Description of Echinobothrium typus van Beneden, 1849 (Platyhelminthes: Diphyllidea) from Raja clavata Linnaeus, 1758 (Pisces: Rajidae) in the Black Sea

Mature specimens of the cestode Echinobothrium typus van Beneden, 1849 from the thornback ray Raja clavata Linnaeus, 1758 that inhabit the Black Sea are found and described in detail for the first time. New details of the scolex armature and reproductive system structures of E. typus are revealed. Infection indices of this cestode in the thornback rays are analyzed. It is shown that the occurrence of E. typus in the definitive host Raja clavata depends not only on the presence and the population density of the intermediate host, presumably, amphipods Perioculodes longimanus Bate et Westwood, 1868, but also on the age related changes in the food spectrum of the thornback rays

High-resolultion reconstruction of Lena River discharge during the Late Holocene inferred from microalgae assemblages

On the basis of a detailed study of the diatom and aquatic palynomorph assemblages and a detailed radiocarbon chronology of sediment cores obtained from the south-eastern inner Laptev Sea shelf adjacent to the Lena Delta the spatial and temporal variability in the Lena River discharge during the last 6 cal. ka were reconstructed. It was shown that in the area adjacent to the Lena Delta variations in surface water salinities, reconstructed using freshwater diatoms as a proxy, were mainly caused by changes in the volume of the Lena River runoff through the major riverine channels Trofimovskaya, Bykovskaya and Tumatskaya. Several paleohydrological phases are recognized: (i) establishment of modern-like conditions within the eastern Lena River Valley occurred from 6-4.2 cal. ka; (ii) Lena River outflow increased in north-eastward direction via the Trofimovskaya or Bykovskaya channels from 4.2-2.7 cal. ka, coeval with a reduction of runoff toward the north via the Tumatskaya Channel; (iii) generally stable hydrological conditions northward of the Tumatskaya Channel and variations in riverine discharge north-eastward of the Trofimovskaya and Bykovskaya channels prevail since 2.7 cal. ka. Using indicator species of dinocysts as principle marine proxy, an influence of Atlantic water to the southeast inner Laptev Sea shelf could be inferred, possibly along the Eastern Lena paleovalley, brought into this area by winddriven reversed bottom currents. Zusammenfassung: Untersuchungen von Diatomeen- und aquatischen Palynomorphen-Vergesellschaftungen wurden an Radiokohlenstoff datierten Sedimentkernen aus der inneren südöstlichen Laptevsee nahe des Lenadeltas durchgeführt. Anhand dieser Daten wurde die zeitliche und räumliche Veränderlichkeit des Flusswasserausstromes der Lena für die letzten 6 ka (Kalenderjahre) rekonstruiert. Zeitliche Veränderungen in den Häufigkeiten von Süßwasserdiatomeen sind begründet durch Wechsel in der Menge des Lenaausflusses durch die drei großen Haupkanäle im Delta: Trofimovskaja, Bykovskja, sowie Tumatskaja. Darauf basierend konnten prinzipiell drei große paläohydrologische Phasen unterschieden werden: (1) heutigen Verhältnissen vergleichbare Bedingungen wurden östlich des Lenadeltas zwischen 6 und 4.2 ka etabliert; (2) Erhöhung des Flusswasseraustrags in nordöstliche Richtung über die Kanäle Trofimovskaja und/oder Bykovskaja zwischen 4.2 und 2.7 ka bei gleichzeitiger Reduzierung Richtung Norden via Tumatskaja; (3) Ausbildung relativ stabiler Bedingungen nördlich des Deltas sowie Auftreten wechselhafter Flusswasserausträgen in östliche Richtung nach 2.7 ka. Das Auftreten von marinen Dinocysten in den Sedimenkernen belegt den Einfluss von Wassermassen mit vermutlich atlantischem Ursprung. Es ist zu vermuten, dass diese durch windgetriebene Bodenströmungen entlang der alten versunkenen Flusstäler auf den östlichen inneren Schelf verfrachtet werden

Service quality models in the context of the fitness industry

Purpose This paper aims to reviews the concept of perceived service quality in the fitness industry by considering the service-dominant logic (Vargo and Lusch, 2004) and examining existing service quality models in the context of sport and fitness. Design/methodology/approach The paper critically reviews generic and industry-specific models of service quality in the fitness industry. The examination of the models is intended to identify the role that the perspective of customers and the dynamics of service co-creation play in these models. Findings Consideration of the context in a particular industry plays an important role in the development of service quality models. If underestimated, it can result in a model being inadequate or having limited explanatory potential. The review shows that both generic and fitness industry-specific models have methodological and conceptual limitations. This requires researchers to consider developing new contextual models that acknowledge a) service as co-creation of experience/value between suppliers and customers; and, b) the goal of this co-creation as fulfilment of customers’ aspirations. Such an approach brings a new light to the meaning of ‘a customer’s perspective’ and emphasises the dynamics of service co-creation in the fitness industry. Practical implications The study provides an agenda for future research to consider perceived service quality models from the customers’ perspective. It suggests researchers to take into account various factors of consumer behaviour (e.g. motivation) which are unique to sport and fitness services. Also, managers of fitness facilities need to revisit their tools for capturing customers' perceptions and to update the areas included in customer satisfaction surveys. Originality/value The paper provides an insight into the role of co-creation for service quality in fitness services. It contributes towards establishing revised relations between service quality in fitness and contextual industry-specific factors suggested by numerous studies previously

Service quality in fitness centres- literature review and further research

Addressing the needs of the customers and understanding their perspectives on service quality (SQ) have become essential for fitness organisations in a competitive environment. In a saturated market, fitness clubs seek methods of both retaining existing and attracting new customers. This places a significant emphasis on SQ and the identification of what customers perceive as quality. SQ in the sport and fitness industries evolved into a credible research stream from the late 1980s. However, there is still no agreement in the literature about the key dimensions of quality in these industries. Due to the unique aspects of the sport services, there are distinct differences between sport organisations and other businesses. Recognising this distinction, a number of studies (Brady and Cronin, 2001; Martinez and Martinez, 2010) have emphasised the need for developing industry specific SQ models. The current study aims to review the existing body of literature on SQ in the fitness industry. Future research aims to examine SQ in fitness clubs in England and to test measurement scales from previous studies for their validity. The model of Brady and Cronin (2001) is taken as a basis for the research framework and suggestions for overcoming its existing limitations are proposed

The Technical University Teacher: What Do Students Value?

At present, according to Presidential Address to the Federal Assembly our country has set the task of reforming higher education based on the synthesis of the best practices of the Soviet educational system and the experience of recent decades. This increases the responsibility of technical university teachers, whose competencies have been determined in recent years on the basis of different scientific approaches. In this regard, the problem of identifying the teachers’ qualities that are significant for students is becoming especially relevant.In order to solve the problem, the research of students’ essays obtained as a result of the International Essay Contest in English “My University Engineering Teacher I will Never Forget” was undertaken. The contest was organized by Moscow Automobile and Road Construction State Technical University (MADI) in 2021-22. The hypothesis of the research suggested that the personality traits of the technical university teacher are valued by students not lower than their professional competencies.In order to achieve the goal and verify the hypothesis, four tasks were set and solved during the research: the students’ opinions on the role of the teacher were revealed; the professional competencies of the teacher that are significant for students were determined; the personality traits of the teacher that are significant for students were determined; the significance of the teacher’s professional competencies and personality traits for students was compared. The research methodology provided for qualitative and quantitative evaluation of the students’ essays including their content analysis.The paper describes the main results of the research, which confirmed the hypothesis, as well as their interpretation. The interpretation of the research results allowed us to draw general conclusions concerning reforming the modern system of engineering education. The main conclusion concerns the necessity of returning engineering education to the traditional for the Soviet higher school integration of education and upbringing and the significance of developing in the educational process not only the competencies relevant for employers, but also the personality of future specialists

The development of the urban settlement system in Belgorod oblast

We have investigated the urbanization processes in the region. The study revealed the characteristics of evolution of urban systems and of the urbanization development stages as well as ascertaining the current formation tendencies for large cities and their suburban zonesyesBelgorod State Universit

The influence of agro-climatic conditions on the yield of sunflower in the Belgorod region

The research showed that natural conditions and agro-climatic resources of the Belgorod region potentially are rather favorable for the cultivation of sun-flower. However, due to considerable variability of the agro-meteorological conditions in time and space, the sunflower yield will experience substantial var-iability by years and by the administrative districts of the regio

Study of the Effect of Radiation Dose Rate on the Stability of Various Organochlorine Pesticides

Abstract irradiated at dose of 10 kGy with dose rate varied from 8.3 ⋅ 10−3 up to 2.33 Gy/sec. It is found that the shape of the degradation degree relationship on dose rate is similar for different OCPs in polar and non-polar solvents (hexane, 2-propanol) and does not depend on the concentration of initial substance. The maximum of the OCP degradation degree is registered in the dose rate range of 0.23-0.43 Gy/sec. A lognormal distribution is considered as a function best fitting the experimental data. The OCP degradation mechanism could be explained by the ratio of active and recombined particles along the gradient of ionizing radiation intensity. Keywords: organochlorinated pesticide; irradiation, dose and dose rate of gammaradiation; radiation degradation; functional dependenc

ALTERATION OF ACTIVE SUBSTANCE CONTENT IN "HEXACHLORAN DUST" PESTICIDE FORMULATION AT EXPOSURE TO ELECTRON BEAM

The most popular methods of organochlorinated pesticides (OCP) destruction, which are based on thermal dechlorination, are not ecologically safe. The other process – radiation-chemical degradation – has got some advantages. It does not involve high temperatures and expensive reagents. In this study, the effective OCP degradation was observed under irradiation of residuals of the active substance of ‘Hexachloran dust’ pesticide formulation, intended for utilization. Parameters for the preparation powder (dry form) exposure to electron beam are discussed. It is shown that at the exposure to electron beam at dose of 100 kGy, the degradation degree of hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) isomers in a composition of active substance achieves 56.2–66.3%

Technical University Teacher Competences in Russia and Abroad

“Education 4.0” should be consistent with the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The reforms of engineering education as its component require new competences of technical university teachers who are responsible for these reforms and as a result, trigger the improvement of further teachers’ professional development programs to train them for that. Such a program is also one of the aims of the project “Effective training model of technical discipline lecturers for the purpose of obtaining “International Educator of Engineering University” certificate – “ING-PAED IGIP”. It is realized by Moscow Automobile and Road Construction State Technical University (MADI) that was recognized as a Federal Innovative Platform in 2020.The project is aimed at designing an additional program intended to develop technical university teachers’ competences that are, on the one hand, relevant to the needs of Russian higher school, and, on the other hand, correspond to the requirements for applying for the title «ING-PAED IGIP» of the International Society for Engineering Pedagogy (IGIP). In order to achieve that it is necessary to identify if technical university teachers’ competences that are relevant in Russia correspond the competences determined in IGIP.In order to solve this problem, the authors undertook comparative analysis of the competencies registered in two documents: RF Professional Standard “Pedagogue of professional teaching, professional education and additional professional education” and the Fourth IGIP Prototype Curriculum.The paper specifies the notion of technical university teacher competence for the research, validates the possibility of the two documents comparison, describes the procedure of comparative analysis on the basis of compiling summary tables.The paper also gives the main conclusions of the comparative analysis. It proves that RF Professional Standard covers all the competences required by Fourth IGIP Prototype Curriculum. RF Professional Standard registers teachers’ actions more distinctly, consistently, and with more details. The research revealed the competences relevant for Russian higher education, but not necessary for IGIP. The research also allowed to formulate preliminary recommendations for designing additional teachers’ professional development program in the MADI project