Multiple Fronts Research Articles

Optimizing crop rotations via Parrondo's paradox for sustainable agriculture.

Crop rotation, a sustainable agricultural technique, has been at humanity's disposal since time immemorial and is practised globally. Switching between cover crops and cash crops helps avoid the adverse effects of intensive farming. Determining the optimum cash-cover rotation schedule for maximizing yield has been tackled on multiple fronts by agricultural scientists, economists, biologists and computer scientists, to name a few. However, considering the uncertainty due to diseases, pests, droughts, floods and impending effects of climate change is essential when designing rotation strategies. Analysing this time-tested technique of crop rotations with a new lens of Parrondo's paradox allows us to optimally use the rotation technique in synchrony with uncertainty. While previous approaches are reactive to the diversity of crop types and environmental uncertainties, we make use of the said uncertainties to enhance crop rotation schedules. We calculate optimum switching probabilities in a randomized cropping sequence and suggest optimum deterministic sequences and judicious use of fertilizers. Our methods demonstrate strategies to enhance crop yield and the eventual profit margins for farmers. Conforming to translational biology, we extend Parrondo's paradox, where two losing situations can be combined eventually into a winning scenario, to agriculture.

Under The Law: The legal fight to preserve public education — and democracy

As challenges to U.S. democracy proliferate, public schools have been caught up in the controversies. Columnist Robert Kim explains that the challenges to both public education and democracy are not new. These attacks occur on multiple fronts, involving funding, equity, and curriculum. And efforts to respond to the threats will require various types of legal battles. But the courts alone cannot address the threats of vouchers, censorship, and the diminishment of students’ rights. Broad civic engagement, robust advocacy campaigns, research, and a strong communications effort also are necessary.

Reactions: Showing leadership in the climate crisis, and fighting fentanyl on multiple fronts

Reactions: Showing leadership in the climate crisis, and fighting fentanyl on multiple fronts

Topical Nanotherapeutics for Treating MRSA-Associated Skin and Soft Tissue Infection (SSTIs).

The emergence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) imposes a major challenge for the treatment of infectious diseases with existing antibiotics. MRSA associated with superficial skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs) is one of them, affecting the skin's superficial layers, and it includes impetigo, folliculitis, cellulitis, furuncles, abscesses, surgical site infections, etc. The efficient care of superficial SSTIs caused by MRSA necessitates local administration of antibiotics, because oral antibiotics does not produce the required concentration at the local site. The topical administration of nanocarriers has been emerging in the area of drug delivery due to its advantages over conventional topical formulation. It enhances the solubility and permeation of the antibiotics into deeper layer of the skin. Apart from this, antibiotic resistance is something that needs to be combated on multiple fronts, and antibiotics encapsulated in nanocarriers help to do so by increasing the therapeutic efficacy in a number of different ways. The current review provides an overview of the resistance mechanism in S. aureus as well as various nanocarriers reported for the effective management of MRSA-associated superficial SSTIs.

Prowess and Indigenous Capture: Hinges and Epistemic Propositions in the Prey Lang Forest

ABSTRACT In north-central Cambodia, Indigenous minority communities along with the Prey Lang Forest are rapidly transforming market-independent ecologies toward market-dependent existences. Through this transition, maintaining access to resources, to status and to politically advantageous connections remain the ‘hinges’ around which other epistemic propositions revolve. The prowess required to capture these vital elements of social life directly from the potent forest is not the same as that required in a market-dependent environment. The two worlds of practice are connected in an intimacy that only consumption can create, and as the market eats the forest the stark difference in social organisation emerges as a point of contention on multiple fronts. In this space, ‘Indigenous’ propositions about ‘reality’ gain purchase, even as ‘Indigenous’ economies are at best constrained, but often foreclosed by market relations. This collision prompts new political and economic possibilities and new classifications for contestation. Drawing together ethnographic data and epistemology at the ‘ontological turn’, this paper investigates two classificatory anomalies: Indigenous capital accumulation and a silent earth.

Scope of Technological Intervention in the Sector of Traditional Indian Milk Products Industry for Sustainable Rural Development

The entrepreneurial activities related to the vast sector of traditional Indian milk products and milk sweets effectuate the holistic development module fulfilling the concept of economic viability, technological feasibility, social obligation, cultural necessity and above all ecological balance. Despite robust growth and plenteous milk production, this informal sector of dairy products and sweetmeats is facing unprecedented challenges on multiple fronts. The major identified problems include non-availability of the packaging system, lack of proper handling and processing of raw material and finished products, inconsistent product quality, shortage of modern equipment, and inadequate arrangement of effluent handling. Milk and traditional Indian milk products are extremely perishable. With the ever-increasing cost of production, this sector being vast and unorganized has become increasingly vulnerable and can have far-reaching prejudicial consequences if protective technological measures are not employed at grassroots level. The pressure driven membrane processing system can bring a sea change to this industry from higher yields to a reduction in the cost of handling, storage and transportation. Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP), solar energy and business digitization are ready to open new vistas. The urgent necessity indicates concentrated efforts to pool, evaluate, preserve and motivate traditional practices, knowledge and wisdom coupled with selective uses of modern technological advancement in order to bring paradigm shift and inclusive growth.

A review of the Late Ordovician (Katian) Richmondian Invasion of eastern Laurentia

Biotic Immigration Events in which a group of organisms that originated in one geographic region invade and become established in a new geographic region are common during Earth history. Many such events have been documented from the fossil record and have significantly impacted diversification patterns and processes during the history of life. One of the best studied of these events is the Richmondian Invasion, which constituted several waves of biotic invasion from multiple source regions into the Cincinnati Basin of eastern Laurentia during the Katian Stage. The major features of this invasion were first appreciated during the early 1900s and have received significant study since that time. General patterns of the Richmondian Invasion, including the influx of >60 taxa that span ecological roles and taxonomic groups, differential survival of generalist taxa relative to specialist taxa, and significant restructuring of paleocommunities have been well documented and establish this invasion as a “coordinated invasion” within the Invasion Hierarchy of Stigall et al. (2019). Substantial research to further delineate and clarify the details of the Richmondian Invasion has progressed on multiple fronts over the past two decades. These novel analyses into sedimentology, stratigraphy, and geochemistry coupled with detailed paleoecology, evolutionary, and biogeographic studies provide a framework for increased synthesis and understanding of invasion dynamics during this interval. In this contribution, the current state of knowledge of the Richmondian Invasion is reviewed and some of the key implications for understanding both Ordovician diversification and other intervals of Earth history are examined.

Characterization and modeling of greenwater overtopping of a sea-level deck

Greenwater overtopping occurs when the deck of a marine structure or ship is submerged by a large non-breaking wave. This overtopping wave develops into a fast-moving mass of water that can damage deck structures. In this work we use laboratory experiments to characterize the kinematics of the greenwater fronts, showing that there are two main classes of flow. One class is an essentially two-dimensional flow with a single wave front traversing the entire deck, while the second type has multiple wave fronts originating from all sides of the platform. We characterize each type with respect to wave conditions and describe the transition between the two types. We then discuss two modeling approaches that can be used to simulate the kinematic of the overtopping fronts. A simple linear model, based on linear wave theory and on the assumption of the overtopping as a dam break, to predict the type and the propagation of the overtopping wave on the deck. The second is a three-dimensional nonlinear numerical hydrodynamics model, based on Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics method, which reproduces the geometry of the overtopping in the laboratory more accurately. We compare the outputs of these models with laboratory observations and discuss their applicability.

Acute Traumatic Pain in the Emergency Department.

Trauma is a major cause of mortality throughout the world. Traumatic pain-acute, sudden, or chronic-is defined as "an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage". Patients' perceptions of pain assessment and management have become an important criterion and relevant outcome measure for healthcare institutions. Several studies show that 60-70% of ER patients experience pain, and more than half of them express a feeling of sorrow, which can be moderate or severe, at triage. The few studies that have analyzed how pain is assessed and managed in these departments agree that approximately 70% of patients receive no analgesia or receive it with remarkable delay. Specifically, less than half of the patients receive treatment for pain during admission and 60% of discharged patients have higher intensity pain than at admission. Trauma patients are also the ones who most commonly report low satisfaction with pain management. Associated with this lack of satisfaction, we can describe the poor use of tools for measuring and recording pain, poor communication among caregivers, inadequate training in pain assessment and management, and widespread misconceptions among nurses about the reliability of patients' estimation of pain. The aim of this article is to review the scientific literature to explore the methodologies of pain management in trauma patients attending the emergency room and analyzing their weaknesses as a starting point to improve the approach to this, unfortunately too often, underestimated issue. A literature search was performed using the major databases to identify relevant studies in indexed scientific journals. The literature showed that the multimodal approach in trauma patients is the best approach to pain management. It is becoming increasingly crucial to manage the patient on multiple fronts. Drugs acting on different pathways can be administered together at lower doses, minimizing risks. Every emergency department must have staff trained in the assessment and immediate management of pain symptoms as this allows the reduction of mortality and morbidity and shortens hospital stays, contributing to early mobilization, reduced hospital costs, and enhanced patient satisfaction and quality of life.

Novel 4A Framework for Measuring Outcomes of Technological Implementation in The Healthcare Industry

The healthcare industry is ever-evolving, and advancements in this industry are happening on multiple fronts, i.e. scientific, medical, regulatory etc. This industry has witnessed significant changes concerning technology usage, which has changed the overall complexion. The advent of advanced computing tools, such as AI, ML etc., has significantly augmented the capabilities within the industry and is making this industry future ready. The healthcare industry has been reactive, i.e. it treats individuals after they get the disease; however, with the application of the latest tools, the healthcare industry is becoming more predictive, i.e. it can predict the risk profile. This is the most significant impact advanced tools have brought to this industry. Advanced computing tools are being applied to multiple functions across the industry, such as drug development, patient treatment, diagnosis, insurance reimbursement etc. As there are multitudes of applications projecting different kinds of benefits, it becomes essential that we have a tool or framework which can measure the impact. This study aimed to develop a framework to evaluate the benefits of implementing these advanced computing tools. The primary objective of this technology application should be to impact the primary outcomes, i.e. accessibility, speed and accuracy, patient compliance and affordability. We must have a framework that objectively assesses the impact and provides guidance to all the stakeholders. This paper proposes a novel 4A framework to help all stakeholders assess the effects. The central idea in healthcare is to improve a patient's life. One can do that by making medicines more productive, reducing adverse effects, improving predictability, reducing cost, improving access etc. This paper provides a strategic framework to assess the impact on the suitable parameters. Novel 4A framework measures the effect on these critical parameters, i.e. access, accuracy, affordability and adherence. As this industry touches patient's life, there are multiple concerns and the primary amongst them, especially for the technology applications, are the ones related to legal and ethical. The overall archetype proposed in this research paper takes into account and provides a framework for the impact assessment. The novel 4A framework presented in this article will serve as a tool to evaluate the impact advanced computing tools will have on the healthcare industry.

Polylactic Acid/Poly(vinylpyrrolidone) Co-Electrospun Fibrous Membrane as a Tunable Quercetin Delivery Platform for Diabetic Wounds.

Diabetic wound infections (DWI) represent one of the most costly and disruptive complications in diabetic mellitus. The hyperglycemic state induces a persistent inflammation with immunological and biochemical impairments that promotes delayed wound healing processes and wound infection that often results in extended hospitalization and limb amputations. Currently, the available therapeutic options for the management of DWI are excruciating and expensive. Hence, it is essential to develop and improve DWI-specific therapies able to intervene on multiple fronts. Quercetin (QUE) exhibits excellent anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antimicrobial and wound healing properties, which makes it a promising molecule for the management of diabetic wounds. In the present study, Poly-lactic acid/poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PP) co-electrospun fibers loaded with QUE were developed. The results demonstrated a bimodal diameter distribution with contact angle starting from 120°/127° and go to 0° in less than 5 s indicating the hydrophilic nature of fabricated samples. The release QUE kinetics, analyzed in simulated wound fluid (SWF), revealed a strong initial burst release, followed by a constant and continuous QUE release. Moreover, QUE-loaded membranes present excellent antibiofilm and anti-inflammatory capacity and significantly reduce the gene expression of M1 markers tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, and IL-1β in differentiated macrophages. In conclusion, the results suggested that the prepared mats loaded with QUE could be a hopeful drug-delivery system for the effective treatment of diabetic wound infections.

Exploring gender approach to climate change and agroecology: Women farmer's search for agency in India

Employing the frame of gender and political ecology, this paper analyses the synergies of indigenous knowledge, agroecological farming and local conservation as a sustainable mitigation and adaptation strategy for climate change in Tehri Garhwal in the state of Uttarakhand, India. The study is based on field research conducted between 2017 and 2018 exploring how women's roles in regenerative agriculture provide them with agency. the nature of which has not been explored. While there is a need to mainstream such practices to sustain the commons and women's empowerment through structural, institutional and financial support, it is crucial to analyze the scope of this empowerment. This paper highlights the predicament of women farmers as their ability to exercise agency in the agricultural space does not necessarily translate into overall empowerment or a transformation of existing gender- and caste- based hierarchical power relations in society, as the latter will require interventions along multiple fronts.

What drives the public's use of data? The mediating role of trust in science and data literacy in functional scientific reasoning concerning COVID‐19

AbstractIs public engagement with science deliberative and evidence‐based? The public is often perceived as underprepared to use data and susceptible to partisan and emotional manipulation. Consequently, educational efforts focus on the ability to identify reliable information. We posit that effective engagement with science goes beyond this and hinges on data literacy. We leveraged the unique circumstances of COVID‐19, where diverse people inundated with pandemic‐related data representations in the media needed to make consequential decisions, to examine whether people use data and what factors affect such use. In a survey of a representative Israeli adult sample, participants reported their information habits and beliefs before and during COVID‐19. On being presented with graphs and datasets, they answered data literacy and COVID‐19‐related functional reasoning assessments (e.g., would you travel abroad?). Data literacy distinguished those who incorporated data from those who did not. Yet, participants incorporated moral, social, and economic considerations at all data literacy levels, suggesting that people may be deliberative even when they do not attend to quantified data. Moreover, participants' trust in science and data interpretation competence were key factors mediating the relationship between self‐efficacy in data interpretation skills and the incorporation of data in reasoning. The findings extend beyond COVID‐19 to a broader understanding of the factors influencing public engagement with quantitative representations. Rather than focusing solely on remediating data interpretation, we suggest that educative efforts work on multiple fronts and that cultivating trust in science is key to a broader, more deliberative engagement with science.

Navigating the Convergence of Artificial Intelligence and Space Law: Challenges and Opportunities

The space industry is one of the most technologically advanced industries that aims for scientific explorations that benefit humanity on multiple fronts. Further, Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies comprise game-changing tools that could be utilized to facilitate space exploration aims. The emergence of AI in the space industry would evolve how both industries look. Since many challenges in the current space industry could be addressed by implementing artificial intelligence, space objects will create "Intelligent Space Objects". Different studies were conducted to explore the implementation of AI technologies in space activities and their legal implications. The scope of this paper goes beyond the existing work. It will investigate the main AI applications in space and then explore their legal challenges, including issues related to regulations, liability, and policy questions. Accordingly, it will discuss the need for developing a novel legal framework to address these challenges, creating a strategic opportunity for international collaboration between states and organizations that will contribute to advancing space law. This study will review, evaluate, and analyze the current situation and recommend ways to establish a novel international space organization. Doi: 10.28991/HIJ-2023-04-01-04 Full Text: PDF

Correlations Between Department and Training Program Online Presence and Women in Orthopedic Surgery Training.

Orthopedic residency programs increasingly use websites and social media to reach students. This accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially as away rotations became limited. Women remain a minority of orthopedic residents, and there are no data that indicate the correlation between department/program website content or social media presence on the gender diversity of residency classes. Orthopedic department websites were assessed between June 2021 and January 2022 to identify program director's gender, as well as the gender composition of the faculty and residents. Instagram presence for the department and/or program was also identified. There was no correlation found between the residency program director's gender and the gender diversity of residents in a given program. The percentage of women faculty identified on a department website was significantly correlated with the percentage of women residents in the program, regardless of the program director's gender. While there was an increase in the percentage of women residents among programs with Instagram accounts for the class that started in 2021, this was negated when the percentage of women faculty was taken into account. Efforts on multiple fronts will be needed to increase the number and percentage of women applying for and training in orthopedic surgery. Given the increasing use of digital media, we need a better understanding of what information, including faculty gender diversity, can be conveyed through this format that is useful for women medical students interested in orthopedic surgery to address their concerns about the field.

Stimuli-Responsive Multifunctional Nanomedicine for Enhanced Glioblastoma Chemotherapy Augments Multistage Blood-to-Brain Trafficking and Tumor Targeting.

Minimal therapeutic advances have been achieved over the past two decades for glioblastoma (GBM), which remains an unmet clinical need. Here, hypothesis-driven stimuli-responsive nanoparticles (NPs) for docetaxel (DTX) delivery to GBM are reported, with multifunctional features that circumvent insufficient blood-brain barrier (BBB) trafficking and lack of GBM targeting-two major hurdles for anti-GBM therapies. NPs are dual-surface tailored with a i) brain-targeted acid-responsive Angiopep-2 moiety that triggers NP structural rearrangement within BBB endosomal vesicles, and ii) L-Histidine moiety that provides NP preferential accumulation into GBM cells post-BBB crossing. In tumor invasive margin patient cells, the stimuli-responsive multifunctional NPs target GBM cells, enhance cell uptake by 12-fold, and induce three times higher cytotoxicity in 2D and 3D cell models. Moreover, the in vitro BBB permeability is increased by threefold. A biodistribution in vivo trial confirms a threefold enhancement of NP accumulation into the brain. Last, the in vivo antitumor efficacy is validated in GBM orthotopic models following intratumoral and intravenous administration. Median survival and number of long-term survivors are increased by 50%. Altogether, a preclinical proof of concept supports these stimuli-responsive multifunctional NPs as an effective anti-GBM multistage chemotherapeutic strategy, with ability to respond to multiple fronts of the GBM microenvironment.

Enhancing Primary Care Payments Without Adding Financial Risk.

The delivery of primary healthcare in the USA is threatened on multiple fronts. To preserve and strengthen this critical part of the healthcare delivery system, a rapid and broadly accepted change in the basic payment strategy is needed. This paper describes the changes in the delivery of primary health services that demand additional population-based funding and the need to provide sufficient funding to sustain direct provider-patient interaction. We additionally describe the merits of a hybrid payment model that continues to include some level of fee-for-service payment and point to the pitfalls of imposing substantial financial risk on primary care practices, particularly small- and medium-sized primary care practices lacking the financial reserves to sustain monetary losses.

Multiple Shock Fronts in RBS 797: The Chandra Window on Shock Heating in Galaxy Clusters

Using ∼427 ks of Chandra observations, we present a study of shock heating and intracluster medium (ICM) cooling in the galaxy cluster RBS 797. We discover three nested pairs of weak shocks at roughly 50, 80, and 130 kpc from the center. The total energy associated with the shocks is ∼6 × 1061 erg, with the central active galactic nucleus (AGN) driving a pair of weak shocks every 20–30 Myr with a power P sh ≈ 1046 erg s−1. Based on its morphology and age (∼30 Myr), the inner cocoon shock is associated with the four equidistant X-ray cavities previously discovered. From the thermodynamic analysis of the inner 30 kpc, we find evidence for ICM condensation into colder gas between and behind the X-ray cavities. The total AGN mechanical power (cavities and shocks) of 3.4 × 1046 erg s−1 can balance the ICM radiative losses, estimated as L cool = 2.3 × 1045 erg s−1. By building plots of P cav versus L cool, P shock versus L cool, and P tot versus L cool for RBS 797 and 14 other galaxy clusters, galaxy groups, and elliptical galaxies where both cavities and shocks are detected, we verify that the most powerful outbursts are found in the strongest cooling systems. Ultimately, we observe that the mechanical power of the AGN exceeds the gas radiative losses by a factor that is different for FR I and FR II radio galaxies, being less than a few tens for FR Is (as RBS 797) and more than roughly 100 for FR IIs.

Peran Budaya Organisasi Sekolah dan Kepuasan Guru dalam Meningkatkan Prestasi Siswa

Cultural organizations in the context of educational management, recently there have been many interesting researchers. They study cultural organizations with the background of educational institutions both at the secondary and tertiary levels. The aim of this research is to examine the role of school organizational culture and teacher satisfaction in improving student achievement. The research method used in this research is library research. The data used in this study were secondary data in the form of books, scientific journals and various relevant references collected through library research. The results showed that teachers have a central role in student learning. With rapidly expanding classrooms, resource constraints, and increasing tensions for personal responsibility for student learning outcomes, teachers face challenges on multiple fronts. Reform efforts have largely focused on increasing teacher effectiveness and student achievement, neglecting the organizational role of schools and teacher job satisfaction, which are critical to student success.

Peran Budaya Organisasi Sekolah dan Kepuasan Guru dalam Meningkatkan Prestasi Siswa

Cultural organizations in the context of educational management, recently there have been many interesting researchers. They study cultural organizations with the background of educational institutions both at the secondary and tertiary levels. The aim of this research is to examine the role of school organizational culture and teacher satisfaction in improving student achievement. The research method used in this research is library research. The data used in this study were secondary data in the form of books, scientific journals and various relevant references collected through library research. The results showed that teachers have a central role in student learning. With rapidly expanding classrooms, resource constraints, and increasing tensions for personal responsibility for student learning outcomes, teachers face challenges on multiple fronts. Reform efforts have largely focused on increasing teacher effectiveness and student achievement, neglecting the organizational role of schools and teacher job satisfaction, which are critical to student success.