University College of Social Sciences

The effects of fasting on serum kynurenines (KYNs) have been reported; however, no data are available on whether fasting also modifies their urinary excretion. Kidney organic anion transporters are involved in KYNs excretion, suggesting that changes in serum levels may result from altered urinary elimination. Considering the important role of KYNs in regulating various physiological processes, it is crucial to understand the factors that determine their blood concentrations. The present study aimed to determine the effect of an 8-day fasting period on the concentrations of KYNs in both serum and urine. Thirteen participants underwent an 8-day fast. The exercise test was performed at baseline after an overnight fast and after 8 days of fasting. Fasting increased the serum concentrations of 3-hydroxykynurenine (3-HK), anthranilic acid (AA), picolinic acid (PA), kynurenic acid (KYNA), and xanthurenic acid (XANA). Conversely, serum kynurenine (KYN) and quinolinic acid (QA) decreased, while 3-hydroxyanthranilic acid (3-HAA) remained unchanged. In urine, KYN, 3-HK, XANA and QA increased after fasting, whereas AA and PA did not change. In conclusion, these findings indicate that fasting generally increases serum kynurenines (KYNs), which are associated with enhanced urinary excretion, suggesting that fasting may stimulate their synthesis. In the case of anthranilic acid (AA) and picolinic acid (PA), their increase in serum does not influence their urinary excretion. Conversely, a decrease in serum KYN and quinolinic acid (QA) may result from enhanced urinary excretion.

Coprolites from the Oligocene Menilite Formation of the Outer Carpathians in southeastern Poland were investigated to reveal the diversity of prey fishes consumed by coprolite producers. The material comprises 186 coprolites from seven localities. The coprolites are either sub-spherical, or elongate, and although classified into eight shape categories, display a morphological continuum. The phosphatic matrix is preserved in 28% of the specimens. Fish remains, including bones and scales, are preserved in 94% of the coprolite specimens. In 31% of specimens, these remains belong to the orders Perciformes, Gadiformes, Clupeiformes, and Aulopiformes. Prey sizes were estimated and compared to the sizes of fishes preserved as articulated skeletons from the same formation, that inhabited the Carpathian Basin of the Paratethys. The results demonstrate that coprolite analysis provides a significant paleontological data, which can be applied to infer fish diversity in other regions of the Paratethys, as well as in other sedimentary basins.

Abstract Landslide susceptibility assessment is an important tool for disaster management and development activities. Shikoku Island in the southwest Japan is one of the most landslide prone areas due to heavy typhoon rainfall, complex geology and the presence of mountainous areas and low topographic features (valleys).Yanase and Naka Catchments of Shikoku Island in Japan were chosen as a study area. The objective of this study is to apply Frequency Ratio Densisty (FRD), Logistic Regression (LR) and Weights of Evidence (WoE) models in a GIS environment to prepare the landslide susceptibility maps of this area and select the best one for future infrastructure and landuse planning. Data layers including slope, aspect, profile curvature, plan curvature, lithology, land use, distance from river, distance from fault and annual rainfall were used in this study. In FR method, two models were attempted but the FRD model was found slightly better in its performance. In case of LR method, two models, one with equal proportion and the other with unequal proportion of landslide and non-landslide points were applied and the one with equal proportions was chosen based on its highest performance. A total of five landslide susceptibility maps(LSMs) were produced using FR, LR and WoE models resulting two, two and one LSMs respectively. However, one best model was chosen from the FR and LR methods based on the highest area under the curve (AUC) of the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. This reduced the total number of landslide susceptibility maps to three with the success rates of 86.7%, 86.8% and 80.7% from FRD, LR and WoE models respectively. For validation purpose, all landslides were overlaid over the three landslide susceptibility maps and the percentage of landslides in each susceptibility class was calculated. The percentages of landslides that fall in the high and very high susceptibility classes of FRD, LR and WoE models showed 82%, 84% and 78% respectively. This showed that the LR model with equal proportions of landslides and non-landslide points was slightly better than FRD and WoE models in predicting the probability of future landslide occurrence.

Abstract Background Substance abuse is the use of illicit drugs or the abuse of prescription or over the Counter drugs for the purpose other than those for which they are indicated or in a manner or in quantities other than directed. Substance abuse is an emerging public health problem in Ethiopia, like other African countries. Methods School based cross-sectional survey was employed. A total of 326 students were randomly selected from one government and two private schools. The 296 Sample size was calculated using the formula of a single population proportion and calculated using software Epi-info stat calculation by taking 31% proportion from previous study with confidence level of 95% and 5% degree of precision. Non-response rate in this study was estimated to be 10% (30). We use self-administer questionnaire to assess the physiological factors associated with initiation and continuation of substance abuse. Results The magnitude and the prevalence of substance abuse were 24.8% and the commonly abused were alcohol (30.8%), kchat (15.4%) and cigarette (11%). Other substances are rarely abused. The study also showed that male students were abused substance [OR, 95% CI: 3.150 (1.451, 8.685)] three times higher than that of females. In addition those who abused substances through peer pressure or [OR, 95% CI: 7.599 (4.571, 16.174)] were eight times more likely to abuse substances in contrast with those who did not. Other psychosocial factors: curiosity, poor family relationship and stress were positively associated with substance abuse. Conclusion substance abuse is a threat problem to the public as well as to the preparatory students of Addis Ababa; it is strong positively associated with various variables such as male students, peer pressure, curiosity, poor family relationship and stress of students. Peer pressure was the major precipitating factor for substance abuse followed by curiosity. The most commonly abused substances were alcohol, khat and cigarette. Yet, the magnitude of factors for substance abuse is high. From this, it can be generally said that substance abuse is a pressing issue for preparatory students.

Niniejszy artykuł ma pokazać istnienie specyficznej komunikacji medycznej, a co za tym idzie, niestandardowego słownictwa oraz sposobu i intencji jego wyrażania. Główną przyczyną tworzenia medycznego subjęzyka jest potrzeba prostej, szybkiej i skutecznej komunikacji szpitalnego personelu. Z powodu specyfiki wykonywanego zawodu oraz dużej rotacji pacjentów w miejscu wykonywania pracy język ten zarówno minimalizuje możliwość wystąpienia pomyłki, jak też umożliwia sprawny przepływ informacji. Są to jednak czynniki, które również niejednokrotnie wywołują u pacjentów wrażenie oschłości i przedmiotowego traktowania. Celem niniejszej pracy jest wykazanie przyczyn powstawania medycznego subjęzyka z naciskiem na psychologiczno-socjologiczny aspekt zagadnienia.

Stress is associated with the performance of high-risk occupations. It can be defined as a set of reactions that results from mismatched working conditions and requirements to capabilities of an employee. People who differently assess these areas of work may experience varying degrees of stress. The total of 128 Border Guard officers took part in the test. A subjective assessment of areas of work was made by using the Areas of Worklife Survey. The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10) was used to examine the severity of stress. Three groups of examined people, differing significantly in the assessment of all areas of working life, were identified. Affiliation of the examined people to these groups explains 8% of the variability in the severity of stress. The results of the regression analysis allowed to consider the assessments of 3 areas of working life (control, rewards and workload) as important predicators of the severity of stress experienced by officers. The model turned out to be statistically significant, the variables included in the model explain 19% of the variability of the dependent variable. The officers who assess the areas of working life differently, differ in terms of severity of the experienced stress. The severity of stress is significantly related to the ability to make independent decisions and to enjoy rewards. The stress experienced by Border Guard officers is mainly related to the assessment of the following areas of work: sense of control, rewards and workload. Med Pr 2018;69(2):199-210.

Workaholism is an exceptionally complex psychological phenomenon that has been widely described in the literature from numerous theoretical perspectives. The common assumption in describing psychological profiles of individuals characterised by the so-called workaholic attitude to work and life pertains to the presence of many various mental disorders manifested by a given person. These include depressive disorders, anxiety disorders, psychosomatic disorders and personality disorders. Persons who manifest different stages of inner compulsion are characterised by the absence of control and distance to increased professional activity. Over time, psychopathological symptoms become displayed in the psychological functioning of such individuals, which requires treatment. Moreover, a workaholic patient needs also medical, psychological or psychotherapeutic assistance. The aim of this article is to determine the significance of differential diagnoses of workaholics’ psychological profiles by means of examining clinical case reports to provide a broader and a more in-depth view on treatment and directions to be taken in psychological assistance. By presenting the theoretical grounds of workaholism, the authors focused primarily on presenting clinical aspects of an individual’s negative functioning (detrimental to his or her development and health) in the organisation and structure of a given work situation. Clinical cases reports pertaining to patients suffering from workaholism are not common in the literature. For this reason, the article aimed primarily at describing three psychological profiles of individuals who manifested workaholism with comorbid mental disorders.

Linguistic theories generally regard human languages as consisting of two parts: a lexicon, essentially a catalogue of a language's words (its word stock); and a grammar, a system of rules which allow for the combination of those words into meaningful sentences. In linguistics, a lexicon is a language's inventory of lexemes. The article attempts to identify some moribund lexicons of Bale Oromoo speech community. First, these lexicons are gathered through an interview and elicitation from some informants selected from the Zone as a sample. These language items are translated into relatively equivalent Afaan Oromoo language. In order to create the wider communication, the lexicons are again translated into English language. And the lexicons are then analyzed linguistically (phonemic transcription, glossing and syllabification). For instance, in the lexicon of Afaan Oromoo ‘quluuwwaan’ /k’ulu:wa:n/ ‘traditional coffee cups’ the bound morpheme /-wwaan/ is number indicator in the target language (plural marker in particular). Moreover, the lexicons are used in a sentence to make the meaning clearer. Further explanations are made by putting these lexicons in the context in which they are potentially used. Finally, the recommendations are forwarded.

The article is devoted to the problem of online TEFL course writing vis à vis students’ attitudes to e-learning looked at from two different perspectives: macro and micro. The former involved a large-scale study based on two surveys tapping into (n1 = 398; n2 = 331) related to e-learning, carried out at the College of Foreign Languages in Czestochowa, Poland; the latter was a small-scale qualitative investigation of the College students’ opinions on a particular e-course in progress, informed by regular feedback sessions with three student-reviewers who had volunteered to take part in the said course and evaluate it. In the course of the two studies, it was possible to delineate the following characteristics of a good online course: ample choice as regards both content and form; a good balance between teacher control and learner autonomy; multi-source supplementation to lecture content; teacher-student and student–student interactivity; and easy access to handouts and revisions.

The aim of the article is to present textbooks for learning German as a foreign language that have been approved for school use by the Ministry of Education. The first part deals with different criteria for evaluation of textbooks and didactic materials. Additionally, it provides the Ministry of Education textbook suitability requirements. The second part presents the end results of an analysis which involved textbooks for learning German. It also contains a summary of questionnaires conducted among students and teachers. The summing-up offers reflections and conclusions concerning the features of an optimal textbook for learning a foreign language.