Present Context Research Articles

Neural Network Architectures and Magnetic Hysteresis: Overview and Comparisons

The development of innovative materials, based on the modern technologies and processes, is the key factor to improve the energetic sustainability and reduce the environmental impact of electrical equipment. In particular, the modeling of magnetic hysteresis is crucial for the design and construction of electrical and electronic devices. In recent years, additive manufacturing techniques are playing a decisive role in the project and production of magnetic elements and circuits for applications in various engineering fields. To this aim, the use of the deep learning paradigm, integrated with the most common models of the magnetic hysteresis process, has become increasingly present in recent years. The intent of this paper is to provide the features of a wide range of deep learning tools to be applied to magnetic hysteresis context and beyond. The possibilities of building neural networks in hybrid form are innumerable, so it is not plausible to illustrate them in a single paper, but in the present context, several neural networks used in the scientific literature, integrated with various hysteretic mathematical models, including the well-known Preisach model, are compared. It is shown that this hybrid approach not only improves the modeling of hysteresis by significantly reducing computational time and efforts, but also offers new perspectives for the analysis and prediction of the behavior of magnetic materials, with significant implications for the production of advanced devices.

Exploring Organisational Agility's Impact on Nurses' Green Work Behaviour: The Mediating Role of Climate Activism.

To examine the relationship between organisational agility and nurses' green work behaviour and to assess how climate activism mediates this relationship. Understanding this relationship is crucial for promoting sustainable practices in healthcare. A cross-sectional research design was employed. This approach was chosen to examine how organisational agility and climate activism simultaneously influence green work behaviour in the present context, providing a snapshot of their synergistic interactions. This study was conducted in 2024 at eight hospitals in Egypt, with a total of 781 nurses conveniently selected for participation. Data were collected using validated instruments: the Agility Survey, Employee Green Behaviour Scale and Environmental Action Scale. Correlation and path analyses were utilised to test the study hypotheses. Nurses reported moderate levels of organisational agility, climate activism and green work behaviour. Statistically significant positive correlations were found between organisational agility, climate activism and green work behaviour. Organisational agility and climate activism emerged as significant predictors of green work behaviour, with climate activism acting as a partial mediator between organisational agility and green work behaviour. This study contributes to the growing body of knowledge on fostering sustainable nursing practices as results indicate that agile organisations, which embrace flexibility and nurse-led climate initiatives, are better positioned to promote sustainable behaviour. Practical strategies include selecting nurses with high climate literacy, designing agile working strategies and promoting eco-conscious behaviours. Nurse leaders should develop policies that integrate climate initiatives into everyday practice to enhance green work behaviour. The healthcare sector faces increasing environmental challenges, making it crucial to foster green work behaviour. Our study addresses a gap in the literature by revealing that organisational agility and climate activism are essential drivers of green behaviour among nurses, offering actionable insights for greening healthcare practices. This study was reported in accordance with the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE). No patient or public contribution.

Stabilisation of linear waves with inhomogeneous Neumann boundary conditions

ABSTRACT We study linear damped and viscoelastic wave equations evolving on a bounded domain. For both models, we assume that waves are subject to an inhomogeneous Neumann boundary condition on a portion of the domain's boundary. The analysis of these models presents additional interesting features and challenges compared to their homogeneous counterparts. In the present context, energy depends on the boundary trace of velocity. It is not clear in advance how this quantity should be controlled based on the given data, due to regularity issues. However, we establish global existence and also prove uniform stabilisation of solutions with decay rates characterised by the Neumann input. We supplement these results with numerical simulations in which the data do not necessarily satisfy the given assumptions for decay. These simulations provide, at a numerical level, insights into how energy could possibly change in the presence of, for example, improper data.

Cold War 2.0? Navigating economic development under increased geopolitical tensions

ABSTRACT In December 2017, the US National Security Strategy introduced the notion of a “new era of strategic competition,” describing its once-close economic partner, China, as an “adversary,” “rival” and “strategic competitor.” Some foreign policy analysts point to a looming second cold war – this time between the United States and China. This paper synthesizes the emerging literature in this area, acknowledges the ongoing debates on whether a new cold war has dawned, and draws on insights from the first cold war precisely to establish key differences in contexts. It concludes by outlining some initial policy guidelines for countries navigating the present geopolitical context.

Computational study of micromagnetorotation on the micropolar flow characteristics in a rectangular channel with continuous applied shear

The aim of this investigation is to computationally analyse the effect of micromagnetorotation on flow characteristics within magneto-micropolar flows. To the authors' knowledge such consideration has not been discussed in the literature in present context. The assumption in literature that the magnetization is parallel to the applied magnetic field is incorrect due to the anisotropic nature of micropolar flows. This allows to re-investigate the micropolar flows in the present of micromagnetorotation. To this end, the theory of magneto-micropolar flows is briefly described and a computational model governing the system dynamics is presented. Finite element code in FreeFem++ is developed and validated through an exact solution. It turns out that the numerical findings obtained are in strong agreement with the analytical results. The results obtained are significant because they can assist researchers in allied fields of electronics, materials science and biomedical engineering in finding solutions to a variety of real-world issues.

Fano mode based plasmonic sensor for temperature and chemical pollutant detection

Plasmonic sensors provide great sensitivity to minute quantities of analytes and provide excellent detection. In present context of environmental monitoring, plasmonic sensor can prove to be an excellent choice in chemical pollutant and temperature detection. Plasmonic sensors can provide immediate results, allowing for monitoring temperature changes in ecosystems or climate studies and quick decision-making in emergency situations related chemical pollution incidents. They are compact and can be integrated into portable devices for on-site analysis. In this investigation, a plasmonic refractive index sensor based on key ring shaped resonator consisting of a microring resonator and two rectangular resonator is proposed. Finite-Difference Time-Domain (FDTD) method is used to study the transmittance characteristics of the sensor. The device exhibits quadruple Fano resonance with highest sensitivity of 2521.7 nm/RIU. Other performance parameters such as figure of Merit (FOM), Quality (Q) factor and Detection limit (DL) are also been calculated, with values 98.8 RIU−1, 99.6 and 0.01 respectively. Additionally, the effects of different geometrical configurations is also studied, providing insights into the design principles in context of potential fabrication complexities. Further, the simulated Fano characteristic is validated against the theoretical value. The application of the proposed sensor is investigated for different types of analyte such as chemical pollutants and temperature sensing.

Bioinspired Hydrophobicity via Temperature-Induced Phase Separation of Beeswax: A Pathway for Developing Cellulose Nanofiber-Based Adsorbents for the Removal of Conventional Tetracycline Tablets.

Cellulose nanofiber-based aerogels (CNFAs) hold immense promise across diverse fields, but their innate hydrophilicity and structural fragility in water have constrained their utility in water purification. This study introduces a green approach to induce hydrophobicity into CNFAs via thermally induced phase separation (TIPS) of beeswax, which was adhered to the nanofiber by hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic-hydrophobic interactions. The fabricated aerogel was characterized by using FTIR, SEM, XRD, TGA, contact angle, BET, and compression test. The resulting beeswax cellulose nanofiber-based aerogels (BCNFAs) possess a highly porous structure and extremely low density, enabling the aerogels to self-float and facilitate practical applications and recycling. Due to these remarkable characteristics, BCNFAs had excellent adsorption capacity within 10 min to effectively remove tetracycline (TC) from water with an adsorption capacity of 31.6 mg/g. The demonstrated methodology to induce hydrophobicity in CNFAs via TIPS of beeswax on CNFAs could be an eco-friendly and scalable approach for the fabrication of robust BCNFAs without using any toxic chemicals. So far, this is the first report on to make robust hydrophobic CNFAs by employing TIPS of beeswax while maintaining the porosity of CNFAs, which is highly desirable for effective TC tablet adsorption from water in the present context. The demonstrated work has commercial potential as it focuses on the practical utility of the modified aerogel for adsorbing conventional tetracycline tablets, rather than exclusively targeting the pharmaceutical ingredient alone.

Central tendency and serial dependence in vestibular path integration.

Path integration, the process of updating one's position using successive self-motion signals, has previously been studied using visual distance reproduction tasks in which optic flow patterns provide information about traveled distance. These studies have reported that reproduced distances show two types of systematic biases: central tendency and serial dependence. In the present study, we investigated whether these biases are also present in vestibular path integration. Participants were seated on a linear motion platform and performed a distance reproduction task in total darkness. The platform first passively moved the participant a pre-defined stimulus distance which they then actively reproduced by steering the platform back the same distance. Stimulus distances were sampled from short- and long-distance probability distributions and presented in either a randomized order or in separate blocks to study the effect of presentation context. Similar to the effects observed in visual path integration, we found that reproduced distances showed an overall positive central tendency effect as well as a positive, attractive serial dependence effect. Furthermore, reproduction behavior was affected by presentation context. These results were mostly consistent with predictions of a Bayesian Kalman-filter model, originally proposed for visual path integration.

Effectiveness of Multimedia Package on Student-teachers’ Achievement in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in Education Course

In the present context of artificial intelligence, student-teachers need to understand technological applications in education and incorporate them into their classroom instruction. Technological applications help in connecting and collaborating beyond geographical boundaries. The student-teachers should be equipped with the knowledge and understanding of the benefits of incorporating technology into their teaching practices and it should be the focus of teacher-training to equip them with the necessary skills to utilize these applications in their practice. The ICT in Education course was introduced in one of the University's pre-service teacher education programs in India to facilitate student-teachers to gain the ICT skills needed to integrate it into teaching. This study demonstrates the effectiveness of the multimedia package on student-teachers at the pre-service level based on empirical evidence. Some of the findings suggest that the use of the multimedia package not only helps student-teachers identify and use resources effectively but also delivers the content meaningfully. The Multimedia packages could serve as a tool for educators to deliver subject content efficiently.

The M in Multiculturalism Stands for Myth: The Performative Idealization in Canada’s Multicultural Policies

As described on the Government of Canada’s online database, the Canadian Multiculturalism Act of 1988 is a piece of federal legislation intended to recognize multiculturalism as a fundamental characteristic of Canadian society and to preserve diverse cultural identities (Ministry of Justice, 2014, p. 1). Despite this promise, the Canadian government has failed to adequately recognize the various cultures that have been assimilated and destroyed in the name of preserving the Canadian identity. Further, many of these communities suffer from the results of institutionally constructed hate that has been directed towards them to this day. Examining the origins of Canada as it developed through the lens of Chinese Canadian and Indigenous communities, this paper will examine how assimilation is encouraged for members of these groups and new immigrants in present-day Canada, most notably in Quebec. By looking at the past and present contexts of Indigenous and Chinese Canadian communities as well as assimilation tactics in Quebec that prevent various emerging cultural identities from developing, this paper will argue that multiculturalism is sold as a performative idealization in Canada.

Systemic Therapy of Gastric Cancer—State of the Art and Future Perspectives

Background: The prognosis of patients diagnosed with locally advanced and metastatic gastric and esophago-gastric junction cancer is critical. The optimal choice of systemic therapy is essential to optimize survival outcomes. Methods: A comprehensive literature review via PubMed and analysis of major oncology congresses (European Society for Medical Oncology and American Society of Clinical Oncology websites) were conducted to ascertain the current status and latest developments in the systemic treatment of patients with localized or advanced gastric and esophago-gastric junction adenocarcinoma. Results: While neoadjuvant and perioperative chemotherapy for localized tumor stages is the preferred approach in the Western Hemisphere, adjuvant chemotherapy remains the preferred course of action in East Asia. The administration of chemotherapy, typically in the form of combinations comprising platinum and fluoropyrimidine compounds in combination with docetaxel, represents a standard of care. Investigations are underway into the potential of immunotherapy and other biologically targeted agents in the perioperative setting. To select the most appropriate therapy for advanced gastric cancer, including adenocarcinoma of the esophago-gastric junction, it is essential to determine biomarkers such as HER2 expression, PD-L1 combined positive score (CPS) (combined positive score), Claudin 18.2, and microsatellite instability (MSI). In the present clinical context, the standard first-line therapy is a combination of fluoropyrimidine and a platinum derivative. The selection of chemotherapy in combination with antibodies is contingent upon the specific biomarker under consideration. Conclusions: This article reviews the current state of the art based on recent clinical trial results and provides an outlook on the future of systemic therapy.

The Lived Experience of Caregivers in the Older Stroke Survivors' Care Pathway during the Transitional Home Program-A Qualitative Study.

stroke is a major cause of disability and death, globally. Many stroke survivors live with disabilities, requiring significant caregiving support. Caregivers often feel unprepared and burdened, experiencing isolation and health declines. Their well-being and involvement in discharge planning impact post-discharge care quality. to investigate the experiences of caregivers of older stroke survivors regarding their expectations in the care pathway during the transitional home program, as this phenomenon is currently understudied in the present context. by employing a qualitative design, this study utilized a phenomenological approach developed by Cohen. Eighteen caregivers of stroke survivors participated. four main themes emerged from the analysis: (1) the sense of loss experienced by stroke survivors and perceived by caregivers; (2) the importance of social support in the recovery and well-being of both stroke survivors and caregivers; (3) the increased workload of caregivers; and (4) the lack of awareness of the needs during the transition, leading to resignation when facing complications. the findings highlight the significant impact of stroke on caregivers, affecting both the individual characteristics and social relationships of stroke survivors and their caregivers. There is a need for a nuanced understanding of caregivers' roles and responsibilities.

Second language learners’ academic emotions in grammar learning with explicit attention to grammatical complexity

ABSTRACT Grammatical complexity, a hot topic in grammar research, poses great challenges for second language (L2) learners. This study aims to investigate L2 learners’ emotional reactions to L2 grammar learning, and the epistemic emotional sources related to grammatical complexity. Thirty sophomore English majors aged between 19 and 20 from a natural class were recruited in the present study. Through qualitative research design, the data consisted of 30 written narrative reflections with each containing a self-report on emotional experiences and a recalled summary of learning strategies, along with 10 semi-structured interviews. A deductive content analysis approach and thematic analysis were used for the data analysis. The present study revealed five main findings. First, delight and anxiety are saliently representative achievement-related activity emotions; second, disappointment represents the typical retrospective outcome emotion; third, hope is the typical prospective outcome emotion; fourth, the social aspects of the present context elicit the emotion of gratitude, whereas the cognitive aspects of grammatical complexity cause a more complicated emotional state; fifth, epistemic emotions are mainly evoked by thinking-related factors, syntactic rules, and the practical application of syntactic rules. Pedagogical implications for L2 grammar teaching were discussed.

ELT in Nepal: Changing Teacher's Role in the Present Context

This reflective paper highlights English Language Teaching (ELT) practices in Nepal, focusing on various context and dilemmas such as choosing between monolingual or multilingual approaches, using local versus international materials, and selecting authentic versus inauthentic sources. It also examines the use of textbooks written by native or non-native writers and addressed obstacles and coping strategies involved. Additionally, the reflection discusses the major roles of English teachers in Nepal as a teacher, a researcher and a practitioner. ELT in Nepal has gone significant changes mirroring global shifts in ELT trends and practices. These changes include evolving attitude towards ELT, shifting goals of ELT, new teaching methods, updated curriculum design, revised teaching content and assessment, changes in medium of instruction, changing roles of teachers. Despite some ongoing confusions, ELT movement is progressing smoothly. This reflection is based on a review of relevant articles on ELT in Nepal and my personal experience as an EFL teacher in Nepal for more than18 years.

Indigenous Practices for Achieving Sustainable Construction

The objective of the present research is to explore the concept of sustainability in construction by examining indigenous construction practices followed in various regions of India, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that promote safe, resilient, and environmentally friendly human settlements. This study aims to investigate indigenous construction practices that have been used for generations and assess their applicability in the present context. Through the collection of qualitative data from participants, the study seeks to develop a theoretical model of sustainable construction that incorporates region-specific indigenous practices. As Constructivist Grounded Theory (CGT) lends itself useful for such theory development, we have used it as the methodology for data collection, analysis and model development. CGT enables in-depth inductive analysis of qualitative data. Data have been gathered through interviews and conversations as primary sources, supplemented by secondary sources. The study primarily focuses on key parameters such as construction materials and techniques, labour, economic considerations, and region-specific indigenous practices related to sustainable construction. This study develops a theoretical model that integrates indigenous practices with contemporary practices, and thus endeavours to bridge the past and present, offering a blend of traditional wisdom and contemporary relevance. It aims to inspire customers, architects, and engineers to reconnect with their cultural heritage and embrace local knowledge in construction practices, which have demonstrated sustainability over thousands of years. Findings from the study pave the way for better environmental management through sustainable indigenous construction practices.

The impact of employee satisfaction on company's labour investment efficiency

This study examines the impact of employee satisfaction on company's labour investment efficiency (CLIE) using a sample of 2,333 company-year observations associated with 302 companies listed in the UK between 2008 and 2020. Arguments based on human relations theory suggest that satisfied employees are likely to be motived to exert greater efforts and exhibit lower turnover, thereby reducing employer's exposure to labour market frictions. In contrast, agency theory argues that satisfied employees may become entrenched and thus harm organisational outcomes, including CLIE. We measure satisfaction with employers across our sample companies using 164,341 employees' ratings posted on Glassdoor UK. We observe a positive impact of employee satisfaction on CLIE, demonstrating the validity of underlying human relations theory for the present business context characterised by labour shortages. We also find the positive impact of employee satisfaction on CLIE to be stronger for companies with higher labour intensity, more reliance on skilled labour, and more competitive industry environments. Our study contributes to research investigating the determinants of efficient investment in workforce. We also demonstrate the informational value of employee' online reviews for understanding a company's performance, particularly in assessing the efficiency of its employment decisions.

GENDER EMPOWERMENT AND EQUALITY IN NEPAL: CURRENT ANALYSIS

This research has explored the roles, opportunities, decision-making processes, responsibilities, and various issues related to gender and the status of women in society. It compares women with their male counterparts across several areas, including household duties, economic conditions, education, health, political engagement, and community decision-making. The main aim has been to perform a contemporary situational analysis of women’s empowerment and rural development, utilizing both primary and secondary data. The focus is on gender inequality, socio-economic factors, political involvement, and demographic trends. The main findings have highlighted that those women, in their journey towards empowerment, require substantial support from their families, communities, and the nation. They have faced significant barriers to accessing opportunities for income generation, employment, decision-making roles, property ownership, and participation in political processes. The majority of women have been primarily engaged in household duties, contributing to their lower socio-economic status. This research seeks to improve the status of women in the study area by highlighting the importance of government policies and programs that include women in development efforts. Addressing these challenges through empowerment has become crucial not only for improving women's lives but also for fostering economic development within the community and the country at large. Apart from the aforementioned suggestions, Constitutional and Legal Framework, National Plan and Policies, Quotas and Representation, Education and Health, Economic Empowerment, Combatting Gender-Based Violence, and Cultural and Social Change, Education and Awareness have been found the policies to be adopted for the gender empowerment and equality in the present condition of Nepal. Despite these policies, challenges such as patriarchal norms, economic disparities, and implementation gaps persist. Continued efforts are needed to ensure effective enforcement of laws, address cultural barriers, and achieve substantive gender equality in Nepal. Likewise, Legal and Policy Framework, Economic Empowerment, Political Participation, Healthcare and Reproductive Rights, Combat Gender-Based Violence, Media and Communication, Community Engagement and Partnerships, Data Collection and Research, and Monitoring and Evaluation have been identified as the ways of gender empowerment and equality in the present context of Nepal. Implementing these strategies requires commitment and collaboration across government, civil society, the private sector, and international partners. Achieving gender equality is a long-term endeavor that necessitates ongoing effort and investment across various sectors simultaneously.<p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/soc/0702/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>

OF THE DEAR DICTIONARIES. ON THE SPECIAL LEXICOGRAPHY OF GERMAN IN ROMANIA – AN ENCOURAGING REVIEW

Starting from some considerations about the historic language usus, the article presents the status and the peculiarities of Romanian German. Statements regarding the current linguistic status of the German language in Romania and its speakers are being made with regard to the present linguistic context, aiming to highlight the profile of German as a regional language and to point out the need for its lexicographic charting in specialised dictionaries.

The times of jeopardising free speech

Press freedom is at stake in India, which holds a dismal rank of 159 among 180 countries in the Press Freedom Index 2024. While dissent and democracy ideally go hand in hand, a glance at the present situation in India suggests that these terms are perceived as antonyms in practice. The state is exerting its repressive power over dissenters, particularly targeting media outlets that do not align with the state’s interests. The media has a great responsibility and obligation to the citizens to bring out real stories with diligence and truthfulness. In India, the depiction of socioeconomic and political realities is mostly done at utmost risk and with an air of uneasiness. The truth remains elusive to the majority of the public, as they receive information from a restrained source constantly under government surveillance. This article aims to analyse the current situation of media and democracy in India with reference to freedom of speech and expression. The writing is an outcome of analysing the past and present sociopolitical contexts in India concerning the concept of free speech.

Synthesis and antimicrobial activity of benzoxazine/benzothiazine appended 1,2,3-triazole hybrids

In the present context to rationalize the search for new effective antimicrobial agents against the infections caused by microbes, a series of benzoxazine/benzothiazine appended 1,2,3-triazole hybrids were designed and synthesized via click reaction with ingredients of two or more bioactive moieties through the concept of molecular hybridization. Various spectral techniques such as FTIR, 1H NMR, 13C NMR, 2D NMR and HRMS were utilized for structural elucidation of the synthesized hybrids. The serial dilution method was employed for performing the antimicrobial activity of synthesized triazoles against four bacterial (S. aureus, B. subtilis, E. coli, K. pneumoniae) and two fungal (C. albicans, A. niger) strains. The antibacterial results demonstrated that a couple of hybrids show noteworthy outcomes related to standard medication. Compound 4r was indicated great action against E. coli with MIC values 0.0259 µmol/mL. Based on outcomes of antibacterial activity, molecular docking study was carried out with E. coli DNA gyrase to understand the binding behavior. To check out the drug-likeness, in silico ADME (Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism and Excretion) studies of synthesized hybrids were also analyzed and found that compounds can be developed as potential oral drug candidates.