Widespread Activity Research Articles

DESIGN THINKING – EVOLUTION & ITS IMPORTANCE IN BUSINESS

Design thinking is an analytic and creative process in which a person is encouraged to experiment, create and prototype models, gather feedback, and redesign. The literature has identified several characteristics (e.g., visualisation, creativity) that a good design thinker should have. Design and design thinking have been recognised as valuable contributions to business and management, and the number of higher education programmes teaching design thinking to business students, managers, and executives is increasing. Multiple definitions of design thinking, as well as a variety of perspectives, have led to some confusion about possible paths. Design, like problem solving, is a natural and widespread human activity. A design process begins with a need and discontent with the present situation, as well as a determination that something must be done to fix the problem. Many scientists, in this opinion, have been creating and behaving as designers throughout their careers, while not always being aware of or realising that they are doing so. Keywords: Design thinking.

Dopamine Inhibits Arabidopsis Growth through Increased Oxidative Stress and Auxin Activity

Like some bacterial species and all animals, plants synthesize dopamine and react to its exogenous applications. Despite dopamine’s widespread presence and activity in plants, its role in plant physiology is still poorly understood. Using targeted experimentation informed by the transcriptomic response to dopamine exposure, we identify three major effects of dopamine. First, we show that dopamine causes hypersensitivity to auxin indole-3-acetic acid by enhancing auxin activity. Second, we show that dopamine increases oxidative stress, which can be mitigated with glutathione. Third, we find that dopamine downregulates iron uptake mechanisms, leading to a decreased iron content—a response possibly aimed at reducing DA-induced oxidative stress. Finally, we show that dopamine-induced auxin sensitivity is downstream of glutathione biosynthesis, indicating that the auxin response is likely a consequence of DA-induced oxidative stress. Collectively, our results show that exogenous dopamine increases oxidative stress, which inhibits growth both directly and indirectly by promoting glutathione-biosynthesis-dependent auxin hypersensitivity.

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Popcorn Corn Varieties and Popcorns

Popping corn is a widespread activity and popcorns are one of the most consumed snacks in the world. As popcorn corn is exposed to environmental conditions and agrotechnical measures in the field, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) can end up in corn kernels. Since popcorns are popped at higher temperatures, ca. 180 °C, it is reasonable to assume that PAHs can be found in popcorns. The objective of this paper was to preliminarily determine and quantify the incidence of various PAHs in different popcorn varieties and popcorns popped from them, during two consecutive years. PAHs were determined by using GC-MS. Popcorn corn contained only light PAHs, naphthalene (Nap), acenaphthene (Ane), and fluorene (Fln). However, popped popcorns contained heavier PAHs, such as benz[a]anthracene (BaA), chrysene (Chry), and benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) whose ∑PAH4 was 8.39 µg/kg in sample 1 in 2020. The results indicate that popcorns can be a significant source of PAHs and further studies should be conducted. This is concerning since popcorns are favored snacks in all age groups, including children.

Certified forest management and conservation of medium and large-sized mammals: biodiversity, trampling, browsing and seed removal in the Argentine Austral Yungas

Timber extraction is one of the most widespread human activities in forested environments, and subsequent environmental degradation and impacts on wildlife have been extensively studied. Reduced impact logging under certification standards could help reconcile forest production with biodiversity conservation. However, whether this is a convenient strategy for the conservation of the medium and large-sized mammal assemblage of the Argentine Austral Yungas remains unknown. Here, we compared species richness, diversity and composition, sign frequency and species identity of medium and large mammals considering body mass and trophic guilds, as well as three mammal-plant interactions (seedling trampling, plant browsing and fruit removal) between an area under logging certification and a similar unlogged area (control). Our results indicate that, 3–4 years after logging stopped, 16 of the 32 variables analyzed showed no changes between the logged area and the control (species composition, richness and 2 diversity indices, frequency of herbivores and omnivores, frequency of 7 species, browsing rate in the 2 lowest strata and trampling rate). In the logged area, we found a higher frequency of medium-sized mammals and 5 mammals species, a higher browsing rate in the upper stratum and a higher fruit removal rate. However, we also found a lower frequency of carnivores, large mammals, and of six mammal species. Although in our study we found certain species-specific differences, with a predominance of generalist species and certain reduced biological interactions in the logged compared to the unlogged area, we propose that forest intervention under responsible management may help to conserve a significant proportion of medium and large-sized mammal diversity of the Argentine Austral Yungas. Effective forest management, which balances the conservation of natural resources with sustainable use, is a crucial solution to preserving biodiversity. Both environmental and governmental organizations should prioritize and support this approach as a way to mitigate deforestation and promote responsible use of our forests.

Rural agriculture largely reduces the urban heating effects in China: A tale of the three most developed urban agglomerations

Agriculture, as a widespread high-intensity land use activity in urban surroundings, may dramatically alter urban climate through advection and atmospheric feedbacks. However, it remains unclear how and to what extent agriculture warms or cools the urban temperature. This study investigated the potential impacts of rural croplands on summer and winter urban heat island (UHI) effects in three most developed urban agglomerations (JJJ, Jing-Jin-Ji; YRD, Yangtze River Delta; PRD, Pearl River Delta) of China by the Weather Research and Forecast (WRF) model. Results show that urban lands warm 2-m air temperature substantially relative to natural forests, with a mean intensity of 1.33∼1.70 °C and the strongest in winter night of 2.99∼3.07 °C, but one to two thirds of the warming are canceled by rural croplands, especially in the semi-humid JJJ. The cropland impacts depend strongly on the concurrent UHI effects, with the coupled effects (added impacts due to the UHI effect) are 2.0∼8.7 times the independent effects (assuming no UHI effect), especially in the humid-hot PRD. Consequently, the rapid cropland loss for urbanization during 2000–2020 not only increases the UHI-affected area by 1.5∼4.2 times, but also elevates the UHI intensity of existing urban lands, for example, by 0.43∼0.65 °C in winter night. The cropland impacts on urban climate can be attributed to a range of factors like decreases in ground heat storage and net radiation, an increase in wind speed (turbulent heat mixing), and a change of planetary boundary layer height. Our results highlight the importance of rural agriculture in modulating urban climate and therefore in formulating the coordinated development plans of city clusters. However, the simulated cropland impacts differ greatly between near-surface air and land skin temperatures, and from the satellite-sensed radiant temperature, calling for field observations and more numeric experiments to elaborate the findings from this study.

On the nexus between growth and disaggregated ecological footprints-empirical evidence from India

The depletion of natural capital stock due to widespread anthropogenic activities has increased concerns about environmental sustainability. Given this perspective, this study examines the relationship between environmental degradation and economic growth within the framework of the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis in India. The growth-environment nexus using Autoregressive Distributive Lag is heterogeneous and footprint-specific. We find an inverted N-shaped EKC for cropland, N-shaped EKC for the forest, grazing, water, and built-up land footprints, and a monotonic increasing relationship for the carbon footprint. Projections based on annual per capita GDP show that cropland depletion would end by 2034 once India’s per capita GDP reaches USD 3,010. Besides, our study predicts that grazing land and forest land footprints will start increasing by 2026 and 2027, corresponding to a per capita GDP of USD 2,208 and USD 2,299. Our finding that the growth-environment relationship is time-varying and heterogeneous suggests policymakers and governments devise footprint-specific strategies to address their depletion.

POVERTY IN COMMUNITY SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PERSPECTIVE

Poverty is a socio-economic problem that has stimulated many research activities carried out by various parties such as planners, scientists, and the general public or non-governmental organizations from various educational backgrounds. The large number of poor people will have the potential to create new social problems, namely the decline in the quality of human resources, the emergence of inequality and social jealousy, disruption of social and political stability and increasing crime rates. The decline in the poor population is not too significant and is still relatively large. The government has struggled continuously to reduce the poor in its area with various strategies. The goal for the welfare of the nation's life seems to be just a discourse. The more widespread planning and development activities have not been able to overcome poverty in Indonesia, so to find alternative future policy solutions in an effort to accelerate poverty alleviation requires thinking from various cross-disciplinary social sciences. The method used in this study is descriptive analysis method, which describes a problem of community poverty based on secondary data sources from literature materials that are relevant to the title of the article and references. The sociological reality of poverty has different criteria, namely absolute and relative and not only personal events but also social events. Regarding religion, Islam responds to the phenomenon of poverty by encouraging and encouraging people to work hard and share with each other. In Islam poverty is explained in the Al-Quran and Hadith where poor people are people who are unable to meet their daily needs.

Clam harvesting in Tunisia: sustainability risks and SDG opportunities

Clam harvesting and export play a pivotal socio-economic role in Tunisia. Clam harvesting, one of the most widespread fishing activities in the country’s southern coastal regions (Sfax, Gabes, and Medenine), is crucial to supporting rural and vulnerable communities in their fight for survival, particularly women clam collectors. These women are in jeopardy due to several issues, such as pollution degrading the environment in the collection regions. The Ministry of Agriculture, Water Resources, and Fisheries, in Resolution No. 3500, dated November 16, 2020, suspended the clam harvesting seasons for three consecutive years (2020–2023). This decision, influenced by environmental, biological, and harvest area health data, was then followed by several national and international initiatives within the context of the blue economy to address these issues in such underdeveloped rural areas. Within this framework, the current project intends to contribute to these efforts by establishing a clam fishery management plan. This strategy can help promote fresh commercial species in great demand in the European and global markets. Additionally, it will strengthen the monitoring and follow-up of various manufacturing and transportation procedures and entice stakeholders to adhere to legal and health requirements. This work also aims to engage women clam collectors on the breadline in supplementary activities to ensure their financial independence and preserve their dignity. It seeks to provide unemployed young men a greater chance of finding employment locally and additional possibilities for making a living.

Kriging Interpolation Approach for Monitoring of Ambient Air Quality in Opencast Iron Ore Mining Region of Keonjhar District, Odisha, India

Joda- Barbil region of the Keonjhar District, Odisha is blessed with vast natural resources especially, high-grade iron and manganese ore deposits, due to which it has occupied a vital position in the mineral map of India. Mining of minerals resources is an important commercial activity indispensable for the economic development of a nation. Opencast iron ore mining and other ancillary activities influence the adjoining ecology and environment. Numbers of environmental issues are arising due to unscientific widespread opencast mining activities and have a direct impact on other natural resources like land, water, soil, air, flora and fauna. Ambient air gets severely affected due to the addition of fugitive dust and other pollutants directly or indirectly at every stage of mining activity starting from exploration, exploitation and mineral beneficiation. All forms of pollutants reduce the ambient air quality and enhance the health risk of the people living nearby villages. Increasing air pollution levels in the mining region can have immediate effects on the health of indigenous community and also on flora. A Kriging interpolation method has been applied to monitor the ambient air quality in opencast iron ore mining region of Keonjhar district. This practice is very useful for sustainable and eco-friendly mining as it is cost-effective and time-saving techniques and can interpret the spatial dispersion of pollution levels in un-sampled regions. Kriging interpolation analysis revealed that the ambient air quality level during the year 2005 to 2008 were high around Barbil, Thakurani and Noamundi. Keywords: Ambient Air Pollutants, Opencast Mining, Kriging Interpolation, Keonjhar District

Video gaming on smartphone and clinical profile of children with strabismus

Background: Smartphones for video gaming are a widespread leisure activity. The scientific studies in this area have focused on diverse correlates. Some have emphasized the benefits, and others have been intrigued by its dangerous effects on health and vision. However, there is a lack of literature on strabismus children using smartphones for video gaming. Aims and Objectives: We aimed to explore the relationship between video gaming and the type of strabismus in children already suffering from strabismus. Materials and Methods: The use of smartphones for video gaming was analyzed in 92 participants aged 4–10 years who presented with strabismus. The patients with ≥15 Prism Dioptre (PD) of deviation on the prism bar cover test were included for analysis. Data were analyzed for association with the time spent on smartphones in association with the magnitude and type of deviation. Results: The mean age of the study population was 6.47 ± 2.24 (Range = 4–10 years), where 43 (46.7%) were esotropes, and 39 (42.4%) were exotropes. Smartphone usage of more than 2 h was observed in (37) 40% of patients. Out of which 10 (27%) had esotropia, 22 (59.5%) had exotropia, and 5 (13.5%) had combined deviation (P = 0.010, Fisher’s exact test). There was a statistically significant relationship between more than 2 h of video gaming on smartphone and exotropia. Conclusion: The guarded use of smartphones may have a significant role in the management of patients with strabismus.

A survey of the psychosocial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on pregnant women attending a tertiary care centre of Eastern India - a cross-sectional study.

The COVID-19 pandemic presented an unprecedented challenge, and, as during the SARS outbreak in 2002, there was scope of overestimation of risk by pregnant women, leading to increased fear and anxiety. The aim of this study was to assess the psychosocial impact of the pandemic on pregnant women so better-informed decisions can be taken to spread awareness and alleviate their anxieties. This was a cross-sectional study in a single tertiary care centre of Eastern India including 292 participants. The inclusion criteria were all pregnant women of any gestational age attending the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhubaneswar for antenatal check-up or delivery. The exclusion criteria were patients with severe morbidities and patients not willing to participate. The primary outcome was to determine the psychosocial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on pregnant women and to measure the anxiety level of pregnant women during the COVID-19 crisis. The secondary outcome was to determine the correlation between demographic aspects and psychosocial impact of COVID-19 pandemic on pregnant women. A self-designed questionnaire was used. Anxiety was scored using the generalised anxiety disorder scale. More than half the participants (57.9%) were not at all worried about acquiring the infection. Of all, 99.3% were scored to have no anxiety and 0.7% had moderate anxiety. Significant association of the level of anxiety was found with living with people at high risk of contracting the disease (p = 0.002). The widespread awareness activities were effective and successful, as the pregnant women at the grassroots level faced minimal anxiety and were aware and assured. Studies like this help to provide feedback and formulate educational activities in future pandemics. The change in the effect on people, from panic in the previous pandemics to assurance in the current one, as found in our study, indicates the commendable work done to spread well founded information far and wide by the government, health care institutions, and workers.

Opium prevalence in the Primorsky region of the Russian empire through the lens of one particular case

Looking through the documents in the State Archive of the Russian Federation (GARF), we largely by accident (the name of the file did not accurately reflect the essence of the materials) found a folder of documents of the Police Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for 1915. “On the question of the eviction of Chinese tenants of Cossack lands from the Ussuriysk Army”. Actually, the materials referred primarily to only one episode, which concerned the spread of opium poppy culture in the south of the Primorsky Region in the early twentieth century. The fact of the wide spread of the poppy culture in this area among the Chinese has long been known. This problem has been discussed both by the contemporaries of this phenomenon and by the present researchers. However, the case under consideration, in our opinion, allows us to look somewhat differently at the relationship with the Chinese population in the region, and, in general, the socio-political situation in the country during World War I. In the authors' opinion, ignoring such a widespread activity of the local population as opium cultivation, which was outside the legal field, can significantly distort the understanding of both political and economic processes that took place in the south of the Russian Far East in the early 20th century. We hope that the inclusion in the scientific turnover of materials of this archival case will contribute to a deeper historical understanding of the socio-political processes in the region.

State Differences in Tipping Attitudes and Behavior: Attributable to State Differences in Tipping Motivations?

Consumers around the world give away billions of dollars annually in the form of voluntary payments (aka, tips) to service workers who have served them. This widespread and important economic activity varies across geographic areas within nations, but that geographic variability has been under-studied. This paper seeks to answer the question: “Are state differences in tipping attitudes and behavior attributable to state differences in motivations for tipping?” To that end, new measures of average tipping attitudes and motives in each of the states of the United States are developed, and their relationships with state tipping behaviors, as well as other theoretically relevant state-level measures, are tested. Results suggest meaningful and reliable state differences in attitudes toward and motivations for tipping, and that the latter differences underlie some, but not all, state differences in tipping behavior.

Needle stick injuries and their safety measures among nurses in Erbil Hospitals

Background: Needle stick injuries are serious professional hazards in the transfer of certain types of blood borne diseases such as hepatitis B virus, hepatitis C virus, and human immunodeficiency virus among healthcare workers. Objective: Firstly, to determine the prevalence and factors related to needle stick injuries. Secondly, to assess related safety measures among nurses in Erbil hospitals. Patients and Methods: A hospital based cross sectional study including a sample of 452 nurses. A representative supple sample size was calculated by using Epi info version 7.The sample was proportional to the population of nurses in each hospital. A convenient sampling technique was adopted in selection of studied sample from different teaching hospitals in Erbil city. Data were collected by using self-administered questionnaire, which included socio-demographic characteristics of participants and questions regarding needle stick injuries and preventive measures. (SPSS, Chicago, IL, USA), version 26) was applied for data entry and analysis. P value of ≤ 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Results: Out of a total (452) study population, 56.9% were females and 43.1% were males. The mean ± SD of age was 36.2 ± 5.41, ranging from 21 to 54 year. The prevalence of needle stick injuries was 87.4% among nurses, and the widespread activity leading to NSIs was recapping of needles (81%). The average of non-reporting to supervisor of infection control was 77.2%. The majority of NSIs took place in the morning (70.5%). There was a statistically significant association between NSIs and use of PPE, secure disposal of needle in the safety box, and use of auto-disable syringe during injection, in which NSIs were highest among those who not use or sometimes use the above mentioned safety measures, (P<0.001, P=0.002, and P=0.003 in respectively). Conclusion:This study showed that transverse needle stick injuries among nurses are very high and pose a rise in hazards for professional exposure to diseases transmitted by blood. The majority of nurses are not reporting the needle stick injuries to the supervisor of the infection control unit.

The Islamic State’s Media Content: Nature, Types, Formats

Recent theoretical developments have revealed that IS’ social media strate-gies and practices of filling the social network content rise deep awareness of social media to become a push-pull factor of the certain groups’ mindset radicalization and the terrorist discourse legitimation. Furthermore, the authors’ focus revolves around the problem that articulates the fact that social media fast spread and its accessibility facilitated IS and other terrorist, extre-mist and radical movements expand their reach to a wide range of audiences around the world. Together, the present findings confirm that the Islamic State militant group’s widespread activity on social media is being powerfully weaponized and, consequently, the IS’ impact throughout the world and its successful self-marketing as a global brand is being witnessed. A further novel finding is that the Islamic State militant group’s use of social media, while presenting radical Muslim voices and exposing the atrocities of the Islamic State, targets the spread of terrorist propaganda, self-promoting, financial funding, recruiting and training TO advocates from around the world. The body of the article goes on to discuss the problem of social media use in cutting-edge technologies and novel ways to advance its full-spectrum propaganda. It is worth emphasizing that tech-savvy IS media content covers a wide range of tools with a predominance of visual forms of communication: making live broadcasts, audio and video recordings of leaders’ speeches, running educational propaganda campaigns and various instructing films, designing virtual games, etc. Noteworthy, the Islamic State group has been using social media to promote their terrorist agenda and attract a wide audience, mainly young ardent followers. The research results cast a new light on the embracement of the IS skyrocketing technological advancement in both online and social media to develop their sophisticated media strategy has led to informational and technological outreach and evolution of IS itself. In short with concluding remarks, it has been reported that the unprecedented use of social media (innovative use of advanced and easily accessed technologies, their own production quality media content, wide use of online platforms, a number of social networks and messengers, etc.), until its recent demise (in 2015 and 2017), has made Islamic State militant group at the forefront of technological advancement among contemporary terrorist groups. The crux of the problem is its media content, its nature, types and formats remain one of the most effective and efficient weapons for IS. The Terrorist Organization has developed an innovative digital communication strategy (with its hierarchy elements), which enhanced its goals-achieving in terms of radicalization, violence and the Caliphate establishment.

Trafficking human beings and organized crime

According to the United Nations Protocol, Trafficking in Human Beings (HRT) means: "The recruitment, transportation, transfer, concealment or taking of persons for any purpose or in any form by threat or use of force or by abduction, deception, cunning, coercion or abuse of power in order to slavery, forced labor, and slavery". Trafficking is a global problem. Based on the statistics of different world organizations, every year around 2,000,000 men, women and children are trafficked, with 80% of them being women and girls, while about 50% are juveniles. Trafficking in human beings, after trafficking in narcotic drugs and weapons, is considered to be the most widespread criminal activity in the world. Looking at the monetary aspect the figures are astronomical. The United Nations Center for Crime Prevention estimates that the global profit from this type of crime is over $ 8 billion. The International Convention of 2000, with the term "Organized Criminal Group" means a structured group of consisting of three or more persons who exist for a certain period of time and who cooperates in order to commit one or more serious crimes or offenses established by this Convention with a view to obtaining direct or indirect benefits property or financial. What is most tempting for "organized crime" is the exploitation of markets where there is a high demand for certain services and goods, which, because of the restrictive laws and regulations currently in that country, can not to be filled in legally. Factors that promote organized crime are factors of political, social and economic character. These various factors and circumstances have influenced the emergence of early forms of illicit organized activities as well as the evolution and sophistication to the present day.

Differential effect of fisheries to the COVID-19 pandemic in the region of Andalusia (Spain)

Fishing is one of the most widespread and important human activities in coastal ecosystems and it plays a fundamental role in employment and the economy of coastal communities. However, in the period 2020–2021, the global outbreak of COVID-19 negatively affected fishing economic activity. Against this background, Andalusia (South of Spain) is an important region in which the resilience of different fishing exploitation systems can be studied, but within the same social and economic framework. Therefore, the main study aim was to investigate the resilience of fishing activity to the COVID-19 pandemic in two Andalusian fishing grounds (i.e. Atlantic and Mediterranean). We analysed daily landings and the first-sale prices of fresh fish of the most caught species in both fishing grounds, while taking into account the different seasonal behaviour of the fisheries. Generalised Linear Models were used to compare the data, which were obtained during periods in which the COVID-19 severity levels differed. These levels were implemented according to political measures. The final objective was to understand how the degree of industrialisation in the fleets can hinder or help maintain the economic activity of fisheries during major crises.

A short computerized cognitive training may affect cortical sources of rsEEG rhythms in Alzheimer’s disease patients

AbstractBackgroundPrevious evidence showed abnormal posterior sources of resting‐state electroencephalographic (rsEEG) delta (<4 Hz) and alpha (about 8‐12 Hz) rhythms in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) as cortical neural synchronization markers in quiet wakefulness. We tested whether daily computerized cognitive training (CCT), for a short period, with an application of serious games, may affect these mechanisms,MethodClinical and rsEEG data were collected in AD and Parkinson's disease (PD) patients with cognitive deficits and normal elderly (Nold) subjects. The rsEEG data in the patients were recorded before and after the two weeks of computerized cognitive training. Cortical rsEEG sources were estimated by exact low‐resolution brain electromagnetic tomography (eLORETA).ResultAD and PD patients were both characterized by increased performance scores in the execution of the neuropsychological tasks after the CCT program. In AD patients, no statistical difference (p >0.05) was observed in the rsEEG markers after the CCT program. In PD patients, the widespread delta source activities significantly decreased after cognitive training.ConclusionThese preliminary results suggest that the CCT program with this application of serious games differently affects the cortical neural synchronization mechanisms of rsEEG of the AD and PD patients. In the AD patients, it may have no effect, possibly because of the severely compromised integrity of the cholinergic system in those patients.

EXAMINING TREKKERS’ ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY BEHAVIOR USING AN EXTENDED MODEL OF GOAL-DIRECTED BEHAVIOR (MGB) AND A NEW ECOLOGICAL PARADIGM SCALE (NEP)

Tourism has a substantial environmental impact, and nature-based tourism is particularly vulnerable to tourists’ activities. Individuals must be aware of the consequential ecological effects during nature-based tourism activities such as trekking. Trekking is a widespread nature-based tourism activity in fragile mountainous and hilly regions. The trekkers’ activities extensively affect the conservation of vegetation along the trail. Therefore, it is essential to study trekkers’ attitudes, intentions, and behavior towards the environment. The objective of this study is to investigate the pro-environmental behaviors of trekkers. The goal-directed behavior (MGB) model framework and a new ecological paradigm scale (NEP) were integrated to examine trekkers’ environmental decision-making process. The new ecological paradigm (NEP) scale measured trekkers’ environmental concerns, whereas the model of goal-directed behavior (MGB) explored environmentally friendly trekking intentions. The extended model analyzed 310 responses from trekkers who had trekking experience in Nepal. Statistical analyses, such as confirmatory factor analysis, descriptive analysis, reliability, and validity test, were performed with SPSS 24.0. Furthermore, structural equation modeling was conducted using AMOS 22.0 to test the significance of the developed hypotheses. This study revealed that trekkers are concerned about the environment and are aware of the earth’s resource limitations. Moreover, the significant role of emotion in the decision-making process was identified. The perceived behavioral control influenced both the desire and intention of environmentally friendly trekking. Additionally, desire significantly influenced the intention to perform environmentally friendly activities. However, the trekker’s attitude and subjective norms did not correlate substantially with desire. The obtained results indicate that the proposed extended model helps to understand the environmental behavior of trekkers. The theoretical and practical implications of this study are also discussed.

A Combined QSAR and Molecular Docking Approach for Identifying Pyrimidine Derivatives as Penicillin Binding Protein Inhibitors

Background:Antimicrobial resistance has been rising continuously in the past few years due to the overuse and exploitation of existing antimicrobials. This has motivated the search for a novel scaffold that has the capability of rapid antimicrobial action. The hybridized pyrimidines have attracted us due to their widespread biological activities, such as anti-bacterial and antifungal activities.Objective:The present study incorporates a series of pyrimidine-based antimicrobial agents for the 2D quantitative structure-activity relationship analysis (2D QSAR) and docking analysis.Methods:The exploration of the chemical structures in combination with the biological activity in CPMLR led to the detection of six descriptors (Constitutional descriptors, Topological descriptors, Modified Burden Eigenvalues and 2D autocorrelations) for modeling the activity. The resulted QSAR model has been validated using combinatorial protocol in multiple linear regression (CP-MLR) and partial least squares (PLS) analysis.Methods:The exploration of the chemical structures in combination with the biological activity in CPMLR led to the detection of six descriptors (Constitutional descriptors, Topological descriptors, Modified Burden Eigenvalues and 2D autocorrelations) for modeling the activity. The resulted QSAR model has been validated using a combinatorial protocol in multiple linear regression (CP-MLR) and partial least squares (PLS) analysis.Results:The best QSAR model displays the r2 t value of 0.594, Q2 LOO value of 0.779, Q2 L5O value of 0.767. Further docking study was executed using Autodock Vina against Penicillin-binding protein (PBP2a).Conclusion:From the results, Compounds 4, 11and 24 were found to possess a good binding affinity towards PBP2a.