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First Georissidae (Coleoptera) from the Philippines with Description of Two New Species of Georissus Latreille, 1809
No full textThis paper describes the first two Georissus species in the Philippines, namely G. fikaceki sp. n. from Luzon (Ilocos Norte, La Union) and G. tsokolate sp. n. from Bohol. The new species can be differentiated morphologically from their congeners due to the patterns of bulges and ridges near the frons, microsculptures on the pronotum, elevations formed by intervals in the elytra, and aedeagal details. Close examination of morphology suggests that the Philippine species cannot be assigned to any of the currently acknowledged Georissus subgenera, and thus this study suggests revisions and updating of the current subgeneric classification. Corroborating the morphological differences, COI-5′ DNA data shows a high interspecific genetic distance of 17.75% between the two new species and intraspecific distances \u3c3% for both species. This paper also generates the first barcodes and a checklist of Georissus in Southeast Asia
Crisis Geographies from Above and Below: Constructing Globality during the COVID-19 Pandemic
No full textIn this paper, we posit that the ‘global’ status of the pandemic is not an essentialized feature of the crisis, but a product of social construction by political leaders. More specifically, we examine how political leaders of a superpower and a peripheral nation produce the pandemic\u27s globality through crisis geographies from above and below. Utilizing a mixed methods framework, we analyse public speeches by Donald Trump of the United States and Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines through a critical approach to text analytics. Quantitatively, we found that besides mentioning their own homelands, Western countries featured more prominently in Trump\u27s speeches while Asian neighbours were more salient in Duterte\u27s speeches during the pandemic. However, the United States and China were consistently the most central in the crisis geographies of the pandemic of both speakers. Qualitatively, we further characterized the discourses surrounding these global pronouncements as: (a) collective reflexive positioning on the world stage, (b) charting zones of hope and (c) scapegoating zones of blame. Taken together, implications of this work are discussed in terms of understanding pandemic leadership in national and international contexts, recognizing its negotiated embeddedness in global structural hierarchies and enhancing critical approaches to geopolitical psychology
Leaders with a Mindfulness Practice: Supporting Employees through a Time of Crisis
No full textThe coronavirus disease (COVID-19) was a crisis that disrupted business activities everywhere, and leaders had to quickly find ways to deal with the pandemic to avoid its long-term impacts. Mindfulness has emerged as one of the more effective leader development tools based on recent studies. As it has been linked to effective leadership, how did leaders with a mindfulness practice relate to employees amidst challenges in the workplace during a crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic? This study used a qualitative approach known as interpretative phenomenological analysis to thematically analyze the actual lived experiences of four Filipino female leaders with a mindfulness practice. The study reveals that leaders with a mindfulness practice related to their employees during a crisis by focusing on doing better work as a team, building personal relationships with them, and regularly examining themselves as a leader. Leader vulnerability is an emerging theme. This study reveals that the mindfulness practice of a leader promotes more focused attention to doing better work and enhances awareness of others and the self, which aid towards productivity, trust- building, and improved leadership at the time of a crisis such as COVID-19
Mapping and Assessing High-Resolution Typhoon Exposure and Vulnerability in the Philippines: A Scoping Review
Full text linkThis scoping review synthesizes the extensive literature on mapping high‑resolution typhoon exposure and assessing household and housing vulnerability in the Philippines. With approximately 20 typhoons passing through the Philippine Area of Responsibility annually—and seven to eight making landfall—the country faces enormous challenges that demand localized and granular risk assessments. Early approaches typically employed fixed‑buffer techniques to delineate exposure; however, recent research has shifted toward dynamic, multi‑hazard models incorporating real‑time meteorological data, numerical wind field and storm surge simulations, and advanced remote sensing imagery. Concomitantly, vulnerability assessments have evolved from indicator‑based composite indices to hybrid approaches that integrate quantitative household survey data, qualitative participatory assessments, and, increasingly, agent‑based and statistical modeling techniques. This review maps the evolution of these methodologies, examines the diverse data sources used (from official census and administrative records to innovative social media and crowdsourced inputs), and highlights the implications of emerging trends such as climate change projections and rapidly advancing geospatial technologies. In doing so, the paper identifies critical research gaps and outlines future directions aimed at strengthening disaster risk management (DRM) and equitable community‑level resilience planning
Precision Medicine Assessment of the Radiographic Defect Angle of the Intrabony Defect in Periodontal Lesions by Deep Learning of Bitewing Radiographs
Full text linkIn dental diagnosis, evaluating the severity of periodontal disease by analyzing the radiographic defect angle of the intrabony defect is essential for effective treatment planning. However, dentists often rely on clinical examinations and manual analysis, which can be time-consuming and labor-intensive. Due to the high recurrence rate of periodontal disease after treatment, accurately evaluating the radiographic defect angle of the intrabony defect is vital for implementing targeted interventions, which can improve treatment outcomes and reduce recurrence. This study aims to streamline clinical practices and enhance patient care in managing periodontal disease by determining its severity based on the analysis of the radiographic defect angle of the intrabony defect. In this approach, radiographic defect angles of the intrabony defect greater than 37 degrees are classified as severe, while those less than 37 degrees are considered mild. This study employed a series of novel image enhancement techniques to significantly improve diagnostic accuracy. Before enhancement, the maximum accuracy was 78.85%, which increased to 95.12% following enhancement. YOLOv8 detects the affected tooth, and its mAP can reach 95.5%, with a precision reach of 94.32%. This approach assists dentists in swiftly assessing the extent of periodontal erosion, enabling timely and appropriate treatment. These techniques reduce diagnostic time and improve healthcare quality
Surface Treatment of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer for Adhesive Bonding with Pioneer Epoxy Using Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Jet
No full textA recent technique used in surface preparation for adhesive bonding is plasma treatment. In the Philippines, one of the most accessible brands of adhesive is Pioneer epoxy adhesive and, currently, there has been no existing research on the effect of plasma treatment with this adhesive. Thus, this research aims to investigate the effects of plasma pretreatment on the adhesive bonding of carbon fiber-reinforced epoxy adherents with the Pioneer epoxy adhesive. To achieve this, carbon fiber-reinforced polymers (CFRPs) samples were first plasma treated using an atmospheric pressure plasma jet (APPJ) for 0, 1, 2, and 3 min. Then, these were used to form the joint systems with three different adherent combinations. The samples were characterized using the lap shear test, contact angle measurements, optical microscope, laser microscope, and Raman spectroscopy. The result shows that the surface free energy and roughness of the CFRP increase with increasing plasma treatment time. However, the roughness is contributed by the introduction of impurities, which can weaken the bonding. Thus, when the CFRP has adhered using Pioneer epoxy adhesive, the lap shear stress (LSS) of the treated CFRP proves to be lower than that of untreated samples, with a statistically significant p-value of 0.0069. From Tukey’s honestly significant difference (HSD) test, it is concluded that plasma treating the adherent weakens the adhesive bonding of the CFRP and Pioneer adhesive joint system instead of improving it. Potential explanations for this result include the introduction of impurities by the APPJ and the presence of Mercaptan polymer in the epoxy
National Cancer System Characteristics and Global Pan-Cancer Outcomes
No full textImportance
Approximately 29.9 million cancer cases and 15.3 million deaths are anticipated by 2040 globally, necessitating cancer system strengthening. A greater understanding of health system factors that can be leveraged to improve cancer control may guide health system planning.
Objective
To evaluate predictors of improved cancer outcomes globally.
Design, Setting, and Participants
This pan-cancer ecological study used the most recent available national health system metrics and cancer statistics, spanning the breadth of global income levels across 185 countries. Estimates of age-standardized mortality to incidence ratios were derived from GLOBOCAN 2022 for patients with cancer of all ages. The analysis took place on November 27, 2024.
Main Outcomes and Measures
Health spending as a percent of gross domestic product (GDP), physicians per 1000 population, nurses and midwives per 1000 population, surgical workforce per 1000 population, GDP per capita, Universal Health Coverage (UHC) service coverage index, availability of pathology services, human development index, gender inequality index (GII), radiotherapy centers per 1000 population, and out-of-pocket expenditure as percentage of current health expenditure were collected. The association between the mortality to incidence ratio (MIR) and each metric was evaluated using univariable linear regressions (α =.0045), which were used to construct multivariable models (α =.05). Variation inflation factor allowed exclusion of variables with significant multicollinearity. R2 measured goodness of fit.
Results
On univariable analysis, all metrics were significantly associated with MIR of cancer (P \u3c .001 for all), including UHC index (β, -0.0076 [95% CI, -0.0083 to -0.0068]), GDP per capita (β, -5.10 × 10-6 [95% CI, -5.75 × 10-6 to -4.46 × 10-6]), clinical and workforce capacity, radiotherapy capacity (β, -88.25 [95% CI, -100.43 to -76.06]), and gender inequality index (β, 0.63 [95% CI, 0.57-0.70]). After including metrics significant on univariable analysis and correcting for multicollinearity, on multivariable analysis, greater UHC index and GDP per capita were independently associated with lower (improved) MIR for cancer. The multivariable model had R2 of 0.87. On multivariable analysis stratified by sex, greater UHC index and greater GDP per capita were independently associated with improved MIR for all cancers. R2 for the multivariable models was 0.87 for females and 0.85 for males.
Conclusions
This study found that global health system metrics related to progress toward universal health care, greater health care spending and GDP per capita, strengthened clinical workforce and capacity, and increased gender equity were associated with improved pan-cancer outcomes at a population level on univariable analysis. The degree of UHC and GDP per capita were independently associated with improved cancer outcomes in multivariable models with good explanatory power. These exploratory findings merit further validation and may guide health system planning and prioritization