Specific Character Research Articles

A Comparative Approach to Amendments to Constitutional Preambles: Questions of Amendability, Substance, and Reasons

Preambles of constitutions tend to express general principles, overarching values, and aspirational ideas that underpin the whole constitution. Whether they are deemed legally binding or not, their special character seems to suggest that constitutional preambles should be difficult to amend and that amendment of them should occur only rarely. Attention seldom extends beyond this, however: there is a distinct lack of comprehensive comparative analysis of amendments to constitutional preambles, with these preambles remaining the least researched part of constitutions. The paper represents an effort to fill this void by presenting a comparative empirical analysis of amendments to constitutional preambles around the world. After providing an overview of what sets constitutional preambles apart from the main body of constitutions and analysing their overall amendability, it reports specific results from empirical research into amendments to constitutional preambles, which identified 55 constitutional events occurring since 1949 that have resulted in some change in a constitutional preamble. The paper offers a typology of those amendments, from 42 countries, which involves 20 general characteristic elements of preambles, of which amendments related to political movements, ideology, or ideologues / political leaders were identified as most frequent. Lastly, it directs focus to the socio-political and other factors that lead to amendments in constitutional preambles.

Arrest Matters: The Pragmatics of Vulnerability in Phone Calls to the Stasi

Using Conversation Analysis (CA), this article focuses on the ways in which participants invoke vulnerability in phone calls to the former East German State Security Service, better known as the Stasi. The calls were made in the late 1970s and the 1980s and pertained in one way or the other to political arrests. The main aim is to understand the linkage between vulnerability as an attribute of an institutional setting and vulnerability as the mutual achievement of a social interaction with an organization. The data represent different ways of addressing experiences of vulnerabilisation and different complications, each with a specific interactional character (failed request for help, self-protection or expression of indignation about one’s own treatment). Starting with an ambiguous case and focusing on how participants work to describe experiences of arrest in other cases documented and available in the Stasi tape archive, the article describes the sequential unfolding of vulnerability in different formats, depending on how the recipient designs them and the communicative tasks that participants tackle in their interactions.

Projection segmentation-based image recognition technology for automatic reading of gas meter

In view of the shortcomings of the existing gas meter reading methods, this paper introduces an automatic reading method and calibration device based on the projection segmentation method, which uses the color difference between the character part and the rest part of the last code wheel of the gas meter counter to realize image recognition of the turned characters, and then calculates the cumulative volume indication of gas meter based on the number of turned characters. The pixel projection value scanned by the camera device at the horizontal centerline of the last code wheel changes alternately when the code wheel rotates. The proposed projection segmentation method does not require recognition of specific characters, simplifying the algorithm and making it suitable for most calibration devices. Experiments show that the accuracy rate of the proposed method is 100% even under low-light conditions, which is a great improvement compared with the traditional character recognition method. Additionally, the reading resolution of the proposed method is improved by 10 times compared with the existing photoelectric sampling method and template matching method, and the total calibration time can be reduced by 6.7%–58.7%, which significantly enhances the calibration efficiency.

Induced differential characters on nonlinear Graßmannians

Induced differential characters on nonlinear Graßmannians

“Interesting Cases”: On the Problem of Embezzlement in the Russian Army of the 18th – Early 19th Century

The article is written mainly on the materials of military court cases from the Russian State Military Historical Archive, as well as regulatory and legislative sources. The author examines property crimes within the Russian army from a socio-cultural perspective. The author concludes that the tools and practices that served as constraints in plundering money and resources have evolved over several decades. The practice of intimidation and capital punishment, which originated under Peter I, very quickly proved to be uneffective. As a result, by the middle of the 18th century, a system was formed so that, aside from the usual financial liability of the perpetrators, criminal and disciplinary penalties, it was effectively complemented by the principle of the command vertical liability in the matter of compensation for damage, which gave it a special corporate character. A specific attitude towards damage also facilitated this. The claim arose from a specific military unit, not from the treasury. This damage could not be forgiven even by the emperor. Measures such as sequestration of the culprit’s real estate and extending material claims to their heirs further reinforced the corporate identity of the regiment’s property.

Exploring Applications of Flexible Vesicular Systems as Transdermal Drug Delivery.

Deformable lipidic-nano carriers are a category of advanced liposomal formulations. Deformable lipidic-nano carriers have a specific character to transform by rearranging the lipidic backbone to squeeze themself through a pore opening ten times smaller than their diameter when exposed to a variable condition like hydration gradient as these have potentially been used as a non-invasive delivery system to transdermally migrate various therapeutic agents for over three decades. Despite their vast application in transdermal drug delivery system, non-uniformity to express their chemical nature still exist and authors use various terms synonymously and interchangeably with each other. The present study delineates the terminologies used to express different derived deformable vesicular carriers to harmonize the terminological use. It also includes the effectiveness of deformable nanocarriers like Transferosomes, Ethosomes, Menthosomes, Invasomes, and Glycerosomes in skin conditions like basal cell carcinoma, fungal and viral infections, and hyperpigmentation disorders, along with others. Various review and research articles were selected from the 'Pubmed' database. The keywords like Transferosomes, Flexi-vesicular system, ultra-deformable vesicles, and nano-vesicular systems were used to extract the data. The data was reviewed and compiled to categorically classify different flexible vesicular systems. The composition of the different vesicular systems is identified and a report of various pathological conditions where the use of flexible lipid nanocarrier systems was implemented is compiled. The review also offers suggestive approaches where the applicability of these systems can be explored further.

Protokół stanu faktycznego jako sposób zabezpieczenia „dowodów z Internetu”

As a result of ongoing technological development, more and more cases can be handled fully just “in front of a computer”. This causes that the sole evidence that confirms a party’s arguments in case of a potential conflict is only available in the Internet and treated as “evidence from the Internet”. Although there is no doubt that such evidence may constitute the basis of actual affairs, given its specific character it is important to incorporate it effectively in the evidence of the case. It is clear that the “evidence from the Internet” cannot be presented directly, which means that it has to be duplicated as a tangible copy. In addition, such evidence is prone to modifications and can be quickly deleted. In consequence, a party that bases favourable legal consequences on the “evidence from the Internet” will want to use such a method that will secure the evidence, i.e. copy the evidence without impact on the content. This article describes the bailiff’s report on the actual state of affairs, which, in the author’s opinion, is an effective method of securing the “evidence from the Internet”. Keywords: report on the actual state of affairs, bailiff’s non-enforcement actions, securing the evidence, “evidence from the Internet”

Пифагорейский аргумент разумного замысла Вселенной и его критика. Статья 5: «Атеизм» современных физиков

One of the objections to the Pythagorean argument is the reference to the authority of modern physicists, most of whom call themselves atheists or agnostics. Even if there had not been any atheists among the founding fathers of physics, something is wrong with the argument of the intelligent design of the Universe, since so many physicists of the last half-century do not believe in God, the critique goes. To answer this sort of objections, we discuss here the views of Richard Feynman, Steven Weinberg, and Stephen Hawking, each of whom called himself an “atheist”. We attempt to show in what sense they indeed were atheists and in what sense they were not. Roger Penrose, the eminent physicist and thinker, called himself “rather agnostic”, but he was convinced of the universe’s purpose, and explained what this conviction was based on: not blind faith but the very special character of the physical laws and the initial conditions of the Big Bang. Penrose illustrated his metaphysical views by means of graphic images, one of which we discuss in a dedicated chapter. Our review of contemporary physicist-philosophers would be very incomplete without the “practicing but unbelieving Christian” Freeman Dyson, with his concept of “the most interesting of all possible worlds”, and so we talk about him too. We also consider Max Tegmark’s mathematical multiverse hypothesis and show that it does not stand up to criticism in light of the cognitive self-consistency of the universe. Is it rational to reject the hypothesis of intelligent design when all other hypotheses about the cause of the highly refi ned nature of physical laws fail? The chapter “Absurdity and Skepticism” is devoted to this question. At the end of this essay and the whole series, we familiarize the reader with the view of the mass man in science and the nature of his “atheism” that was expressed by Jose Ortega y Gasset, supported by Erwin Schrödinger, and commented on by Steven Weinberg.

Bataille and Wittgenstein: on mysticism, silence, and inner experience

ABSTRACT Despite differences, Georges Bataille, theorist of non-knowledge and atheology, and Ludwig Wittgenstein, the Austrian logician, share specific parallels regarding their understandings of language and mystical experience. For both, mystical experience pushes beyond conventional discourse. Using analogous elements of critical and mystical discourse, each express rather antiphilosophical, spiritual visions. Still, Wittgenstein’s deeply private and agnostic Christianity sharply contrasts Bataille’s own atheological experience of the death of God. Where Bataille’s mysticism challenges rationality, Wittgenstein’s instead expresses the numinous world as such, shedding light on the dark night of Bataille and the specific character of ‘inner experience’. Where Wittgenstein advocates either clarity of expression or silence, however, the transgressive and poetic syntax of Bataille, alongside his evocative and erotic usage of imagery and metaphor, instead presses precisely against the impossibility for words that Wittgenstein’s thinking forecloses. Silence, like evil and poetry for Bataille, is active and imperative to communication, opening itself against the closure of reason. Relative to Wittgenstein and Christianity’s ascent to knowledge and awareness then, Bataille instead dives down deep into the body and night of nonknowledge. In this way, paradoxically, Bataille’s atheological writings approach a new summit of communication only attainable in the absence of God.

MXene-based self-adhesive, ultrasensitive, highly tough flexible hydrogel pressure sensors for motion monitoring and robotic tactile sensing

With the rapid development of artificial intelligence and human–computer interaction fields, wearable electronic devices represented by flexible pressure sensors have a wider range of application scenarios. In this paper, we used a composite hydrogel made by one-pot polymerization using a combination of acrylamide (AM), sodium carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), dopamine (DA), and MXene (Ti3C2Tx). The composite hydrogel has the advantages of self-adhesion, high sensitivity, large detection range (0–500 kPa), low detection limit, high toughness (compression > 90 %), stability (more than 6700 s) and other advantages of hydrogel flexible pressure strain sensor. Sodium carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), as a multifunctional thickener and gelling agent, significantly improves rheological properties and viscosity in hydrogels, forms crosslinked structures to enhance mechanical properties and provides reliable toughness for pressure sensors. Dopamine (DA), which is rich in catechol groups, can adhere to the material surface through oxidative polymerization to enhance bond strength. Hydrogel pressure sensors for human motion detection can accurately track joint movement, respond sensitively to changes in knocks and touches, and display specific characters such as Morse code. The technology extends to robotic systems, where pressure-activated electrical signals are used to control robot movements. Therefore, it has a very promising application in the field of human–computer interaction, human-body movement signal detection, etc. PAM/CMC/DA/MXene hydrogel pressure sensors have excellent mechanical, electrical, and adhesion properties, which provide a more reliable solution for the fields of flexible wearable e-skin, human–computer interaction, and tactile sensing.

Differential growth, morphological characters, and yield of quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) genotypes grown on salt degraded soil

AbstractQuinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.), a high‐value halophytic crop, is a promising candidate to ensure food security in the scenario of increasing soil salinization due to climate change. In a 2‐year field study (during 2018–2019 and 2019–2020), 18 quinoa genotypes of different origins (Q‐4, Q‐6, Q‐9, Q‐7, Q11, Q‐15, Q‐22, Q‐24, Q‐27, Q‐45, Q‐50, Q‐51, Q‐52, Q‐76, Q‐81, Q82, Q‐124, and Q‐126) were grown at two different locations (salt‐affected and normal soil having electrical conductivity (EC) of 16.24 and 1.76 dS m−1, respectively). Morphological, physiological, and yield parameters were recorded to assess the impact of salinity on different genotypes of quinoa. All the tested genotypes performed better in normal soil (37% more yield) than salt‐affected soils. Under salt‐affected conditions, differential salt tolerance responses of quinoa genotypes were observed. Among tested genotypes, Q‐7 achieved the highest chlorophyll content index, biological mass (7905 kg ha−1), and seed yield (1916 kg ha−1) under salt‐affected conditions, it was followed by Q‐81. Salt stress caused up to 94% reduction of seed yield in the salt‐sensitive genotype (Q‐11), while the salt‐tolerant genotype (Q‐81) showed only 15% reduction in seed yield. Morphological characteristics of quinoa genotypes were differently influenced by salt stress. The salt‐tolerant accessions Q‐7 and Q‐81 exhibited similar morphological characteristics. Based on the findings of this study, salt‐tolerant quinoa genotypes can be successfully grown in salt‐degraded soils (with EC ≤ 16.24 dS m−1) in extreme winter seasons with arid climatic conditions.

Longitudinal Associations between Adolescents' Character Attributes and Civic Actions.

Research suggests that character attributes may enable youth to envision and perform civic actions that benefit society, but few studies have examined the longitudinal associations between character attributes and civic actions. As a response to this gap, this study investigated how specific character attributes (purpose, future mindedness, humility, and moral courage) may be differently linked to various civic actions (community service, political activities, social activism) cross-sectionally and longitudinally. Survey data were collected from 521 adolescents (Mage = 14.44, SD = 1.92, 58.5% girls, 60.8% White). Structural equation models demonstrated that purpose and future mindedness were positively associated with all three civic actions at Time 1, but not at Time 2. Humility was not associated with any Time 1 civic actions, but was negatively associated with Time 2 political activities. Moral courage was positively associated with Time 1 social activism and Time 2 political activities. Results illuminate the short-term interplay between character attributes and civic actions and point to internal resources that may promote different forms of youth civic action.

Design and Evaluation of Controller-Based Raycasting Methods for Efficient Alphanumeric and Special Character Entry in Virtual Reality.

Alphanumeric and special characters are essential during text entry. Text entry in virtual reality (VR) is usually performed on a virtual Qwerty keyboard to minimize the need to learn new layouts. As such, entering capitals, symbols, and numbers in VR is often a direct migration from a physical/touchscreen Qwerty keyboard-that is, using the mode-switching keys to switch between different types of characters and symbols. However, there are inherent differences between a keyboard in VR and a physical/touchscreen keyboard, and as such, a direct adaptation of mode-switching via switch keys may not be suitable for VR. The high flexibility afforded by VR opens up more possibilities for entering alphanumeric and special characters using the Qwerty layout. In this work, we designed two controller-based raycasting text entry methods for alphanumeric and special characters input (Layer-ButtonSwitch and Key-ButtonSwitch) and compared them with two other methods (Standard Qwerty Keyboard and Layer-PointSwitch) that were derived from physical and soft Qwerty keyboards. We explored the performance and user preference of these four methods via two user studies (one short-term and one prolonged use), where participants were instructed to input text containing alphanumeric and special characters. Our results show that Layer-ButtonSwitch led to the highest statistically significant performance, followed by Key-ButtonSwitch and Standard Qwerty Keyboard, while Layer-PointSwitch had the slowest speed. With continuous practice, participants' performance using Key-ButtonSwitch reached that of Layer-ButtonSwitch. Further, the results show that the key-level layout used in Key-ButtonSwitch led users to parallel mode switching and character input operations because this layout showed all characters on one layer. We distill three recommendations from the results that can help guide the design of text entry techniques for alphanumeric and special characters in VR.

Preventive conservation – a means of sustainability of cultural heritage: The case of the M’Zab Valley

Abstract The management of heritage sites is fundamental to their conservation and sustainability, and more broadly, it contributes to the preservation of the environment. This article highlights the conservation plan developed for one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the Algerian context: the M’Zab Valley in Ghardaïa. It has managed to preserve its specific character over the centuries thanks to the management operations that have been necessary for its continuity. The main question of this study is what are the management actions adopted in the M’Zab Valley with regard to the Ksourian architectural heritage to ensure its sustainability? Given the exploratory nature of this research, we chose a qualitative and inductive method. The study is based on a combination of several investigative tools: interviews, observations and photographs. The aim of the article is to highlight the efforts made by the Algerian public authorities and the local community to implement cultural heritage management measures in a particular context. The results of the analysis reveal, first, that the implementation of the permanent plan for the safeguarding and enhancement of the protected sector of the M’Zab Valley has proven itself in the preservation of monuments, sites and historic buildings, but also all the contexts associated with the daily life of people. Second, the rehabilitation operations of the historic ksour shall ensure the authenticity of the buildings and their integrity with the environment will be kept while adapting them to the current needs of users. Third, the combination of efforts between public institutions, the Office for the Protection and Promotion of the Valley of M’Zab, the local community and associations avoided the weakening of traditions and ancestral values through awareness missions, heritage education programmes, the application of heritage laws and regulations, and scientific and historical documentation of local heritage. Finally, the involvement of the local community in all operations on their local heritage ensures the transfer of local knowledge.

Variation and Phenetic Relationship of Passiflora spp. in Yogyakarta Based on Morphological and Anatomical Characters

Passiflora spp. or passion fruit is a tropical plant that is often used as a food source. The large morphological variations of Passiflora cause difficulties in identifying the species. The objectives of the study are to identify the specific morphological and anatomical characters of Passiflora spp. in Yogyakarta and to determine their phenetic relationship for identification. A total of 15 samples of Passiflora were taken by purposive sampling technique from Bantul, Sleman, Kulon Progo, and Yogyakarta City, and then carried through the morphological and anatomical characterization. The morphological characters observed stems, leaves, and flowers, while the anatomical characters observed leaves. The results show that the observed samples are identified as four species, P. foetida, P. vitifolia, P. edulis, and P. quadrangularis. The P. edulis species consists of two forms, P. edulis f. flavicarpa and P. edulis f. edulis. The variation of morphological character lie in young stem shape, leaf shape, the texture of stem and leaf surface, bract shape and color, sepal and petal color, and the presence of a purple corona ring. While the variation of anatomical characters lie in the pattern of the vascular bundles, the shape of the upper and lower sides of the leaf veins, the shape and size of the palisade cells, as well as the type and density of stomata. Based on the phenetic analysis on the 0.8 phenon line, four main clusters were formed, P. foetida, P. vitifolia, P. edulis, and P. quadrangularis.

The invasive Nearctic wasp Isodontia mexicana (Hymenoptera, Sphecidae) now established in Türkiye

The genus Isodontia Patton, 1880, consisting of grass-carrying wasps belonging to the family Sphecidae, has 62 described species distributed worldwide. Two are native to the Western Palaearctic and occur in Türkiye: Isodontia paludosa (Rossi, 1790) and Isodontia splendidula (A. Costa, 1858). Isodontia mexicana (de Saussure, 1867) and Isodontia nigella (F. Smith, 1856) are non-native species recorded in the Western Palaearctic. Former is the North American species of the genus, accidentally introduced into Europe and spread to many countries. This study reports for the first-time presence of Isodontia mexicana in Türkiye. The present record from near the western edge of Asia Minor constitutes the second locality where the species was detected in the Asian continent after Iran. Differential morphologic characters for the species are provided and illustrated. This new species record brings the number of Sphecidae fauna of Türkiye to 80.

Pendampingan Penyusunan Konsep Wisata Berbasis Potensi Lokal pada Objek Wisata Pulau Semut Kelurahan Limbungan

Riverside areas have unique and varied characters that are not the same as others in terms of social, economic, cultural, and environmental aspects. The unique and specific character of the Pulau Semut Tourism object located in the Limbungan Village Pengambangan Area can be developed according to its potential. The location is on the side of the river which is still natural because it has a mangrove forest that is still beautiful. The local wisdom of this tourist attraction is that it is managed by the local community, with tourist destinations that are still natural, and there are several local products from fish processing that are worth developing as a local potential-based tourism concept. Partners still need to be assisted in terms of preparing local potential-based tourism concepts. The methods used are the discussion method, activity planning method, and implementation method. The result is that the concept displayed on the map is the local potential, namely the balimau spot and the culinary meatballs of rasau fish. In conclusion, the preparation of the Ant Island tourism concept emphasizes the local potential of Ant Island tourism.

An integrated approach for discrimination of Magnoliae officinalis cortex before and after being processed by ginger juice combining LC/MS, GC/MS, intelligent sensors, and chemometrics.

Magnoliae officinalis cortex (MOC) is an important traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), and both raw and stir-fried MOC were commonly used in clinic. This study aimed to discriminate MOC and MOC stir-fried with ginger juice (MOCG) using an integrated approach combining liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS), gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS), intelligent sensors, and chemometrics. The sensory characters of the samples were digitalized using intelligent sensors, i.e., colorimeter, electronic nose, and electronic tongue. Meanwhile, the chemical profiles of the samples were analyzed using LC/MS and GC/MS methods. Chemometric models were constructed to discriminate samples of MOC and MOCG based on not only the sensory data but also the chemical data. The differential sensory characters (L* and b* from colorimeter, ANS from electronic tongue, W1S and W2S from electronic nose) and the differential chemical compounds (26 and 11 compounds from LC/MS and GC/MS, respectively) were discovered between MOC and MOCG. Furthermore, twelve differential compounds showed good relations with differential sensory characters. Finally, artificial neural network models were established to discriminate samples of MOC and MOCG, in which W1S, W2S, ANS, b*, and 10 differential compounds were among the top 10 important variables, respectively. Samples of MOC and MOCG can be discriminated not only by the digitalized data of color, taste, and scent detected by intelligent sensors but also by chemical information obtained from LC/MS and GC/MS using chemometrics. The variations in sensory characters and chemical compounds between MOC and MOCG partially resulted from the Maillard reaction products and the oxidation of some compounds in the stir-frying process.

THE WAR AS A SOCIO-CULTURAL PHENOMENON IN A CONTEMPORARY UKRAINIAN PHILOSOPHICAL DISCOURSE

An armed conflict between Ukraine and Russian Federation lasts for the past 10 years on and on February 24, 2022 it turned into full-scale war with all arsenal of conventional arm available used, nuclear excluded.The war turned into a new social and political reality that defined socio-political and socio-cultural vectors of development of Ukrainians and their state – focused on oppression to occupant’s conquer – for many years ahead.The war, as a socio-cultural phenomenon and the new stage of Ukrainian nation became a topic of research of the domestic academic environment. It defined in home philosophical research circles new polemic that aims at thinking through an ontological nature of the conflict, its social, cultural, and historical causes, to reveal its specific character in the past and in the present, to find out where the balance was lost in the structural order of the security, its lawful preventive mechanisms failure.Many analytical attempts to describe topological classification of that conflict (in the context of the growth of the contemporary philosophical discourse) were conducted. It were given some answers on the question on the roots of the conflict, on its continuity. It was pointed out its destructive impact on the condition of the Ukrainians, its social and cultural evolution from the point of view of different philosophical views and research programmes or contemporary historical narratives, modern principles of the native and Western-European philosophy.An evolution of the points of view on ontological and historical reasons of the war and philosophical reflections of the native scholars were considered in this article. Some problematic issues, determined by the different phases of the conflict were researched.

Articulating the Collective Immigrant Experience in Canada: The Boat People and Shut Up, You’re Pretty

ABSTRACT Exploring the ideology behind merit-based immigration policy in Canada, the paper discusses the collective immigrant experience in the works of two contemporary Canadian female authors, Shut up You’re Pretty (2019) by Congo-born Tea Mutonji, and the novel inspired by the refugee crises since the 1970s, The Boat People (2018) by Sharon Bala. The introductory part problematizes the historically discriminatory immigration policies, and explores the position of the immigrant in contemporaneity, in the process of integration through performatives shaped by the counternarratives of multiculturalism. The analysis of the specific characters’ narratives in these works explores the connection between the personal, subjective, and the collective within the groups of immigrants, refugees and born Canadians to whom Canadianness features as an unattainable goal located behind the glass ceiling. In the concluding remarks, the paper summarizes how these contemporary female authors expose the hypocritical, pragmatic and shifting nature of the multicultural narrative.