There is a lack of information from Middle Eastern countries regarding diet-disease associations. We examined dietary glycemic and insulinemic potential in relation to risk of incident diabetes among a large group of Iranian adults. The present study was carried out using data from Yazd Health Study (YaHS)-Taghzieh Mardom Yazd (TAMYZ), a prospective cohort study on adults aged 20 to 70 years in Yazd Greater Area, Iran. This study was initiated in 2014-2016 (baseline examination) and data are collected prospectively at one 5-year intervals. Data on demographic characteristics, dietary intakes, and potential confounders were gathered by interview. During the follow-up phase of the study, diabetes incidence was confirmed by laboratory tests and physician diagnoses. This study included a total of 6178 participants in the cross-sectional analysis and 5105 subjects in the prospective phase. Examining the cross-sectional phase, we failed to find any significant association between dietary glycemic index (GI) and glycemic load (GL) as well as dietary insulin index (DII) or dietary insulin load (DIL) and prevalence of diabetes. No significant relationship was also seen between DII/DIL and risk of T2DM in the prospective phase; however, in the stratified analysis by BMI status, there was an inverse significant association between DII and risk of T2DM (HR for T3 vs. T1: 0.19; 95%CI: 0.04, 0.92; P=0.03) in non-obese (BMI≥25 kg/m2) and overweight (BMI<25 kg/m2)participants. No significant association was found between dietary GI/ dietary GL/ DII/ or DIL with risk of T2DM. More research, particularly with a longer follow-up duration, is needed to confirm these findings.

In this paper, a novel polarization conversion metasurface (PCM) is proposed. Compared with the conventional receiver-transmitter metasurface units, two metallized via holes are set up to correct the current. It can achieve better polarization conversion from linear to circular and maintain a high reflectivity performance. A patch antenna with an L-probe feed is used as a feeder. The circularly polarized Fabry–Perot resonator antenna (CP-FPRA) consists of the PCM with a 5 × 5 array and a feeder. The measurements indicate a 3 dB axial ratio (AR) bandwidth of 8.6% (22.3–24.3 GHz). And it achieves a maximum gain of 14.2 dBic at 24 GHz, compared to the feed antenna has a gain enhancement of 5.5 dBi (from 8.7 dBi to 14.2 dBic). The proposed CP-FPRA has high gain, a wide AR, and a relatively low profile, providing ideas for subsequent antenna designs.

Let X be a smooth, projective and geometrically connected curve defined over a finite field ${\mathbb {F}}_q$ of characteristic p different from $2$ and $S\subseteq X$ a subset of closed points. Let $\overline {X}$ and $\overline {S}$ be their base changes to an algebraic closure of ${\mathbb {F}}_q$. We study the number of $\ell $-adic local systems $(\ell \neq p)$ in rank $2$ over $\overline {X}-\overline {S}$ with all possible prescribed tame local monodromies fixed by k-fold iterated action of Frobenius endomorphism for every $k\geq 1$. In all cases, we confirm conjectures of Deligne predicting that these numbers behave as if they were obtained from a Lefschetz fixed point formula. In fact, our counting results are expressed in terms of the numbers of some Higgs bundles.

Does neorealism contain a conception of human nature? Although neorealists usually claim to sidestep the question of human nature altogether, scholars frequently trace the theory back to the work of Thomas Hobbes, a philosopher who in fact defended a robust account of human motivations. As a result, some scholars have concluded that neorealism contains a Hobbesian view of human nature. Against the conventional wisdom, this article argues that neorealism contains a Rousseauian philosophical anthropology. Whereas Hobbes provides a deeply pessimistic account of human motivations, Rousseau combines optimism about human motivations with pessimism about social structures. Rousseau’s critique of Hobbes profoundly influenced neorealism’s founding father, Kenneth Waltz, a political theorist who later gravitated towards International Relations. After exploring Waltz’s reading of Rousseau and demonstrating Rousseau’s influence on Waltz’s theory, the article investigates what is gained by reading neorealism as Rousseauian. Returning to the Rousseauian roots of neorealism reveals the true character of the tragic heuristic employed in neorealist theory, sheds new light on the role of pity in neorealist foreign policy, and clarifies the logic of the theory itself.

The adjustment period — wherein adopted animals transition to their new home — is a critical time for animal welfare and owner satisfaction, yet literature varies in estimates of how long this period lasts in dogs. This study sought to better characterise the adjustment period in relation to owner experience and canine welfare and clarify its duration as perceived by owners. We used a qualitative approach to examine owner perceptions of duration and their experience of the adjustment period. Twenty-seven interviews were conducted and analysed using thematic content analysis. Six themes were described: adjustment period duration; behavioural indicators during adjustment; behaviours indicative of adjustment; factors influencing adjustment; owner change in routine; and adjustment concerns. Over half of participants perceived the adjustment period to last longer than four months. Behaviours used by owners to assess dog adjustment included: moderation of behavioural extremes (e.g. lethargy and restlessness); play; tail wagging; greeting; and learning their routine. Owners reported that prior experiences and medical needs impacted the adjustment duration, that they adjusted aspects of their lifestyle, and raised concerns about being the right fit for their dog. Future research should incorporate a longer time-frame to better understand how and when dogs adjust to a home, and as there is variation in dog behaviour during adjustment, it must also account for individual differences. As we develop a better understanding of how to characterise this period, adopters can be better prepared for the initial months of dog ownership, and interventions can be individualised to improve owner experience and dog welfare.

The duality of human nature, consisting of positive and negative personality traits, has intrigued scholars in different fields. Despite an overwhelming dominance of research on positive characteristics, particularly in the field of education, negative traits, such as those constituting the Dark Triad (DT; i.e., Psychopathy, Narcissism, and Machiavellianism) have been confirmed to be associated with both positive and detrimental outcomes. This paper aims to investigate the potential influence of these aversive traits on second language (L2) learning outcomes—L2 learning motivation, engagement, achievement, and willingness to communicate. L2 learners from a single country (n = 431) participated in this study. Multiple structural equation models (SEMs) were run to analyze the links and the directionality of significant effects. Overall, among the undesirable DT traits, Psychopathy and Narcissism were both positive and negative predictors of the L2 outcomes, while Machiavellianism unexpectedly emerged solely as a positive predictor. The intricacy of the results underscores the vague nature of the effects, pinpointing the need for more caution while examining negative personality traits in education and the L2 contexts. Based on the results of this study, implications and directions for future research on DT and language learning are suggested.

The Japanese flying squid, Todarodes pacificus, is distributed mainly in the northwest Pacific and the Japan Sea. The present study was conducted for a better understanding of the mechanisms behind its migration routes. The ratios of strontium to calcium (Sr:Ca) in the statoliths can be associated with the water temperatures the squid experienced in the sea. Using specimens collected in the northern Japan Sea in summer and Lagrangian backward tracer experiments, a strong negative correlation was obtained between the Sr:Ca in the statoliths and the empirical water temperatures estimated through a regional ocean model. These backward tracer experiments were continuously conducted at depths of 6, 15, and 30 m. The greatest determination coefficient of the regression expression appeared for a nearshore tracer group of the experiment at a depth of 15 m. In addition, the regression expression provided reasonable lifetime empirical water temperature variations of the squids collected in the sea areas east of Tsushima Island and west of the Goto Islands in winter. The combination of Ca:Sr analytical chemistry and tracer experiments with the ocean dynamic model used in this study improved our understanding of the migration path of T. pacificus.

This paper comprises a brief study of a law firm library in Malaysia, which has utilized an automated library system to organize its collection. The paper aims to demonstrate how the automated library system was implemented and to identify the statistics that can be generated through that system. The particular software used is the Applied Library System (ALS).

Coarctation of the aorta is a rare congenital cardiovascular anomaly. In some patients, one particular vessel in collateral circulation has achieved recognition as the artery of Hamilton and Abbott. This aberrant pathway can create local turbulence, elevating the risk of aneurysm formation. We report the clinical treatment of a 35-year-old patient with coarctation of the aorta combined with an aneurysm originating from the artery of Hamilton and Abbott to highlight the need for attention to the presence of this artery.

Single-use plastic pens are commonly used to mark surgical sites on the skin of patients. In laboratory testing, an ultraviolet-C (UV-C) light device was effective for decontamination of marking pens with plastic caps designed to allow transmission of UV-C. Decontamination of marking pens could reduce plastic and carbon footprints.

This study examined English VOT productions by 37 Spanish-English bilingual children and 37 matched functional monolinguals, all aged 3–6 years, from the same Latinx community. It also assessed the bilinguals’ Spanish stop productions and investigated the effects of age and language exposure on their VOT productions. The results revealed credible between-group differences on English voiced, but not voiceless, stops, with shorter VOTs for bilinguals. However, both groups exhibited similar pre-voicing levels, which may suggest an effect of the community language, Spanish, not only on the bilinguals’ English VOT patterns but also the monolinguals’. The study also found cross-linguistic differentiation of voiceless stops, but not voiced ones, in the bilinguals’ productions and revealed effects of age and exposure not only on VOT in Spanish but also in the majority language, English. These findings have important implications for the conceptualization of monolingual-bilingual comparisons in settings where the community and majority language coexist.

Federal and local agencies have identified a need to create building databases to help ensure that critical infrastructure and residential buildings are accounted for in disaster preparedness and to aid the decision-making processes in subsequent recovery efforts. To respond effectively, we need to understand the built environment—where people live, work, and the critical infrastructure they rely on. Yet, a major discrepancy exists in the way data about buildings are collected across the United SStates There is no harmonization in what data are recorded by city, county, or state governments, let alone at the national scale. We demonstrate how existing open-source datasets can be spatially integrated and subsequently used as training for machine learning (ML) models to predict building occupancy type, a major component needed for disaster preparedness and decision -making. Multiple ML algorithms are compared. We address strategies to handle significant class imbalance and introduce Bayesian neural networks to handle prediction uncertainty. The 100-year flood in North Carolina is provided as a practical application in disaster preparedness.

Migrant protest activity has been often analyzed from the perspectives of the protest nature and issues it addressed. A comparison of protest behaviour before and after migration is largely missing. It remains unclear whether people who were actively protesting in their home country continue to be engaged in protests after migration and why. This article addresses this gap in the literature and aims to explain what made the Ukrainian migrants protest before leaving their home country and in Turkey as a host country. The analysis uses individual data from an original survey conducted in May 2023 among 935 Ukrainian migrants living in Turkey. The findings show that there are different migrants who participate in the protests organized in the two countries, and the strongest predictor for political protest is civic engagement. Protest in Ukraine is rooted in the orientation towards domestic politics, while protests abroad are driven by identitarian dimensions.

This article reviews the emergence of “lawfare” as a term in vogue in recent years. Despite its complexity, lawfare is widely used by scholars and policy-makers in a disparaging and polemical sense. Efforts have been made to attribute a neutral tone to the term with a clearer analytical framework. Taking Viet Nam and the South China Sea disputes as an illustration, the article probes whether and how a small, peripheral country works out a lawfare strategy. It finds that Viet Nam has employed elements of lawfare strategy to counter China’s expansionist claims at sea by recalibrating its national interests and legal positions over time. Lawfare is a long game, yet it holds out hope for Viet Nam, a peripheral country, amidst intense superpower rivalry.

Competitive dressage’s social licence to operate is in jeopardy due to ethical concerns surrounding the use of horses for dressage. There is limited research that contributes to our understanding of Canadian equestrian perspectives on the use of horses in dressage. The objectives of this study were to: (1) explore the cultural context of the Canadian dressage industry, including how horse well-being is integrated within the culture; and (2) investigate coaches’ and riders’ perceptions and experiences with the use of horses for dressage. An ethnographic case study approach was employed, where MR spent 2–6 weeks with each of the four participating Equestrian Canada Certified dressage coaches and their riders (at least four riders per coach for a total of 19 riders). Data collection included direct observation, recording field notes and conducting at least one in-depth interview with each coach and rider. Interviews and field notes were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis leading to the development of three themes: (1) the systems that participants operate within; (2) how these systems foster a culture of contradiction in the industry; and (3) the ‘equestrian dilemma’ highlighting how participants navigate their love for horses with their horses’ well-being amid the sport’s demands. The three themes portray that the issues faced by the dressage industry may be rooted in systemic problems and could be described as a ‘wicked problem’. These results aim to inform future research initiatives that promote a holistic understanding of the challenges faced by the dressage industry and promote systems thinking solutions.