More than a touristic visit: scholar exchanges as a communication method in public diplomacy

This paper discusses the concept of Public Diplomacy and the effectiveness of a specific Public Diplomacy tool: Scholar Exchanges as a tool of Public Diplomacy. The foreign Fulbright Program of the United States Government is introduced as a case study and for further interpreting the perceptions of the program, a survey is ran among 59 current grantees. Scholar exchanges programs are suggested to be implemented in order to overcome the barriers in communication processes in the international arena

TK1951: an anatomy of crisis communication

This study focuses on how Turkish Airlines (THY) managed its communication strategy after the unfortunate accident of TK 1951 on February 25, 2009 near Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. Evaluating the efforts in a framework, authors set out to discuss THY’s performance in four important areas classified in eight headings: coordination of the messages, acknowledging uncertainty and taking responsibility, reaching the stakeholders and making use of online media tools. Hopefully, the results of this research will help THY and other airline companies to improve and develop their immediate crisis response strategies

Mean platelet volume and vitamin D level

Cure, Medine Cumhur/0000-0001-9253-6459; cure, erkan/0000-0001-7807-135XWOS: 000332681100003PubMed: 24624344Background: Vitamin D deficiency and a high mean platelet volume (MPV) are related to cardiovascular disease. We investigated whether vitamin D deficiency is associated with high MPV. Methods: This study included 434 patients without chronic disease who were not taking vitamin D or calcium supplements. Vitamin D was measured by chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay on the Architect-I2000 system (Abbott Diagnostics, USA), and MIN was measured on the Cell-Dyn Ruby analyzer (Abbott Diagnostics). Patients were divided into Groups 1 (138 [men/women, 46/92]), 2 (148 [men/women, 54/94]), and 3 (148 [men/women, 50/98]) according to vitamin D levels of 20 ng/mL, respectively. Results: the vitamin D level in Group 1 (7.7 +/- 1.9 ng/mL) was lower than that in Group 2 (15.1 +/- 1.6 ng/mL, P<0.001) and Group 3 (25.6 +/- 6.3 ng/mL, P<0.001). the MPV in Group 3 (7.5 +/- 1.0 fL) was lower than that in Group 1 (8.1 +/- 1.1 fL, P<0.001) and Group 2 (7.9 +/- 1.0 fL, P=0.009). Linear regression analysis showed that low levels of vitamin D (beta = -0.109, P = 0.019) was independently associated with increased MPV. Conclusions: There was a strong association between a low vitamin D level and a high MPV; therefore, vitamin D deficiency may be associated with increased MPV

The effects of pregnancy on the sexual life of Turkish women

Aim: To investigate the effects of pregnancy on the sexual life of Turkish women Materials and Methods: One thousand twenty six pregnant women were included in the study. The Libido Scoring System, which is a questionnaire consisting of four questions about the frequency of intercourse, the partner initiating the intercourse, orgasm and masturbation status of the pregnant women, was completed by all patients. Both pre-pregnancy and pregnancy sexuality was evaluated independently using this scale. Results: The frequency of sexual intercourse during pregnancy significantly decreased from 3.07/week to 2.40/week (p<0.05). The masturbation rate during pregnancy was significantly lower than the pre-pregnancy period (3.6% vs 4.9 %, p<0.001). The percentage of pregnant women who never had an orgasm was significantly higher compared to the pre-pregnant period (21.7 % vs 10.8 %, p<0.01). The rates of initiation of sexual intercourse in the pre-pregnancy period by men and by women were 94.5% (970/1026) and 5.3% (54/1026) respectively. In pregnancy period the rates of initiation of sexual intercourse by man and woman were 93.4% (904/968) and 6.6% (64/968) respectively (p=0.0001). The mean libido scores during pregnancy were statistically lower than the pre-pregnancy period (6.38±0.04 vs 7.31±0.04, p<0.001). Conclusion: Pregnancy has a negative effect on the sexual life of women, but more prospective studies are required to clarify the mechanisms

TÜRKİYE'DE ÜRETİLEN ÇEŞİTLİ TİPLERDEKİ AHŞAP EV SANDALYELERİNİN PERFORMANSLARININ DEĞERLENDİRİLMESİ

Bu çalışmada, Türkiye Mobilya Sektörünün önemli bir bölümünü oluşturduğu düşünülen Ankara (Siteler), Kayseri ve Bursa (İnegöl), piyasalarından tesadüfî örnekleme yöntemi ile 21 değişik Model Sandalye temin edilmiştir. Temin edilen sandalyeler, ALA (American Library Association) ve GSA (General Services Administration) standartlarında belirtilen esaslara uygun olarak devirli basamaklı artan yükleme yöntemiyle, önden arkaya teste tabi tutulmuşlardır. 21 model sandalye, her bir Model Sandalyeden 5 yineleme olmak üzere toplam (21  x 5) 105 sandalye test edilmiştir. Çalışma sonucunda önemli sayıdaki performans test sonuçları ile ciddi bir sayısal veri tabanı elde edilmiştir. Sandalyeler; önden arkaya yüklemelerde 845 ile 2802 N arasında performans değerleri vermişlerdir. Deney sonuçlarına bakıldığında, sandalye modelleri arasında mukavemet açısından büyük farklılıklar olduğu görülmektedir. Bu bağlamda, Türkiye’de aynı fonksiyona hizmet etmek adına üretilmiş sandalyelerin gösterdikleri mukavemet özellikleri bakımından, ne kadar büyük bir varyasyona sahip olduğu, firmalar ve modeller arasında büyük bir istikrarsızlık olduğu açıkça ortaya çıkmıştır. Bu durumun, firmalarda AR-GE kültürünün olmaması, performans test yöntemlerinin bilinmemesi veya sistematik olarak uygulanmamasından kaynaklandığı düşünülmektedir

ÇEŞİTLİ ÖLÇÜLERDE ZIVANA KULLANILMIŞ T-TİPİ MOBİLYA BİRLEŞTİRMELERİNİN MEKANİK DAVRANIŞ ÖZELLİKLERİNİN SONLU ELEMANLAR ANALİZİ İLE BELİRLENMESİ

Çalışma, T-tipi zıvanalı mobilya birleştirmelerinin mekanik davranış özellikleri ve gerçek testlerden elde edilen verilerin bilgisayar destekli analiz verileriyle karşılaştırılmasını kapsamaktadır.Çalışmada, zıvana ölçülerinin (zıvana genişliği ve boyu) birleştirmenin mukavemeti üzerindeki etkileri incelenmiştir. Bu amaçla, 3 farklı zıvana genişliği, 3 farklı zıvana boyu ve 10 yineleme olmak üzere toplam 90 adet deney örneği hazırlanmış ve test edilmiştir. Deney örnekleri Doğu kayını (Fagus orientalis L.) odunundan üretilmiş olup, bilgisayar destekli üç boyutlu yapısal analizler ise bir sonlu elemanlar metodu yazılımı olan ANSYS Workbench programı ile yapılmıştır. Çalışmanın sonucunda, sandalye üretiminde, arka ayak–yan kayıt birleştirmelerini temsil eden T-tipi birleştirmeler için 40x50 mm (genişlik x uzunluk) boyutlarındaki zıvana en iyi sonucu vermiştir. Birleştirmelerinin elastikiyetinde zıvana genişliğinin, moment taşıma kapasitesinde ise zıvana uzunluğunun etkili olduğu anlaşılmıştır. Ayrıca, üç boyutlu yapısal analizlerin, deney örneklerinde kabul edilebilir tahmini değerler sağladığı ve mobilya mühendislik tasarımında kullanılabileceği görülmüştür

Evaluation of the anatomical and electrical axis of the heart after pneumonectomy

Aim: To investigate the position of the heart after pneumonectomy and, also to find out how the changes in the electrical axis of the heart contribute for the possible electrocardiographic and echocardiographic changes. Methods: Ninety-eight patients with pneumonectomy were included to this observational study. To calculate the rotation of the heart and angle measurement two perpendicular lines, one septal and another atrioventricular, were drawn on the images acquired from thoracic computed tomography. Thoracic CT were taken at every 3 months for the first two years. On electrocardiograms net QRS vectors, amplitudes of p waves, findings of right and left ventricular hypertrophy, and other possible changes were recorded. Results: The mean age of all patients was 55.51 ± 8.9. Right pneumectomy was performed in 40 (57%) and left pneumonectomy in 30 cases (43%) cases. There was no significant change regarding both the angle of rotation and the amount of pleural effusion between the findings of the second and first year after the operation. The QRS shift was significantly more pronounced in patients with left pneumonectomies than right pneumonectomies. On echocardiography these cases showed right ventricular hypertrophy and increased pulmonary artery pressures in the second year when compared to the preoperative period. Conclusions: The current study showed that many significant changes occurred in the electrocardiographic and echocardiographic parameters of the heart after pneumonectomy

PETEK DOLGULU LEVHALAR ve FARKLI YAPIM TEKNİKLERİ İLE ÜRETİLMİŞ “L” TİPİ MOBİLYA KÖŞE BİRLEŞTİRMELERİN MOMENT TAŞIMA KAPASİTELERİ

Bu çalışmada, farklı yapım teknikleri ve kağıt petek dolgulu levhalar ile üretilmiş kutu tipi mobilya köşe birleştirmelerin moment taşıma kapasiteleri araştırılmıştır. Deneylerde 38 mm kalınlığında kağıt petek dolgulu levhalar kullanılarak, “L” tipi olarak üretilmiş kutu konstrüksiyonlu mobilya köşe birleştirmelerde kavela, minifiks, maksifiks, bisküvi ve özel bağlantı birleştirmeleri uygulanmıştır. Deneylerde ahşap esaslı levha olarak 4 ve 8 mm kalınlığında yonga levha (YL) ve orta yoğunlukta lif levha (MDF) kullanılmıştır. Tutkallı birleştirmelerde polivinilasetat (PVAc) tutkalı kullanılmıştır. Deney örnekleri, kullanım sırasında etkisinde kalabilecekleri kritik yükler göz önüne alınarak statik diyagonal basınç yükü altında test edilmiştir. Deney sonuçlarına göre, MDF ile üretilen bisküvi ve kavelalı deney örnekleri daha fazla moment taşımıştır. Diyagonal basınç deneyi sonuçlarına göre; kutu konstrüksiyonlu mobilya tasarımında ekonomik kriterler de dikkate alınarak malzeme tercihi, MDF ve yongalevha şeklinde yapılmalıdır. Tutkallı birleştirmelerde bisküvi, tukalsız demonte birleştirmelerde ise minifix birleştirme tercih edilmelidir. Konu ile ilgili malzeme ve birleştirmeler farklı varyasyonlar şeklinde denenebilir

Topiramate has protective effect on renal injury

Cure, Medine Cumhur/0000-0001-9253-6459; cure, erkan/0000-0001-7807-135XWOS: 000351975100010PubMed: 25773955Background: Topiramate (TPM) decreases tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) and oxidative stress. We investigated protective effects of TPM on cell damage in kidney tissue during ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) damage. Methods: A total of 30 male Wistar albino rats were divided into three groups: control, I/R, and I/R plus TPM (I/R+TPM). Laparotomy without I/R injury was performed in control group. After laparotomy, cross ligation of infrarenal abdominal aorta was applied for two hours in I/R groups which was followed by two hours of reperfusion. TPM (100 mg/kg/day) was orally administrated to animals in the I/R+TPM group for seven consecutive days before I/R. Results: the I/R group's TNF-a and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1(3) levels were significantly higher (1184.2 +/- 129.1 pg/mg protein; 413.1 +/- 28.8 pg/mg protein, respectively) than those of the control (907.8 +/- 113.0 pg/mg protein, p = 0.002; 374.7 +/- 23.7 pg/mg protein, p = 0.010, respectively) and I/R+TPM groups (999.5 +/- 115.2 pg/mg protein, p < 0.001; 377.9 +/- 30.9 pg/mg protein, p = 0.007, respectively). Conclusion: TPM may partially prevent renal damage in rats. the opening of new horizons of this kind of knowledge will help understand the complex challenge in the prevention of renal I/R damage (Tab. 1, Fig. 3, Ref. 42). Text in PDF www.elis.sk.RTEU Bilimsel Arastirmalar Proje birimi (BAP)Recep Tayyip Erdogan University [2012.106.01.8]The authors would like to thank Ayhan Kanat who improved the spelling errors in this article. Source of Support: RTEU Bilimsel Arastirmalar Proje birimi (BAP), Project number: 2012.106.01.8

Oncological and functional outcomes of patients who underwent open partial nephrectomy for kidney tumor

Objective: To report long-term functional and oncological outcomes of OPN Methods: We enrolled 182 patients who underwent consecutive OPN with a diagnosis of kidney tumor in our clinic between April 2002 and February 2020 and were selected from our prospective OPN database. Preoperative demographic and clinical characteristics, intraoperative and pathological results, and patients' postoperative functional and oncological follow-up data were retrospectively analyzed. Overall survival (OS) and disease- free survival (DFS) were evaluated using Kaplan-Meier survival analysis. The time-dependent variation between preoperative and postoperative functional results was statistically analyzed and presented in a graph. Results and limitations: The mean age was 54.4 ± 10.8 yr, and the median age-adjusted Charlson comorbidity index (ACCI) was 1 (interquartile range [IQR] 0-1). The mean tumor size was 3.1 ± 1.2 cm, and the median RENAL score was 6 (IQR 5-8). The most common malign histopathological subtype was clear cell carcinoma with 76.6%, and five cases (3.4%) had positive surgical margins (PSMs). The most common surgical techniques were the retroperitoneal approach (98.9%) and cold ischemia (88.5%). Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) preservation was 92% (80.8-99.3, IQR), which translates to 32% chronic kidney disease (CKD) upstaging. Acute kidney injury (AKI) was detected in 27 (14.8%) patients according to RIFLE criteria. The intraoperative complication rate was 5.5%, and the postoperative overall complication rate (Clavien-Dindo 1-5) was 30.2%. Major complications (Clavien-Dindo 3-5) were observed in 13 (7.1%) patients. The median oncological follow-up was 42 mo (21.3- 84.6, IQR), and the 5- and 10-yr OS were 90.1% and 78.6%, 5 and 10-yr DFS were 99.4% and 92.1%, respectively. No local recurrence was observed in 5 (3.4%) patients with PSMs; only one had distant metastasis in the 8th postoperative month. The retrospective design, the small number of patients who underwent PN based on mandatory indication, and one type of surgical approach may limit the generalizability of our findings. Conclusions: This study confirms excellent long-term oncologic and functional outcomes after OPN in a cohort of patients selected from a single institution. In light of the information provided by the literature and our study, our recommendation is to push the limits of PN under every technically feasible condition in the treatment of kidney tumors to protect the kidney reserve and achieve near-perfect oncological results