International Research Project Research Articles

A Scopus-Based Bibliometric Analysis of Global Tuberculosis Publications: 1849-2020.

OBJECTIVE: Tuberculosis continues to become a serious public-health concern in many countries despite efforts to prevent and control global tuberculosis infections.MATERIAL AND METHODS: This study aims to present bibliometric analysis of the period 1849-2020 tuberculosis publications that are published by global researchers and indexed in the Scopus database. Although many studies have been carried out on tuberculosis, there is no study that performs bibliometric analysis of publications in this field in such a wide range of dates. Tuberculosis publications searched in the Scopus database between the period 1849-2020 were analyzed. Data on tuberculosis were presented by analyzing the number of publications, the language of publication, the countries that contribute the most to the literature, the most active institutions, the most cited publications, active authors and active journals, using appropriate quantitative and qualitative bibliometric indicators.RESULTS: 263,234 articles, published between 1849 and 2020 and searched in the Scopus database, were evaluated. The most articles (n= 8.344) were published in 2020. A total of 112,121 articles were published between 2001 and 2020. The most used publication language in the articles was English (62.48%), followed by Russian (7.25%). The country that contributed the most to the literature was the United States (13.81%), followed by India (7.18%). 3.9% of the articles were published in the journal “Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases”.CONCLUSION: The results of the present bibliometric study are expected to shed light on the planning of future tuberculosis studies and the development of health policies toward tuberculosis. Research output is low in some countries, which should make larger investments in international and national collaborative research projects in the field of tuberculosis. If doing so, many countries of limited source will benefit from research that offer novel diagnostic and screening technology of tuberculosis.

Multidisciplinary blended learning to build a breast cancer specialist career: survey on the perspective of the first 2 cohorts of the ESO-ULM Certificate of Competence in Breast cancer (CCB).

BackgroundBreast Cancer (BC) specialists need to acquire comprehensive knowledge, covering their own specialty and principles of related disciplines. Blended learning, the integration of online and face-to-face learning, is becoming more and more important in academic education and has added value during pandemics which limit face-to-face learning and residential training.In this context, the ESO-ULM Certificate of Competence in Breast Cancer (CCB) provides postgraduate multidisciplinary education and delivers an academic postgraduate title.The aim of this work is to investigate the degree of satisfaction of 42 participants to the first two editions of the programme and to assess if attending the programme entailed any professional gain.MethodsAn ad-hoc questionnaire was developed exploring 4 areas: participants’ characteristics, administrative aspects, CCB Program syllabus and design, professional impact.ResultsThe program was attractive for specialists of different disciplines from all over the world: > 90% of responders appreciated the curriculum set up and the quality of the teaching.Despite 64% of responders changed their clinical practice, only 33% could implement institutional changes. One third of the participants activated a collaboration with other colleagues and 64% used the CCB as a trigger to take part in other educational activities.Only 12% of the participants had the opportunity, after CCB, to visit other BC Units or to be involved in international research projects.More than half of the attendees profited from attending CCB in terms of promotions (16.7%), change of working institution (9.5%) or development of a more structured educational program at their home institutions (28.6%).ConclusionsResults provide interesting and stimulating considerations on the expectations and needs of training physicians and on what modern educational tools and formats can achieve. This paper can provide useful information to navigate through what the post-graduate training market is currently offering to develop a specific curriculum in modern multidisciplinary BC care but might not be applicable to other fields of multidisciplinary oncology.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12909-022-03414-7.

Caring about and with Imaginary Characters: Early Childhood Playworlds as Sites for Social Sustainability

We investigate the concept of care in adult-child joint play through two cases that illustrate ways in which the development of care relations among researchers, pedagogues, and children—and the imaginary characters they create through their joint play—shape and sustain early childhood education and care research and practice. We focus on the ways that early childhood education and care pedagogues’ approaches to care provide insights into practices of social sustainability, specifically social inclusion. The cases we present are drawn from recent studies of early childhood play. The studies belong to a corpus of international research projects that are researcher-teacher collaborations. These studies explore a unique form of adult-child joint imaginary play known as playworlds. Playworlds are based on cultural historical theories of development and art, Gunilla Lindqvist’s studies of playworlds, and local theory and practice of early childhood education and care. Our analyses of playworlds are based, in part, on Winnicott’s concept of transitional objects. The two cases are drawn from ECEC playworlds in Finland and the US. Each exemplifies how playworlds, as forms of participatory design research, make social sustainability possible. Furthermore, these cases highlight how, by working with the boundaries between and moving between real and imagined, the participants are able to develop new ways of being that are radically inclusive. We argue that they do so by facilitating and maintaining the development of care relations among researchers, teachers, children, and, importantly, imaginary characters, in ways that create what we call transitional subjects. We conclude that social sustainability, like care, should be conceived of as an ecology of caring practices.

Issues and gaps in international guidance and national regulatory systems affecting international live insect trade.

International trade in live insects involves the shipping of many different species, for various purposes, with a variety of handling requirements regulated by numerous authorities with varying objectives. The diversity of factors at play has both created and been subject to a complex regulatory landscape. A review of global production, shipping and use experiences from a range of perspectives has shown gaps and inconsistencies in international guidance and national implementation. Private carriers add another layer of uncertainty that is disproportionate to risks, resulting in variable practices and charges. Many benefits can come from international trade in insects, including pollinator services, control of pests and of disease vectors, and enhanced international scientific research and innovation. These benefits will be better achieved through a more evidence-based and efficient approach to regulating trade. This change in approach will in turn require an improved and widely accepted risk-management landscape for insect trade.

Against the rules – disrupting and reassessing discursive practices of playfulness

The article dissects approaches to playfulness with persons with learning difficulties. It questions the intersection of dis/ability and play by reassessing (who determines) the role of play in people with dis/abilities’ lives with a focus on discursive practices of belittlement and diagnosing, as well as the positive potential in play, such as empowerment in an inclusive game session. As part of an international research project, we facilitated an open play session and gathered data by recording it and the reflective discussions that followed. The research methodology follows a Grounded Theory approach, using Situational Analysis to map the empirical material. Initiating play and negotiating rules proved relevant throughout initial mapping. Additionally, the question of whether and how discursive practices of belittlement and diagnosing were reproduced, disrupted, and reassessed took centre stage. The findings show that both discursive practices of belittlement and positive potentials of play surfaced throughout the open play session.

Semiannual Variation of Total Ion Density of Topside Ionosphere Over Indian Equatorial and Low Latitudes

The International Scientific Research Organization for Science, Engineering and Technology (ISROSET) is a Non-Profit Organization; The ISROSET is dedicated to improvement in academic sectors of Science (Chemistry, Bio-chemistry, Zoology, Botany, Biotechnology, Pharmaceutical Science, Bioscience, Bioinformatics, Biometrics, Biostatistics, Microbiology, Environmental Management, Medical Science, Forensic Science, Home Science, Library Science, Material Science Military Science, Physical Science, Physical Education Science, Educational Science, Fisheries, seed technology, Agriculture, Forestry Science, Mathematics, Physics, Statistics and Geology/Earth Science), Computer Science, Engineering and Information Technology, Commerce, Management, Economics Sociology and Social Science.

Possible Relations between Fast Radio Bursts and Gamma Ray Bursts

The International Scientific Research Organization for Science, Engineering and Technology (ISROSET) is a Non-Profit Organization; The ISROSET is dedicated to improvement in academic sectors of Science (Chemistry, Bio-chemistry, Zoology, Botany, Biotechnology, Pharmaceutical Science, Bioscience, Bioinformatics, Biometrics, Biostatistics, Microbiology, Environmental Management, Medical Science, Forensic Science, Home Science, Library Science, Material Science Military Science, Physical Science, Physical Education Science, Educational Science, Fisheries, seed technology, Agriculture, Forestry Science, Mathematics, Physics, Statistics and Geology/Earth Science), Computer Science, Engineering and Information Technology, Commerce, Management, Economics Sociology and Social Science.

Generalized Composite Regression with Ratio and Product Estimators in Double Sampling

The International Scientific Research Organization for Science, Engineering and Technology (ISROSET) is a Non-Profit Organization; The ISROSET is dedicated to improvement in academic sectors of Science (Chemistry, Bio-chemistry, Zoology, Botany, Biotechnology, Pharmaceutical Science, Bioscience, Bioinformatics, Biometrics, Biostatistics, Microbiology, Environmental Management, Medical Science, Forensic Science, Home Science, Library Science, Material Science Military Science, Physical Science, Physical Education Science, Educational Science, Fisheries, seed technology, Agriculture, Forestry Science, Mathematics, Physics, Statistics and Geology/Earth Science), Computer Science, Engineering and Information Technology, Commerce, Management, Economics Sociology and Social Science.

Microwave Heat Treatment Effects on the Microbial Profile of Some Ready-To-Eat Street Vended Snacks

The International Scientific Research Organization for Science, Engineering and Technology (ISROSET) is a Non-Profit Organization; The ISROSET is dedicated to improvement in academic sectors of Science (Chemistry, Bio-chemistry, Zoology, Botany, Biotechnology, Pharmaceutical Science, Bioscience, Bioinformatics, Biometrics, Biostatistics, Microbiology, Environmental Management, Medical Science, Forensic Science, Home Science, Library Science, Material Science Military Science, Physical Science, Physical Education Science, Educational Science, Fisheries, seed technology, Agriculture, Forestry Science, Mathematics, Physics, Statistics and Geology/Earth Science), Computer Science, Engineering and Information Technology, Commerce, Management, Economics Sociology and Social Science.

Post-Acute Level Of Consciousness scale revised (PALOC-sr): adaptation of a scale for classifying the level of consciousness in patients with a prolonged disorder of consciousness.

To present an updated version of the 'Post-acute Level Of Consciousness scale' (PALOC-s), in accordance with the latest scientific insights. Within the context of a research project, 20 years ago, the PALOC-s was developed for the purpose of following the development of the level of consciousness of young unconscious patients participating in a rehabilitation program. Meanwhile, the understanding of the behavior related to different levels of consciousness has developed and terminology has changed, resulting in the need to revise the PALOC-s. With the preservation of the original description of the eight hierarchical levels of PALOC-s, adaptations are made in the terminology and grouping of these levels. This manuscript presents the revised version of PALOC-sr, which is suitable for use in clinical practice. The validation of this scale is recommended for its optimal use in future (international) research projects.

The Impact of Language Diversity on Knowledge Sharing Within International University Research Teams: Evidence From TED Project.

In today’s knowledge economy, knowledge and knowledge sharing are fundamental for organizations to achieve competitiveness and for individuals to strengthen their innovation capabilities. Knowledge sharing is a complex language-based activity; language affects how individuals communicate and relate. The growth in international collaborations and the increasing number of diverse teams affect knowledge sharing because individuals engage in daily knowledge activities in a language they are not native speakers. Understanding the challenges they face, and how they manage the emerging difficulties is the main aim of this manuscript. For this purpose, an explorative case study was conducted in an international university research project, namely the TED project. Both interviews and direct observations were employed to understand the phenomenon better and deliberately triangulate data and improve validity. Results show that non-native language use determines the emergence of different language proficiency, depending on the nature of the knowledge domain–job-related vs. non-job-related. Within non-job-related knowledge domains, the lack of linguistic abilities, summed to the perceived cultural diversities, mainly affects people’s propensity to engage in personal and more intense social relationships. Under such circumstances, tacit knowledge sharing is reduced with negative consequences on the project’s long-term innovative performance. Since the project is still running, detecting language challenges will allow the partners to design and apply effective measures to support cooperation with language and cultural barriers. Among them, code switching, adopted by “bridge” actors, already emerges as tool supporting communication and knowledge exchange.

The International Trichinella Reference Centre database. Report on thirty-three years of activity and future perspectives

The International Trichinella Reference Centre (ITRC) is the official laboratory of the International Commission on Trichinellosis, of the World Organization for Animal Health and of the European Union Reference Laboratory for Parasites. The ITRC was established in 1988 as a repository of Trichinella strains and a source of reference materials and information for international scientific research. To date, more than 8000 Trichinella isolates collected throughout the world have been identified at the species or genotype level by the ITRC staff and the information has been stored in a freely accessible database providing the largest collection of data available for scientists involved in the systematics and epidemiology of this parasite. This paper presents a summary of the data collected over 33 years of activity and describes the database functionalities. It finally advocates the potential of the database to improve knowledge of the epidemiology and taxonomy of Trichinella, which in turn may help the international surveillance of Trichinella species.

A Vision on a UNESCO Global Geopark at the Southeastern Dead Sea in Jordan—How Natural Hazards May Offer Geotourism Opportunities

This paper aims to identify and discuss the chances, solutions, and possible drawbacks related to the establishment of safe geotourism sites in subsidence-affected areas, exemplarily applied to the Ghor Al-Haditha sinkhole site at the southeastern shore of the Dead Sea. Such safe areas shall be established in the territory of the proposed future UNESCO Global Geopark (UGGp) in Jordan. The highlights of the geopark and the basis of its creation are the subsidence features and stream channels found along the SE shoreline of the Dead Sea, which form both a natural hazard and geological heritage of high international significance and have attracted many researchers so far. This recent and ongoing formation is related to the sharp regression of the lake, the specific geomechanical conditions, and the hydrogeologic and climatic background of the surroundings. Nearby communities have suffered in economic terms from these natural phenomena, including flash floods and droughts in this semi-arid to arid region. We here present a concept on how to integrate geoscientific research for hazard monitoring and early warning to maintain safety for inhabitants and visitors on the one hand and reach sustainable economic development through the establishment of geotourism sites on the other hand. This highlight area of the proposed UGGp serves as a starting example for delineating safe zones for walkways and infrastructure. This involves two-way knowledge transfer between spatial planning and hydrogeophysical monitoring, a network of community-supported geophysical surveillance, and regular maintenance and adaptation. The cross-cutting benefits for the territory involve the delineation of safe areas for agriculture and geotourism, the increase of sustainable tourism in the region with a shift towards alternative ways of income, more investment in infrastructure, a growth of international visibility of the region, enhanced environmental education with focus on responsible water usage, and involvement in international research and education projects.

Migration, Dignity, Fragility, and Pandemics: Overview of the Special Issue

This special issue presents the findings of an international collaborative research project conducted between 2019 and 2021. This study is a follow-up of a previous study conducted between 2016 and 2019. In both studies, we examined the livelihoods of future climate migrants, who may relocate from Pacific atoll countries to developed countries. The Maldives was also included in this study, as it developed a unique strategy to cope with anticipated sea-level rise. They have developed a new city on reclaimed land and elevated it, intending to move the majority of its population there. In our first research project, we learned of the challenges faced by Pacific Islanders when transitioning to their new lives in a foreign country. This included inter alia unemployment or lack of opportunities for upward mobility, limited access to healthcare and legal services, and discrimination. We thus developed a formal policy and legal framework for the concept of “Migration with Dignity,” built upon the phrase first coined by then-Kiribati President Anote Tong. Our framework represents the opportunity for migrants to live a life equal to or better than the one they left behind. We then applied our concept of the Migration with Dignity framework to the challenges faced by climate migrants in the real world. The global outbreak of COVID-19 occurred during the implementation of our new research project. This made field research almost impossible in both atoll and developed countries and led us to modify our survey methods to include tele-interviews and remote surveys through the Internet. The pandemic also revealed the exacerbated vulnerabilities of the people who migrated to developed countries, such as discrimination, poor or no translation of medical documents, and challenging healthcare processes. We decided to address these issues within the framework of our research. We leave it to the readers of this special issue to decide how far we were able to maintain the quality of our research despite the difficulties we faced due to the sudden pandemic. As we felt at the end of our last collaboration, we now know what we need to do in our next endeavor.

Contributors

Contributors

Banded vaults with independent arches: analysis of case studies in Turin baroque atria

<p class="Abstract"><span lang="EN-US">This contribution presents a part of the work and the methodology applied to it developed for the realization of an international research project aimed at the analysis and preservation of an architectural heritage characteristic of Turin's baroque architecture: the ‘a fasce’ vaults, locally named as ‘a fascioni’.</span></p><p class="Abstract"><span lang="EN-US">This architectural solution, used by important architects, such as Guarini up to the local workers, to cover spaces of various sizes, has found in the court of Turin area a wide application in buildings atria.</span></p><p class="Abstract"><span lang="EN-US">A considerable number of banded vaulted atria were identified and surveyed by the research group to recognize and investigate those whose bands are generated from independent arches.</span></p><p class="Abstract">The objective is the comparison of metric and geometric data between ideal models and realizations over time, to evaluate their variations and understand a constructive methodology through three-dimensional modeling.</p>

LEGAL REGULATION OF THE RESEARCH AREA: ACTUAL TENDENCIES OF DEVELOPMENT

Further development of legislation ensuring the development of Russian education in line with global trends means the need for a supra-sectoral approach to the legal regulation of this sphere. Harmonization of the educational space provided by the Bologna Accord, development of new forms of interaction between universities, implementation of new educational models, including project training, work in interdisciplinary teams, determine the need for new formats of international scientific research as well. Educational legislation no longer provides an answer to many challenges of the time, a significant breakthrough is required in the legal regulation of scientific interaction of an interethnic nature, including the state level. In the context of globalization processes, the concept of scientific space, which has several definitions, is becoming increasingly common. The main characteristics that can be distinguished are "interaction of research centers and schools", "environment for ensuring the functioning and development of science and technology", in a more general perspective – "mobile system". Scientific cooperation involves interaction at several levels: interstate, regional and interregional, interdepartmental, at the level of relations between scientific organizations, research teams, educational institutions, scientists. Based on previous research on the structure of the scientific space, the authors attempted to develop an idea of scientific and technical space in terms of its legal regulation on the example of various regional economic cooperation organizations (EU, SCO, ASEAN). Among common challenges that are a logical consequence of scientific cooperation, the authors' research interest is also attracted by the problems of intellectual property rights protection and digitalization of relations in modern society. It is noted that a comprehensive legal entity, known in legal circulation as digital (information) law is becoming the instrument of regulation in the new conditions.the new conditions.

Neighbourhood socio-economic vulnerability and access to COVID-19 healthcare during the first two waves of the pandemic in Geneva, Switzerland: A gender perspective

SummaryBackgroundNeighbourhood socio-economic inequities have been shown to affect COVID-19 incidence and mortality, as well as access to tests. This article aimed to study how associations of inequities and COVID-19 outcomes varied between the first two pandemic waves from a gender perspective.MethodsWe performed an ecological study based on the COVID-19 database of Geneva between Feb 26, 2020, and June 1, 2021. Outcomes were the number of tests per person, the incidence of COVID-19 cases, the incidence of COVID-19 deaths, the positivity rate, and the delay between symptoms and test. Outcomes were described by neighbourhood socio-economic levels and stratified by gender and epidemic waves (first wave, second wave), adjusting for the proportion of inhabitants older than 65 years.FindingsLow neighbourhood socio-economic levels were associated with a lower number of tests per person (incidence rate ratio [IRR] of 0.88, 0.85 and 0.83 for low, moderate, and highly vulnerable neighbourhood respectively), a higher incidence of COVID-19 cases and of COVID-19 deaths (IRR 2.3 for slightly vulnerable, 1.9 for highly vulnerable). The association between socio-economic inequities and incidence of COVID-19 deaths was mainly present during the first wave of the pandemic, and was stronger amongst women. The increase in COVID-19 cases amongst vulnerable populations appeared mainly during the second wave, and originated from a lower access to tests for men, and a higher number of COVID-19 cases for women.InterpretationThe COVID-19 pandemic affected people differently depending on their socio-economic level. Because of their employment and higher prevalence of COVID-19 risk factors, people living in neighbourhoods of lower socio-economic levels, especially women, were more exposed to COVID-19 consequences.FundingThis research was supported by the research project SELFISH, financed by the Swiss National Science Foundation, grant number 51NF40–160590 (LIVES centre international research project call).

How to get your message across: designing an impactful knowledge transfer plan in a European project

Abstract. Academic research is largely characterized by scientific projects striving to advance understanding in their respective fields. Financial support is often subject to the fulfilllment of certain requirements, such as a fully developed knowledge transfer (KT) plan and dissemination strategy. However, the evaluation of these activities and their impact is rarely an easy path to clarity and comprehensiveness, considering the different expectations from project officers and funding agencies or dissemination activities and objectives. With this paper, based on the experience of the management and outreach team of the EU-H2020 APPLICATE project, we aim to shed light on the challenging journey towards impact assessment of KT activities by presenting a methodology for impact planning and monitoring in the context of a collaborative and international research project. Through quantitative and qualitative evaluations and indicators developed in 4 years of the project, this paper represents an attempt to build a common practice for project managers and coordinators and establish a baseline for the development of a shared strategy. Our experience found that an assessment strategy should be included in the planning of the project as a key framing step, that the individual project's goals and objectives should drive the definition and assessment of impact and that the researchers involved are crucial to implement a project's outreach strategy.

CONCEPTUAL APPROACHES TO TOURISM DEVELOPMENTIN POST-CONFLICT TERRITORIES

Problem Statement and Purpose. The issue of development of post-conflict territories and restoration of the post-conflict economy is one of the fundamental issues in international scientific research. Recently, it has also become relevant for Ukraine, which is looking for ways out and solutions to the problems of the postconflict eastern territory. The article deals with one of the possible ways to revive the post-conflict eastern territory, namely the development of Tourism. Data & Methods. The main objective of the presented study is to determine conceptual approaches to the development of post-conflict territories on the example of the revival of the tourism industry in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions of Ukraine. In order to achieve the goals and objectives of the study, general scientific and special methods of Geographical Science were used, including methods of analysis and synthesis, generalization, philosophical and dialectical. Results. Among the conceptual approaches to the development of post-conflict eastern territory are noted: the growing role of the service sector, improving the business climate and business activity; increasing the share of high-tech industrial sectors; changing behavioral stereotypes of economic entities; effective use of regional potential; development of alternative energy; environmental modernization of production and introduction of energy-saving technologies in production; large-scalegreening of the territory not only settlements, but also the adjacent steppe natural zone; carrying out restructuring works at closed coal and other industrial enterprises; reclamation of numerous waste heaps. It is proposed to step up the development of domestic tourism, taking into account these conceptual approaches. Specific proposals are presented for the possible introduction of the proposed conceptual approaches to the formation of a healthy lifestyle among the local population, as a guarantee of the development of human capital in the affected territory. The article notes that education is of great importance in this, so it is the younger generation that is emphasized. It is proved that conceptual approaches to the development of tourism in the post-conflict eastern territories will contribute to the processes of socio-economic recovery of the region, and further scientific research will contribute to the implementation of programs and strategies for post-conflict development and normalization of the situation.