Movement In Environment Research Articles

The Pendulum Movement of Conflict, Gender, Environment, and Peacebuilding

The beginning of 2023 brought pendular news on conflict and peacebuilding, the subject of the dossier of the Calarma Journal Number 2. On the one end, the war between Ukraine and Russia, one of the most Global since World War II, commemorates a year of confrontation with 300,000 military and 18,000 civilian deaths (Maguey, 2023) caused by the bombings and the clash of the infantry between the sides in contention. Moreover, this is one of the 32 active conflicts disclosed by the Escola de Cultura de Pau of the Autonomous University of Barcelona in its 2021 report on conflicts, human rights, and peacebuilding (Navarro et al., 2022). It already reported the confrontation between the pro-Russian separatist militias in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions supported by Russia and the State Armed Forces under the new pro-European authorities, which hinted at where it was going to escalate, that is, to the war that the media show today.

Women and planetary health in Asia-Pacific

In the face of climate change, women's preconceived vulnerability and virtuousness often deflect focus from gender inequality in decision-making and leadership. Within environmental, political, and social crises, women are capable and proficient leaders who are pivotal to climate change action and are already inspiring social change in innovative ways. This article presents examples of women-led environment movements in the Asia-Pacific that challenge the patriarchal notions that women must be rescued rather than actively participate in their salvation. Historically, strategies have been centered on eco-conscious activism and organized protests. As climate change effects become more evident, engagement has transformed into emergency response and preparedness, with women's groups shepherding and leveraging through healthcare settings and grassroots and community networks. The way forward is to urge meaningful policy actions to support women as effective planetary stewards and campaigners against environmental challenges. This will be achieved through funding mechanisms, gender-inclusive representation mentorships, and pathways that transcend political boundaries.

Unraveling on kinesin acceleration in intracellular environments: A theory for active bath

A single-molecular motor kinesin harnesses thermal and nonthermal fluctuations to transport various cargoes along microtubules, converting chemical energy to directed movements. To describe the nonthermal fluctuations generated by the complex environment in living cells, we propose a bottom-up model which combines a Markov model of the kinesin and a mean-field model for the active bath, to mimic the kinesin movements in the intracellular environment. Simulations of the model system show that the kinesin and the probe attached to it are accelerated by such active bath. Further, we provide a theoretical insight into the simulation result by deriving a generalized Langevin equation (GLE) for the probe with a mean-field method, wherein an effective friction kernel and fluctuating noise terms are obtained explicitly. Numerical solutions of the GLE show very good agreement with simulation results. We sample such noises, calculate their variances and non-Gaussian parameters, and reveal that the dominant contribution to probe acceleration is attributed to noise variance.

ACTION AFFORDANCE AFFECTS PROXIMAL AND DISTAL GOAL-ORIENTED PLANNING.

Visual attention is mainly goal-directed and allocated based on the upcoming action. However, it is unclear how far this feature of gaze behavior generalizes in more naturalistic settings. The present study investigates the influence of action affordances on active inference processes revealed by eye movements during interaction with familiar and novel tools. In a between-subject design, a cohort of participants interacted with a VR controller in a low-realism environment; another performed the task with an interaction setup that allowed differentiated hand and finger movements in a high-realism environment. We investigated the differences in odds of fixations and their eccentricity towards the tool parts before action initiation. The results show that participants fixate more on the tool's effector part before action initiation when asked to produce tool-specific movements, especially with unfamiliar tools. These findings suggest that fixations are made in a task-oriented way to plan the distal goals of producing the task and tool-specific actions well before action initiation. Moreover, with more realistic action affordance, fixations were biased toward the tool handle when it was oriented incongruent with the subjects' handedness. We hypothesize that these fixations are made towards the proximal goal of planning the grasp even though the perceived action on the tools is identical for both experimental setups. Taken together, proximal and distal goal-oriented planning is contextualized to the realism of action/interaction afforded by an environment.

Impact of Social Movements on Social Change

Purpose: The study sought to investigate the impact of social movements on social change.
 Methodology: The study adopted a desktop methodology. Desk research refers to secondary data or that which can be collected without fieldwork. Desk research is basically involved in collecting data from existing resources hence it is often considered a low cost technique as compared to field research, as the main cost is involved in executive’s time, telephone charges and directories. Thus, the study relied on already published studies, reports and statistics. This secondary data was easily accessed through the online journals and library.
 Findings: The study concluded that the society is not a static element. It is a complex system of movements and counter movements pulling it in different directions. When this tussle is finally in favor of the movement, it becomes part of the social structure. A successful movement may become a part of the social order such as a trade union movement or save environment movement. The movement may disappear after achieving its goal.
 Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: The study was informed by relative deprivation theory, the strain theory and the theory of revitalization. The study recommended that, successful movements must define their goals clearly and target the institutions that have the power to make the changes they are demanding. Moreover successful movements should act in a political environment in which they have leverage to demand systemic change.

Investigating pedestrian behaviour in urban environments: A Wi-Fi tracking and machine learning approach

Urban geometry plays a critical role in determining paths for pedestrian flow in urban areas. To improve the urban planning processes and to enhance quality of life for end-users in urban spaces, a better understanding of the factors influencing pedestrian movement is required by decision-makers within the urban design and planning industry. The aim of this study is to present a novel means to assess pedestrian routing in urban environments. As a unique contribution to knowledge and practice, this study: (a) enhances the body of knowledge by developing a conceptual model to assess and classify pedestrian movement behaviours, utilising machine learning algorithms and location data in conjunction with spatial attributes, and (b) extends previous research by revealing spatial visibility as a driver for pedestrian movement in urban environments. The importance of the findings lies in the perspective of revealing novel insights concerning individual preferences and behaviours of end-users and the utilisation of urban spaces. The approaches developed can be utilised for observations in large-scale contexts, as an addition to traditional methods. Application of the model in a high pedestrian traffic-dense retail urban area in London reveals clear and consistent relationships amongst spatial visibility, individuals’ motivation, and knowledge of the area. Key behaviours established in the study area are grouped into two activity categories: (i) Utilitarian walking (with motivation - expert and novice striders) and (ii) Leisure walking (no motivation - expert and novice strollers). The approach offers an insightful and automated means to understand pedestrian flow in urban contexts and informs wider wayfinding, walkability, and transportation knowledge.

YOLO Based Real Time Human Detection Using Deep Learning

Person identification which has been widely used in computer vision and one of the difficult applications employed in a variety of fields such autonomous vehicles, robots, security tracking, aiding visually impaired people, etc. As deep learning quickly developed, numerous algorithms strengthened the link between video analysis and visual comprehension. The goal of all these algorithms, regardless of how their network architectures operate, is to find many people inside a complicated image. The freedom of movement in an unknown environment is restricted by the absence of vision impairment, thus it is crucial to use modern technologies and teach them to assist blind people whenever necessary. We provide a system that will identify all potential daily multiple people and then prompt a voice to inform the user about both nearby and distant people.

Multilocus, Multiplex Detection of Ganoderma zonatum from Environmental Samples.

Ganoderma butt rot of palms is caused by a white rot basidiomycete fungus, Ganoderma zonatum. Typical symptoms include wilting of fronds that starts in the lower canopy and moves to the top. As wilting symptoms are also associated with other diseases and disorders, appearance of basidiomata on the trunks is necessary to confirm this disease. Basidiomata develop late in the disease cycle, making early diagnostics challenging. Here, we describe a DNA-based molecular diagnostic assay that could be used to confirm the presence of G. zonatum in palm trunks before conks are observed. Primers tailored to end on single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), that differentiate G. zonatum from 14 other Ganoderma taxa, were designed from multiple regions in four genes: internal transcribed spacer (ITS), RNA polymerase 1 (rpb1), rpb2, and translation elongation factor 1-α (tef1-α). A set of three primer pairs could successfully determine the incidence of G. zonatum with high specificity and sensitivity in different environmental samples such as sawdust collected from naturally infected palm trunks and soil samples containing G. zonatum basidiospores. This rapid PCR-based assay could potentially be used to detect inoculum sources of the fungus and track its movement and survival in different palm tissues and environments. Early detection of G. zonatum is a crucial step toward building and implementing better disease management strategies and mitigating potential risks from palm failures due to decay.

Honorary Lifetime Membership Award: Ellen D. Ketterson.

Honorary Lifetime Membership Award: Ellen D. Ketterson.

Thermal‐Triggered “On–Off” Switchable Triboelectric Nanogenerator Based on Two‐Way Shape Memory Polymer

AbstractDeveloping multifunctional triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) with special intelligence is of great significance for next‐generation self‐powered electronic devices. However, the relevant work on the intelligent TENGs, especially those spontaneously responsive to external stimuli, is rarely reported. Herein, an intelligent TENG with thermal‐triggered switchable functionality and high triboelectric outputs is developed by designing a movable triboelectric layer, which is driven by a two‐way shape memory polyurethane. The resultant TENG device can be spontaneously switched on/off in response to the environmental temperature change, i.e., switching on at 0 °C and off at 60 °C. At the “on” state, the developed TENG exhibits excellent triboelectric performance with a maximum output power density of 5.15 W m−2 at a pressure of 30 kPa due to the unique advantages of micro‐/nanofiber triboelectric surfaces. Furthermore, the great potential of the switchable TENG in intelligent wearable electronic applications is demonstrated, which can serve as not only the sensing element for monitoring human movement and physical condition in a cold environment but also the thermal‐driven switch for turning on/off the heating function on demand. The intelligent “on–off” switchable TENG combined with excellent triboelectric performance may provide new opportunities for future self‐powered wearable electronics.

Importance of Foot and Leg Structure for Beef Cattle in Forage-Based Production Systems.

Understanding the relationship of foot angle and claw set to beef cattle structural soundness will be critical to the selection of animals that fit forage-based production systems. In an effort to address concerns about foot and leg structure, the American Angus Association's foot angle and foot claw set expected progeny differences (EPD) were developed in 2019. As a result, these relatively new EPD and associated guidelines have limited phenotypic data submitted thus far. While ample research has evaluated lameness and foot issues in the dairy breeds, less is known about the factors that affect foot structure in beef cattle. This review focuses on beef cattle foot and leg structure, selection factors that may have led to increased problems with feet and legs, and the importance of foot and leg structure in forage-based grazing production systems. Specifically, the importance of locomotion and freedom of movement in extensive rangeland environments is discussed relative to the current literature. In addition, environmental factors that may influence foot and leg structure are addressed as well as heritability of various aspects of foot and leg traits. Where possible, information gaps and research needs are identified to enhance further investigation and the improvement of foot and leg selection tools.

Establishing conversational engagement and being effective: The role of body movement in mediated communication

A model for investigating the effects of body movement on conversational effectiveness in computer-mediated communication (CMC) is developed based on theories of motor cognition and embodiment. Movement is relevant to a wide range of CMC settings, including remote interviews, court testimonials, instructing, medical consultation, and socializing. The present work allows for a consideration of different forms of motoric activation, including gesturing and full-body motion, in mediated conversational settings and the derivation of a range of testable hypothesis. Motor cognition and embodiment provide an account of how speaker and listener become subject to the consequences of the muscular activation patterns that come with body movement. While movement supports internal elaboration, thus helping the speaker in formulating messages, it also has direct effects on the listener through behavioral synchrony and motor contagion. The effects of movement in CMC environments depend on two general characteristics: the level of visibility of movement and the extent to which the technology facilitates or inhibits movement. Available channels, set-up of technology, and further customization therefore determine whether movement can fulfil its internal functions (relevant to cognitive-affective elaboration of what is being said by the speaker) and its external functions (relevant to what is being perceived by and activated within the listener). Several indicators of conversational effectiveness are identified that serve as outcome variables. This MCEE model is intended to help users, developers and service provides to make CMC more engaging and more meaningful.

Cooperative driving of heterogeneous uncertain nonlinear connected and autonomous vehicles via distributed switching robust PID-like control

In this work, the leading-tracking control problem for heterogeneous and uncertain nonlinear autonomous vehicles is addressed. These latter communicate their status information over a wireless communication network and engage in cooperative movements in extra-urban traffic environment. The nonlinear vehicle dynamics are affected by time-varying parameter uncertainties, and the air-drag reduction caused by platooning is explicitly considered. The variation of V2V links as a result of cooperative manoeuvres is modelled by incorporating switching into the communication network topology. To this aim, we develop a novel robust distributed Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID)-like control protocol which ensures that all vehicles within the platoon robustly track the behaviour of the leader, despite the presence of both unknown parameters uncertainties and network switching. The analytical stability of the proposed control strategy is demonstrated using Lyapunov theory. Sufficient stability conditions are expressed as a set of feasible Linear Matrix Inequalities (LMIs) whose solution allows the robust control gains to be properly tuned. The effectiveness of the approach is evaluated via the Mixed Traffic Simulator (MiTraS) co-simulation platform, which combines MATLAB/Simulink with SUMO microscopic traffic simulator. The exhaustive simulation analysis, involving the Monte Carlo method, is carried out considering different cooperative platooning manoeuvres, and confirms the theoretical derivation.

Brightness Perception in World-Centered Coordinates Assessed by Pupillometry.

Subjective brightness perception reportedly differs among the peripheral visual fields owing to lower- and higher-order cognition. However, there is still a lack of information associated with subjective brightness perception in the world-centered coordinates, not in the visual fields. In this study, we aimed to investigate the anisotropy of subjective brightness perception in the world-centered coordinates based on pupillary responses to the stimuli in five locations by manipulating the world-centered coordinates through active (requiring head movement) and passive scenes (without head movement) in a virtual reality environment. Specifically, this study aimed to elucidate if there is an ecological advantage in the five different locations in the world-centered coordinates. The pupillary responses to glare and halo stimuli indicated that the brightness perception differed among the five locations in the world-centered coordinates. Furthermore, we found that the pupillary response to stimuli at the top location might be influenced by ecological factors (such as from the bright sky and the sun's existence). Thus, we have contributed to the understanding of the extraretinal information influence on subjective brightness perception in the world-centered coordinates, demonstrating that the pupillary response is independent of head movement.

"РУССКАЯ КОЛЛЕКЦИЯ" ЦЕНТРА ГУМАНИТАРНЫХ ИССЛЕДОВАНИЙ ИМЕНИ ГЭРРИ РЭНСОМА ТЕХАССКОГО ГОСУДАРСТВЕННОГО УНИВЕРСИТЕТА В ОСТИНЕ

The article presents the information about the documents on the history of Russia stored at the Humanities Research Center at Texas State University at Austin (USA). The Harry Ransom Center for humanitarian studies owns an extensive collection of the documents received from individuals (free of charge or on a reimbursable basis) in the form of collections, funds, scattered documents, books, art objects from across Europe and America. The archive accepts for keeping not only the documents, but also the works of fund-makers. Visitors to the archive have an opportunity to conduct research in various fields of humanitarian knowledge: from the English dramatic poetry of the 17th century to the works of modern African novelists, from the modern French musical compositions to the Italian poetry of the 13th century. The Humanities Research Center has also collected a set of documents on Russian history, literature, music, and painting. The information on the history of Russia is contained in the diaries, letters, memoirs of Russian emigrants and American citizens. The most extensive part of the collection consists of the letters discussing the organization of political movements in the emigration environment, the issues of everyday life, the matters connected with moving from Europe to the United States. The documentary complex also includes the sketches of theatrical costumes and scenery, music score manuscripts, the photographs of the Russian artists, composers, actors who left Soviet Russia in 1918–1925. The chronological framework of the documentary complex covers the period from the First World War to the beginning of the Thaw period.

The 'Poporală' Paper, Libertatea , and the Shaping of the Antisemitic and Extreme Right Peasant Mind in Greater Romania (1919–1925)

By analysing the discourse of the newspaper Libertatea, this article offers the first study dedicated to the role played by the 'poporală' press in promoting antisemitism and extreme right movements in the rural environment of interwar Romania. Between 1919 and 1925, Libertatea constructed a so-called Jewish problem specific to the Romanian context and promoted parties or political movements that promised to save Romania from a perceived Jewish threat. Special attention was paid to the antisemitic student movements and their leaders, Corneliu Zelea Codrenu and Ion I. Moța, and in this way, Libertatea contributed to the preparation for the later reception of the Legion of the 'Archangel Michael' and the messianic-political figure of C. Z. Codreanu in the Romanian countryside.

Path guidance & emergency helping system via Radio Frequency (RF) concepts

This project proposes an area detection system using Radio Frequency (RF) technology to monitor forest areas for illegal logging or encroachment activities. The system consists of a network of RF sensors deployed throughout the forest to detect any movement or changes in the forest's environment. The data collected by the sensors is transmitted wirelessly to a central monitoring station, where it is analyzed using machine learning algorithms. The proposed system aims to provide an effective and efficient solution for monitoring forest areas and preventing illegal activities that may damage the environment

Modeling the behavior of a mobile robot using genetic algorithms in harsh ecological environment

The article is devoted to the analysis of the behavior of a mobile robot using finite state machine algorithms in order to find a path to a goal and avoid obstacles. After justifying the use of such methods, a standard deterministic finite state machine is analyzed. Next, a theory of Markov chain is applied to this algorithm, as a result of which the finite state machine becomes part of the hidden Markov model. This makes it possible to apply probabilistic methods to planning the robot's behavior. This probabilistic nature of behavior is most promising in harsh ecological environment with unpredictable configurations of obstacles. To compare the efficiency of deterministic and probabilistic finite state machines, we applied a genetic algorithm. In the numerical experiment that we conducted in the Scilab environment, we considered two main types of environments in which a mobile robot can move, in harsh ecological environment, in particular. For each type of environment, we alternately applied each of the specified behavior algorithms. For the genetic algorithm, we used one hundred individuals, which were trained over 1000 generations to find the most optimal path in the complicated environments. As a result, it was found that the deterministic finite state machine algorithm is most promising for movement in the harsh ecological environment, and the probabilistic finite state machine algorithm gives the best result in a complex environment.

“Dances of employees” as a phenomenon of media urban discourse in chinese cities

Modern linguistics is looking for new approaches to developing issues of urban space practices. Particular attention is paid to the semiotics of space and the potential for the representation of cultural meanings in nonverbal communication, nonverbal behavior of residents of urban space, and the representation of culture in the movement of the urban environment. This article examines the features of dance as an element of the urban media discourse of a Chinese city. The modern movement of media urban studies treats the city as a complex communication system, as a “text” in the broadest sense of the word, and media urban discourse finds its implementation in various forms, from verbal to olfactory. Therefore, to study the sociocultural component of the urban environment, as well as to analyze communication strategies with the addressee (local resident or city guest), it seems possible to consider the city as a combination of words, images, sounds, smells and movements. In our study, we aim to consider dance as a unique communicative pattern of the Chinese city, since in no other culture is dance in an urban environment represented by such a significant number of dance practices. According to the study, dance is a transformative phenomenon that visualizes culture and modern communications. For the first time, an analysis of such a phenomenon of a Chinese city as employee dances (员工在门前跳舞) is carried out. The results of the study show that the culture of dance, being a unique layer of the national culture of China, has been modified over the centuries, and its importance has increased. Dance is seen as a way to achieve harmony with one's body, with society and the сolleagues. Moreover, against the backdrop of the development of a technogenic society and the creation of an urbanized environment, dances in China are becoming transmitters of national, social, and corporate values.

Christmas Mass Movements in the Italian Alps

Mass movements at high elevation during wintertime are rare events in the Italian Alps, but are generally large events compared to those occurring in other seasons. In a context of climate change, their interpretation is particularly challenging due to the risk implications during a highly tourist season in the mountains, and because their occurrence seemingly contradicts the attribution of recent mass movements in high-alpine environments to global warming. To shed some light on this topic, we reviewed 12 mass movements in the Italian Alps that occurred at elevations above 1500 m, documented from mid-December to January, henceforth during the Christmas period. The aim is to understand whether recent events may be related to ongoing climate and environmental changes. Even though the small number of analysed mass movements does not allow statistically based conclusions, some preliminary considerations could be drafted. We observe a seeming increase in the frequency and elevation of winter mass-movement events in the last two decades, with an increased number of failures involving rock slopes under permafrost conditions, and a transition from heavy-precipitations controlled mass movements to temperature-anomalies and -fluctuations controlled mass movements. We also show that any type of instability process can occur in winter, including debris flows, with rock falls/avalanches prevailing. These findings may partly stem from an increased number of mass-movement reports deriving from the growing attention in recent years to the impacts of climate change and their related risks. Considering the growing anthropic pressure on alpine areas even in winter, especially for tourism purposes, it is crucial to broaden our knowledge on winter mass movements by expanding and analysing a larger case history, through the opportunities offered by new technologies and citizen science.