International Security in a World of Fragile States

Following the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington, DC, there has been an increasing interest among scholars, students, and the interested public to study and learn about the Islamist-oriented terrorist organizations called Jihadi Salafi Groups (JSGs). Considering that these organizations emerged in highly fragile states, S. Yaqub Ibrahimi asks: how and why is state fragility linked to the emergence of JSGs? Ibrahimi bases his study on three events: the establishment of al-Qaeda in Afghanistan in 1998, the rise of Islamic State in the post-Saddam Hussein Iraq, and the failed al-Qaeda effort to establish a base in Saudi Arabia in 2003. These case studies contain major aspects and features of the rise of JSGs and, together, explain the contribution of state fragility to the process of the formation and expansion of these terrorist organizations. International Security in a World of Fragile States stands out as a pivotal work on the interconnection between the root causes of JSGs and state fragility conditions and their amalgamated role in the formation and evolution of these organizations. It contributes to IR and international security debates by developing a comprehensive but readily understandable narrative of the rise of JSGs in Islamic countries, and examining them in an analytical framework in which their root causes are categorized on individual, group, and international levels

International Security in a World of Fragile States

Following the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington, DC, there has been an increasing interest among scholars, students, and the interested public to study and learn about the Islamist-oriented terrorist organizations called Jihadi Salafi Groups (JSGs). Considering that these organizations emerged in highly fragile states, S. Yaqub Ibrahimi asks: how and why is state fragility linked to the emergence of JSGs? Ibrahimi bases his study on three events: the establishment of al-Qaeda in Afghanistan in 1998, the rise of Islamic State in the post-Saddam Hussein Iraq, and the failed al-Qaeda effort to establish a base in Saudi Arabia in 2003. These case studies contain major aspects and features of the rise of JSGs and, together, explain the contribution of state fragility to the process of the formation and expansion of these terrorist organizations. International Security in a World of Fragile States stands out as a pivotal work on the interconnection between the root causes of JSGs and state fragility conditions and their amalgamated role in the formation and evolution of these organizations. It contributes to IR and international security debates by developing a comprehensive but readily understandable narrative of the rise of JSGs in Islamic countries, and examining them in an analytical framework in which their root causes are categorized on individual, group, and international levels

Equational definability of addition in certain noncommutative rings

AbstractBoolean rings and Boolean algebras, though historically and conceptually different, were shown by Stone to be equationally interdefinable. Indeed, in a Boolean ring, addition can be defined in terms of the ring multiplication and the successor operation (Boolean complementation) xΛ= 1 + x (= 1 − x). In this paper, it is shown that this type of equational definability of addition also holds in a much wider class of rings, namely, any ring R with unity, not necessarily commutative, which satisfies the identity xn = xn+1f(x) where n is a fixed positive integer and f(x) is a fixed polynomial with integer coefficients. This class, of course, contains all finite rings with unity. As a corollary it is shown that if S ⊆ R and 1ϵ S, and if along with a, b ϵ S, ab ϵ S and a + 1 ϵ S, then S is a subring of R

Redoks-ravnoteža i metabolički odgovori gravidnih ovaca u različitim razdobljima sušne sezone u tropskim krajevima

The study investigated the influence of ambient temperature and gestation on the redox homeostasis and metabolic profile of Yankasa ewes during the dry season in a tropical savannah. Ten ewes were synchronised and bred at early-dry season and lambed during the late-dry season, so that each sampling period corresponded to different periods of the dry season. Thermal environmental parameters were recorded during the morning and afternoon hours. Blood samples were collected from the ewes at pre-, early (cold-dry) -, mid- (early hot-dry) and late-gestation (late hot-dry), week 3 (late hot-dry) and week 2 prepartum (late hot-dry); and postpartum (late hot-dry). Serum samples were analysed for malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase and glutathione peroxidase (GPx), thyroid hormones, cholesterol, triglycerides, non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA), alanine aminotransferase (AST), aspartate aminotransferase (ALT), creatinine and urea. The highest average ambient temperature was obtained at mid-gestation. Mid-gestation was characterised by significantly (P<0.05) higher MDA and NEFA levels, but lower SOD, GPx and T3 level. The AST and ALT activities were lower (P<0.05) at pre- and early-gestation than at prepartum and postpartum. Urea concentration was higher (P<0.05) at postpartum than early-gestation. Discriminant analysis revealed a higher level of misclassification of parameters between pre-gestation, late-gestation, prepartum and postpartum, but no classification error occurred during early- and mid-gestation. In conclusion, the ewes were more stressed at mid-gestation than any other stage of the gestation. Therefore, measures to mitigate the adverse impact of high ambient temperature on the dam should be adopted to prevent the occurrence of pregnancy-related disorders during the season.Cilj je ovoga istraživanja bio ustanoviti utjecaj temperature okoliša i gravidnosti na redoks-homeostazu i metabolički profil ovaca pasmine Yankasa za vrijeme sušne sezone u tropskim savanama. Spolni ciklus deset ovaca je sinkroniziran nakon čega su pripuštene u početku sušne sezone, a zatim su ojanjene na kraju sušne sezone. Uzorci su uzimani u različitim razdobljima sušne sezone. Temperature okoliša zabilježene su u jutarnjim i poslijepodnevnim satima. Uzorci krvi uzeti su prije gravidnosti, u vrijeme rane gravidnosti (hladnog i suhog vremena), srednje gravidnosti (na početku vruće i suhe sezone) i kasne gravidnosti (na kraju vruće i suhe sezone), tri tjedna prije janjenja (na kraju vruće i suhe sezone) i dva tjedna prije janjenja (na kraju vruće i suhe sezone) te poslije janjenja (na kraju vruće i suhe sezone). U uzorcima su analizirani malondialdehid (MDA), superoksidna dismutaza (SOD), katalaza i glutation-peroksidaza (GPx), hormoni štitne žlijezde, kolesterol, trigliceridi, neesterificirane masne kiseline (NEFA), alanin-aminotransferaza (AST), aspartat-aminotransferaza (ALT), kreatin i urea. Najveća prosječna temperatura okoliša bila je u vrijeme srednje gravidnosti. U vrijeme srednje gravidnosti zabilježene su znakovito veće (P<0,05) vrijednosti MDA-a i NEFA-e te niže vrijednosti SOD-a, GPx-a i T3. Vrijednosti AST-a i ALT-a bile su niže (P<0,05) u vrijeme prije gravidnosti i u vrijeme rane gravidnosti negoli u vrijeme prije janjenja i poslije janjenja. Diskriminacijska analiza pokazala je veću razinu pogrešnog razvrstavanja pokazatelja između predgravidnosti, kasne gravidnosti, razdoblja prije janjenja i poslije janjenja, ali nije bilo pogreške u razvrstavanju za vrijeme rane i srednje gravidnosti. Zaključeno je da su ovce pod većim stresom u vrijeme srednje gravidnosti negoli u drugim razdobljima gravidnosti. Zbog toga, trebalo bi provesti mjere koje bi ublažile nepovoljan utjecaj visoke temperature okoliša na ovce kako bi se spriječila pojava poremećaja gravidnosti za vrijeme sušne sezone

Mixed chemical-induced oxidative stress in occupational exposure in Nigerians

Exposure to single chemicals and associated disorders in occupational environments has received significant attention. Understanding these events holds great promise for risk identification, assessmentand chemical induced disease prevention. Fifty (50) fasting male workers, age range 18-50 years exposed to chemical mixtures in a works department, mean duration 17.7±10.1 years and 30 controlsmatched for age, diet, sex and other demographic characteristics except exposure to chemicals were selected. Body mass index (BMI), antioxidant status and other biochemical indices including plasmaproteins (total protein) and subsets, albumin and total globulins were determined in plasma. The BMI was similar between chemical workers (exposed) and controls (p>0.05). Uric acid level was significantlyhigher in the exposed than in the controls (

Histopathological changes and antioxidant responses in common carp (Cyprinus carpio) exposed to copper nanoparticles

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Taylor & Francis via the DOI in this recordDespite the rapid increase of nanotechnology in a wide array of industrial sectors, the biosafety profile of nanomaterials remains undefined. The accelerated use of nanomaterials has increased the potential discharge of nanomaterials into the environment in different ways. The aquatic environment is mainly susceptible as it is likely to act as an ultimate sink for all contaminants. Therefore, this study assessed the toxicological impacts of waterborne engineered copper nanoparticles (Cu-NPs) on histology, lipid peroxidation (LPO), catalase (CAT), and glutathione (GSH) levels in the gills of common carp (Cyprinus carpio). Nanoparticles were characterized by XRD and SEM techniques. Before starting the sub-acute toxicity testing, 96 h LC50 of Cu-NPs for C. carpio was calculated as 4.44 mg/l. Then based on LC50, C. carpio of 40–45 g in weight were exposed to three sub-lethal doses of waterborne engineered Cu-NPs (0 or 0.5 or 1 or 1.5 mg/l) for a period of 14 days. The waterborne Cu-NPs have appeared to induce alterations in gill histology and oxidative stress parameters in a dose-dependent manner. The gill tissues showed degenerative secondary lamellae, necrotic lamella, fused lamella, necrosis of the primary and secondary lamella, edema, complete degeneration, epithelial lifting, degenerative epithelium, and hyperplasia in a dose-dependent manner. In the gill tissues, waterborne Cu-NPs caused a decreased level of CAT and elevated levels of LPO, and GSH in the fish exposed to the highest dose of 1.5 mg Cu-NPs/l of water. Our results indicate that the exposure to waterborne Cu-NPs was toxic to the aquatic organisms as shown by the oxidative stresses and histological alterations in C. carpio, a freshwater fish of good economic value

General practitioners\u27 knowledge and approach to chronic kidney disease in Karachi, Pakistan

Due to lack of adequate number of formally trained nephrologists, many patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) are seen by general practitioners (GPs). This study was designed to assess the knowledge of the GPs regarding identification of CKD and its risk factors, and evaluation and management of risk factors as well as complications of CKD. We conducted a cross-sectional survey of 232 randomly selected GPs from Karachi during 2011. Data were collected on a structured questionnaire based on the kidney disease outcomes and quality initiative recommendations on screening, diagnosis, and management of CKD. A total of 235 GPs were approached, and 232 consented to participate. Mean age was 38.5 ± 11.26 years; 56.5% were men. Most of the GPs knew the traditional risk factors for CKD, i.e., diabetes (88.4%) and hypertension (80%), but were less aware of other risk factors. Only 38% GPs were aware of estimated glomerular filtration rate in evaluation of patients with CKD. Only 61.6% GPs recognized CKD as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. About 40% and 29% GPs knew the correct goal systolic and diastolic blood pressure, respectively. In all, 41% GPs did not know when to refer the patient to a nephrologist. Our survey identified specific gaps in knowledge and approach of GPs regarding diagnosis and management of CKD. Educational efforts are needed to increase awareness of clinical practice guidelines and recommendations for patients with CKD among GPs, which may improve management and clinical outcomes of this population

Plane Localization in 3-D Fetal Neurosonography for Longitudinal Analysis of the Developing Brain.

The parasagittal (PS) plane is a 2-D diagnostic plane used routinely in cranial ultrasonography of the neonatal brain. This paper develops a novel approach to find the PS plane in a 3-D fetal ultrasound scan to allow image-based biomarkers to be tracked from prebirth through the first weeks of postbirth life. We propose an accurate plane-finding solution based on regression forests (RF). The method initially localizes the fetal brain and its midline automatically. The midline on several axial slices is used to detect the midsagittal plane, which is used as a constraint in the proposed RF framework to detect the PS plane. The proposed learning algorithm guides the RF learning method in a novel way by: 1) using informative voxels and voxel informative strength as a weighting within the training stage objective function, and 2) introducing regularization of the RF by proposing a geometrical feature within the training stage. Results on clinical data indicate that the new automated method is more reproducible than manual plane finding obtained by two clinicians

4-(2-Ethyl­phen­yl)-1-(2-oxoindolin-3-yl­idene)thio­semicarbazide

The title compound, C17H16N4OS, is stabilized in the form of a two-dimensional polymeric network due to inter­molecular N—H⋯S and N—H⋯O hydrogen bonds. An intra­molecular N—H⋯N hydrogen bond forms an S(5) ring, whereas inter­actions of the N—H⋯O and C—H⋯S types complete S(6) ring motifs. π–π inter­actions with a centroid–centroid distance of 3.6514 (10) Å are found between the ethyl-substituted benzene ring and the heterocyclic ring of the isatin derivative