Main Cities Research Articles

Microbiological Risk Assessment of High-Demand Food from Three Major Cities in Ecuador

The current study was carried out to estimate the risk of disease probability from the consumption of foods such as meats, poultry, unpasteurized cheeses, fruit-based drinks, ready-to-eat fruits, and typical preparations such as Encebollado, ceviche, and Bolón de Verde contaminated with Salmonella, Escherichia coli and Listeria monocytogenes in Ecuador using a quantitative microbiological risk assessment (QMRA). A first-order Monte Carlo simulation probabilistic distribution approach was adopted to assess the occurrence of pathogens in the tested foods. The scenario was simulated using the concentration levels concerning the contaminant and food consumption obtained through an online survey with a sample size of 202 people. A model (100,000 iterations) was run and created in an Excel spreadsheet using @Risk software. The results obtained are the risk of infection (possibilities of becoming infected by eating the food evaluated) and the contaminant dose per portion consumed. Additionally, an exponential model with a single dose was used for risk characterization to determine the probability of becoming ill from contaminated food. The QMRA model performed a prediction for the mean risk of Salmonella infection from ground beef consumption of 1.33 E - 04 log 10 cfu / serving, while the exponential model estimated a value of 1.0 log cfu - serving. In the case of Listeria monocytogenes, the QMRA estimated an average probability of infection in unpasteurized fresh cheese of 5.9E-05 compared to the average disease risk estimated in the risk characterization for L. monocytogenes of 9.50E-13. The QMRA estimated an average risk of infection by E. coli for Encebollado and ceviches of 5.6E -03 compared to the average risk of disease estimated in the risk characterization for Escherichia coli of 0.387 log cfu -ration. These results suggest the need to adopt effective mitigation strategies. Control parameters such as temperature during the supply chain and good hygiene practices during manufacturing can effectively control food-associated pathogens. More data is necessary toimprove the evaluation of the risk developed. Keywords: Microbiological risk análisis, Infectious biological agents (Salmonella, Listeria monocytogenes, Escherichia coli), QMRA (Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment), Typical foods in Ecuador, Population food consumption in three main cities of Ecuador.

Overcoming Communication Barriers in Clinical Care: A Digital Translation Platform.

Language barriers in healthcare can lead to misdiagnosis, inappropriate treatment, and increased medical errors. Efforts to mitigate these include using interpreters and translation tools, but these measures often fall short, particularly when cultural nuances are overlooked. Consequently, medical professionals may have to rely on their staff or patients' relatives for interpretation, compromising the quality of care. This formative pilot study aims to assess the feasibility of Translatly, a digital translation platform, in clinical practice. Specifically, the study focuses on evaluating: 1. how healthcare professionals overcome language barriers and their acceptance of an on-demand video telephony platform, 2. the feasibility of the platform during medical consultations, and 3. identifying potential challenges for future development. The study included ethnographic interviews with healthcare professionals and an observational pilot to assess the use of the Tranlatly platform in clinical practice. Translatly was developed to make real-time translation easy and accessible on both Android and iOS devices. The system's backend architecture uses Java-based services hosted on DigitalOcean. The app securely exchanges data between mobile devices and servers, with user information and call records stored in a MySQL database. An admin panel helps manage the system, and Firebase integration enables fast push notifications to ensure that healthcare professionals can connect with translators whenever they need to. The platform was piloted in a German university hospital with 170 volunteer non-professional translators, mainly medical students, supporting translation in over 20 languages, including Farsi, Dari and Arabic. Ethnographic research conducted by interviewing healthcare professionals in Frankfurt am Main and other German cities revealed that current practices for overcoming language barriers often rely on family members or digital tools like Google Translate, raising concerns about accuracy and emotional distress. Respondents preferred an on-demand translation service staffed by medically experienced translators, such as medical students, who understand medical terminology and can empathize with patients. The observational pilot study recorded 39 requests for translation services, 16 (41%) of which were successfully completed. The translations covered 6 different languages and were carried out by a team of 10 translators. Most requests came from departments such as infectious diseases (5, 31.25%) and emergency (4, 25%). Challenges were identified around translator availability, with 23 (59%) of requests going unanswered, which was further evidenced by user feedback. The pilot study demonstrates the feasibility of the Translatly platform in real-world healthcare settings. It shows potential to improve communication and patient outcomes by addressing language barriers. Despite its potential, challenges such as translator availability highlight the need for further development.

The Role of Last-Mile Delivery Quality and Satisfaction in Online Retail Experience: An Empirical Analysis

The rise of the e-commerce industry has markedly changed the global economy, providing customers with unparalleled access to goods and services. This study empirically examines online shoppers’ perceptions and preferences, focusing on their experiences with last-mile delivery (LMD) services and its impact on their shopping behaviour. This research employs machine learning classification and regression models for a large-scale analysis of customers’ responses, collected using an online survey in the main cities in Saudi Arabia, which is experiencing rapid e-commerce growth amidst a broader digital transformation. The findings highlight a strong consumer preference for timely LMD services, typically within a day of purchase, while noting dissatisfaction with exceedingly early delivery windows. The research emphasises the need to address customer dissatisfaction with delivery services to retain clientele, as many may switch retailers without informing the retailers. Additionally, a considerable trend towards preferring digital over cash-on-delivery payment methods was observed among online shoppers. Overall, this study provides valuable insights into the significant influence of LMD services on customer satisfaction and behaviour in the e-commerce sector. The use of robust machine learning models has revealed critical factors that can guide retailers and LMD providers in enhancing service delivery and customer experience, contributing to the broader discourse on e-commerce logistics efficiency and customer satisfaction.

The movement pattern of app-based transportation in Banda Aceh City, Province of Aceh, Indonesia

Abstract Transportation plays a crucial role in fulfilling people’s need to conduct their activities. Cities established transportation systems to serve the needs of people to travel. Technological advancements have led to the emergence of app-based transportation. App-based transportation has emerged as an alternative to public transportation and personal vehicles. The advantages of app-based transportation, such as flexibility, 24-hour services, swift mobility, and convenience, have influenced citizens’ travel behavior. App-based transportation has been available in Banda Aceh since 2017. This research aims to study the movement pattern of app-based transportation in Banda Aceh. The data on the origin and destination of app-based transportation users were collected from 100 drivers using the accidental sampling method. This research utilized GIS software to analyze the movement pattern. The study shows that based on land use, the app-based transportation origin and destination occurred mostly in settlement areas. The highest trip generation occurred in the education center area, followed by the main city center. A polycentric pattern, with the education center as the main origin and destination point, characterizes the movement patterns of app-based transportation in Banda Aceh. It indicates that the main users of app-based transportation are students living around the education center.

Household preparedness for multi-natural hazards in coastal communities

Natural hazards have generated significant human and economic losses throughout history. This issue concerns the Pacific Ring of Fire (PRF) coastal cities. Chile is located on the PRF and is one of the countries with the highest seismic activity in the world. Consequently, this has resulted in a high seismic culture among the inhabitants but less knowledge and awareness of other threats, such as hydrometeorological events. Therefore, this study assessed household preparedness for multiple natural hazards in two coastal cities in Chile.To achieve this goal, we used the results of a survey conducted on a statistically representative sample of two of the main coastal cities in Chile: Valparaíso (n = 548) and Concepción (n = 585). The survey assessed household preparedness, participation in preparedness activities, and sociodemographic variables.The results showed that regardless of the study area, people perceive they are more prepared for earthquakes/tsunamis than fires and floods. Inhabitants from both cities rarely participate in preparedness activities, evidencing the importance of encouraging community members to become involved in activities to learn skills and strategies to cope with multiple hazards. Finally, the results show significant differences in preparedness based on sociodemographic characteristics; middle-aged adults declare participating more in disaster-related activities and being more prepared at home against earthquakes, tsunamis, and fires. The implications of these findings to prepare communities are discussed.

TBE In France

The first human case of tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) infection in France was reported in 1968 in Alsace, an eastern region next to the German border: a gamekeeper working in a forest near Strasbourg.1 Between 1970 and 1974, an extensive research survey confirmed the presence of TBEV in ticks and rodents in this French region. Eight percent of adult tick batches collected were infected (Ixodes ricinus) by the TBEV. Tick collection occurred in a forest near Strasbourg, the main city in the region. Nymphs were more rarely infected (1.6% of the collected lots).1 These data were confirmed in 2011 in Alsace in Guebwiller’s Valley, a middle altitude forest, with identification of western (European) subtype TBEV (TBEV-EU). The infection rate still remains low: TBEV was detected only in the I. ricinus nymphs (2.48%) that were collected during May; however, not in those collected during the other spring or summer months. In a more recent study, Bestehorn et al., collected ticks (953 male, 856 female adult ticks and 2,255 nymphs) in endemic foci in the upper Rhine region in France and Germany between 2016, 2017 and 2018 by flagging2. The minimal infection rate (MIR) of the collected ticks in the Foret de la Robertsau (France) was estimated to 0,11% (1 nymph/944 ticks). The isolated and sequenced TBEV strain from Foret de la Robertsau (F) is related to circulating TBEV isolates from eastern Bavaria and the Czech Republic. In the French department Alsace, there are today at least two independent TBEV strains circulating: the historical Alsace strain isolated in 1971 and the newly identified strain from Foret de la Robertsau. Other wooded regions (Ardennes) were explored for TBEV in ticks, but without evidence of virus infection.3

Recent Dynamics of Suburban Advancement and Building Densification in Relation to Landslide Exposure in the Main Cities of North-East Romania

We live in a complex and highly dynamic risk society, and given the massive environmental changes, exposure to hazards has become a critical concept that is part of all risk assessments made from a spatial perspective. In urban studies, evaluating exposure to different risk phenomena influences targeted policies and planning that can shape cities while making them safer. As in other post-socialist countries, in Romania, cities have had a highly divergent recent evolution, including processes such as urban shrinkage, the suburban advancement of cities, and urban sprawl. Focusing on seven cities from the North-East Region of Romania, the current paper is an exploratory study regarding the dynamics of exposure to landslides in relation to suburban advancement and densification of cities. Using the official statistics, available GIS databases and information based on satellite images illustrating urban land use changes in the last 20 years, the paper includes a general overview of the overall evolution of urban areas against landslide probability, followed by a more in-depth assessment of specific areas that were subject to functional change and currently include buildings that are susceptible to be affected by landslides. The results and conclusions converge towards the idea that the identified exposed areas, where actual ground movements are currently registered, need special attention from experts and authorities to identify and manage risks. The significance of our findings is underscored by their potential to inform and guide more effective territorial management and urban land use planning strategies.

Optimizing service design for the intercity demand responsive transit system: Model, algorithm, and comparative analysis

Intercity Demand Responsive Transit (IDRT) systems, providing on-demand “door-to-door” services for intercity travelers, have been recently implemented in a few cities and gained popularity. To devise a theoretical tool for designing efficient IDRT systems, this study proposes a continuous approximation (CA) model to describe the operation metrics of the IDRT. In a two-city system, an optimization model is proposed to study the zoning strategies in the main city, the service area in the satellite city, and headways. The objective is to minimize the average system cost, including the costs of both the operators and the passengers. A two-stage partition algorithm is proposed to generate a near-optimal solution by combining the greedy algorithm and sensitivity-based coordination optimization method. Subsequently, we develop a direct solution algorithm to establish a lower bound for the optimal solution, facilitating a comparison with the near-optimal solution. Throughout all sensitivity analyses, the gaps between the near-optimal solution and the lower-bound solution remain below 3 %. The comparison results demonstrate that the computation time and solution quality of the two-stage partition algorithm are considered acceptable. Simulation is performed to test the validity of the CA model, and the errors in the average system costs are less than 1.16 %. Sensitivity analyses are carried out to evaluate the impacts of several key parameters (e.g., demand densities and line-haul distances) on the optimization results. By comparison with Intercity Fixed Route Transit (IFRT), it can be seen that the choice of IDRT depends on passengers' preference for door-to-door transportation. This study may serve as a valuable reference for the practical implementation of IDRT.

Questionable relations: On aggressive financialised ‘assemblages’ in creative and ecologically-challenged space-economies

In this contribution, the interest is in three things, arising from a project on ‘dark’ F-KIBS clusters. This has already resulted in critical papers on management consultancy and accounting ‘assemblages’ in which such clusters are embedded (Cooke, 2023a; 2003b). Questions posed are: first, why is there so much financial crime being punished with huge fines? Second has there been a significant rise in such prosecutions in recent years? Third, which jurisdictions or clusters display the most prosecuted firms and sectors? These questions are stimulated by an interest in ‘assemblage geography’ and evolutionary spatial analysis; accordingly, financial ‘dark’ clusters are proposed for study in this contribution. Assemblage connections may be hypothesised to be found in financial districts that replicate Marshallian proximity, notably Delaware in the US (Weitzman, 2022). That state specifically and its main city, Wilmington, is proposed as an exemplary rising agglomeration of relational interactions specialising in US tax avoidance and bankruptcy. In Switzerland, Bellinzona Federal Criminal Court recently hosted a Swiss Bank’s first-ever domestic trial for criminality in the shape of Credit Suisse. This bank had a fine of SFr2mn imposed on the bank, which was also ordered to pay €18.6mn in compensation to the Swiss government. An extra penalty was imposed by confiscation of SFr12 mn in criminal assets from the convicted perpetrators. The case had involved a group of Bulgarian clients laundering cocaine profits between 2004 and 2008 involving huge sums of cash being brought to the bank in suitcases, further associated with two assassinations. These red flags were missed by a bank which had received multiple fines elsewhere (Carrel, 2022). In reference to gang crime, in 2004, a Credit Suisse banker in Tokyo was arrested for allegedly helping launder at least ¥5bn linked to Japan’s largest Yakuza gang connected in a Japan, Switzerland and Hong Kong network (Makortoff and Pegg, 2022). Regarding the demise of Switzerland’s second global bank, after being badly hit by the huge Greensill and Archegos bankruptcies Credit Suisse was bailed out for £45 billion by the Swiss Central Bank in March 2023. Earlier, in 2015–2017, Disney, the creative economy exemplar in this narrative, is profiled in our third vignette as an imperious tax-dodging ‘fiefdom’ yet surviving as the global mass-entertainment leader. Finally, in sections 4 and 5, we profile two London-centred banking ‘scandals’ with ‘sustainability’ rather than ‘creative’ overtones. Thus of dubious banking practices London’s many categories of financial regulator are served by two ‘assemblage’ cases that will be analysed subsequent to being advanced as candidates. One recent exemplar is Balli Steel, an Anglo-Iranian sanctions-breaker, while another is Britishvolt, a financially failed EV gigafactory project in the UK.

Analysis, modelling, and financial perspectives of reverse mortgage implementation in Colombia

PurposeIncreased life expectancy in recent years, together with the downward trend in fertility rates, will accelerate the aging of the Latin American population (Flamini and et al., 2018) [1]. This demographic change represents a problem for pension systems as the economic capacity to finance the retirement of the population could be insufficient in the future. This creates a favorable scenario for new financial products, including reverse mortgages. This study determines, from the supply approach, the potential of reverse mortgages in the main cities of Colombia as a complement to the financing of old age according to the guidelines of Benavides et al. (Benavides Franco et al., Jan. 2021) [2]. MethodologyThe following variables were used: housing prices, interest rates, mortality rates, and the consumer price index. The econometric testing simulates the possible paths of these variables, estimates the probability of occurrence of the paths, and calculates the expected losses of bidding banks. FindingsThe results show that reverse mortgages are a good complement to Colombia's pension system and confirm the feasibility of implementation at city level. It is recommended that the State stimulate the growth of this market and improve the corresponding regulatory framework. OriginalityThis study confirms the hypothesis that the reverse mortgages are a good complement to the pension system with city-level data. Specifically, it uses housing prices and mortality records from the main cities of the country (Bogotá, Cali, and Medellín) to capture their idiosyncrasies.

New challenges for sustainable urban mobility

Micromobility provide intelligent, fast, and sustainable trips for tourist from accommodation facilities to attraction locations. However, some points of interest may be located away from the accommodation i.e. in a different city of a metropolitan area. In this case, cycling to the attractions may not be possible and multimodal bike and public transport trips can be considered for more sustainable tourism. Therefore, it is essential to identify how adequate a city transport infrastructures and services are for these types of trips. In this paper, we propose a cycling indicator for tourism accessibility with the aim of defining the level of multimodal bike-public transport friendliness through numerical values related to a specific zone in the main city of a metropolitan area. The indicator was applied to the metropolitan area of Bari (Italy) and results showed that the presence of bike lanes and bike-sharing plays an important role.

Socio-spatial analysis of migrant school students according to Bourdieu's capitals in Santiago de Chile (2017–2020)

Chile has experienced a substantial immigration boom in the last 10 years. The urban areas of this nation present high levels of residential segregation, represented in its main city, Santiago. This article presents results of an exploratory analysis of the relationship between residential segregation, immigration rate by educational institutions and changes in school performance. Based on the generation of clusters characterized by cultural, social, economic and symbolic capital, an analysis of the changes in school performance in those schools that received the greatest number of migrants is generated.

Некоторые проблемы современной российской урбанизации и роль органов местного самоуправления в их решении

Today, the majority of the world's population is living in cities and other urbanized localities. The Russian state is not an exception, as at the present-day stage 3/4 of the population are urban dwellers. An important role in the state is assigned to the main city, the capital, where the supreme government authorities, financial and other resources are concentrated, with maximum opportunities for the development of high-quality and comfortable urban environment created in the capital and outside of it. Government authorities have the greatest opportunities for the development of the state capital. However, local self-government authorities also play a certain role in the development of the main city of the country. With this in mind, the most Russian cities are municipal structures, where the task of raising their attractiveness, competitiveness, safety and comfort is imposed on local self-government authorities as the first element of public government. The importance of implementation of the above lies in ensuring the equal development of cities all over the territory of Russia.

Urban Road Network Connectivity Analysis Based on GIS for Aurangabad City, Maharashtra

Urban road network plays an important role in urban local network. The urban road network plays a key role in the urban spatial structure. It is the main city social-economy activities and transportation carrier. An important event of the cultural landscape is that transportation serves as a powerful factor in regional as well as national development. In connectivity network analysis, the term connectivity is known as the quantity of connections between nodes in a given network, so it derives the structure of the road network. Road network, major junctions, retail junctions, major corridors, road density and connectivity can be analyzed using the network connectivity indicators on the GIS platform. Road network dataset is created in ArcGIS which provides the number of transport lines and number of Junctions in study region. One of the most basic features of a transportation network is the network index, such as the alpha, beta, gamma index, etc. There are various indices, and each index has its individual equation for different purposes. It requires road network (line), junction (nodes) to draw connectivity index. Roads density is highest in most of the zones in Aurangabad city and lowest road density recorded in zone A in the north and E is south-west direction. he averages score of the gamma index has been increased from 0.50 in 2001 to 0.53 in 2011 where the average value also increased from 0.44 to 0.48 during this period.

Nurses' perception of the impact of professional development sessions on their pre-hospital clinical practice with trauma victims.

Continuing education is important for the quality of clinical practice because it complements it and focuses primarily on producing qualified pre-hospital nurses with operationally defined competence in nursing standards. The objective of this study was to assess pre-hospital nurses' opinion of the impact of professional development sessions on their clinical practice. A descriptive and quantitative study was carried out involving Portuguese pre-hospital nurses. Six professional development sessions were presented in 2020 to pre-hospital registered nurses in four of Portugal's main cities. To collect the data, at the end of each session, we apply a questionnaire designed specifically for this study. This data collection instrument consists of 11 questions, six designed to evaluate the session and five designed to evaluate the trainer responsible for the session. A five-point Likert scale was used for each question, where 1 corresponds to very dissatisfied and 5 to extremely satisfied. Two hundred and two nurses, which represents 55% of all Portuguese pre-hospital nurses, took part in the assessment of the professional development sessions. The nurses were from the Northern region of Portugal (51%; n = 102), the Centre region (29%; n = 59) and the Southern region of Portugal (20%; n = 41). Nurses found the session extremely satisfactory. All the assessment scores ranged between 4.4 and 4.7 points, on a scale of 1 to 5. 76.2% of the participants considered that the knowledge acquired could have a major impact [score = 5] on their future clinical practice. The majority of pre-hospital nurses (96.5%) felt that the session could have a major impact [score = 5; 76.2%, n = 154] or a very important impact [score = 4; 20.3%, n = 41] on their clinical practice. The professional development sessions provide pre-hospital nurses with the latest research findings and the majority of nurses considered that the training had a huge impact on their clinical practice. However, it is important that future research aims to explore the cause-effect relationship between training and improved clinical practice.

Prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders and associated factors affecting emergency medical services professionals in Jordan: a cross-sectional study

ObjectivesEmergency medical services (EMSs) personnel are at high risk for developing work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs). However, no studies have yet investigated the prevalence and effect of these disorders on the...

Migration process of Venezuelan women to Brazil: living conditions and use of health services in Manaus and Boa Vista, 2018-2021.

The last decade saw the emergence of a new significant migration corridor due to the mass migration of Venezuelans to neighboring countries in South America. Since 2018, Brazil became the third host country of Venezuelan displaced populations. Little is known about how migratory processes affect needs, access to social programs, and public health services of migrant women. The goal of this study is to shed light on the socio-economic profile, living conditions, and use of health services of Venezuelan migrant women in two main reception cities in Brazil. A survey was conducted using respondent-driven sampling (RDS) in the cities of Boa Vista (Roraima), and Manaus (Amazonas). The study included 2012 Venezuelan migrant women aged between 15 and 49 years old who migrated from Venezuela to Brazil between 2018 and 2021. Relative prevalence was calculated, and the χ2 test was used to analyse the homogeneity of proportions. All analyses considered the complex sampling. The main reasons for migrating relate to difficulties obtaining food (54%) and accessing health services (37.8%) in their country of origin. They were young and mixed race (65.7%) and had high school education (69.9%). In Manaus, 3.7% of the interviewees declared that they had no family income in the last month, while in Boa Vista, it was higher (66.2%) (p-value < 0.001). Almost one-third of them sought health care in the last 15 days, and 95% of them received care. The residents of Boa Vista arrived more recently and family income and access to paid work improved with time of residence in Brazil. Given the increasing flow of Venezuelan migrants crossing to Brazil, a reception system was established for the provision of food, shelter, access to health services, and income transfer programs to migrants. This was the case despite high unemployment and poverty levels and income inequality, particularly in the city of Boa Vista. However, the majority had legal migrant status and had access to the public and universal healthcare system in Brazil (SUS). The use of the SUS was similar in both cities, acting as a buffer for the differences in opportunities offered.

Магдебурзьке право як чинник господарського розвитку Кам’янця-Подільського

The purpose of the article is to investigate the influence of Magdeburg laws on the economic development of Kamianets-Podilskyi, to find out the place and role of the application of German legal norms of city self-government in the evolution of guild craft production, to find out the essence, content, and specificity of Magdeburg workshop traditions in the broad chronological framework of life the largest Podillia city. The methodological foundation of the research is the principles of dialectics, objectivity, historicism, systematicity, and comprehensiveness. The research methodology is based on general scientific and special-historical methods, particularly analytical typology, documentary, historical-genetic, historical-typological, comparative-historical, problem-chronological, structural-systemic, etc. The scientific novelty lies in an attempt to scientifically reconstruct the permanent spread, implementation, and historical conditioning of the dominance of Magdeburg law in the production practice of the city over a long historical period. The novelty of the presented material lies in the interpretation, using the example of the main city of Podillia, of a complete system of production structures, which gradually transformed from medieval workshop organizations into powerful guild craft corporations of the New Age, which in some ways existed until the beginning of the 20th century. Conclusions. Our research proves that in the economic development of Kamianets-Podilskyi during the 14th - early 20th centuries, the factor of Magdeburg law played an important role. Magdeburg law went through several evolutionary stages of functioning, gradually covering and later shaping the economic life of Kamianets. Given the deep Magdeburg traditions in the system of organizing economic life, even after the annexation of Kamianets-Podilskyi by the Russian Empire, the city economy continued to function according to Magdeburg norms. In the 19th century, the Magdeburg production tradition continued to ensure the stability of the development of urban craft but gradually inhibited the development of new, more progressive forms of urban industry.

Mosquitoes in urban green spaces and cemeteries in northern Spain

BackgroundMosquitoes inhabiting urban green spaces and cemeteries in Europe represent a crucial facet of public health concern and contribute to the ecological balance. As urbanization intensifies, these areas increasingly serve as vital habitats for various mosquito species, fostering breeding grounds and increasing the risk of disease transmission.MethodsA study was conducted in the three main cities (inland, coastal, and estuarine) of the Basque Country, northern Spain, to investigate the species composition, abundance, dynamic populations, larval habitats, and host preferences of mosquitoes in urban green spaces and cemeteries. CDC traps and dipping were used to collect mosquitoes for 2 years (2019–2020).ResultsA total of 21 mosquito species were identified, with Culex pipiens s.l. being the most abundant and widespread. The three ecological forms of Cx. pipiens were found, and Cx. pipiens pipiens was the most common in both green areas and cemeteries. Morphological identification together with molecular tools identified 65 COI sequences with high homology. The highest species richness was found in the inland city, followed by the coastal city and the estuarine city. Mosquito abundance was significantly higher in green areas compared to cemeteries and in the coastal and estuarine cities compared to the inland city. The investigation of larval breeding sites highlighted the dominance of Cx. pipiens s.l., particularly in semi-artificial ponds, diverse water-holding containers (tyres and buckets) and drainage systems in green areas; in cemeteries, most of the larvae were found in flowerpots and funerary urns. Seasonal activity exhibited variable peaks in mosquito abundance in the different cities, with a notable increase in July or August. Additionally, blood meal analysis revealed that Cx. pipiens s.l. fed on several common urban avian species.ConclusionsStudies on mosquitoes are essential to understand their role in disease transmission and to design targeted and sustainable management strategies to mitigate the associated risks.Graphical

Legal Framework for Socially Responsible Social Media Platforms in Pakistan

ABSTRACT This research is aimed to investigate wider phenomenon of possible need for legislation for regulation of social media in Pakistan. In-depth interview research method was applied under Qualitative study to investigate this phenomenon. Overall, 10 respondents from law and media departments from public as well as private sector universities of five main cities were chosen to collect their opinion with the help of 15 structured questionnaire with open ended approach. The study found out that there was no legislation existent for regulation of social media in Pakistan. The study revealed voices were raised from different corners of society including journalistic bodies labelling restriction and embargo on freedom of speech. The study concluded that the government should introduce such legislation after having detailed discussion with relevant stakeholders including public sector media organizations, information departments, law and media departments and other relevant stakeholders. The study concluded that socially responsible legislation was required for socially responsible social media in Pakistan. Purpose: The basic objective of this study was to unearth existing legal framework for regulation of social media in the country at par with the international best standards for regulation of social media. This study was tasked to ascertain the opinion of the relevant stakeholders of social media of public and private sector and recommend socially responsible social media in the country. However, the legislation should equally be acceptable for all the relevant stakeholders to make social media effective with its positive use in the long run. Design/Methodology/Approach: Qualitative study was employed along with in-depth interviews having 15 structured questions with open approach to collect data from 10 respondents from five media and law departments from public and private sector universities. Findings: The results showcased the findings that there was no existent legal framework for regulation of social media in hand. However, in recent past, the federal government has constituted a separate department called National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) to regulate social media as well as investigate online crimes being committed on social media. However, the legislation was unavailable in this regard. The results revealed all the stakeholders can assemble at one point and draw an effective legislation in this regard to make social media socially reasonable. Implications/Originality/Value: This study seems valuable to the extent as it provides a ray of hope to the depressed consumers of social media especially the parents and teachers as the socially responsible legislation may turn social media as positive platforms. This study may also provide guidelines for the future researchers to investigate the phenome at provincial and district level in the country.