Strong Individualization in Managing Asian Societal Transformations

Is individualization typical for most advanced contemporary societies alone? A correction comes from the comparative analyses of the thoughts and historical deeds of two outstanding Asian leaders. In the XX century, Mahatma Gandhi and Deng Xiaoping substantially influenced public thinking and behaviour as well as the institutional framework in India and China respectively. Their achievement is efficiently channelling the national collective action towards gaining the independence of India and the acceleration of Chinese modernization. Both leaders have some similarities and much more differences in their programmes and practical activities. Gandhi and Deng are eager to foster a full-scale transformation of Indian and Chinese societies and to mobilize the active support of millions for societal transformation. However, Gandhi asks for the support of the Hindu traditional religion while Deng orients his intellectual strategy and practical activities on the principles of civic religion. Gandhi relies on his inventiveness and charisma while Deng searches for support from political organizations and the state.  The conceptual framework of social actors, relations and processes guides the systematic analysis of structures and actions in the transformation of Indian and Chinese societies.     CITE THIS PAPER: Genov, Nikolai (2023). "Strong Individualization in Managing Asian Societal Transformations" Journal of Social Sciences: Transformations & Transitions (JOSSTT) 2(05):24. DOI: https://doi.org/10.52459/josstt25240323

Potentials for interethnic integration and disintegration

Die Situationen ethnischer Minderheiten in Bulgarien, Moldau, Russland, in der Ukraine und Deutschland (Berlin) werden in dem vorliegenden Beitrag verglichen, um Ähnlichkeiten und Unterschiede herauszuarbeiten. Die Leitfrage lautet dabei: Inwieweit ist die untersuchte ethnische Minderheit in das sie umfassende sozietale System integriert? Die gesuchte Antwort bezieht sich auf Operationalisierungen der Variable der Integration in ihren wirtschaftlichen, politischen und kulturellen Dimensionen. Es wird weiterhin gefragt, inwiefern die Teilhabe der jeweils untersuchten ethnischen Minderheit an der organisierten Arbeit, am Funktionieren der politischen Institutionen und am kulturellen Leben der jeweiligen Gesellschaft gewährleistet ist. Für den Beitrag werden vor allem qualitative Daten aus strukturierten Interviews mit vergleichbaren Gruppen von erfolgreichen Vertretern der jeweils untersuchten ethnischen Minderheit gebraucht. Die Leithypothese der Operationalisierung und der Interpretation lautet, dass die fünf untersuchten Gesellschaften ein relatives Kontinuum auf der Achse Integrationspotentiale-Desintegrationspotentiale angesichts der untersuchten ethnischen Minderheiten darstellen. (ICDÜbers

Competing Sociological Diagnoses of Contemporary Times: Potentials of the RISU Conceptual Framework

The global financial and economic crisis caught social scientists and decision makers by surprise. They did not possess explanatory and predictive conceptual frameworks needed for coping with the crisis. This finding provokes critical analysis of available sociological concepts and constructive argumentation in three steps. First, disparities are identified between influential diagnoses of global processes and the processes themselves. Second, the question arises: How to conceptually reduce the global over-complexity in order to reach a reliable diagnosis of our times? Third, the suggested solution focuses on the substantiation, development and application of mutually connected concepts of four global trends: upgrading the rationality of organizations, individualization, spread of instrumental activism and universalization of value-normative systems (the RISU conceptual framework). The claim is that these trends decisively shape the contemporary social reality and will continue to profoundly shape it in the future. The conclusion reads that the RISU conceptual framework offers analytical tools for making the global, regional and societal over-complexity transparent for descriptions, explanations, forecasting and potentially efficient management of social development. The claim is substantiated by applying the conceptual framework in the analysis of the housing crisis in the United States

Sociology - Bulgaria

Analysis of the pre-1989 situation; Redefinition of the discipline since 1990; Core theoretical and methodological orientations; Thematic orientation and funding; Public space and academic debates; Views on further development

A bioinformatic analysis identifies circadian expression of splicing factors and time-dependent alternative splicing events in the HD-MY-Z cell line

The circadian clock regulates key cellular processes and its dysregulation is associated to several pathologies including cancer. Although the transcriptional regulation of gene expression by the clock machinery is well described, the role of the clock in the regulation of post-transcriptional processes, including splicing, remains poorly understood. In the present work, we investigated the putative interplay between the circadian clock and splicing in a cancer context. For this, we applied a computational pipeline to identify oscillating genes and alternatively spliced transcripts in time-course high-throughput data sets from normal cells and tissues, and cancer cell lines. We investigated the temporal phenotype of clock-controlled genes and splicing factors, and evaluated their impact in alternative splice patterns in the Hodgkin Lymphoma cell line HD-MY-Z. Our data points to a connection between clock-controlled genes and splicing factors, which correlates with temporal alternative splicing in several genes in the HD-MY-Z cell line. These include the genes DPYD, SS18, VIPR1 and IRF4, involved in metabolism, cell cycle, apoptosis and proliferation. Our results highlight a role for the clock as a temporal regulator of alternative splicing, which may impact malignancy in this cellular model

Stadt und Land im Transformationsprozeß: Probleme der nachhaltigen Entwicklung in Bulgarien

"Die Demokratisierung politischer Institutionen und die Pluralisierung des kulturellen Lebens nach 1989 haben sich auf die Potenzen der nachhaltigen Entwicklung in Bulgarien positiv ausgewirkt. Der wirtschaftliche Verfall hat aber andere Voraussetzungen solcher Entwicklung unterminiert. Die meisten früheren Abweichungen vom Ideal der Nachhaltigkeit wurden im Verlauf des Transformationsprozesses nicht beseitigt, sondern verstärkt. Die gelähmten Investitionsaktivitäten und technologische Innovationen sind die wichtigsten Störfaktoren. Die Arbeitslosigkeit und die Verarmung breiter Schichten, die kulturelle Konzentration auf Überlebungsstrategien und die Kriminalität zählen auch dazu. Wegen der verschleppten und oft mißlungenen landwirtschaftlichen Reformen konnte die Hoffnung auf eine rasche Belebung der kleinen landwirtschaftlichen Betriebe nicht erreicht werden. Die Produktionsgenossenschaften auf dem Lande kämpfen um Überleben. Die ländliche Bevölkerung ist durch eine stärkere Unzufriedenheit mit den Zwischenresultaten der verlaufenden Transformation geprägt. Unter solchen Bedingungen können die Prinzipien der nachhaltigen Entwicklung kaum das Handeln leiten.In den Städten ist die niedrigere Umweltbelastung eine positive Entwicklung. Sie wurde aber vor allem durch die Verringerung der Produktion verursacht. Die fortschrittlichen und umweltfreundlichen Industriezweige wie die Elektronik sind am schwersten von der Wirtschaftskrise betroffen. Die partielle Belebung der Industrie ist durch die Auslastung der Metallurgie und der schweren Chemie erzielt, die die Umwelt stark belasten. Es fehlt an einer nationalen Strategie für Umstrukturierung der Wirtschaft nach den Marktprinzipien aber auch nach den Prinzipien der nachhaltigen Entwicklung Der Ausweg aus der fortdauernden Krisensituation, die unter anderem auch eine schwerwiegende Krise der Nachhaltigkeit darstellt, verlangt vor allem eine Stärkung der demokratischen Staatlichkeit." (Autorenreferat

A Multi-Layered Study on Harmonic Oscillations in Mammalian Genomics and Proteomics

Cellular, organ, and whole animal physiology show temporal variation predominantly featuring 24-h (circadian) periodicity. Time-course mRNA gene expression profiling in mouse liver showed two subsets of genes oscillating at the second (12-h) and third (8-h) harmonic of the prime (24-h) frequency. The aim of our study was to identify specific genomic, proteomic, and functional properties of ultradian and circadian subsets. We found hallmarks of the three oscillating gene subsets, including different (i) functional annotation, (ii) proteomic and electrochemical features, and (iii) transcription factor binding motifs in upstream regions of 8-h and 12-h oscillating genes that seemingly allow the link of the ultradian gene sets to a known circadian network. Our multifaceted bioinformatics analysis of circadian and ultradian genes suggests that the different rhythmicity of gene expression impacts physiological outcomes and may be related to transcriptional, translational and post-translational dynamics, as well as to phylogenetic and evolutionary components

Systematic Analysis of Mouse Genome Reveals Distinct Evolutionary and Functional Properties Among Circadian and Ultradian Genes

In living organisms, biological clocks regulate 24 h (circadian) molecular, physiological, and behavioral rhythms to maintain homeostasis and synchrony with predictable environmental changes, in particular with those induced by Earth's rotation on its axis. Harmonics of these circadian rhythms having periods of 8 and 12 h (ultradian) have been documented in several species. In mouse liver, harmonics of the 24-h period of gene transcription hallmarked genes oscillating with a frequency two or three times faster than circadian periodicity. Many of these harmonic transcripts enriched pathways regulating responses to environmental stress and coinciding preferentially with subjective dawn and dusk. At this time, the evolutionary history of genes with rhythmic expression is still poorly known and the role of length-of-day changes due to Earth's rotation speed decrease over the last four billion years is totally ignored. We hypothesized that ultradian and stress anticipatory genes would be more evolutionarily conserved than circadian genes and background non-oscillating genes. To investigate this issue, we performed broad computational analyses of genes/proteins oscillating at different frequency ranges across several species and showed that ultradian genes/proteins, especially those oscillating with a 12-h periodicity, are more likely to be of ancient origin and essential in mice. In summary, our results show that genes with ultradian transcriptional patterns are more likely to be phylogenetically conserved and associated with the primeval and inevitable dawn/dusk transitions

A Rapid Gamma-Ray Glow Flux Reduction Observed From 20 km Altitude

Two gamma-ray glows were observed by a high-altitude NASA ER-2 aircraft flying at 20 km altitude over a thunderstorm in Colorado, USA. The flux of the first glow rapidly intensified and then abruptly decreased within a few tens of milliseconds. On a timescale of seconds, the flux decrease occurred simultaneously with a hybrid intra-cloud/cloud-to-ground lightning discharge beneath the aircraft. However, a more detailed analysis of the discharge dynamics indicated that the discharge activity was unusually calm during the actual period of the flux decrease. The lightning was observed with on-board antennas, optical sensor, and ground-based lightning mapping and location networks. Its closest activity was 12 km away from the aircraft, below and slightly ahead the course. The gamma-ray flux reduction happened roughly in the middle of the lightning development process. The glow spectral analysis for the periods of a weak and strong flux enhancement has been done. The spectra were found to be background-like and similar to each other.publishedVersio