Open Science Journal (OSJ)
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Evolution of the ecuadorian industrial sector and its reputation under the merco index
Get PDFCorporate reputation is a representation of a company's performance, management, and behavior to improve results and long-term soundness. This article analyzes the evolution of the financial performance of the Ecuadorian industrial sector through financial indicators and its corporate reputation and compares it with the ranking prepared by the Corporate Reputation Business Monitor (Merco). The methodology applied focuses on the analysis of Ecuadorian industrial companies rated as the most representative according to Merco, whose financial information is obtained from the financial statements provided by the Superintendence of Companies of Ecuador. The results show that the indicators with the highest correlation are those of liquidity, with the Acid Test ratio being the most directly related to Merco at 34%, followed by the Current Liquidity indicator at 24.82%. The indicators that show a less positive correlation with Merco are the ratios of Operating Return on Equity with 3.56% and Financial Profitability with 2.26%. In conclusion, there is a direct positive relationship between the Merco index and the financial indicators of Ecuadorian industrial companies
Sustainable forest ecosystem management
Get PDFDevelopment in forest management focuses on property forest scheme management that collaborates with the surroundings socially, economically, and culturally. A continuation within the provider of timber is on the market by property forest scheme management. The most aim of property forest management is to keep up a healthy environmental society and to guard the diverseness for our future diversity. On the opposite hand, the property forest scheme emphasizes safeguarding and managing the scheme of the forest. Management emphasizes the methods that square measure was taken by property forest scheme management to guard the life within the forests to stay growing the trees of the forests naturally. In the given paper it is been discussed that awareness of the environmental, economic, and social relevance and worth of the Carpathian Mountains' forests, a natural legacy that may be a reliable component. The study has used a comparative study of the key trends and techniques in current sustainable forest management to strengthen the theoretical and methodological basis.The paper has also included the few of the major challenges faced by the maintenance sector of forest ecosystem. Several sustainable forestry methods can help forests regenerate or protect them. They include erecting a fence to keep deer out, managing weeds and other vegetation, and cutting trees to enable more sunlight to reach the forest floor. Hence, the major goal was to show how crucial ecosystem services supplied all across these protected areas are for long-term local and national ecosystem development
The overriding driver dynamics in Ethiopia–South Africa migrations
No full textEthiopian youths and adults have been migrating from South Ethiopia to the Republic of South Africa for the last 40 years. Related studies on sub-Saharan Africa and particularly on Ethiopia have mostly emphasized the combined relationships of the two end drivers of push and pull but have failed to longitudinally examine the migratory experiences and driver dynamics. The two stated end drivers have also been incorporated within the purview of natural, political, and econometric domains, further obscuring overriding factorial reproduction and its changing aspects, which this study elucidated. The present investigation addressed the migration experiences of the Hadiyya and Kambaata ethnic groups and contextually probed how their migration practices shifted from the micro to macro geospatial levels. It also took into account discrete periods, intervening variables, and other changes that have shaped and reshaped the migration patterns and trends of these communities. This study applied a concurrent longitudinal study design via a multisided ethnographic approach. Qualitative semi-structured and unstructured interviews were conducted with one hundred and eight (108) respondents, and observations along with twelve (12) focus group discussions and, ten (10) in-depth interviews were carried out. The study was conducted from June 2016 to January 2019 in two selected rural woredas of the Hadiyya and Kambaata zones in Southern Ethiopia. It also encompassed the downtown locations of Johannesburg and Pretoria, where most Ethiopian migrants reside. In so doing, the study sought to answer two key research questions: how and why the practice of emigration has emerged and transcended beyond the political boundaries of Ethiopia to South Africa and how the migration drivers are evolving. The discussion section of the paper elucidates that migration is not a new phenomenon for these communities; rather, it forms a historical continuum as a culture and a survival strategy to combat resource constraints. However, migration has been galvanized by the combined effects of poverty, political oppression, displacement, and structural, sociopolitical, and economic marginalization after the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front came into power and instituted ethnicity-based regionalism. Migration is sustained by overriding as well as accompanying changes and challenges at local, national, and international levels. These difficulties cannot be measured merely through environmental, sociopolitical, or econometric-based conditions prevailing at specific times and places. Their determination requires factors beyond such time-bound incidences and parameters. This article is designed to generally discuss and illuminate such comprehensive experiences.
Assessment of sarcopenia as an independent nutritional indicator in pediatric inflammatory bowel disease
Get PDFObjective: To evaluate the presence of sarcopenia in a cohort of patients with pediatric inflammatory bowel disease (pIBD) and compare it to the presence of malnutrition according to body mass index (BMI).Methods: Descriptive study of patients under 18 years of age with IBD who underwent magnetic resonance enterography (MRE) between June 2018 and June 2022, followed at a University Hospital in Argentina. Clinical characteristics and anthropometric data were collected, and BMI and standard deviations were calculated. Total Psoas Muscle Area (tPMA) at levels L3–4 and L4–5 was compared with pediatric age and sex-specific growth curves.Results: We included 40 patients (50% females), 16 (40%) with Crohn's disease, and 24 (60%) with ulcerative colitis, mean age 9 years (IQR 3-13). The median time to MRE was 3 months after diagnosis (IQR 33 days- 1.5 years). In our cohort, 40% of patients had tPMA below the 5th percentile (z score -2). In contrast, only 3 patients (7.5%) had a BMI z score < -2. During follow-up, there was no significant difference in the use of biologics or number of relapses between patients with and without sarcopenia.Conclusions: Our cohort of pIBD had lower muscle mass than reference values, even in the short term. Our data show that sarcopenia can also be present despite a normal BMI. This finding reinforces the idea that sarcopenia could be an anthropometry-independent indicator of nutritional status and frailty in pIBD
Is there association between temporomandibular dysfunctions, sleep quality, parafunctional habits, anxiety and depressive symptoms in patients with chronic kidney disease undergoing hemodialysis? - Pilot study
Get PDF Abstract: There is a high prevalence of anxiety, depression, and stress in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and these factors associated with psychotropic medications can lead to temporomandibular disorders (TMD). However, the association between these variables and TMD is still unclear. Objective: To associate TMD with anxiety, depression, stress, sleep quality, use of psychotropic drugs and parafunctional habits (PH) in patients with CKD undergoing hemodialysis (HD). Methods: Cross-sectional study, approved by CEP (CAAE: 63054822.5.0000.5350) carried out with 28 patients. Patients with scores greater than 19 points on the Mini Mental State Examination questionnaire and at least one positive response on the American Academy of Orofacial Pain TMD screening questionnaire and who underwent hemodialysis for more than 3 months were included. Those who were in isolation or hospitalized at the time of data collection were excluded. After analyzing the screening results, the patients were submitted to the research protocol, which consisted of the following instruments: application of the questionnaire to collect clinical and sociodemographic data; Fonseca anamnestic index; Parafunctional Habits (PFH) assessment questionnaire; Hamilton Anxiety Scale – HAM and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index – PSQI. Results: It was found that 60.71% of the patients had some degree of TMD and 92.86% had PH, the most cited being the habit of chewing gum/candy and sleeping on one side. Still, 82.17% of the patients slept more than 6 hours a day, even though they did not have a good quality of sleep. 42.8% of patients reported the presence of depression and 42.85% used psychotropic medications. TMD had a statistically significant association with the PFH of waking bruxism, resting the hand on the jaw, chewing on one side only and biting the nails and with the use of antidepressant medication. Conclusion: Most patients with CKD on hemodialysis have TMD and there is a statistically significant association of TMD degrees with the PFH of grinding teeth awake, clenching teeth awake, resting the hand on the jaw, biting nails and chewing on one side alone and with the use of antidepressant medication. This is an indication that TMD should be evaluated and treated in these patients with the potential to improve their quality of life
Growth and fixed mindset classification using NLP approach
Get PDFTheories regarding the growth and fixed mindsets have emerged in the last couple of decades. It focuses on how peoples’ brains think and handle problems. People with a fixed mindset tend to feel they cannot improve or overcome difficult situations. On the other hand, people with a growth mindset tend to focus on the process and believe they can improve no matter where they started. We hypothesized that these mindsets can also be detected from text. Our goal was to design an NLP framework to classify sentences as growth or fixed mindsets. We used data generated by a Large Language Model (LLM) for our dataset: around 2000 sentences. We discovered a relationship between the sentiment of the sentence and the mindset type. Our model was a merged model which extracted features from words using word embeddings and used manually extracted features such as sentiment scores. A bidirectional Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) was used to provide more context to both the beginning as well as the end of sentence. The final model had an F1 score of 0.99. The model can be improved by using a greater dataset, preferably created by humans instead of an AI
Assessment of Enteric Fermentation Emissions in Ugandan Beef Production: Impact of Feeding Practices and Chloris Gayana Supplementation in Nakasongola and Mbarara district
No full textThe rising concentrations of greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere pose a significant threat to global climate stability, primarily due to human activities. Agriculture, particularly animal production, contributes substantially to GHG emissions, with cattle production systems being a major contributor. In Uganda, where livestock plays a central role in the economy, there is a need to balance economic growth with environmental sustainability. Our study aims to evaluate and mitigate GHG emissions in Ugandan beef production, focusing on enteric fermentation emissions. By examining the impact of feeding practices, including Chloris gayana supplementation, we seek to identify strategies for emission reduction. Through meticulous data collection and analysis in Mbarara and Nakasongola districts, we observed significant effects of body weight, daily weight gain, breed, and feeding systems on various parameters related to energy, methane yield, and emission intensity. While Ankole cattle showed higher weight gain in Mbarara, Chloris Gayana supplementation increased methane emissions. In Nakasongola, both breed and feeding systems influenced weight gain and emission intensity. These findings emphasize the need for tailored mitigation strategies in the Ugandan beef industry to balance productivity and environmental sustainability. We recommend stakeholders reconsider current feeding and breeding practices to optimize both aspects, emphasizing the importance of sustainable practices for the industry's future
Exploring the challenges of implementing COVID_19 guidelines: Experiences of commuters in the Copperbelt Province, Zambia.
Get PDFBackground: The first case of COVID-19 in Zambia was confirmed on the 18th of March 2020, to date 320, 412 people have been infected and 3983 Covid related deaths have been reported. In Zambia, public transport is mainly by road, dominated by intra-city minibuses. This mode of transport particularly involve serious human interaction and compliance with Covid -19 preventive measures, especially in urban areas had not been systematically evaluated.Aims: To explore the challenges to compliance in implementing the recommended WHO COVID -19 guidelines in Copperbelt Province, Zambia.Design: An explorative qualitative study.Methods: Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted from February to April 2022 and, content analysis was used.Results: The following 5 major themes emerged: “perception and experiences about Covid 19; knowledge of prevention guidelines; attitudes towards implementation of the prevention guidelines; accessibility and availability of protective equipment; and, accessibility and availability of transport.” Drivers and conductors experienced tremendous reduction in income due to restricted movements of passengers as well as social distancing which called for a reduction in the number of passengers in a particular bus, cost of face masks and hand sanitizers. This left them with no profit and most of them were retrenched. Passengers reported discomfort caused by the face masks which prevented some of them from breathing properly, while others reported impact on their business and restriction in movements. A section of respondents felt that Covid was a hoax therefore prevention guidelines were an infringement on them.Conclusion: This study highlights the fact that creating an enabling environment for doing business is critical by ensuring Covid -19 prevention materials are subsidized or provided for free. In addition provision of loans to transporters to cushion the challenges are crucial. Furthermore there is need to maximize information dissemination to raise awareness and depoliticize the fight against Covid -19
A self-reflection on providing companionship through supervision approaches of postgraduate students in geography
No full textPostgraduate education is often perceived to take place on some independent level by the student in doing most of the required work in upgrading skills and knowledge. At the same point there is need of guidance through one or more persons usually called ‘supervisor’ or ‘promoter’. During this guidance to develop knowledge and skills, relationships are established which can either challenge the people involved to grow or break down. Through the Personal Construct Theory, this paper undertakes a self-reflection within the field of Geography to understand how the various supervisory approaches can provide companionship support to students. The experiences of these approaches in higher education around other universities were also reviewed towards providing companionship for the students. The outcome shows that approach to supervision is hardly a one-size fit all scenario and certainly requires flexibility in handling the supervision process. Some approaches like the collective or collaborative or group approach certainly provide a sense of companionship in the postgraduate journey than the one-on-one approach. However, the one-on-one approach is chosen by some supervisors and students to avoid conflicts from multiple inputs, but the latter can set up a research group that still offers the sense of companionship required by students. Therefore, whatever the choice students or supervisors make, needs to consider the aspect of companionship for a holistic journey of learning
Organizational cognitive neuroscience and its applications in the workplace: An analysis of the perception of leaders
Get PDFThis paper analyzes the perception of leaders about the discoveries of organizational cognitive neuroscience (OCN) and their practical applications in the work environment, as well as identifying gaps and distortions of knowledge that leaders have about this area of study. Based on a study with the participation of one hundred and thirty-six respondents, of which part consider themselves in leadership positions, conducted in two stages, using a quantitative and qualitative method, it was possible to highlight the perception of such leaders about the practices currently used in their companies, even though they are unaware of the neurological factors and reflexes that trigger them. The results also made it possible to propose initiatives and actions for leaders regarding the expansion of knowledge about NCO. Finally, this research presents recommendations for including or changing internal and external leadership training programs on the topics covered in Organizational Cognitive Neuroscience