'Bentham, Mill and Green on the Nature of the Good'

The purpose of this paper is to compare three thinkers with respect to one moral issue. The three thinkers are Jeremy Bentham, John Stuart Mill and Thomas Hill Green. These are thinkers of three successive generations. The influence Bentham had on Mill, as well as the influence Bentham and Mill had on Green, is undisputed. Unlike Mill, however, Green did not see himself as a disciple of the utilitarian school, so one could question whether Green is a natural follower of the first two philosophers.. It will be demonstrated here that there is a notable progression of ideas from Bentham, through Mill, to Green: a progression that throws light on the nature of the good. The issue this paper will address is how each thinker dealt with the potential conflict between the personal good and the common good. The "personal good" is synonymous with "the good of the individual" or with "personal happiness", while the "common good" is synonymous with "the good of society" or "general happiness". A common feature of the three philosophers is that each preferred to pre-empt the possibility of such a conflict. They would rather see these two goods—the individual and the social—as either in natural harmony with each other, or as essentially reconcilable. What happens though in cases where such a conflict exists and cannot be amicably resolved? It is a fact that cases where the personal good and the common good are antagonistic exist and the three philosophers had to face up to this fact. My task is to address each thinker in turn and see how his philosophy dealt with this problem. The paper focuses on the cases of irreconcilable conflict between the common good and the personal good. It deals with two possible solutions to this conflict: when it is resolved in favour of the first, and when it is resolved in favour of the second. We shall see that the three thinkers tended to give priority to the common good over the personal good (though this is less true of Mill than of the other two). However, Bentham, Mill and Green were all genuinely concerned with the good of the individual and all gave serious theoretical backing to this concern. As giving priority to the personal good over the common good is a more difficult task than giving priority to common good over the personal good, I have paid special attention to how each of the three philosophers dealt with the former. None of the three thinkers addressed directly the moral issue this paper raises. So my aim is to find answers that are not readily available. In the process of reviewing each thinker in turn, I will try to resolve the problems that are touched but not dealt with. The conclusions are that (1) all three philosophers play animportant role in the process of emancipating the status of the personal good, (2) that addressing the cases of irreconcilable conflict between the personal and the common good is an essential part of any theory of the nature of the good, and finally that (3) T H Green’s moral philosophy is best suited to give a satisfactory solution to such irreconcilable conflicts

Consumer Preferences for Pharmacy in Highly Competitive Environment

Introduction. In recent years, the pharmacy market in Bulgaria is dynamically developing with increasingconcentration of retailers in the big cities. The aim of this study is to analyse the factors influencing consumer choice of a pharmacy in a highly competitive environment.Materials and Method. The study was conducted among 433 consumers in the city of Varna between February and April 2017. Direct anonymous inquiries were used to investigate consumer opinion, including factors affecting the choice of a pharmacy and over-the-counter medicines.Results and Discussion. The results show that the majority of the respondents attend relatively regular pharmacies - at least once a month or more frequently. For purchase of food supplements, over 50% of consumers prefer pharmacy versus drugstores and non-pharmacy retailers. Geographic proximity and price level are reported as most important factors in pharmacy choice. Counselling by qualified staff is important to 65% of respondents and could be interpreted as a factor stimulating re-selection of the retailer. Product range and competitive prices also have an impact on loyalty. For the purchase of over-the-counter drugs and food supplements, respondents rely heavily on the recommendation of a doctor (48%) or a pharmacist (37%), who in this case form and predetermine consumers` choice.Conclusions. The intensity of competition is often associated with a price reduction or higher differentiation between market players. Analysing the factors and motives of consumer choice in a highly competitive environment is crucial for successful positioning and market performance of pharmacies

A case of non-compaction cardiomyopathy

The aim of this case report was to present a rare myocardial disease, the so-called isolated non-compaction cardiomyopathy (NCCM). This disorder, a primary genetic cardiomyopathy, attracts increasing attention. A woman with a sudden onset of shortness of breath and isolated NCCM is described. Criteria for diagnosis as well as echocardiographic findings and magnetic resonance imaging of the heart are presented. Although rare, a new option of myocardial disease with various modes of clinical presentation but, most commonly, with acute or chronic heart failure should be taken into consideration. Multiple imaging modalities are available and should be used for proper diagnosis.Scripta Scientifica Medica 2013; 45(3): 86-89

FERROPTOSIS AND ITS POTENTIAL ROLE IN CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES

Iron (Fe) is the fourth most common element in the earth's crust, and plays a significant role in the human body.It is important for cell survival due toits involvement in the transport of oxygen, in DNA biosynthesis, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) synthesis, as well as an auxiliary factor of various proteins in the tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA). It has also been found that iron is closely related to the onset and progression of various cancers and disturbances in its metabolism can stimulate the growth of tumor cells. In addition, divalent iron significantly accelerates the lipid peroxidation of saturated fatty acids

Photocatalytic UV-Induced Approach for Discoloration of Bromocresol Purple, Bromothymol Blue Dyes and Their Mixture Using Nix Fe3−xO4/Fe2O3/AC Composites

The nickel ferrite-activated carbon samples NiFe2O4/Activated carbon and NixFe3−xO4/Fe2O3/AC, x = 0.25; 0.5 obtained by co-precipitation followed by thermal treatment in inert atmosphere, were studied for discoloration of Bromocresol Purple (BCP), Bromothymol Blue (BTB) dyes and their mixture as model contaminants under UV-A light. The prepared materials were investigated by XPS, PXRD and XRF analysis, FT-IR spectroscopy, SEM, EDX, BET method and TG analysis. The photocatalyst with composition NixFe3−xO4-AC, x = 1 has demonstrated the highest photocatalytic activity towards discoloration of the BTB in comparison with the others tested materials NixFe3−xO4/Fe2O3/AC, x = 0.25; 0.5. These results can be explained with the smaller particle sizes, the mesoporous structure, the higher degree of crystallinity and higher content of hydroxyl groups. This study proved that the obtained nickel ferrite-activated carbon materials are suitable as photocatalysts for discoloration of the BTB dye. They have demonstrated also relatively high adsorption ability towards BCP dye

Socio-economic health inequalities in use of health care services in Bulgaria

Въведение: Различни изследвания показват, че по-бедните хора от населението имат по-големи здравни потребности, докато използването на здравни услуги е концентрирано сред по-богатите прослойки на обществото. Целта на настоящата статия е да се изследват социоикономическите здравни неравенства в използваемостта на различни видове здравни услуги в България.Материал и методи: В изследването са използвани данни от проведено социологическо проучване чрез анкета. Проучването е проведено в периода март-юни 2014 г. сред 618 граждани на Североизточния район на планиране.Резултати: От стойностите на коефициента на поляризация се вижда, че по-висока е използваемостта на здравни услуги от хората с по-ниски доходи. Изключение правят само денталните услуги. Емпиричните стойности на t-критерия на Стюдент по видове лечебни заведения показват, че статистически значими различия между групите с най-ниски и най-високи доходи съществуват при ползването на общопрактикуващ лекар, лекар-специалист и при приема в болница.Дискусия: Резултатите от нашето изследване показват, че статистически значими различия се наблюдават в използването на здравни услуги от респондентите с различни равнища на доход. Финансовата тежест на разходите за здравеопазване създава сериозни бариери в достъпа до здравни услуги, особено за по-бедните домакинства, неосигурените лица и другите уязвими групи.Заключение: Въпреки задълбочаването на проблема с неравенствата в използването на здравни услуги, мерките от страна на здравните власти са все още твърде ограничени.Introduction: Different studies show that those at the lower end of the income distribution have the greatest needs for health care but usually those in higher income groups use more health care services especially specialised ones. The aim of this article is to investigate socio-economic health inequalities in the utilisation of health care services in Bulgaria. Material and Methods: Data from inquiry are used to analyse the socio-economic health inequality. The inquiry is conducted in 2014 among 618 citizens of Nord-East region in Bulgaria.Results: Values of odds ratio show that people at the lower end of the income distribution use more health care services except in the dental care. Differences in utilization of outpatient and inpatient services are measured at different income groups through Student t-test.Discussion: Our analyses suggest that income inequalities are related with health inequalities in the utilisation of health care services in Bulgaria. Financial burden of private health expenditure creates barriers in access to health care services especially for poorer part of the population, uninsured people and other vulnerable groups. Conclusion: Although the health sector faces serious challenges with income-related health inequalities, the policy measures are still inadequate

Towards Better Understanding of Ancient Civilizations by Storytelling and Gaming

The new strategies for teaching and learning point to the investigation and the deployment of workable learning methods and scenarios for better understanding of the learning content and engagement learners in more active participation during the perception of knowledge. This paper presents a new learning approach for studying the ancient history and civilization and the Thracian civilization in particular, by storytelling and serious game combination