The Intersectionality of Gender and Corruption in Africa

Corruption has long been recognized as a significant obstacle to good governance, the protection of human rights, and sustainable development in Africa. While the literature on anti-corruption has flourished in recent decades, there remains a critical gap in understanding the gendered nature and impact of corruption in the African context. This article aims to address this gap by examining the intersectionality of gender and corruption in Africa. It explores the extent to which corruption affects women and men differently, taking into account the social, economic, and political factors that shape these disparities. The article highlights that despite the region\u27s commitment to combating corruption, as demonstrated by the African Union\u27s adoption of the African Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption (AUCPCC) in 2003, there is limited attention paid to the gender dimensions of corruption in policy and institutional frameworks. By examining the existing anti-corruption laws and institutions in African countries and considering the regional context of conflicts and the peacebuilding process, the article analyzes the effectiveness of current paradigms in addressing the gendered aspects of corruption. Moreover, it explores the specific forms of corruption that disproportionately affect women and examines the consequences for gender equality, socio-economic development, and political stability in the region

Understanding privacy and data protection issues in learning analytics using a systematic review

The field of learning analytics has advanced from infancy stages into a more practical domain, where tangible solutions are being implemented. Nevertheless, the field has encountered numerous privacy and data protection issues that have garnered significant and growing attention. In this systematic review, four databases were searched concerning privacy and data protection issues of learning analytics. A final corpus of 47 papers published in top educational technology journals was selected after running an eligibility check. An analysis of the final corpus was carried out to answer the following three research questions: (1) What are the privacy and data protection issues in learning analytics? (2) What are the similarities and differences between the views of stakeholders from different backgrounds on privacy and data protection issues in learning analytics? (3) How have previous approaches attempted to address privacy and data protection issues? The results of the systematic review show that there are eight distinct, intertwined privacy and data protection issues that cut across the learning analytics cycle. There are both cross-regional similarities and three sets of differences in stakeholder perceptions towards privacy and data protection in learning analytics. With regard to previous attempts to approach privacy and data protection issues in learning analytics, there is a notable dearth of applied evidence, which impedes the assessment of their effectiveness. The findings of our paper suggest that privacy and data protection issues should not be relaxed at any point in the implementation of learning analytics, as these issues persist throughout the learning analytics development cycle. One key implication of this review suggests that solutions to privacy and data protection issues in learning analytics should be more evidence-based, thereby increasing the trustworthiness of learning analytics and its usefulness.publishedVersio

Understanding Inclusive Education in the “Front of the Class” Movie in Chinese Perspective

To explore the beliefs of Inclusive Education in the film " Front of the class ", this study uses the method of content analysis to interpret and analyze this film from the perspective of the concept of inclusive education, inclusive family, inclusive school, and inclusive society. It found that the film contains rich beliefs and concepts of inclusive education, which helps to pursue the quality of education examine educational equity and social equity, provide intellectual support for the construction of inclusive society, responding the UN's sustainable development goal 4 (SDG 4) focuses on ensuring inclusive and equitable, quality education and lifelong learning opportunities for all

Application of statins in management of glioma: Recent advances

Gliomas are common primary intra-cerebral tumors in adults, and seriously threaten the health and life of affected patients, especially highly-malignant gliomas, such as glioblastoma multiforme. The clinical prognosis of glioma patients is poor, even for those who have received comprehensive treatment including surgery and concurrent chemo- and/or radio-therapy. As a structural analog of β-hydroxy-β- methylglutaryl coenzyme A (HMG CoA) reductase, statins are a restrictive enzyme in the metabolism of cholesterol. Recent laboratory studies and clinical trials have demonstrated that statins can exert antitumor effect, improve clinical prognosis and significantly prolong the survival time of glioma patients. This article is aimed to highlight the mechanisms of the anti-glioma effect of statins and review recent advances in the management of the disease.Keywords: Glioma, Glioblastoma multiforme, Intra-cerebral tumors, Statins, Prognosis, Survival time, β-Hydroxy-β-methylglutaryl coenzyme A (HMG CoA) reductas

Learning analytics for enhanced professional capital development: a systematic review

Background/MotivationThis article presents a systematic review aimed at examining the utilization of learning analytics (LA) to enhance teachers’ professional capital.AimThe study focuses on three primary research questions: (1) exploring the characteristics and approaches of LA in professional capital, (2) investigating suggestions from LA for assessing and improving professional capital, and (3) examining variables studied in enhancing the most intricate dimension of professional capital using LA.MethodologyTo address the research objectives, a systematic review was conducted focusing on the key concepts “learning analytics” and “professional capital.” Following the procedures outlined encompassed in four stages: identification, screening, inclusion, and adequacy. The PRISMA 2009 protocol guided the systematic review process.Principal findingsThe findings of the study underscore the efficacy of LA as a catalyst for improving professional capital, particularly through collaborative learning and the utilization of tools like forums and online learning platforms. Social capital emerges as a pivotal component in integrating diverse types of professional capital, fostering opportunities for knowledge creation and social networking.Conclusion/SignificanceIn conclusion, the study highlights the paramount significance of addressing teachers’ professional capital development through collaborative approaches and leveraging technology, particularly in primary education. The article concludes by emphasizing the imperative for more research and knowledge dissemination in this field, aiming to ensure equity in learning and address the challenges posed by the COVID−19 pandemic

Variable Selection with False Discovery Control

Technological advances that allow routine identification of high-dimensional risk factors have led to high demand for statistical techniques that enable full utilization of these rich sources of information for genome-wide association studies (GWAS). Variable selection for censored outcome data as well as control of false discoveries (i.e. inclusion of irrelevant variables) in the presence of high-dimensional predictors present serious challenges. In the context of survival analysis with high-dimensional covariates, this paper develops a computationally feasible method for building general risk prediction models, while controlling false discoveries. We have proposed a high-dimensional variable selection method by incorporating stability selection to control false discovery. Comparisons between the proposed method and the commonly used univariate and Lasso approaches for variable selection reveal that the proposed method yields fewer false discoveries. The proposed method is applied to study the associations of 2,339 common single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with overall survival among cutaneous melanoma (CM) patients. The results have confirmed that BRCA2 pathway SNPs are likely to be associated with overall survival, as reported by previous literature. Moreover, we have identified several new Fanconi anemia (FA) pathway SNPs that are likely to modulate survival of CM patients

Risk factors for lumbar disc herniation in adolescents and young adults: A case–control study

BackgroundThere is a limited understanding of the risk factors for lumbar disc herniation (LDH) in younger people, even though the evidence suggests that LDH is more prevalent in this population. This study aimed to comprehensively analyze the risk factors for LDH in adolescents and young adults.MethodsThe medical records of all patients were retrospectively reviewed with inclusion criteria of being younger than 25 years. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to confirm LDH from September 2016 to September 2021. Furthermore, 104 healthy people in the same age range were enrolled as the control group from physical examination centers. Gender, BMI, smoking, drinking, genetic history, sitting posture, daily sitting time, traumatic history of the lower back, scoliosis, and daily exercise time were examined for all enrolled people. These factors were statistically analyzed to determine the high-risk factors.ResultsA total of 208 young individuals were enrolled in the present study. The mean age of the study group and the control group was 21.06 ± 3.27 years (range: 11–25 years) and 21.26 ± 2.23 years (range: 15–25 years), respectively. The result of the chi-squared test demonstrated that there was a significant difference in BMI of more than 30 (p < 0.001), genetic history (p = 0.004), sitting posture (p < 0.001), daily sitting time of more than 6 h (p < 0.001), and the history of low back trauma (p = 0.002). Additionally, multivariate logistic regression showed that these were high-risk factors for LDH, particularly the duration of daily sitting time (more than 6 h).ConclusionsBMI of more than 30, genetic history, sitting posture, daily sitting time of more than 6 h, and a history of low back trauma are the high-risk factors for adolescents and young adults with LDH. Therefore, providing them with the proper guidance and education, particularly about the protection of the lower back and the reduction of spinal load, could play a key role in preventing and reducing LDH

Biosensors fabricated by laser-induced metallization on DLP composite resin

With the growing emphasis on medical testing, people are seeking more technologies to detect indexes of the human body quickly and at a low cost. The electrochemical biosensors became a research hotspot due to their excellent properties. In this study, dicopper hydroxide phosphate (Cu2(OH)PO4) was incorporated in resin, and the resin sheets were prepared by digital light processing (DLP). The copper base points were activated on the resin sheet surface by Nd: YAG laser and then covered by the electroless copper plating and the electroless silver plating. The laser could effectively activate copper base points on the resin surface. Furthermore, silver electrodes on the detection chips could distinguish glucose solutions of different concentrations well. Finally, a novel detection kit with a three-electrode chip was designed for rapid health testing at home or in medical institutions in the future

Establishing the carrier scattering phase diagram for ZrNiSn-based half-Heusler thermoelectric materials

Chemical doping is one of the most important strategies for tuning electrical properties of semiconductors, particularly thermoelectric materials. Generally, the main role of chemical doping lies in optimizing the carrier concentration, but there can potentially be other important effects. Here, we show that chemical doping plays multiple roles for both electron and phonon transport properties in half-Heusler thermoelectric materials. With ZrNiSn-based half-Heusler materials as an example, we use high-quality single and polycrystalline crystals, various probes, including electrical transport measurements, inelastic neutron scattering measurement, and first-principles calculations, to investigate the underlying electron-phonon interaction. We find that chemical doping brings strong screening effects to ionized impurities, grain boundary, and polar optical phonon scattering, but has negligible influence on lattice thermal conductivity. Furthermore, it is possible to establish a carrier scattering phase diagram, which can be used to select reasonable strategies for optimization of the thermoelectric performance.Comment: 21 pages, 5 figure