9 research outputs found

    Outcomes from elective colorectal cancer surgery during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic

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    This study aimed to describe the change in surgical practice and the impact of SARS-CoV-2 on mortality after surgical resection of colorectal cancer during the initial phases of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic

    Knowledge Economy Gaps, Policy Syndromes and Catch-up Strategies: Fresh South Korean Lessons to Africa

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    Africa’s overall knowledge index fell between 2000 and 2009. South Korea’s economic miracle is largely due to a knowledge-based development strategy that holds valuable lessons for African countries in their current pursuit towards knowledge economies. Using updated data (1996-2010), this paper presents fresh South Korean lessons to Africa by assessing the knowledge economy (KE) gaps, deriving policy syndromes and providing catch-up strategies. The 53 African frontier countries are decomposed into fundamental characteristics of wealth, legal origins, regional proximity, oil-exporting, political stability and landlockedness. The World Bank’s four KE components are used: education, innovation, information & communication technology (ICT) and economic incentives & institutional regime. Absolute beta and sigma convergence techniques are employed as empirical strategies. With the exception of ICT for which catch-up is not very apparent, in increasing order it is visible in: innovation, economic incentives, education and institutional regime. The speed of catch-up varies between 8.66% and 30.00% per annum with respective time to full or 100% catch-up of 34.64 years and 10 years. Based on the trends and dynamics in the KE gaps, policy syndromes and compelling catch-up strategies are discussed. Issues standing on the way to KE in Africa are dissected with great acuteness before South Korean relevant solutions are provided. The paper is original in its provision of practical policy initiatives drawn from the Korean experience to African countries embarking on a transition to KE

    Knowledge Economy Gaps, Policy Syndromes and Catch-Up Strategies: Fresh South Korean Lessons to Africa

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    Dispute Settlement Provisions in International Investment Agreements: A Large Sample Survey

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    Measuring Electoral Democracy with V-Dem Data: Introducing a New Polyarchy Index

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    Temporal Validity of International Investment Agreements: A Large Sample Survey of Treaty Provisions

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    How Have Policy Approaches to Polygamy Responded to Women's Experiences and Rights? An International, Comparative Analysis: Final Report for Status of Women Canada

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    Mild and Highly Flexible Enzyme-Catalyzed Modification of Poly (ethersulfone) Membranes

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    Poly(ethersulfone) (PES) membranes are widely used in industry for separation and purification purposes. However, the drawback of this type of membranes is fouling by proteins. For that reason, modification of PES membranes has been studied to enhance their protein repellence. This paper presents the first example of enzyme-catalyzed modification of PES membranes. Various phenolic acids (enzyme substrates) were bound to a membrane under very mild conditions (room temperature, water, nearly neutral pH) using only laccase from Trametes versicolor as catalyst. The extent of modification, monitored, for example, by the coloration of the modified membranes, can be tuned by adjusting the reaction conditions. The most significant results were obtained with 4-hydroxybenzoic acid and gallic acid as substrates. The presence of a covalently bound layer of 4-hydroxybenzoic acid on the grafted membranes was confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (IRRAS), and NMR. In the case of gallic acid, PES membrane modification is mainly caused by adsorption of enzymatically formed homopolymer. The ionization potential of the substrates, and the electronic energies and spin densities of the radicals that are intermediates in the attachment reaction were calculated (B3LYP/6-311G(d,p)) to determine the reactive sites and the order of reactivity of radical substrates to couple with the PES membrane. The calculated order of reactivity of the substrates is in line with the experimental observations. The calculated spin densities in the phenolic radicals are highest at the oxygen atom, which is in line with the formation of ether linkages as observed by IRRAS. The liquid fluxes of the modified membranes are hardly influenced by the grafted layers, in spite of the presence of a substantial and stable new layer, which opens a range of application possibilities for these modified membrane
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