Modern Ones Research Articles

Aspects of Tuberculosis in Greece over the Last Century: Historical Perspectives and Today’s Challenges

Tuberculosis has had a long-standing prevalence in Greece over the last century, going hand in hand with the country’s overall socioeconomic situation. The current study explores aspects of tuberculosis in Greece since the interwar period and up to the present. Apparently, ignorance of the nature of the disease coupled with false medical perceptions sealed the fate of patients while unwittingly influencing public opinion and making societies hostile toward patients. Such paradigms are of great and timeless value for the cohesion and functioning of societies, not excluding modern ones. Although the present-day situation in Greece is utterly different from that in the previous century, considering the limited number of cases and minimal impact of the disease, new challenges have emerged, such as the under-reporting of cases, the emergence of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis, latent tuberculosis or the management of large refugee flows in the Eastern Mediterranean involving citizens from countries with a high prevalence of the disease. On the other hand, the study of tuberculosis is nowadays more urgent than ever, given the global concerns regarding the future of the disease in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has put enormous pressure on national health systems.

A Fully Integrated Wireless Microfluidic Immunosensing System for Portable Monitoring of Staphylococcus aureus

The advanced devices that function fully without the need for external accessories are regarded as a pinnacle goal in the design and construction of modern ones. Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), a prominent human pathogen, is responsible for causing a wide variety of infections and chronic diseases. Herein, we present the first instance of a fully integrated wireless microfluidic immunosensing system (FIWMIS) capable of conducting point-of-care S. aureus monitoring in real samples of S. aureus-spiked commercial purified drinking water and S. aureus-spiked watermelon juice. The development of the proposed FIWMIS became a reality by conquering significant engineering hurdles in seamlessly integrating a microfluidic unit for liquid sample transport without the need of an external pump, an immunosensing unit for S. aureus monitoring, and an electronic control unit for signal conversion and wireless transmission. Such full integration culminated in a FIWMIS that upholds its pump-free, wireless, and low-cost characteristics for portable monitoring of S. aureus.

Building Upon “Foundationalism” to Achieve the Objectives of Contemporary Science: How this can Lead to Faster Scientific Progress and Inclusive Science

This paper is one of our most important ones in the core philosophy of science, and one that we expect to stand science in extremely good stead as well. We believe this can move the needle and push the envelope as well, and lead us to what we have always called “scientific progress at the speed of light”. We naturally commence this paper by tracing the history of the term “foundationalism” itself, right from the time of the Ancient Greeks, renaissance and enlightenment thinkers, and finally to the modern and contemporary ones. Types of foundationalism such as strong and weak foundationalism, modest foundationalism, and then finally anti-foundationalism, internalism and externalism are also discussed and dissected threadbare along with allied and related concepts such as circular logic and reasoning, regress and infinite regress, all of which form a part of epistemology. The core concepts forming a part of this paper such as forward linkages, backward linkages, and traceability matrices are also discussed. We follow this up with the core principles of this paper, and discuss the ideal and recommended direction of research, including the ideal nature of research, primary research, secondary research, basic and applied research, and cross-cultural collaboration including vertical and horizontal collaboration as well. This paper is also much more importantly linked to our papers on sociocultural change, pedagogy, scientific methods, and other papers in the social sciences for maximum impact and efficacy. It is therefore an important part and parcel of our globalization of science movement, and one that will help realize our overall goals and mission greatly.

Anatomical theater or full digitization? Students' assessment and preferences in the field of anatomy teaching.

For many years, teaching of anatomy has been based on traditional forms of teaching, but innovative solutions are currently being implemented on a large scale around the world. The COVID-19 pandemic and distance learning have influenced the development of new technologies in teaching. The study was conducted among medical students who studied anatomy in the year preceding the analysis when the restrictions related to the pandemic had been lifted. The questionnaire contained 10 questions with YES/NO answers and a modified 10-point Likert scale. The data was subjected to statistical analysis performed in R studio using the R programming language. 650 respondents were included in the analysis. Students assessed the modernization of anatomy departments to be unsatisfactory - on a 10-point scale, the most common answer was 2 - the average was 2.69. At the same time, they assessed the accessibility of knowledge as acceptable - median 6, with an average of 5.58. 75.38% of respondents did not use virtual reality technology, 75.69% did not use a 3D printing. 92.5% did not work with a virtual anatomical table. The vast majority of students claim that new technologies will be useful in their future clinical practice. New technologies are still rarely used in the teaching of anatomy, despite an increasing availability of such solutions and the conviction of students about the validity of implementing innovations in their future clinical practice. It seems reasonable to enable cooperation between the traditional forms of learning and the modern ones.

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus activates wheat physiology for higher reproductive allocation under drought stress in primitive and modern wheat

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus (AMF) can mediate physiological adaptation of higher plants to drought stress, including wheat. Yet, it is unclear how AMF affects reproductive output via mediating crop physiological vitality at the evolutionary scale. To clarify this issue, a growth environment-controlled experiment was conducted using four primitive wheat genotypes and four modern ones with or without AMF (Funneliformis mosseae) inoculation. Two water regimes (80 % and 40 % field water capacity, FWC80 (well-watered) and FWC40 (drought stress)) were included. The data indicated that AMF inoculation significantly improved leaf area, photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance and water use efficiency under drought stress, compared to the non-AMF group (CK). Regardless of soil moisture, the relationship between reproductive biomass vs. vegetative biomass (R-V), and between leaf biomass vs. shoot biomass, all fell into a typical allometric pattern (α>1, P<0.001) in primitive wheat. In contrast, in modern wheat, the R-V relationship tended to an isometric pattern (α≈1, P<0.001), showing lower α values in all treatments relative to primitive ones. Furthermore, AMF inoculation significantly promoted the maintenance rate of yield and biomass under drought stress, suggesting greater drought tolerance as induced by AMF in modern wheat compared to primitive ones. These findings illuminated a key evolutionary strategy to enhance reproductive allocation via activating physiological activities under drought stress from primitive to modern wheat.

ANALYSIS OF MODERN SCIENTIFIC AND PRACTICAL RESEARCH IN THE FIELD OF WATER DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM

Solving the problem of ensuring the reliable functioning of drainage systems is important not only for Ukraine, but also for scientists around the world. Since these systems are critically important for life support, their uninterrupted operation is of strategic national importance. The issue of preservation and restoration of existing underground communications is gaining particular relevance due to increased environmental requirements. To protect groundwater from contamination with aggressive reagents, it is important to understand the reasons for the destruction of underground communications structures and effective methods of their repair. The article analyzes scientific works related to the problems of ensuring the trouble-free operation of objects that are part of the complex of constructions of sewer tunnels of the city. Grouped according to the direction of research work: research on the corrosion process in water drainage networks; analysis of modern ones; materials, laboratory tests; technologies for restoring drainage networks. Analysis of studies of the condition of structures of objects; research of materials and methods of repair and restoration of sewage tunnels and inspection shafts, which are currently used with high efficiency in domestic and foreign practice; development of technological and organizational solutions and restoration of destroyed sewage structures of drainage networks. The analysis of the researches of domestic scientists showed that the sewer tunnels of large cities of Ukraine are worn out as a result of long-term operation, ineffective solutions to protect structures from the influence of an aggressive environment, low-quality materials and structures used during construction. Restoring normative operational characteristics, increasing the durability of sewage tunnels is a costly and technically complex task, the solution of which is urgently needed to prevent accidents, including those with serious environmental consequences. Existing modern technologies of work performance, materials and structures used for repair and restoration works with different efficiency solve these problems, at the same time, the need to reduce costs for repair and restoration works requires the search for cost-effective materials, structures and methods of work performance. The analysis of the conducted studies shows that the problem of increasing the durability of sewage network structures should be solved comprehensively, taking into account the current situation.

Modeling of fuel combustion processes in a steam boiler when replacing standard burners

To date, most of Ukraine's thermal power equipment has exhausted its factory resource and is physically and morally obsolete. One of the ways to solve this problem is to modernize it with the introduction of modern fuel-using equipment. The decisive direction in this situation is the focus on domestic technologies, which differ from imported counterparts due to better adaptability to domestic equipment, as well as a more favorable price policy for domestic manufacturers. The presented work was carried out in order to check the feasibility of replacing standard burners with burners built on the basis of jet-niche technology in power boilers, for example, such as the GМ-50 (Е-50-3,9-440GМ) steam boiler. For this, a computer model of a steam boiler and regular burners was developed. The research was carried out using the ANSYS Student software package. The application of the numerical modeling method using the ANSYS Student software complex made it possible to perform a detailed analysis of the fuel combustion process in a steam boiler, evaluate its efficiency and study the impact on environmental indicators. The object of the research was the processes that take place during the combustion of gaseous fuel and their influence on the performance indicators of the GМ-50 power boiler. The subject of the study was a CFD fuel model of the GМ-50 boiler, whose regular burners are capable of working on both liquid and gaseous fuel. Methane was used as fuel. Both regular axial burners and burners built on the basis of jet-niche technology, which are more environmentally friendly, were used as burners. Verification of the CFD model, which took place using a known analytical technique, shows that the discrepancy between the values of analytical calculations and model calculations does not exceed 6.7 %. The average temperature of flue gases in the festoon window was selected as a comparison parameter. The temperature value of 1117 С was obtained analytically. Calculation using the CFD model developed in the ANSYS-CFX environment shows that the temperature value should be 1042 С. It was determined that regular burners are less environmentally friendly than, for example, modern jet-niche ones. So, for the coefficient of excess air  = 1.2, the average value of nitrogen oxides at the fuel outlet is 187 ppm. It makes sense to replace standard burners, for example, with jet-niche ones, which are most suitable for replacing standard ones.

Microbiological indicators of early Holocene near-terrace soil in the valley of the Mzymta River on the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus

By the example of studying the Early Holocene paleoalluvial soil (ancient man's site in Akhtsu Grotto, an overflow terrace of the middle reaches of the Mzymta River, Sochi Black Sea region), the efficiency of using a set of microbiological methods revealing the conditions of formation of the ancient paleoobject and the genesis of the geomorphology of the river valley was shown. The study of morphology and mesomorphology of the palaeo-soil allowed to assume its possible formation under the conditions significantly more hydromorphic in comparison with the modern ones. It is probable that earlier, at the beginning of the Holocene, this area was not a terrace, but a near-terrace, over-watered part of the river floodplain. Microbiological characteristics confirmed this assumption. The composition of the microbial community was identified from the isolated soil DNA of prokaryotic microorganisms (bacteria and archaea) by DNA metabarcoding. Groups and species of microorganisms-indicators reflecting the specificity of genesis of the studied soils were identified. Microbiological indicators of overwatered conditions were representatives of the phylum Planctomycetes of Phycisphaerae and Planctomycetia classes dominant in the microbiome (more than 1% of total DNA) and cyanobacteria of Chloroplast class of Streptophyta, Stramenopiles and Pseudanabaenale orders, as well as archaea (0.5% of total DNA) of Euryarchaeota phylum; Thermoplasmata class; Methanomassiliicoccaceae family, capable of methanogenesis. This species was not found in the microbial complex of the modern background soil. Indicator microorganisms identified as part of the prokaryotic community of palaeo-soils may potentially have useful applicable properties.

Theodor Billroth: The Pioneer Gastrectomy Surgeon and His Contributions to the Evolution of General Surgery.

Christian Albert Theodor Billroth, born in Rügen on April 26, 1829, is considered a pioneer of gastrectomy. Billroth entered the history of general surgery with his two famous methods of gastric resection. In his time, the diagnosis of stomach cancer was often extremely late because it was based exclusively on anamnesis and palpation and X-rays had not yet been discovered. This review aims to describe the history of a master of surgery such as Billroth, highlighting his attempts to develop gastrectomy techniques for the first time, which then influenced modern ones.

Prospects for mineral biofortification of wheat: classical breeding and agronomy.

Low intake of micro- and macroelements and vitamins in food negatively affects the health of more than two billion people around the world provoking chronic diseases. For the majority of the world's population, these are soft and durum wheats that provide beneficial nutrients, however their modern high-yielding varieties have a significantly depleted grain mineral composition that have reduced mineral intake through food. Biofortification is a new research trend, whose main goal is to improve the nutritional qualities of agricultural crops using a set of classical (hybridization and selection) methods as well and the modern ones employing gene/QTL mapping, bioinformatic analysis, transgenesis, mutagenesis and genome editing. Using the classical breeding methods, biofortified varieties have been bred as a part of various international programs funded by HarvestPlus, CIMMYT, ICARDA. Despite the promise of transgenesis and genome editing, these labor-intensive methods require significant investments, so these technologies, when applied to wheat, are still at the development stage and cannot be applied routinely. In recent years, the interest in wheat biofortification has increased due to the advances in mapping genes and QTLs for agronomically important traits. The new markers obtained from wheat genome sequencing and application of bioinformatic methods (GWAS, meta-QTL analysis) has expanded our knowledge on the traits that determine the grain mineral concentration and has identified the key gene candidates. This review describes the current research on genetic biofortification of wheat in the world and in Russia and provides information on the use of cultivated and wild-relative germplasms to expand the genetic diversity of modern wheat varieties.

Superconductors Molecular Effect Model Fundamentals and Review of Isotope Effect with 3D Graphical- Mathematical Interior Optimization

At previous Conference Proceedings, a contribution with computational advances and the review of superconductors (SC) Isotope Effect and Molecular Effect Model (MEM) were presented. That comprised Type I and Type II superconductors materials, both classical and modern ones. 2D/3D Interior Optimization is applied here for further sharper results with numerical dataset in Type II high- temperature superconductors (HTSC). Future challenges in superconducting lines are explained as an author’s proposal, and compared to literature ones. Improved-software results confirm the previous results obtained. A compilation and extension, both in mathematical methods and new results in 3D Graphical and Interior Optimization from the Proceedings presentation is shown and proven. Additionally, a number of previous publications results in this field are included. Applications in Electronics Physics Superconductors modelling are briefed.

The genetic link between anxiety and libido: libido as an anxiety conversion

Psychoanalysis in the study of the human psyche considers all processes in the psychodynamic paradigm. The term "psychodynamics" first appeared in the works of Freud. From the information given by Freud deduces the definition: psychodynamics is the mutual influence of unconscious (id, BSZ) and conscious (ego) processes in which BSZ is of priority importance [14]. The psychodynamic approach made it possible to reveal the economic features of mental processes. Psychic economism describes how psychic energy is involved in the processes of production/reproduction, distribution, transition and qualitative and quantitative changes. When describing psychodynamics and the economy of Freud focused on libido as the only psychic energy that can be invested in an object in a direct and sublimated form, and manifest itself in models of attraction or conversion, in symptoms. However, the study of mental processes in patients with borderline personality organization of psychogenic etiology with the help of hypnopsychoanalysis allowed us to change the view of libido as the primary and central mental energy. According to the data of psychocorrective work, we came to the conclusion that anxiety is a pre-libidinal energy that is first experienced by a child at the moment of birth and in the process of ontogenesis is able to convert into libido. This leads to the conclusion that libido is the result of the conversion of anxiety, or, in other words, the reactive formation of anxiety. For the first time, an attempt to give anxiety a basal status was made by Karen Horney [20]. However, her work describes the phenomenological aspects of anxiety. We find a broad study of anxiety in a phenomenological way both in early authors, among whom R. May is particularly noted [8], and in modern ones [5], [3], [7]. In turn, the report examines the economic aspect of anxiety in the psychodynamic approach, its genetic relationship with libido, and the ability of anxiety to convert into libido. The research methodology is based on the following: - analysis of sources that highlight the problem of anxiety; - philosophical justification of the singular and plural; - data obtained as a result of psychocorrective work using psychodynamic hypnotherapy

Comparative analysis of modern methods for calculating product costs

The article is devoted to the analysis of methods for calculating the cost of production at an industrial enterprise. It is noted that when choosing the appropriate calculation method, along with general principles, one should take into account the specifics of the production and economic activities of each specific enterprise. For this purpose, both well–known and well–proven calculation methods, as well as modern ones used in international practice, such as «target costing» and «kaizen costing» are considered. A comparative analysis of the considered traditional and modern methods, systematized in tabular form, is provided. The advantages, disadvantages, and possible results of using each method are noted. A description of these methods is provided. Using the example of a shipbuilding enterprise, directions for improving the applied calculation methods by using the advantages of the considered methods are substantiated.

Anthology of Administrative Discretion

The article analyzes scientific works that had a significant influence on the genesis and evolution of the theory of administrative discretion: “The Spirit of Law” by Charles Montesquieu (1748), “Introduction to the Study of the Law of the Constitution” by Albert Dicey (1885) and “Public Administration and the Public Interest” by E. Pendleton Herring (1936). It is shown that initially administrative discretion was understood as reasonable (rational) activity of executive authorities and their officials, then administrative discretion began to be opposed to law as such, and recently it is increasingly interpreted as creative activity of the government in the framework of anticipatory discretionary regulation. Special attention is paid to the continuity and expansion of the above ideas, their development in the concepts of other researchers, including modern ones, as well as their criticism. The conclusion is made that these ideas should be taken into account in the formationof the Russian theory of administrative discretion.

Значимость теории социокодов М.К. Петрова для анализа явлений архаизации

Archaization is understood as following cultural patterns and programs developed in cultures that preceded modern ones. Archaization can be difficult to recognize, since it manifests itself together with more or less modern development trends, may accompany some of its achievements, positive results, when previous experience proves useful. But with the increasing complexity of society, the conditions of its existence and development, and their rapid changes, archaism rather becomes an obstacle in understanding emerging problems and finding effective ways to solve them. The recognition of archaization can be helped by identifying the characteristics of the cultures types corresponding to the three M.K. Petrov&amp;#x27;s social codes. The dominance of the social code by professions names in the social reality understanding in a particular social community or in a whole society may indicate their archaization.

Methods and Algorithms for Searching Similarities between Texts

The review of the analytical article is a comprehensive study of text analysis modern methods in order to identify and measure the degree of their similarity, which itself is a very important and relevant task, since it examines and analyzes the tools used to solve it. The introduction discusses the purpose of this work, the relevance of the problem, and the importance of developing effective methods for comparing texts. The main part of the article examines and analyzes such methods as “jaccard similarity”, “shingle algorithm”, “levenshtein distance”, “tf-idf” and “bm25”, “bert” and the use of neural networksseparately. The application of a particular method is illustrated by examples presented in tabular form and illustrations. When considering and analyzing the “jaccard similarity”, the methods of its application and limitations are considered. When analyzing the “shingles algorithm”, the advantages of the method in the context of similarity search are revealed. The publication discusses methods based on line spacingin detail, including levenshtein distance. In this case, special attention is paid to the scope of its application and its advantages over other methods. By reviewing statistical methods such as 'tf-idf' and 'bm25', theanalysis of their application and effectiveness in text similaritysearching is given. The article is not limited by analyzing only traditional methods, but it also covers modern ones, including 'bert' and the use of neural networks. These methods are compared with each other, their advantages and disadvantages of use are identified. The conclusion section provides a comparative analysis of all presented methods based on the principle of objectivity, highlighting their characteristics and areas of application. The importance of choosing the most appropriate method for text similaritysearching is noted, depending on the specific search goals, tasks and requirements, and a conclusion is given about the most used, vast and productive method i.e. The use of neural networks. The conclusions emphasize that the article, devoted to a comparative analysis of various methods for similarity searching between texts, has the main goal of developing recommendations to choose the optimal method.

ISOSCAPES AND PALEOISOTHERMS OF THE HOLOCENE MEAN JANUARY AIR TEMPERATURE IN THE NORTHWESTERN SIBERIA (BASED ON STABLE OXYGEN ISOTOPE COMPOSITION OF ICE WEDGES)

Holocene ice wedges at 16 sites in the Northwestern Siberia were studied, the age of ice wedges was determined, and stable isotope data ( 18O and 2Н values) for all studied ice wedges have been summarized. The δ2H-δ18O ratio and the dexc values for ice wedge ice indicate good preservation of the isotope signal of winter precipitation in ice, which allows to use the obtained δ18O values for paleotemperature reconstructions. The isoscapes (lines of equal 18O values) created for the Holocene ice wedges and modern ice veinlets are generally submeridional; the 18O values decrease from west to east of the study area. Taking into account a new Holocene tripartite division scheme it was shown that the mean January air temperature (TmJ) in the Northwestern Siberia ranged approximately from -21 to -30°С during Greenlandian and the first half of the Northgrippian stage of the Holocene (11,4 to 6 cal ka BP) and approximately from -24 to -27°С from the end of the Northgrippian - to the Meghalayan stage of the Holocene (5,2 to 0,9 cal ka BP). The Holocene isotherms are close to the modern sub-meridional position and show an eastward decrease in TmJ values. Winter climatic conditions in the Northwestern Siberia were generally stable during the Holocene, meanwhile TmJ was on average 1-2°C lower than modern ones.

Fighting Windmills: Quixotism and Old/New Issues Facing Humankind

The most recent reimagining of Miguel de Cervantes’s Don Quixote (1605) —Salman Rushdie’s Quichotte (2019)— represents the volatile identities in American society under the conditions of blurring a line between fact and fiction. Exploring quixotism as the conflict of idealism vs realism elucidates the idea of humans who fight with the windmills in their heads. Against the background of this conflict, topical concerns are vividly highlighted to remain constant throughout the centuries, considering specific historical and sociocultural circumstances. The impact of this binary opposition on the worldview of the people of that time and the modern ones, created by Cervantes and Rushdie correspondingly, is a primary focus of the article. Both novels share a symbolic reflection of the world through the distinct aesthetics of a work of fiction that moves them beyond metafictional narration. A comparative study of the diachronically different stories emphasises a similarity of the strong questions raised about the societies whose ideals quixotes reflect.

Renovation with height increasing of residential buildings of the 1960s made of precast concrete

For many years, an urgent problemin Ukraine is a technical renovation of the existing housing stock of mass-series buildings. Most of them were built with precast concrete elements inthe 1960s–1970s. The design lifecycle of such buildings was determined for 25 years. Therefore they have obsolescence and backwardness. That expressed in inconformity with modern design codes for residential buildings, the absence of elevators, the unavailability of engineering communications, low heat and energy efficiency and environmental compatibility of such buildings. On the other hand, the technical examinations of concrete structures of such houses showed that at least 80 % of them havenot depleted their bearing capacity resource. The problem of buildings renovation was especially emphasized by the destructive consequences of theRussian federation armed aggression in Ukraine. The paper describes the experience of renovation with reconstruction of the old 5-storey residential building into modern 9-storey multi-apartment residential building. Construction works included redevelopment of the interior space, elevator installation, and replacement of the utilities by the modern ones and using of up-to-date technologies to improve the energy efficiency of the building. The project provides increasing the number of stories.

Stable isotope revealed hydroclimate transition and topography growth in the Northern Tibetan Plateau at ∼ 10 Ma

The Middle to Late Miocene uplift of the northern Tibetan Plateau had been revealed in a large amount of studies, however, its effects on hydrological and climatic evolution in Asia remains unclear due to the lack of well dated direct hydrological records in this region. Here, we report a carbonate oxygen isotope record (δ18Oc) from the western Qaidam Basin, and compare it with the δ18Oc records of five different basins in the Northern Tibetan Plateau. These data reconstruct the hydroclimatic evolution in this region and show a divergence of δ18Oc variation pattern in different basins at ∼11.5–8.5 Ma, which is different with a consistent evolution pattern of them before and after this time interval. This divergence is characterized by a significant decrease of δ18Oc in the windward locations while an increase in the leeward locations. This δ18Oc divergence was decoupling with the concurrent stable global climate, but consistent with the contemporaneous uplift of the northern Tibetan plateau. This suggests a possible link between δ18Oc divergence and topographic growth, which is further supported by a ∼ 1000 m paleoelevation increase revealed by our δ18Oc paleoelevation reconstruction. We suggest that the topography growth of the northern Tibetan Plateau especially the surrounding mountains would have facilitated water vapor transport to the windward regions, resulting in isotopic depletion in the water vapor masses. Whilst, a blocking of water vapor masses would induce aridity and increased evaporation in the leeward slopes, thus enriching heavy isotopes in precipitation there. This study corroborates the extensive uplift of the Northern Tibetan Plateau during ∼11.5–8.5 Ma from an isotopic perspective. A comparison of the obtained δ18Oc records with modern ones further suggests an establishment of modern hydroclimatic patterns in northern Tibetan Plateau at ∼8.5 Ma.