Practical Rules Research Articles

SpiralDesigner: An AI-assisted design interface for efficient separation of neutrally buoyant and non-buoyant particles using spiral microfluidic devices

Spiral microfluidic-based devices play an important role in particle separation and concentration which is essential for many biomedical, chemical, and environmental purposes. Although many platforms were developed for the separation and purification of various microparticles, there is a lack of practical rules for designing these microfluidic platforms. Moreover, the physics of migration for non-naturally buoyant particles was overlooked in the previous studies. In this vein, here, we used direct numerical simulation (DNS) and particle tracing analysis to examine the physics of particle migration for both naturally buoyant and non-naturally buoyant particles. Later, by combining our simulation results with artificial intelligence (AI), we introduced a software, hereafter called SpiralDesigner, that can easily predict the final position of particles (naturally buoyant and non-naturally buoyant) in the outlet of the spiral microchannel with an accuracy of ∼98 %. SpiralDesigner just needs the particle size and density, length and radius of curvature of the spiral microchannel, and the total flow rate for prediction and after that, it provides the separation index that tells the user whether two particles are separable or not. This software can be very useful for designing a spiral microchannel for particle separation since it is very easy to use and also does not require any computational fluid dynamic simulations or fabrication. Hence, SpiralDesigner can potentially be used for a variety of purposes such as circulating tumor cell separation, stem cell harvesting, powder technology, environmental technology, and food science.

Demystifying the Chinese local state: Planning and contesting urban growth at Hexi New Town, Nanjing

Taking note of the limitations of previously dominant political economy perspectives on China’s urban transformation, and inspired by recent works calling for “beyond-growth” and “micro-level” studies of the Chinese state, as well as ethnographic approaches to the state, this paper aims to explore the often-untold everyday politics of decision-making processes in China’s state-led urban development. Using an urban design project at Hexi New Town in Nanjing, China, as an empirical lens, the article makes three main contributions. Firstly, it reveals how the Chinese local state is constitutive of and lived through intense negotiations and contestations over urban visions, subjectivities, and rules of practices in everyday life. Secondly, building upon existing ethnographic approaches to the state, which focus primarily on state-society dynamics, this paper develops a framework to re-conceptualize the power topology within the Chinese local state as a field of relational modalities (ruling power relations (re)enacted in everyday practices) and relational embeddedness (situated positionalities and subjectivities of state actors). Thirdly, it further shows how the power modalities (the interplay of political-economy power vs technical-power, territorial power vs trans-territorial power) of the Chinese local state are constantly reworked, sometimes re-enacted, sometimes challenged, through both formal and tacit rules in the state’s everyday life. As such, the article provides a new set of entry points to open the black-box of the Chinese local state and to explore the relational nature and an ethnographic perspective of the local state and urban politics in China and beyond.

Occupational health risk for women employed in industries with harmful working conditions

The preservation and strengthening of the health of the able-bodied population is the most important indicator of the socio-economic potential of the country.
 A modern working woman experiences the complex impact of adverse factors of the production environment and the labor process, which are potentially dangerous to health, contribute to the formation of production-related and occupational diseases.
 The study aims to analyze the occupational health risk of women employed in jobs with harmful working conditions at the processing plant of the mining and processing plant and the petrochemical complex of the Republic of Bashkortostan.
 Materials and methods. The authors studied the state of health by analyzing the occupational risk of female workers in contact with harmful production factors of a processing enterprise (407 people) and a petrochemical complex (473 people). The experts used clinical, functional, clinical and statistical research methods in their work and analyzed the levels and structure of chronic non-communicable diseases to determine the degree of industrial conditionality. The calculations were performed using the Microsoft Excel program.
 The combined effect of a complex of harmful production factors of the mining and processing plant (dust of polymetallic ores, chemicals, noise and severity of labor — class of working conditions 3.1) contributes to the development of chronic non-communicable diseases in female workers in 80.3±2.0% of cases, versus 54.6±4.4% of cases in the control group. A number of identified diseases have the character of production-related, while a very high degree of its conditionality is characteristic of diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue (RR — relative risk = 4.3, EF — etiological proportion = 75%), a high degree was inherent in respiratory diseases (RR=3.1; EF=67.7%). Diseases of the circulatory system (RR=1.6, EF=37.5%) and diseases of the nervous system (RR=1.58, EF=36.7%) had an average degree of occupational 
 conditionality.
 In the workers of the main group of the petrochemical complex, chronic non–communicable diseases were diagnosed significantly more often than in the control, respectively — 84.0±1.7 and 67.0±3.5% of cases, p<0.01. The combined effect on the workers of the complex of chemicals in combination with the intensity of the labor process associated with the 3-shift nature of work (class of working conditions 3.1), was the cause of the industrial conditionality of diseases of the nervous system, circulatory system, blood, digestive organs of moderate degree.
 Female employees of the enterprises of the concentrating plant of the mining and processing plant and the petrochemical complex, engaged in work with harmful working conditions, represent a "risk group" for the occurrence of changes from various organs and systems, depending on the current etiological production factors. Based on the indicators of the degree of occupational conditionality of a number of diseases in female workers, mining and petrochemical complexes belong to industries with a high and medium occupational risk of health disorders.
 Ethics. The survey of female employees was conducted with their informed consent, approved by the bioethical committee of the Institute. The fundamental documents are: "Ethical principles of conducting scientific medical research with human participation" (amendments 2008) of the Helsinki Declaration, as well as "Rules of Clinical Practice in the Russian Federation" (approved by Order of the Ministry of Health dated 06/19/2003 No. 266).

Article: Statutory Arbitration Clauses and the Supplemental Swiss Rules for Corporate Law Disputes in Switzerland

On 1 January 2023, revisions to the corporate law came into force which, among other things, allow Swiss companies to include a statutory arbitration clause in their articles of association (AoA) in respect of corporate disputes. Unless drafted otherwise, such arbitration clauses will bind the general meeting, the board of directors, the auditors and the shareholders. In such cases, corporate disputes will be conducted solely in the private sphere. In this regard, the Swiss Arbitration Centre published a Model Statutory Arbitration Clause and supplemental rules for corporate law disputes in Autumn 2022. This article analyses the new possibility for statutory arbitration clauses in Switzerland and evaluates the importance of the supplemental rules in practice. Corporate Law Disputes, Statutory Arbitration Clauses, Swiss Rules, Supplemental Swiss Rules for Corporate Disputes, Arbitration, Switzerland, Lex Arbitri, Comparative Analysis, Participation of Third Parties, Confidentiality

Augmented Reality and Nursing Care Improvement: Enhancing Patient Outcomes and Nursing Efficiency

Abstract The advanced technology of augmented reality (AR) is still finding its place in various fields, including healthcare. Much of the discussion of AR in this review article revolves around its potential to improve care in nursing, with particular emphasis on the effects on patient outcomes and work satisfaction among nurses. There are challenges in using conventional approaches to nursing education and clinical skill training, which include the availability of resources and real patients for practice. AR solves these issues by updating the learning mode, as students can immerse in virtually real and actual scenarios in clinical settings for nursing students. These simulations include procedures such as intravenous (IV) line insertion and emergency care, as well as the “skills check” that is presented immediately after providing retention of skills and assurance. In clinical applications, AR can display pertinent patient information, including physical examination data, laboratory data, or patient history, on the surface of the patient’s skin or the side of the bed. This real-time data integration increases the level of accuracy in monitoring, minimizes the possibility of human error occurrence, and increases the workflow rate. Moreover, AR can give step-by-step instructions and snap a clinician back to the key general rules of practice, which is highly essential during stressful conditions, such as in an emergency. However, going beyond the traditional roles of education and decision support, AR can help to optimize patients’ direct care and management activities, including IV-line insertion and wound evaluation. The present technology also has the advantage of giving valuable instruments of patient awareness, thus making patients easily understand even those medical conditions and treatments that may be perceived to be complicated and, therefore, enhance patient compliance with the recommended treatments. The demonstrated possibility to use AR to control the levels of pain and anxiety, along with other advantages, only proves the multifunctional nature of this technology. However, there are some setbacks in AR, such as technical ones, costs, and sufficient training for AR to be utilized optimally. The barriers that need to be overcome are also presented and require improvement for the implementation on a large scale. Further studies and innovations with health-care authorities and technology practitioners are essential for the advancement of AR in nursing care and its capability of enhancing patient well-being and nurses’ productivity.

ОСНОВНЫЕ АСПЕКТЫ ФАРМАЦЕВТИЧЕСКОГО КОНСУЛЬТИРОВАНИЯ СЕДАТИВНЫМИ ЛЕКАРСТВЕННЫМИ СРЕДСТВАМИ

Preserving human health, increasing life expectancy, reducing diseases and preventing them are the most important tasks of the modern medical and pharmaceutical community, the achievement of which, among other things, is impossible without the provision of proper pharmaceutical consultation and the availability of affordable and high-quality medicines. Providing incomplete or inaccessible information when providing information and consulting services threatens pharmacy visitors not only with the lack of a positive effect in treatment, but also with the possibility of causing harm to the body. The purpose of the work is to compile a recommendatory algorithm for the provision of pharmaceutical consultation using the example of drugs with a sedative effect. The materials of the study are instructions for the medical use of drugs, as well as leaflets with information for patients on the state of the state register of registered drugs for December 2023. In the course of the work, the main aspects of pharmaceutical consulting were identified, the regulatory framework relating to the provision of information and consulting services represented by the following documents: Order of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation dated August 31, 2016 No. 647n “On approval of the Rules for Good Pharmacy Practice of Medicines for Medical Use”; Order of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Russian Federation dated March 9, 2016 No. 91n “On approval of the professional standard “Pharmacist””; Order of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Russian Federation dated May 31, 2021 N 349n “On approval of the professional standard “Pharmacist””. Based on the results of the study, the characteristics of the selection and offer of sedative drugs are presented in detail, and an algorithm for the selection and offer of drugs with a sedative effect from the group of over-the-counter anxiolytics is compiled.

The Reasons to Follow Conventional Practices

ABSTRACT This article challenges a reductive analysis of social practices by distinguishing five kinds of reason for following the rules of conventional practices. Depending on one’s preferred intellectual tradition, conventional practices enable coordination, facilitate cooperation, constitute activities, fulfil reciprocity, or specify abstract rights. Instead of being rival theories of social practices, these different models complement one another in a normative analysis of social practices. By distinguishing five kinds of reasons to follow conventional rules, this paper supports a more dynamic conventionalist analysis of subjects like property, the law, professional obligation, civic responsibility, and culture.

Notes on the Implications of Ignoring Bayes’ Rule in Search and Rescue Practice in the UK

Thomas Bayes (1702-1761) has had a big influence on the science of inference since he discovered the mathematically correct way of adjusting probabilities to account for new evidence. Nonetheless, it is still the case that in practice it is not always clear where and when to apply the rule he derived, or the consequences of not doing so. In this note, the effects of not doing so when searching an area of ground for a missing person (misper), where the chances of finding them depends both on whether they are there and how well the ground is searched, is investigated. This investigation suggests that within the range of probabilities that generally apply to search operations in rural settings in the UK, the widespread failure to apply Bayes’ rule may incline search managers to widen search areas more than is warranted by the evidence and may thereby reduce overall search effectiveness (ceteris paribus).

Ideology as misrecognition

Theories of recognition often acknowledge that some forms of recognition can be ideological. Only recently have authors also begun to ask whether all ideological phenomena involve a more basic form of misrecognition of epistemic agents. I argue that an expressivist reconstruction of the Marxian theory of ideology can help us to understand what forms of misrecognition are involved in ideology. According to this understanding, ideological discourses reflect the rules of hierarchical social practices and impose limits on the capacity of subjects to challenge dominant conceptual distinctions. While rational epistemic subjects will tend to experience such limits as misrecognition, this does not require any negative interpersonal attitudes on the part of others. Therefore, at least some forms of ideology involve primarily structural, rather than interpersonal, misrecognition. I argue that ideologies that persist without involving widespread false beliefs can best be understood in this way and that neoliberalism is a paradigmatic example of such an ideology.

Проблема определения правового режима отходов недропользования

The article provides a brief analysis of the problem of determining the legal regime for subsoil use waste. During the study of this problem, contradictions and fragmentation of legal regulations were identified, giving rise to competition between legislation on subsoil and production and consumption waste in terms of consolidating the legal regime of subsoil waste. Based on the analysis of doctrinal sources, judicial practice and relevant rules of law, in order to determine the legal regime of objects arising during the implementation of mining activities, the need was identified for the mandatory conduct by the subsoil user of a comprehensive geological and economic assessment of these objects. As a result of the study, recommendations were proposed for making changes and additions to the norms of current legislation regulating the analyzed social relations, allowing to solve the identified problem.

Quelle réponse apporter à un refus obstiné de soins lors de l’accouchement ?

Our team was confronted with a situation of stubborn refusal of care, including the indication of a cesarean section for an adult patient able to express her wishes. This refusal was formulated during pregnancy follow-up, during the discussion of the birth plan and during delivery, the patient having accepted the indication of a possible emergency cesarean section under general anesthesia only in the occurrence of severe fetal heart rate abnormalities. The impasse forced caregivers to violate the rules of good clinical practice, which indicated the performance of a cesarean section, and to wait for a complication to arise in order to be able to act, taking the risk of intervening too late. This situation has led to direct risks to the health of the mother and the unborn child, without putting the life of either of them in imminent danger. Finally, the time devoted to this patient in a tense organization was to the detriment of the care of other patients.

Discrete optimal power flow with prohibited zones, multiple-fuel options, and practical operational rules for control devices

Although the optimal power flow (OPF) problem has been extensively studied, solving realistic OPF models that accurately represent the operating behavior of power system components remains challenging. This paper proposes a novel model for the AC OPF problem, aiming to minimize the fuel costs of thermal units while taking into account valve-point loading effects (VPLE), prohibited operation zones (POZ), multiple fuel options (MFO), and operational rules associated with the discrete tap ratios of on-load tap changer (OLTC) transformers and with the discrete shunt susceptances of capacitor/reactor banks. These rules are represented using complementarity constraints. We propose a solution approach that integrates several strategies to address the non-smooth features of the objective function related to VPLE, the disjoint constraints and functions tied to POZ and MFO, the discrete characteristics of the reactive control variables, and the complementarity constraints governing operational rules linked to voltage control devices such as OLTC transformers and capacitor/reactor banks. The resulting optimization problem is designed to be compatible with commercial solver packages. Numerical tests on the IEEE 30, 118, and 300-bus systems aim to examine the cumulative impact of these operational factors on the optimal solution. The solution strategy proposed has demonstrated its effectiveness in solving the proposed OPF problem within reasonable computation times.

On the International Unification of Rules on International Commercial Contracts

The globalization of trade is influencing the development of commercial legislation by unifying the rules of international commercial contracts internationally, and the ascent of China is imperative for the global community and an inevitable consequence of ongoing advancements in international business. In terms of practical achievements, it has effectively promoted and safeguarded the progress of the worldwide economy. In an effort to facilitate the advancement of worldwide standardization in regulations pertaining to global matters and fully utilize its potential, It is crucial to possess a comprehensive comprehension of the notions and attributes associated with it, and to analyse the problems that exist in the process of its implementation. In addition, by combining the actual situation of specific countries, we can also better understand the current situation of the unification of international commercial contract rules in practice, which is more conducive to its implementation and improvement. Accordingly, this paper will make full use of the research methods of literature study and comparative analysis to discuss the above issues by analyzing the theoretical studies and legislative overviews of different countries.

Notes on the Implications of Ignoring Bayes’ Rule in Search and Rescue Practice in the UK

Thomas Bayes (1702-1761) has had a big influence on the science of inference since he discovered the mathematically correct way of adjusting probabilities to account for new evidence. Nonetheless, it is still the case that in practice it is not always clear where and when to apply the rule he derived, or the consequences of not doing so. In this note, the effects of not doing so when searching an area of ground for a missing person (misper), where the chances of finding them depends both on whether they are there and how well the ground is searched, is investigated. This investigation suggests that within the range of probabilities that generally apply to search operations in rural settings in the UK, the widespread failure to apply Bayes’ rule may incline search managers to widen search areas more than is warranted by the evidence and may thereby reduce overall search effectiveness (ceteris paribus).

Asylum Adjudication and Street-Level Discretion: Negotiating Practice Rules

Studying asylum adjudication in Switzerland, this article investigates how front-line practitioners in street-level organizations (SLOs) effectively exercise collective rulemaking power when they engage in construction of procedural rules, known as “asylum practice” rules. Asylum practice rules aim at standardizing decision-making by defining which profiles can be protected or not, according to each country of origin. These rules potentially influence individual discretion and refugee status determination by shaping which decisions street-level adjudicators perceive as possible according to asylum seekers’ motives, situation and country of origin. The article argues that, in the context of a judicialized asylum policy, the development of asylum practice rules is part of a strategic and adversarial game with the legal defense of refugees and the court reviewing asylum appeals to interpret asylum law and determine its specific applications.

Уголовно-правовая характеристика преступлений экстремистской направленности, совершаемых мигрантами (на примере хулиганства)

In this paper, the author addresses the coverage of the criminal law characteristics of such a crime as hooliganism. Based on official statistics, the author emphasizes that hooliganism is one of the most common extremist crimes committed by foreign citizens and stateless persons (migrants). According to the author, the analysis of Article 213 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation will help to more effectively apply this rule in practice, and competent law enforcement practice on this issue will have a positive impact on the overall prevention of crime in general.

The Business Judgment Rule in Practice: Evaluating Directors' Decision-Making and its Legal Framework in India

The Business Judgment Rule in Practice: Evaluating Directors' Decision-Making and its Legal Framework in India

Proposal for a Limited Practice Rule to Narrow North Carolina’s Access to Justice Gap

Proposal for a Limited Practice Rule to Narrow North Carolina’s Access to Justice Gap

...Or We Will Do Without the Theatre. Challenging the Urban Space, Drafting a New City Map Through Performances.

The article discusses the evolution of urban mapping and innovative urban design. It explores the transition from functional urban planning to more creative approaches inspired by artists such as Guy Debord, Yoko Ono and others. It suggests that the city is a stage for events, similar to Antonin Artaud’s vision. The central question is how the city can be transformed into a theatre through practical design rules. The paper presents two experiments. The first involves random map rearrangement, encouraging new exploration of familiar neighbourhoods. The second experiment introduces guidance and unpredictability, reflecting the uncertainties of architectural projects. These experiments aim to apply theatrical concepts to urban design. The article seeks to develop a manual for dramatic urban navigation, highlighting the inherent dramatic structure of the city and promoting innovative design regulations.

Prediction of Daily Ambient Temperature and Its Hourly Estimation Using Artificial Neural Networks in Urban Allotment Gardens and an Urban Park in Valladolid, Castilla y León, Spain

Urban green spaces improve quality of life by mitigating urban temperatures. However, there are challenges in obtaining urban data to analyze and understand their influence. With the aim of developing innovative methodologies for this type of research, Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) were developed to predict daily and hourly temperatures in urban green spaces from sensors placed in situ for 41 days. The study areas were four urban allotment gardens (with dynamic and productive vegetation) and a forested urban park in the city of Valladolid, Spain. ANNs were built and evaluated from various combinations of inputs (X), hidden neurons (Y), and outputs (Z) under the practical rule of “making networks simple, to obtain better results”. Seven ANNs architectures were tested: 7-Y-5 (Y = 6, 7, …, 14), 6-Y-5 (Y = 6, 7, …, 14), 7-Y-1 (Y = 2, 3, …, 8), 6-Y-1 (Y = 2, 3, …, 8), 4-Y-1 (Y = 1, 2, …, 7), 3-Y-1 (Y = 1, 2, …, 7), and 2-Y-1 (Y = 2, 3, …, 8). The best-performing model was the 6-Y-1 ANN architecture with a Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) of 0.42 °C for the urban garden called Valle de Arán. The results demonstrated that from shorter data points obtained in situ, ANNs predictions achieve acceptable results and reflect the usefulness of the methodology. These predictions were more accurate in urban gardens than in urban parks, where the type of existing vegetation can be a decisive factor. This study can contribute to the development of a sustainable and smart city, and has the potential to be replicated in cities where the influence of urban green spaces on urban temperatures is studied with traditional methodologies.