Changing values: A view of Turkey and Egypt

Economic development is considered to bring with it pervasive social and cultural changes. In today’s global economy, greater economic security is being accompanied by changes in the nature of work and in the levels and styles of social interaction. Evidence from developed economies suggest that there has been a resulting shift within societies towards so-called post-materialist values, with greater priority afforded by individuals to self expression and quality of life issues. While such shifts have been observed over time, across generations, differences in values have also been evident between older and younger cohorts within populations. It is the ageing of these younger cohorts which is considered to drive inter-generational shifts in values. Currently in many developing economies, including parts of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, it appears that significant cultural changes may be occurring, manifest in a various ways. Using data from recent waves of the World Values Survey, this paper analyses the nature of cultural differences within Egypt and a neighbouring Eurasian state, in line with established hypotheses from the literature

Subjective wellbeing and the MENA region

An area of considerable debate amongst social scientists and the wider public is the nature of the relationship between an individual's level of material wealth and that person's perceived "happiness" or well being. In discussion and research on this topic, the term subjective well-being (SWB) has become widely used and encompasses a number of measures or meanings. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the theoretical and empirical literature in this area. Several key drivers of SWB are identified and discussed in the context of the Middle East and North African (MENA) region using data from survey data collected by World Values Survey (WVS) from 1981-2007. A comparison is made of approaches to measuring "development" or "human progress" employing aggregate objective measures as opposed to individual survey responses

Changing values in the United Arab Emirates (UAE): A preliminary study of the Gen Y cohort

An area of considerable debate amongst social scientists and the wider public is the intergenerational value shifts that might occur as an outcome of economic progress. In discussion and research on this topic, the terms ‘Materialistic vs. Postmaterialistic values’ have become widely used, with the shift from Materialistic to Postmaterialistic values having var ying implications for work patterns besides serving as the conduit for wider societal changes (Inglehart, 1977, 1990). Using an edited version of the World Values Survey (WVS), the present study provides some preliminary evidence from United Arab Emirates (UAE) regarding the value orientation of Gen Y UAE nationals measured at a point in time. Some related attitudes as captured in various measures of subjective wellbeing are also reported. Results indicate a strong adherence to traditional values and a strong pride in National identity combined with some post materialistic values such as need for creative expression and recognition of individual performance, with the majority of the participants giving high importance to ‘doing something good for the society’ . Participants also ranked very highly on measures of ‘subjective wellbeing’ and ‘satisfaction with life’ with 98.1% of the sample considering themselves either ‘very happy’ or ‘rather happy’ with all participants being either ‘satisfied’, ‘highly satisfied’ or ‘completely satisfied’ with life. Results from this preliminary study provide some directions for further research besides having important implications for policy makers and employers within the regio

Synchrotron x-ray diffraction for sealed Mars Sample Return sample tubes

The joint NASA-ESA Mars sample return campaign aims to return up to 31 sample tubes containing drilled sedimentary and igneous cores and regolith. The titanium alloy tubes will initially still be sealed when they are retrieved. Several types of measurement will be carried out on sealed samples in the pre-basic characterization phase of scientific investigation. We show that powder x-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis can be successfully carried out on sealed samples using an x-ray source at the I12 beamline of Diamond Light Source synchrotron. Our experiment used an analog sample tube and a Martian regolith analog (Icelandic basaltic sand). The titanium walls of the tube analog give strong but few diffraction peaks, making identification of the major constituent mineral phases feasible. A more significant constraint on quantification of mineral phase abundances by this XRD technique is likely to be the grain size of the sample. This technique opens up the possibility of initial mineralogical analysis of samples returned from Jezero crater without opening the sample tubes and the potential changes to the sample that entails

Plasma steroid concentrations reflect acute disease severity and normalise during recovery in people hospitalised with COVID-19

Objective: Endocrine systems are disrupted in acute illness, and symptoms reported following coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are similar to those found with clinical hormone deficiencies. We hypothesised that people with severe acute COVID-19 and with post-COVID symptoms have glucocorticoid and sex hormone deficiencies. Design/Patients: Samples were obtained for analysis from two UK multicentre cohorts during hospitalisation with COVID-19 (International Severe Acute Respiratory Infection Consortium/World Health Organisation [WHO] Clinical Characterization Protocol for Severe Emerging Infections in the UK study), and at follow-up 5 months after hospitalisation (Post-hospitalisation COVID-19 study). Measurements: Plasma steroids were quantified by liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry. Steroid concentrations were compared against disease severity (WHO ordinal scale) and validated symptom scores. Data are presented as geometric mean (SD). Results: In the acute cohort (n = 239, 66.5% male), plasma cortisol concentration increased with disease severity (cortisol 753.3 [1.6] vs. 429.2 [1.7] nmol/L in fatal vs. least severe, p <.001). In males, testosterone concentrations decreased with severity (testosterone 1.2 [2.2] vs. 6.9 [1.9] nmol/L in fatal vs. least severe, p <.001). In the follow-up cohort (n = 198, 62.1% male, 68.9% ongoing symptoms, 165 [121–192] days postdischarge), plasma cortisol concentrations (275.6 [1.5] nmol/L) did not differ with in-hospital severity, perception of recovery, or patient-reported symptoms. Male testosterone concentrations (12.6 [1.5] nmol/L) were not related to in-hospital severity, perception of recovery or symptom scores. Conclusions: Circulating glucocorticoids in patients hospitalised with COVID-19 reflect acute illness, with a marked rise in cortisol and fall in male testosterone. These findings are not observed 5 months from discharge. The lack of association between hormone concentrations and common post-COVID symptoms suggests steroid insufficiency does not play a causal role in this condition