Scientific Research Publications Research Articles

The Insertion of the Ceara Textile Sector in a Circular Economy: A View of Sustainability Relations

Scientific Research Publishing is an academic publisher with more than 200 open access journal in the areas of science, technology and medicine. It also publishes academic books and conference proceedings.

Observation of a Chemical Softener’s Effects on Stem-Specific Lignocellulosic <i>Brassica napus</i> (Type: Canola) (Cultivar: HYHEAR 3) Fiber Quality

Scientific Research Publishing is an academic publisher with more than 200 open access journal in the areas of science, technology and medicine. It also publishes academic books and conference proceedings.

Гумор та сатира у відносинах українського народу і духовенства (історико-джерелознавчий аналіз)

Fundamental differences in the value categories of the Ukrainian people and the clergy have a long history. The specific attitude of the people to the representatives of the elite clerical caste of society in different historical periods had many contradictions. Ukrainians have deep respect for traditional religious cults for a long time, but openly mocked and distrusted church and clergy. At a time of growing anti-feudal popular sentiments, the clergy became an unconditional example of negative social behavior and the embodiment of a rigid state exploitative policy in the people's consciousness. Popular protest manifested itself in satirical and humorous folklore – fairy tales, fables, stories, parodies, jokes. Representatives of the clergy appeared in folklore in the form of greedy priests, prone to drunkenness and brawls, deacons who spent working and free time in the inn and at the gaming table. Folk artists sharply ridiculed the ignorance of priests and their unwillingness to perform their direct duties. The problems of the relationship between the clergy and the peasantry and its coverage in folklore were covered in ancient chronicles, stories, scientific and ethnographic publications of prominent researchers and representatives of the literary elite. In the XIX – early XX century most periodicals paid much attention to the publication of folk tales, jokes, poetic stories. For example, outstanding masterpieces of folk humor were „The Lamentation of the Kiev Monks”, which was first published in 1881 in the magazine „Russian Antiquity” and „Poem about Father Negrebetsky”, which was published in the „Notes of the NTSh” in 1905. humorous works are published in multi-volume books by P. Chubynsky, ethnographic collections by M. Dikaryov, collections by the outstanding philologist B. Hrynchenko, „Notes of NTSh” edited by I. Franko, etc. A large layer of folk anti-clerical humor was preserved in the form of folk jokes, the heroes of which were clumsy priests and uneducated flocks. Folk playgrounds and performances of „merrymakers” and buffoons were perceived by the priesthood as manifestations of demons. They violated the sacred dogmas of the church, and therefore were subject to destruction. But attempts to destroy the satirical and humorous folk tradition led to completely opposite results – laughter became a sharp weapon for the people, able to resist oppression and violence.

Choosing Neuroanaesthesia as a career: Marching towards new horizons.

Anaesthesiology is an ever-changing science and amongst its sub-specialities, the field of neuroanaesthesia is making rapid strides. The fragility of the brain and spinal cord and the multitude of complexities involved in neurosurgery and interventional neuroradiological procedures demand dedicated training in neuroanaesthesia. With rapid advancement in other neuroscience specialties, neuroanaesthesia too has made outstanding progress, owing to establishment of structured training, publication of high-quality scientific research, and invention of novel medications and monitoring modalities. The opportunities for training in India and abroad and resources to broaden knowledge in neuroanaesthesia have increased over the last two decades. A career in neuroanaesthesia offers a great future for budding anaesthesiologists.

A Meta-analysis of Educational Data Mining for Predicting Students Performance in Programming

An essential skill amid the 4th industrial revolution is the ability to write good computer programs. Therefore, higher education institutions are offering computer programming as a module not only in computer related programmes but other programmes as well. However, the number of students that underperform in programming is significantly higher than the non-programming modules. It is, therefore, crucial to be able to accurately predict the performance of students pursuing programming since this will help in identifying students that may underperform and the necessary support interventions can be timeously put in place to assist these students. The objective of this study is therefore to obtain the most effective Educational Data Mining approaches used to identify those students that may underperform in computer programming. The PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analysis) approach was used in conducting the meta-analysis. The databases searched were, namely, ACM, Google Scholar, IEEE, Pro-Quest, Science Direct and Scopus. A total of 11 scientific research publications were included in the meta-analysis for this study from 220 articles identified through database searching. The residual amount of heterogeneity was high (τ2 = 0.03; heterogeneity I2 = 99.46% with heterogeneity chi-square = 1210.91, a degree of freedom = 10 and P = <0.001). The estimated pooled performance of the algorithms was 24% (95% CI (13%, 35%). Meta-regression analysis indicated that none of the moderators included have influenced the heterogeneity of studies. The result of effect estimates against its standard error indicated publication bias with a P-value of 0.013. These meta-analysis findings indicated that the pooled estimate of algorithms is high.

Bibliometric and Scientometric Analysis of Scopus-Indexed Literature on Hemp (Cannabis sativa) Breeding

The elevated research interest and increased cultivation of Hemp (Cannabis sativa) across the globe is significantly driven by its multidirectional industrial uses and medicinal properties. Scientific research publications focusing on hemp breeding plays a pivotal role in bridging the knowledge gap and opening new avenues for upscaling the efficiency of crop improvement initiatives. The identification of prevailing research trends and associations is critical in defining and mapping the trajectories of success in Hemp breeding. The advent of bibliometrics and scientometrics is currently providing a stead platform which fosters effective identification of current research patterns and examination of the applied methodologies, focus areas, and operational constraints. In the context of Hemp research, content assessments provide breeding initiatives with background data needed for exploring various traits of interest and for validating investments and related policies. The main thrust of this study is to perform a bibliometric and scientometric analysis of Scopus-indexed papers covering the field of ‘Hemp Breeding’, between calendar years 1908 and 2020. Data was analyzed using VOSviewer (Version 1.6.16) and Microsoft Excel (2019). The study found 152 papers composed of original articles (105, 69.08%), book chapters (23, 15.13%), conference papers (10, 6.58%), reviews (9, 5.92%), conference reviews (3, 1.97%) and books (2, 1.32%). A significant increment in research publications was observed after 1950. The assessment also indicated that most of the archived research was conducted or reported in the USA (13.82%), Italy (12.5%) and the Netherlands (11.18%). Furthermore, the highest number of papers over the studied period and topic were published by authors affiliated to Wageningen University &amp; Research (16, 10.53%). Index keywords such as Cannabis sativa, hemp, genetic expression, genetic marker, and genetic diversity were covered extensively in the sampled journal editions. A comparative assessment of the results indicated that there is need to scale-up research initiatives targeting hemp trait improvements to cater for the projected high demand and climate change. This can be achieved through strengthening synergistic partnerships and knowledge exchanges across the hemp breeding value chain. This research will assist plant breeders in defining research requirements, determining evidence-based scientific gaps, and recognizing outstanding research institutions for potential intellectual sharing and cooperation.

Research Output from IISc during 1999-2020: Scientometrics Analysis Case Study

Over the past Seven decades the knowledge or web of science database maintaining the core collections of Science Citation Index Expanded, and past Conference Proceedings Citation Index- Science and past two decades SciELO Citation Index, Journal citation reports. This paper analyses a results of a scientometric analytical case study of the research activities of highly cited papers from 1999 to 2020. This paper study a growth of publications, citations, average citations per publication and H- index of top scientists or researchers, at Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, India. Besides that, this paper presents a citation-based mapping of data on global scientific activities from Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, India research publications using Web of Science Database. Using different kind of scientometric approaches, such as a h-index and Global Citation Scores. Researchers have published 32191 publications during 1999-2020 and cited at least 5519 times by end of 2020 are analyzed. Authors have been able to place their papers in high impact journals such as Physics, Engineering, Chemistry, Materials Science, Science &amp; Technology, Computer Science, Biochemistry Molecular Biology, Mechanics, Mathematics, Telecommunications, and Crystallography. The study discloses an output of Indian Institute of Science Research Publications has greatly increased over period.

Interpretation of the Concept of Religious Syncretism in Western European and Russian Researches

The article is devoted to religious syncretism, in particular, the history of its research in Western European and Russian science. Most foreign researchers give an ambiguous assessment of the mother concept of syncretism. However, when for Russian researchers syncretism is a universal term used to describe a group of processes and seems not to be problematic, in the Western European scientific community anthropologists and religious scholars have been actively discussing its application for almost fifty years: works devoted to religious syncretism, as a rule, are necessarily accompanied by a number of reservations, and in other cases researchers deliberately avoid it altogether, preferring to use synonymous concepts with a less complicated history. In this way the main objective this paper sets is to compare the visions of the Russian and the foreign academy on the term, map and draw the margins of the conceptual use that both Russian and European scholars share, shedding light on contexts and reasons. Positioning the concept within the field of its use, the text also notes the wide context of the referent phenomenon. Processes of spreading the boundaries of identity and religious self-determination are now taking place against the background of globalization. In this regard, the topic of religious syncretism not only has not lost its relevance, but, on the contrary, is increasingly at the center of religious studies. The author of the article covers the history of the emergence of the concept in religious studies. On the basis of comparative analysis, the traces of the coverage of this phenomenon in scientific publications of Western European and Russian researchers are shown. It is also revealed, how the connotations of the concept of religious syncretism have changed, with the key discrepancies and gaps in scientific approaches identified, and the main types of contexts in which it appears differentiated.

Audio mastering in the logic of art history discourse

The purpose of the article is to determine the specifics of audio mastering in the context of modern art of sound recording; to characterize the phenomenon of audio mastering in the context of enhancing the aesthetic features of the sound recording of a musical work. Methodology. The interdisciplinary nature of the tasks posed in the study led to the use of an integrated method of modern art history. In particular, the following were applied: a comparative method (for a comparative analysis of scientific publications of foreign researchers in which the problems of audio mastering are considered from the perspective of modern cultural studies and art history); analytical (contributed to the analysis of analytical and empathic methods in the context of the specifics of audio mastering); typological method (to identify typological signs of audio mastering); a method of description and analysis (to study and comprehend the processes of creative activity of an audio mastering engineer as a representative of the field of technical arts); theoretical generalization method (for research findings). Scientific novelty. For the first time in the domestic art criticism, the phenomenon of audio mastering is studied in the context of the formation of the listener's emotional reaction to the sound recording of a musical work; the activity of audio mastering engineers was examined and its specificity was determined, in particular, the expediency of using analytical and empathic methods in the process of audio mastering in synergy was discovered in order to improve the aesthetic indicators of musical composition. Conclusions. A study of audio mastering from the standpoint of modern art criticism revealed that this phenomenon, synthesizing aspects of technology and art, consists in the skill of combining methods and methods for improving the sound recording of a musical work in order to enhance the effectiveness of its impact on the listener, satisfy aesthetic needs, and preserve and transmit the heritage of modern musical art in the global art and information space. The specificity of the art of audio mastering is to “mask” for the listener the very fact of the vocalist and/or musicians performing work in front of a microphone or using a dynamic range compressor – masterfully performed audio mastering largely goes unnoticed, forming the listener's emotional reaction and his perception of unique qualities over time musical performance.

SYSTEMIC CRISIS OF TERTIARY EDUCATION ON A GLOBAL SCALE: REASONS, IMPACTS AND SOLUTIONS FOR UNIVERSITIES

The article analyzes the prerequisites and consequences of the systemic crisis of higher education, highlights the key characteristics of the crisis phenomena in the system of education in Russia and on a global scale at the institutional and state levels. Applying the principles of the dialectical development of the educational system, the author reveals the contradictions between the evolutionary processes that trigger the development of society and education, postulating internal contradictions and conflicts in the coexistence of social and educational institutions. According to the author, the basic concepts of society and education are also antagonistic: knowledge and information, which are defined in the article, their roles and functions are described. The author pays special attention to the issues of trust in society towards the educational institutions, analyzes the reasons for the low level of trust. The article is based on the normative documents of UNESCO and the World Bank, analytical and scientific publications of Russian and foreign researchers. In connection with a new round of the crisis in higher education due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the article provides an analysis of the problems, describes the risks for universities during the period of functioning after the pandemic, suggests solutions to the crisis for the higher education system in the context of creating a new social and educational paradigms.

Psychometric properties of Persian version of the research misconduct questionnaire (PRMQ).

Assessment of scientific misconduct is considered to be an increasingly important topic in medical sciences. Providing a definition for scientific research misconduct and proposing practical methods for evaluating and measuring it in various fields of medicine discipline are required. This study aimed at assessing the psychometric properties of Scientific Research Misconduct-Revised (SMQ-R) and Publication Pressure Questionnaires (PPQ). After translation and merging of these two questionnaires, the validity of the translated draft was evaluated by 11-member expert panel using Content Validity Index (CVI) and Content Validity Ratio (CVR). Reliability of the final questionnaire, completed by 100 participants randomly chosen from medical academic members, was assessed by calculating Cronbach’s alpha coefficient. The final version was named Persian Research Misconduct Questionnaire (PRMQ) and consisted of 63 question items. The item-level content validity indices of 61 questions were above 0.79, and reliability assessment showed that 6 out of 7 subscales had alpha values higher than 0.6. Hence, PRMQ can be considered an acceptable, valid and reliable tool to measure research misconduct in biomedical sciences researches in Iran.

Studi Meta-Analisis Model Pembelajaran Inquiry Terbimbing dalam Pembelajaran Fisika

This study aims to analyze the influence of the guided inquiry learning model in physics learning through the overall effect size, based on the dependent variable and region. This research uses a descriptive method with a meta-analysis approach to the results of scientific research publications in national electronic journals. There are 11 national journals that fit the research category. The results showed that overall learning using the guided inquiry model could improve students' physics learning outcomes with the effect size of 0.487 from the control group. Meanwhile, based on the distribution of regions in Indonesia, an average effect size of 0.527 is obtained and based on the dependent variable an effect size is obtained of 0.425. These three results indicate a large effect size guided inquiry learning model in physics learning. This shows that the guided inquiry learning model can provide a more effective effect and is suitable for use in learning physics.

The epidemiology of seasonal influenza after the 2009 influenza pandemic in Africa: a systematic review.

Influenza infection is a serious public health problem that causes an estimated 3 to 5 million cases and 250,000 deaths worldwide every year. The epidemiology of influenza is well-documented in high- and middle-income countries, however minimal effort had been made to understand the epidemiology, burden and seasonality of influenza in Africa. This study aims to assess the state of knowledge of seasonal influenza epidemiology in Africa and identify potential data gaps for policy formulation following the 2009 pandemic. We reviewed articles from Africa published into four databases namely: MEDLINE (PubMed), Google Scholar, Cochrane Library and Scientific Research Publishing from 2010 to 2019. We screened titles and abstracts of 2070 studies of which 311 were selected for full content evaluation and 199 studies were considered. Selected articles varied substantially on the basis of the topics they addressed covering the field of influenza surveillance (n=80); influenza risk factors and co-morbidities (n=15); influenza burden (n=37); influenza vaccination (n=40); influenza and other respiratory pathogens (n=22) and influenza diagnosis (n=5). Significant progress has been made since the last pandemic in understanding the influenza epidemiology in Africa. However, efforts still remain for most countries to have sufficient data to allow countries to prioritize strategies for influenza prevention and control.

Is funding related to higher research impact? Exploring its relationship and the mediating role of collaboration in several disciplines

Abstract The funding process is increasingly under scrutiny in order to ensure the effectiveness of research investments. This paper contributes to improve our understanding of the effects of funding on research performance through the analysis of the scientific publications of Spain-based researchers in seven disciplines during a five-year period. Funding data are extracted from the “Funding acknowledgment” field of the WoS database. Firstly, funded research is compared to the non-funded one regarding impact and collaboration through bivariate analyses. Funded research is published in more prestigious journals, attains higher citation rates and is developed in teams of greater size in all disciplines, but only in a few of them is associated to greater extra-mural collaboration. Secondly, a logistic regression model is used to explore whether funding contributes to explain the likelihood of papers to attain citation rates above world average controlling for other variables such as prestige of publication journal and collaboration. Thirdly, funding shows direct and indirect effects on the citation rate of papers. Indirect effects are mediated through the publication of more complete papers, in more prestigious journals and with more extensive collaboration, although the presence and magnitude of these effects vary by discipline. The results are discussed in the context of their interest for research policy.

Державне регулювання та підтримка аграрних інновацій в Україні

The purpose of the article is to carry out a scientific generalization of the state of agricultural innovations and their state regulation in Ukraine on the example of scientific institutions. Research methods. The methodological basis of the research is the systemic method. A monographic method was used - for examining scientific publications of researchers on the problems of agricultural innovations and their state regulation; empirical, systemic and comparative analysis and synthesis, graphic methods - to assess the current state of science financing; statistical method - to assess the degree of government regulation and research funding; abstract-logical - for theoretical generalizations and conclusions. Research results. A review of scientific research on state regulation of agricultural innovations in Ukraine and the world is carried out. Shows the innovative position of Ukraine in international ratings. The state regulation of innovations through the analysis of the dynamics and efficiency of expenditures on agricultural science is investigated. Scientific novelty. The definition of state regulation of agricultural innovations was further developed as the choice of a certain model of organizational, regulatory, management measures for the creation and transfer of new technologies aimed at the formation of interrelated mechanisms of institutional, resource support for the support and development of innovative activities in agriculture for the purpose of socio-economic development. The substantiation of dependence of dynamics and efficiency of expenses on agrarian science and other spheres of economic activity in interrelation with macroeconomic indicators was deepened. Practical significance. Conclusions are made about the need to form a strategy for innovative development of the agricultural sector by supporting innovation and the IT industry; further cooperation between manufacturers, scientific institutions and the state. It is recommended to borrow foreign experience in terms of processing the state's strategy for regulating innovation in the agricultural sector, depending on the phase of economic development and budgetary opportunities. Tabl.: 5. Figs.: 4. Refs.: 38.

Predatory Surgical Journals—a Menace to the Academic World

Ever since the need for regular publication by the faculty in the medical institutions as per the norms of Medical Council of India’s directive for academic promotion and career growth, there has been a trend for fast track publications of good research data in open-access predatory surgical journals which makes the whole publication futile and useless. A review of such predatory surgical journals is done with a word of caution and prevention of publication of scientific research in such predatory journals.

Quantitative author inputs to Earth science research publications: survey results, insights and potential applications

AbstractResults are reported of what is believed to be the first survey of the quantitative contributions Earth scientists make to their research publications. Based on a return of 26 (from 45; 254 total documents), two key patterns are observed. For most articles, there is a steady decrease in the roles of the first through fifth authors. The former fall from 65 ± 14% for two-author outputs, to 52 ± 9% for five, to 46 ± 10% for ten; fifth authors are perceived as having contributed 5–6%. The term ‘balanced’ is used to describe such contributor lists. The second pattern, which is labelled ‘imbalanced’, is recognized with teams of five or more and involves the first author shouldering a disproportionately large amount of the work; consequently, the inputs of the third and lesser authors range from small to negligible (5–1%). In some cases, it is observed in a few of a researcher’s publications (≤3); in others, it is more pervasive. There are two basic explanations: estimation problems and excessive numbers of authors, which can be split into two and three subcategories, respectively. The key features of the survey data are dwelt upon. The work concludes with an exploration of a proposed H-Index-type metric that is weighted by the contribution fractions a researcher makes to their publications. This, I contend, would be more reflective of their impact.

Bone Age Assessment Empowered with Deep Learning: A Survey, Open Research Challenges and Future Directions.

Deep learning is a quite useful and proliferating technique of machine learning. Various applications, such as medical images analysis, medical images processing, text understanding, and speech recognition, have been using deep learning, and it has been providing rather promising results. Both supervised and unsupervised approaches are being used to extract and learn features as well as for the multi-level representation of pattern recognition and classification. Hence, the way of prediction, recognition, and diagnosis in various domains of healthcare including the abdomen, lung cancer, brain tumor, skeletal bone age assessment, and so on, have been transformed and improved significantly by deep learning. By considering a wide range of deep-learning applications, the main aim of this paper is to present a detailed survey on emerging research of deep-learning models for bone age assessment (e.g., segmentation, prediction, and classification). An enormous number of scientific research publications related to bone age assessment using deep learning are explored, studied, and presented in this survey. Furthermore, the emerging trends of this research domain have been analyzed and discussed. Finally, a critical discussion section on the limitations of deep-learning models has been presented. Open research challenges and future directions in this promising area have been included as well.

A DESCRIPTIVE SUMMARY OF UNLICENSED DENTAL PRACTICE

Despite the fines and action taken by authorities against illegal dental practise, it could not be eliminated and remain a threat to the public’s oral health. The aim of this study was to gather holistic evidence on unlicensed dental practice by collating news coverage, scientific research publications, and information on social media activities of illegal dental practitioners. Information on news coverage was collated via Google, Yahoo and Bing while information on research publications was obtained through three databases, Scopus, Pubmed and Google Scholar. Public data from Facebook and Instagram were extracted to gain information on illegal dental services actively provided. Out of 195 news reported regarding unlicensed dental practitioner, only 110 news reported on legal actions received with 81 news reports were on financial punishments, and the rest was on jail terms or probation. For scientific publications, only 13 related publications were found, and the majority were case reports. Despite having a law that stated an unlicensed dentist would be punished, there were more than 170 Facebook, and Instagram users with thousands of followers found actively offering illegal dental services to the public. In conclusion, not much attention was paid by the scientific community on illegal dental practice despite it being a significant public health issue and covered quite thoroughly in the news, and services are still actively offered through social media. This descriptive report helps give a holistic perspective on the illegal dental service providers issue, especially in Malaysia.

Individual, institutional, and scientific environment factors associated with questionable research practices in the reporting of messages and conclusions in scientific health services research publications

BackgroundHealth Services Research findings (HSR) reported in scientific publications may become part of the decision-making process on healthcare. This study aimed to explore associations between researcher’s individual, institutional, and scientific environment factors and the occurrence of questionable research practices (QRPs) in the reporting of messages and conclusions in scientific HSR publications.MethodsWe employed a mixed-methods study design. We identified factors possibly contributing to QRPs in the reporting of messages and conclusions through a literature review, 14 semi-structured interviews with HSR institutional leaders, and 13 focus-groups amongst researchers. A survey corresponding with these factors was developed and shared with 172 authors of 116 scientific HSR publications produced by Dutch research institutes in 2016. We assessed the included publications for the occurrence of QRPs. An exploratory factor analysis was conducted to identify factors within individual, institutional, and environmental domains. Next, we conducted bivariate analyses using simple Poisson regression to explore factors’ association with the number of QRPs in the assessed HSR publications. Factors related to QRPs with a p-value < .30 were included in four multivariate models tested through a multiple Poisson regression.ResultsIn total, 78 (45%) participants completed the survey (51.3% first authors and 48.7% last authors). Twelve factors were included in the multivariate analyses. In all four multivariate models, a higher score of “pressure to create societal impact” (Exp B = 1.28, 95% CI [1.11, 1.47]), was associated with higher number of QRPs. Higher scores on “specific training” (Exp B = 0.85, 95% CI [0.77–0.94]) and “co-author conflict of interest” (Exp B = 0.85, 95% CI [0.75–0.97]) factors were associated with a lower number of QRPs. Stratification between first and last authors indicated different factors were related to the occurrence of QRPs for these groups.ConclusionExperienced pressure to create societal impact is associated with more QRPs in the reporting of messages and conclusions in HSR publications. Specific training in reporting messages and conclusions and awareness of co-author conflict of interests are related to fewer QRPs. Our results should stimulate awareness within the field of HSR internationally on opportunities to better support reporting in scientific HSR publications.