected to huge loads and in preparation for each distance it is necessary to develop the most optimal approaches in training, feeding and rehabilitation. It is known that when passing a distance of 160 km, horses, as a rule, lose weight. In this regard, it was decided to identify the most common reasons for the disqualification of horses from competitions, depending on the distance covered.

«Византийский клавир» Александра Александровича Васильева

The article is devoted to understanding the originality of the creative nature of the largest Byzantinist of the 20th century, a Russian scientist who became the founder of American Byzantine studies, Alexander Alexandrovich Vasiliev (1867–1953). A. A. Vasiliev entered the history of world science primarily as the author of the systematic work «History of Byzantium», which has not lost its relevance in the scientific and broad public consciousness to the present day. The scientist was an unusually gifted musician-pianist who entered the conservatory, whose passion was the performance of opera claviers. At the same time, he was attracted to the Byzantine East, in-depth scientific knowledge, the fundamental basis for which he received at the Faculty of History and Philology of St. Petersburg University, thanks primarily to academician V. G. Vasilevsky. The scientist used literature in 12 languages. The ability for a holistic and vivid vision of large-scale canvases: both musical and cultural-historical, was embodied in the capacity and detailed distinctness of the “History of Byzantium”. This book became unique among many works of this genre. The author of the article also shows the stages of perception of Vasiliev’s scientific contribution in the history of Russian science, emphasizing the role of Academician I. P. Medvedev, who is the author of the idea of a thorough study and publication of material from the archives of Russian Byzantines in Saint-Petersburg.

Healthcare workers’ perceptions on diabetic foot ulcers (DFU) and foot care in Fiji: a qualitative study

ObjectivesTo explore the perception of healthcare workers (HCWs) on diabetic foot ulcers (DFU) and foot care in Rotuma, Fiji.DesignUsing a qualitative study design, two focus group discussions (FGDs) were conducted...

Burden of the Beast

Burden of the Beast

The Diatomic Diversity of Two Mediterranean High-Elevation Lakes in the Sibillini Mountains National Park (Central Italy)

Temporary high-elevation lakes represent vulnerable and unstable environments strongly threatened by tourism, hydrogeological transformations and climate changes. In-depth scientific knowledge on these peculiar habitats is needed, on which to base integrated and sustainable management plans. Freshwater diatoms, thanks to their high diversity and their particular sensitivity to the water chemistry, can be considered powerful ecological indicators, as they are able to reflect environmental changes over time. The aim of the present study was to analyze the diatomic diversity of the Pilato and Palazzo Borghese lakes, two small temporary high-mountain basins, falling in a protected area within the Apennine mountains chain (central Italy). Diatoms data were collected, at the same time as 12 physicochemical parameters, through six microhabitat samplings, from 17 June to 30 August 2019. In both lakes, a total of 111 diatomic species and varieties were identified. The most species-rich genera were Gomphonema, Navicula, and Nitzschia. The Pilato Lake showed a diatomic community dominated by few species, favored by more stable and predictable environmental conditions than the Palazzo Borghese Lake, which hosted a more diversified community, guaranteed by greater spatial and temporal heterogeneity. Both lakes were characterized by the presence of diatomic species typical of good quality waters. The occurrence of numerous aerial species reflected adaptation strategies adopted to colonize environments subjected to extended drought periods. Endangered diatomic species of particular conservational interest were recorded, confirming the need to preserve their habitats.

Dual Signals: The Effect of Firm Publications on Venture Capital Financing

This paper investigates how the firm publications affect their VC financing. With information asymmetry about the quality of entrepreneurial ventures, investors are influenced by the signal of firm publications. However, firm publication can be a positive signal for the in-depth scientific knowledge and can be a negative signal for the knowledge leakage. Thus, this paper examines the effect of firm publications as “dual signals” in the VC financing context, and I argue that the positive or negative signaling effect of firm publications depends on the focal signal characteristics (journal quality) and other relevant signals (firm patent). When journal quality is high, publications are unambiguously positive signals to VC investors, and firm patents have a substitute effect with firm publications in top journals on the VC financing. However, publications in non-top journals send ambiguous signals, and firm patents would influence the sensemaking process of investors. Specifically, firms with more publications in non-top journals are perceived positively to VCs when firms do not have patents, but such publications would be a negative signal when firms have patents. Using the sample of around 1000 US biotech and pharmaceutical firms founded after 1980, findings support all the hypotheses.

Unravelling (maize silage) digestate features throughout a full-scale plant: A spectroscopic and thermal approach

Abstract A safe and functional application of digestate in agriculture requires an in-depth scientific knowledge of its nature in order to speculate about possible impacts on the soil-plant system, as well as on the surrounding environment. As all soil amendments, digestate should consist of stabilized organic matter (OM) in order to avoid phenomena including phytotoxicity, greenhouse gases and odorous emissions, and nutrient losses. To date, the stability of digestate has been assessed using several (often state-of-the-art) techniques and approaches, although most of the studies have been generally carried out on the final product of the anaerobic digestion (AD) and/or in batch experiments. Here, we collected digestate samples from the two primary digesters, the post-digester and the storage tank of a real, full-scale AD plant processing maize silage. Digestates were characterized from the chemical, spectroscopic and thermal points of view in order to assess the evolution of OM at plant scale. Spectroscopic and thermogravimetric data clearly show that changes in OM features mainly occurred in the two primary digesters, resulting in a more recalcitrant (i.e., richer in ligno-cellulosic compounds) and thermally stable OM. On the opposite, no relevant differences were observed in the post-digester and in the storage tank. Moreover, Fourier transform Infrared (FTIR) and fluorescence spectroscopies underlined how, at plant scale, the OM degradation may evolve differently in the two primary digesters, thus suggesting that stochastic microbial community assembly are potentially able to affect the AD process; this phenomenon resulted in digestates having different proportion of aromatic vs. polysaccharide compounds. In conclusion, this study demonstrated that FTIR, molecular fluorescence and thermogravimetric analysis could be used as simple and potentially routine techniques to monitor the digestate during the whole AD process, and that, in full-scale plants like that under investigation, such a monitoring could be limited to the primary digesters.

The impact of science-based knowledge on attitudes towards sex offenders

Background. The general public often holds negative attitudes towards sex offenders, which could result in an exclusion of sex offenders from society. Since lack of social support is a known risk factor for relapse, it is highly desirable that interventions target to reduce the negativity of attitudes against sex offenders. Therefore, the current study aims at exploring the effectiveness of an intervention based on the provision of in-depth scientific knowledge on existing attitudes and degree of dehumanization towards sex offenders in undergraduates that are expected to work with sex offenders in their future careers. Methods. A non-randomized experimental study was conducted, involving an experimental group (n = 9) and a control group (n = 5). In a pre- and posttest measurement participants’ attitudes and degree of dehumanization towards sex offenders were measured. During the interval, the experimental group took a four-week course about sex offending, wherein in-depth scientific knowledge was provided, whereas the control group received no scientific information. Comparisons were made between the attitudes towards sex offenders, and between the degree of dehumanization towards sex offenders, between the pre- and post-test measurement within and between the participant groups. Results. A significant difference was found for attitudes between the pre- and post-test measurement within the experimental group. The degree of dehumanization towards sex offenders has not decreased during the intervention within both participant groups. Conclusion. This study suggests that in-depth scientific knowledge has a positive influence on attitudes towards sex offenders, but not on the degree of dehumanization in future professionals within the field of forensics and psychology. However, the study’s small sample size suggests for more extensive research on the subject. Nevertheless, the present findings provide a method for the improvement of treatment and rehabilitation of sex offenders by influencing impeding, negative attitudes.

Stem Cell Differentiation and Therapeutic Use.

Stem Cell Differentiation and Therapeutic Use.

A Historical View and Vision into the Future of the Field of Safety Pharmacology.

Professor Gerhard Zbinden recognized in the 1970s that the standards of the day for testing new candidate drugs in preclinical toxicity studies failed to identify acute pharmacodynamic adverse events that had the potential to harm participants in clinical trials. From his vision emerged the field of safety pharmacology, formally defined in the International Conference on Harmonization (ICH) S7A guidelines as "those studies that investigate the potential undesirable pharmacodynamic effects of a substance on physiological functions in relation to exposure in the therapeutic range and above." Initially, evaluations of small-molecule pharmacodynamic safety utilized efficacy models and were an ancillary responsibility of discovery scientists. However, over time, the relationship of these studies to overall safety was reflected by the regulatory agencies who, in directing the practice of safety pharmacology through guidance documents, prompted transition of responsibility to drug safety departments (e.g., toxicology). Events that have further shaped the field over the past 15 years include the ICH S7B guidance, evolution of molecular technologies leading to identification of new therapeutic targets with uncertain toxicities, introduction of data collection using more sophisticated and refined technologies, and utilization of transgenic animal models probing critical scientific questions regarding novel targets of toxicity. The collapse of the worldwide economy in the latter half of the first decade of the twenty-first century, continuing high rates of compound attrition during clinical development and post-approval and sharply increasing costs of drug development have led to significant strategy changes, contraction of the size of pharmaceutical organizations, and refocusing of therapeutic areas of investigation. With these changes has come movement away from dedicated internal safety pharmacology capability to utilization of capabilities within external contract research organizations. This movement has created the opportunity for the safety pharmacology discipline to come "full circle" and return to the drug discovery arena (target identification through clinical candidate selection) to contribute to the mitigation of the high rate of candidate drug failure through better compound selection decision making. Finally, the changing focus of science and losses in didactic training of scientists in whole animal physiology and pharmacology have revealed a serious gap in the future availability of qualified individuals to apply the principles of safety pharmacology in support of drug discovery and development. This is a significant deficiency that at present is only partially met with academic and professional society programs advancing a minimal level of training. In summary, with the exception that the future availability of suitably trained scientists is a critical need for the field that remains to be effectively addressed, the prospects for the future of safety pharmacology are hopeful and promising, and challenging for those individuals who want to assume this responsibility. What began in the early part of the new millennium as a relatively simple model of testing to assure the safety of Phase I clinical subjects and patients from acute deleterious effects on life-supporting organ systems has grown with experience and time to a science that mobilizes the principles of cellular and molecular biology and attempts to predict acute adverse events and those associated with long-term treatment. These challenges call for scientists with a broad range of in-depth scientific knowledge and an ability to adapt to a dynamic and forever changing industry. Identifying individuals who will serve today and training those who will serve in the future will fall to all of us who are committed to this important field of science.

Are farmers in England equipped to meet the knowledge challenge of sustainable soil management? An analysis of farmer and advisor views

Concern about the agricultural soil resource in England has led to the introduction of a range of measures, which potentially challenge farmers’ knowledge about the soil and its management. Our understanding however of how well-equipped farmers are with regard to effectively carrying out more complex and knowledge intensive sustainable soil management practices is limited. Specifically, by drawing on the concept of scientific and tacit forms of knowledge, this paper examines the knowledge of soils held by farmers through analysis of data collected from semi-structured interviews with farmers and agricultural advisors and supplemented with data from an extensive postal questionnaire survey of advisors. The data indicate that, while farmers are technically well informed, they can often lack the in-depth scientific knowledge required to implement more complex practices such as using the nutrient value of manures. They also reveal that, while most farmers have good knowledge of their own soils, their tacit knowledge of soil management can be weak, notably in relation to cultivation. The paper concludes that although farmers’ knowledge about soil and its sustainable management appears in general to be well developed there are some areas, which need to be significantly enhanced and as such require both a policy response and further research effort.

Chemistry and Reaction of Singlet Oxygen in Foods.

Singlet oxygen is a highly reactive, electrophilic, and nonradical molecule. It is different from diradical triplet oxygen in its electron arrangement. Photosensitizers can form singlet oxygen from triplet oxygen in the presence of light. The reaction rate of singlet oxygen with foods is much greater than that of triplet oxygen due to the low activation energy. Singlet oxygen oxidation produces undesirable compounds in foods during processing and storage. However, carotenoids and tocopherols in foods can minimize singlet oxygen oxidation. The in-depth scientific knowledge on the formation, reactions, quenching mechanisms, and kinetics of singlet oxygen can greatly improve the quality of foods by minimizing the oxidation during processing and storage. The single oxygen oxidation of foods has contributed to the explanation of several important chemical reactions in the reversion flavor in soybean oil, sunlight flavor in milk products, and the rapid losses of vitamin D, riboflavin, and ascorbic acid in milk under light storage.

Critiquing Claims About Global Warming From the World Wide Web: A Comparison of High School Students and Specialists

The ability to evaluate scientific claims made in various media sources is a critical component of scientific literacy. This study compares how a group of 12th grade students and a group of specialists, including scientists and policy analysts with expertise in global warming, evaluated an editorial about global warming published by an oil company on the World Wide Web. Participants were asked to read the editorial and were asked a set of interview questions about it. Examples from the specialists’ interviews indicate the kinds of responses that are possible with in-depth scientific knowledge. In comparison, although some examples from the students’interviews illustrate competent performance for a nonexpert, other student responses illustrate possible pitfalls. The approach of the present study affords a constructive route for formulating goals for scientific literacy. The approach permits identifying examples of students evaluating scientific claims in more or less competent ways—claims that are in the context of an important socioscientific issue and an actual media source.