Finding Larger Transnational Media Markets : Media Practices of the Vietnamese Diasporic Community

Addressing a concern about the absence of Vietnamese migrants in the Czech media landscape, this chapter first reviews various life contexts of the different Vietnamese populations in the Czech Republic (CR) and then discusses how they have generally lacked participation in the Czech media landscape because of their adoption of transnational media practices. This study also demonstrates how the diasporic community has failed to establish a conventional form of diasporic media but instead has found new translocal information outlets on social media. While the old and new first generations have relied more on media outlets from their country of origin, young migrant children have explored media markets beyond the binational border. However, Vietnamese migrants have recently begun to use social media platforms as networked information outlets, reaching a variety of communities and media outlets located in the CR, Vietnam and their own diasporic community

Hair Trace Element and Electrolyte Content in Women with Natural and In Vitro Fertilization-Induced Pregnancy

The objective of the present study was to perform comparative analysis of hair trace element content in women with natural and in vitro fertilization (IVF)-induced pregnancy. Hair trace element content in 33 women with IVF-induced pregnancy and 99 age- and body mass index-matched control pregnant women (natural pregnancy) was assessed using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The results demonstrated that IVF-pregnant women are characterized by significantly lower hair levels of Cu, Fe, Si, Zn, Ca, Mg, and Ba at p < 0.05 or lower. Comparison of the individual levels with the national reference values demonstrated higher incidence of Fe and Cu deficiency in IVF-pregnant women in comparison to that of the controls. IVF pregnancy was also associated with higher hair As levels (p < 0.05). Multiple regression analysis revealed a significant interrelation between IVF pregnancy and hair Cu, Fe, Si, and As content. Hair Cu levels were also influenced by vitamin/mineral supplementation and the number of pregnancies, whereas hair Zn content was dependent on prepregnancy anthropometric parameters. In turn, planning of pregnancy had a significant impact on Mg levels in scalp hair. Generally, the obtained data demonstrate an elevated risk of copper, iron, zinc, calcium, and magnesium deficiency and arsenic overload in women with IVF-induced pregnancy. The obtained data indicate the necessity of regular monitoring of micronutrient status in IVF-pregnant women in order to prevent potential deleterious effects of altered mineral homeostasis

Origin of soft-mode stiffening and reduced dielectric response in SrTiO3 thin films

The problem of the reduced dielectric response in thin films of high-permittivity materials is analyzed by studying the soft-mode response in several SrTiO3 thin films by means of Fourier transform far infrared, monochromatic submillimeter, and micro-Raman spectroscopies. A 300-nm-thick metalorganic chemical vapor deposition film, quasiepitaxially grown on a (0001) sapphire substrate with a perfect orientation, displays a ferroelectric transition near 125 K induced by a tensile residual stress, appearing apparently simultaneously with the antiferrodistortive transition. On the other hand, polycrystalline chemical solution deposition films grown on (0001) sapphire, and also tensile stressed, show a harder soft mode response without the appearance of macroscopic ferroelectricity. This effect, which increases with the film thickness, is explained by a strong depolarizing field induced by the percolated porosity and cracks (in the 10-nm scale) along the boundaries of columnar grains (normal to the probe field direction). Brick-wall model calculations showed that 0.2 vol. % of such a porosity type reduces the permittivity from 30000 to less than 1000. The activation of the forbidden IR modes in the Raman spectra in the whole 80-300-K temperature range studied is explained by the effect of polar grain boundaries, in analogy with the bulk ceramics

FOREIGN FIRMS AND THE PERCEPTION OF REGIONS IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC: A STATISTICAL EXAMINATION

Foreign investment is of particularly importance in countries undergoing far-reaching economic transformation. Also the location of foreign investment throughout the country is very important for further regional development. Actual location decisions of investors are influenced by various factors, but it is rather obvious that behind these decisions there is also always a lack of information or a distorted view of potential locations and regions for investment. The aim of this paper is to indicate the image of Czech regions that foreign entrepreneurs construct and to understand the character of spatial perceptions of foreign entrepreneurs from various points of view in order to find out what main factors are influencing location decisions of foreign investors in the country. The paper provides a summary of preliminary results of the survey. It provides current mental maps of foreign entrepreneurs and the most important results of explanatory statistical analyses. Copyright (c) 2007 by the Royal Dutch Geographical Society KNAG.

Demographic and Migratory Characteristics and Settlement Models of the Former Soviet Union Citizens Residing in Italy

This chapter deals with demo-migratory characteristics and settlement models of the main communities of citizens of countries belonging to the former Soviet Union (FSU) resident in Italy. The data used come from the Italian National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT) and Eurostat and refer to population statistics at different territorial levels in the recent past. At first, the evolution and principal characteristics of the presence of citizens of FSU on a national scale will be analyzed. Then, by using global and local indices of territorial analysis, the settlement models will be detected. Finally, the use of symmetric and asymmetric multidimensional analysis highlights: (1) similar and differential aspects of the profile inside the FSU group and in comparison to the principal foreign communities residing in Italy and (2) relationships among demographics and migratory characteristics of FSU migrants and their settlement models