Religious and cultural foundations of hospitality in the Islamic and Japanese traditions: a preliminary comparison

The term "hospitality" is increasingly used as common styles of commercial service without consideration of different understandings in each culture and society. Understanding the differences in the religious or cultural notion of hospitality is important in increasing the quality of hospitality industry, however, there are only limited studies on the cultural ideas of hospitality. Therefore this article aims to identify religious and cultural foundations of the concept of hospitality in Islamic and Japanese tradition, as a preliminary study for comparison of hospitality cultures. This article first discussed the Islamic ideas of hospitality based on the authentic texts of Islam, namely Qur'an, Hadith and Ihya ‘Ulum al-Din written by al-Ghazali (d.1111). The analysis of its feature focuses on three elements; (1) relationship between hosts and guests, (2) the concept of generosity, and (3) gender roles. Then these three elements will be compared to the Japanese counterpart based on the texts explained Japanese roots of hospitality in the tea ceremony. The major differences are found in the place of God in the meaning of providing hospitality, charitable aspects of hospitality, its connection to daily life, and the women's roles as providers of hospitality, while similarity was found in the importance of hospitality, virtue of modesty and the idea of collaboration between guests and hosts to create pleasant moment. Understanding such similarities and differences in the ideas of hospitality will help the tourism industry in both Muslim countries and Japan to increase the quality of hospitality

New Trends in the Humanities and Social Sciences and their Impact on Students: A Comprehensive Approach to Undergraduate Education

The purpose of this book is to clarify the renewed undergraduate education in the humanities and social sciences in the national university sector, from the viewpoint of organization, curriculum, and the impact on students’ learning. Three case-studies are selected on the basis of their name, academic field, type of reorganization, and date of formation: the School of Global Humanities and Social Science at Nagasaki University, the Faculty of Global Sciences at Yamaguchi University, and the School of Global and Community Studies at University of Fukui. First, the context of reorganization of each school and faculty, and the characteristics and structure of the curriculum are analyzed. Next the students’ learning behaviors and the impact of curriculum are analyzed based on a student survey, through comparison with the national student survey and between the three case-study organizations. Furthermore, the results from the student survey are reverified through a faculty survey. The results indicate that the three faculties, despite their similar names, have different characteristics of undergraduate education which have different impacts on student learning behavior and learning outcomes.序章　研究の狙いと方法… 小方直幸 1 第1章　学部の概要とプログラムの特性… 串本剛 7 第2章　山口大学国際総合科学部… 小方直幸 17 第3章　福井大学国際地域学部… 小方直幸 29 第4章　長崎大学多文化社会学部… 小方直幸 41 第5章　学生の諸経験等に関する3学部の特性… 立石慎治 53 第6章　教員の認識… 立石慎治 63 結章　学士課程教育における総合的アプローチの意義… 小方直幸 7

V-shaped dislocations in a GaN epitaxial layer on GaN substrate

In this study, V-shaped dislocations in a GaN epitaxial layer on a free-standing GaN substrate were observed. Our investigation further revealed that the V-shaped dislocations were newly generated at the interface in the epilayer rather than propagated from the GaN substrate. V-shaped dislocations consist of two straight parts. The straight parts of the V-shaped dislocations were separated from each other in the m-direction and tilted toward the step-flow direction of the GaN epitaxial layer. The V-shaped dislocations are continuous single dislocations having a Burgers vector component of 1a and an intrinsic stacking fault between their straight parts

Association of initial lactate levels and red blood cell transfusion strategy with outcomes after severe trauma: a post hoc analysis of the RESTRIC trial

Background The appropriateness of a restrictive transfusion strategy for those with active bleeding after traumatic injury remains uncertain. Given the association between tissue hypoxia and lactate levels, we hypothesized that the optimal transfusion strategy may differ based on lactate levels. This post hoc analysis of the RESTRIC trial sought to investigate the association between transfusion strategies and patient outcomes based on initial lactate levels. Methods We performed a post hoc analysis of the RESTRIC trial, a cluster-randomized, crossover, non-inferiority multicenter trials, comparing a restrictive and liberal red blood cell transfusion strategy for adult trauma patients at risk of major bleeding. This was conducted during the initial phase of trauma resuscitation; from emergency department arrival up to 7 days after hospital admission or intensive care unit (ICU) discharge. Patients were grouped by lactate levels at emergency department arrival: low ( Results Of the 422 RESTRIC trial participants, 396 were analyzed, with low (n = 131), middle (n = 113), and high (n = 152) lactate. Across all lactate groups, 28 days mortality was similar between strategies. However, in the low lactate group, the restrictive approach correlated with more ICU-free (β coefficient 3.16; 95% CI 0.45 to 5.86) and ventilator-free days (β coefficient 2.72; 95% CI 0.18 to 5.26) compared to the liberal strategy. These findings persisted even after excluding patients with severe traumatic brain injury. Conclusions Our results suggest that restrictive transfusion strategy might not have a significant impact on 28-day survival rates, regardless of lactate levels. However, the liberal transfusion strategy may lead to shorter ICU- and ventilator-free days for patients with low initial blood lactate levels

Right-sided infective endocarditis as a potentially fatal complication in patients with long-term refractory severe bradyarrhythmia after cervical spinal cord injury: A case report

AbstractBradyarrhythmia is usually a spontaneously subsiding complication of cervical spinal cord injury. However, in severe cases, it can lead to cardiac arrest. We report a case of cervical spinal cord injury, complicated by right-sided infective endocarditis after the placement of a temporary pacing catheter in the right ventricle for severe bradyarrhythmia that led to cardiac arrest. Although the patient׳s condition was successfully treated by pacing catheter removal and pharmacological therapy, right-sided infective endocarditis would be a fatal complication in cases of cervical spinal cord injury where cardiac pacing is required for long-term refractory severe bradyarrhythmia

Antipyretic therapy in critically ill septic patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE: This meta-analysis aimed to examine the impact of antipyretic therapy on mortality in critically ill septic adults. DATA SOURCES: Literature searches were implemented in Ovid Medline, Embase, Scopus, Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, NHS Economic Evaluation Database, and ClinicalTrials.gov through February 2016. STUDY SELECTION: Inclusion criteria were observational or randomized studies of septic patients, evaluation of antipyretic treatment, mortality reported, and English-language version available. Studies were excluded if they enrolled pediatric patients, patients with neurologic injury, or healthy volunteers. Criteria were applied by two independent reviewers. DATA EXTRACTION: Two reviewers independently extracted data and evaluated methodologic quality. Outcomes included mortality, frequency of shock reversal, acquisition of nosocomial infections, and changes in body temperature, heart rate, and minute ventilation. Randomized and observational studies were analyzed separately. DATA SYNTHESIS: Eight randomized studies (1,507 patients) and eight observational studies (17,432 patients) were analyzed. Antipyretic therapy did not reduce 28-day/hospital mortality in the randomized studies (relative risk, 0.93; 95% CI, 0.77–1.13; I(2) = 0.0%) or observational studies (odds ratio, 0.90; 95% CI, 0.54–1.51; I(2) = 76.1%). Shock reversal (relative risk, 1.13; 95% CI, 0.68–1.90; I(2) = 51.6%) and acquisition of nosocomial infections (relative risk, 1.13; 95% CI, 0.61–2.09; I(2) = 61.0%) were also unchanged. Antipyretic therapy decreased body temperature (mean difference, –0.38°C; 95% CI, –0.63 to –0.13; I(2) = 84.0%), but not heart rate or minute ventilation. CONCLUSIONS: Antipyretic treatment does not significantly improve 28-day/hospital mortality in adult patients with sepsis

Burn-associated delayed dilated cardiomyopathy evaluated by cardiac PET and SPECT: Report of a case

AbstractDilated cardiomyopathy is a delayed-onset and rarely reported cardiac complication of burn injury although the mechanism remains unclear. We thus report a case of dilated cardiomyopathy following severe burn injury, in which technetium 99m sestamibi single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), iodine-123 beta-methyl-iodophenylpentadecanoic acid SPECT and 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (PET) were performed to evaluate the pathophysiologic condition in combination with cardiac catheterization and myocardial biopsy. The cardiac PET and SPECT images showed reduced myocardial blood flow, decreased fatty acid metabolism, and increased glucose utilization in the left ventricular lateral wall in spite of normal coronary angiography, no significant cardiac fibrosis, and inflammatory cell infiltration, which suggests that myocardial ischemia due to microcirculatory disturbance in hypermetabolic state associated with burn injury might be a causative mechanism of dilated cardiomyopathy in this case. A beta blocker, bisoprolol, was successfully introduced in this patient in combination with oral inotropic agents, pimobendan and digitalis after the prolonged use of intravenous dobutamine infusion, which might have been beneficial for this patient with burn-associated dilated cardiomyopathy not only to reduce regional myocardial ischemia but also to attenuate hypermetabolic state after severe burn injury.<Learning objective: Dilated cardiomyopathy complicated with burn injury has been reported to cause a sudden attack of dyspnea and death. This case report suggests that burn-associated dilated cardiomyopathy may be caused by relative myocardial ischemia due to microvascular disturbance in hypermetabolic state associated with burn injuries and can be treated effectively with beta blockers with or without oral inotropic agents.