The Contribution of Vocal Music Education in Colleges and Universities to Cultural Inheritance and Innovation

The importance of education and cultural inheritance is becoming increasingly prominent.Through literature review and empirical research,combining quantitative data and qualitative analysis,this paper assesses the teaching methods,curriculum,and student interest and participation in vocal music education in colleges and universities.The study found that vocal music education played a positive role in increasing students’participation in cultural activities,enhancing their identification with traditional music and improving their skills,despite problems such as inadequate teaching systems and homogenized curricula.In particular,the participation rate of students in cultural activities before and after the educational changes increased significantly from 31–54.7%to 62.4–83.6%,indicating that vocal music education can effectively stimulate students’enthusiasm for cultural participation.In addition,the strengthening of the teaching staff and innovations in teaching methods,such as the application of multimedia and virtual reality technologies,provide students with richer learning experiences and personalized learning paths.

Randomized control trial of a culturally adapted behavioral activation therapy for Muslim patients with depression in Pakistan

BACKGROUND Behavioral activation therapy(BA)is as effective as cognitive behavior therapy(CBT)in treating depression and can be delivered by practitioners with much less psychological training,making it particularly suitable for low resource settings.BA that is culturally adapted for Muslims(BA-M)is a culturally adapted form of BA that has been found acceptable and feasible for Muslims with depression in the United Kingdom and Turkey;however,this is the first time that its efficacy has been determined through a definitive randomized controlled trial.AIM To compare the effectiveness of BA-M with CBT for Muslim patients with depression in Pakistan.METHODS One hundred and eight patients were randomized 1:1 to treatment arms in a parallel-group randomized controlled trial in hospital or community sites in Lahore,Pakistan.Recruitment followed self-referral or referrals from clinicians,consultants or relevant professionals at each site.Four measures were recorded by blinded assessors:The patient health questionnaire-9(PHQ-9);the BA for depression scale short form(BADS-SF);symptom checklist-revised and the World Health Organization Quality-of-Life Brief Scale.All measures were recorded at baseline and post treatment;PHQ-9 and BADS-SF were also recorded at each session and at three month follow up.The primary analysis was to regress the PHQ-9 score after therapy upon the PHQ-9 score before therapy(baseline)and the type of therapy given,that is,analysis of covariance.In addition,analysis using PHQ-9 scores collected at each therapy session was employed in a 2-level regression model.RESULTS Patients in the BA-M arm experienced greater improvement in PHQ-9 score of 1.95 units compared to the CBT arm after adjusting for baseline values(P=0.006)The key reason behind this improvement was that patients were retained in therapy longer under BA-M,in which patients were retained for an average 0.75 sessions more than CBT patients(P=0.013).Patients also showed significant differences on physical(P<0.001),psychological(P=0.004)and social(P=0.047)domains of Quality of Life(QoL)at post treatment level,indicating an increased QoL in the BA-M group as compared to the treatment as usual group.Some baseline differences were noted in both groups for BA scores and two domains of QoL scale:Physical and environment,which might have influenced the results,though the BA-M group showed more improvement at completion of therapy.CONCLUSION Results proved the efficacy of BA-M in reducing symptoms for depressed patients in Pakistan,indicating BA-M is a promising treatment modality for depression in future,particularly in low resource settings.

A Study on the Participation of Foreign Students in Local Cultural and Folk Activities in Wenzhou

The number of foreign students studying in Wenzhou, China has increased dramatically as a result of the Belt and Road Initiative. Learning the motivations and leisure constraints of foreign students' participation in local cultural and folk activities in Wenzhou is beneficial to promoting cultural adaptation, strengthening Chinese cultural self-confidence, and improving Wenzhou's international image. Based on the hierarchical model of leisure constraints (personal constraints, interpersonal constraints, and structural constraints), this study has tended to focus on the leisure constraints for foreign students participating in local folk and cultural activities in Wenzhou. A total of seven participants were included in the analysis.

Local Wisdom to Creative Cultural Tourism Activity

This research is an experimental research survey with the purpose of studying the cultural tourism activity originated from ＂local wisdom＂ within Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province in Thailand to be applied as a creative cultural tourism activity. The population of this study comprises 305 Thai and foreign tourists, divided into two groups, namely, 205 tourists as a sampling survey group and 100 tourists as an experimental group. The research tools used are a questionnaire and designed satisfaction assessment. The data were analyzed through the frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation test, F-test, t-test, and one-way analysis of variance （ANOVA） with the statistical analysis program. The study showed that the appropriate activities applied from a local wisdom chosen by tourists to be studied were 10 from 20 activities through the questionnaire for ranking the piquancy of each activity from the tourist group. All the 10 activities were studied in this experimental research within the sampling group which consists of Thai and foreign tourists by allowing them to practice in a real situation and assessing their satisfaction in each activity. The assessment reveals that these 10 activities were considered to be interesting and the satisfaction level was extremely high, indicating that the activity applied from the local wisdom studied in this research is appropriate to be used as a creative cultural tourism activity in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province later in the future.

Positive influence of traditional culture and socioeconomic activity on conservation: A case study from the black-and-white snub-nosed monkey (Rhinopithecus bieti) in Tibet

Found in the Trans-Himalayas of north-west Yunnan and south-east Tibet, the black-and-white snub-nosed monkey （Rhinopithecus bieti） is one of the world’s most endangered primates. A recent survey indicates that only 15 groups with 2500 individuals remain in the wild. However, the Tibetan Xiaochangdu group may be the only equilibrium group in the field since the last investigation in 1988. To evaluate the effects of traditional culture and socioeconomic activity on biodiversity conservation of R. bieti, we conducted a case study in the Honglaxueshan National Nature Reserve in southeast Tibet from June 2003 to May 2005. Interviews, direct observations, and analysis of socioeconomic data indicated major advantages to the conservation of R. bieti, which included that： 1） traditional culture mainly depended on raising livestock and collecting non-timber products rather than forest planting of Tibetan highland barley; 2） religious beliefs, against to kill any wildlife living on the sacred mountain, were mainly influenced by Tibetan Buddhism; and 3） bigger household numbers were induced by the polyandrous marriage system, which resulted in lower per capita resource consumption than smaller ones.

Chemical Compositions and Antibacterial Activity of Essential Oil from Thymus Seedlings of Tissue Culture

[Objective] This study aimed to compare and analyze the chemical compositions, the relative contents and the antibacterial activity of the essential oils extracted from the tissue culture seedlings, the aseptic seedlings and the common seedlings from seeds of Thymus vulgaris. [Method] The essential oil was extracted by steam distillation; the chemical compositions and their relative contents were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry （GC/MS） and peak area normalization method; and the antimicrobial activity was tested by filter paper method. [Result] A total of 54 compositions were identified from these three samples, they had similar main compositions： thymol, m-Cymene, terpinene and so on, and these compositions were slightly different in contents. In addition, the essential oils from these three samples exhibited obvious antibacterial effect against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, in which the antibacterial activity against S. aureus was stronger than against E. coli. [Conclusion] It is possible to produce essential oil by tissue culture technology; the main compositions and antibacterial activity of the oils remained almost the same.

The Relationship between Dimensions of Emerging Adulthood and Behavioral Problems among Chinese Emerging Adults: The Mediating Role of Physical Activity and Self- Control

Emerging adulthood(EA)is a critical stage of life to develop and sustain a healthy lifestyle,which is also a time of vulnerability to poor physical and mental health outcomes.In this study,we conducted a path analysis(N=1326)to examine associations among four dimensions of EA,levels of regular physical activity(PA),self-control,MPA tendency and irrational procrastination.Results found:1)higher levels of PA predicted both MPA tendency(β=−0.08,95%CI:−0.11 to−0.06,p<0.001)and irrational procrastination(β=−0.01,95%CI:−0.17 to−0.008,p<0.01)indirectly via self-control;2)Instability(β=0.13,95%CI:0.08 to 0.18,p<0.01)and Responsibility(β=−0.06,95%CI:−0.10 to−0.08,p=0.03)exerted direct effects on irrational procrastination and Instability also indirectly predicted irrational procrastination via MPA tendency(β=0.03,95%CI:0.02 to 0.05,p<0.01).These findings proved that perceived features of EA are linked to behavioral problems and supported that regular PA plays a crucial role to protect mental health.

Relationships of growth and mortality to enzymatic activity,and the relative mRNA expression of cultured scallops Patinopecten yessoensis in the Yellow Sea, China

The bottom aquaculture of yesso scallop (Patinopecten yessoensis) has developed rapidly in the north of Yellow Sea, China, but not without accompanying productivity problems. We, therefore, conducted field surveys to investigate factors related to growth and mortality rates of bottom-cultured scallops after release. Specifically, we focused on the effects of total antioxidant capacity (TAOC) and three key enzymes involved in antioxidant and metabolic function:glutamic pyruvic transaminase (GPT), lactic dehydrogenase (LDH), and superoxide dismutase (SOD). Across summer and winter, we also measured the relative mRNA expression of GPT and SOD to understand their seasonal variation in the scallops, along with how such variation correlated to growth and mortality. Results show that bottom cultured scallops experienced mass mortality during the first six months post-release. During winter (December), scallops grew more rapidly and suffered less mortality than in summer (August). The observed lower performance probably resulted from less advantageous environmental factors during the summer seasons, such as high temperature and low dissolved oxygen. These environmental stressors enhance protein consumption while decreasing energetic resources in scallops. Furthermore, scallops in summer exhibited high antioxidant levels that probably competed for energy with process integral to growth and survival. These negative factors combined to elevate mortality rates. In conclusion, we provided evidence suggesting correlations between metabolic/antioxidant activity and growth and mortality of bottom-cultured yesso scallops. These correlations implied us an accurate method to estimate the performance of bottom culture system. Suggestions about innovative aquaculture techniques were also discussed in the study. Our results might provide a possible guideline to the improvement of bottom culture techniques for this commercially valuable seafood species.

Antimicrobial Activity of Submerged Culture Extracts from Xylaria striata

[ Objective ] The paper was to explore the antimicmbial activities of extracts from Xylaria striata via submerged culture. [ Methods ] The antibacterial activities of X. striata extracts against 10 kinds of bacteria were determined using Oxford cup method and mJcroplate assay, and the antifungal activities against nine kinds of pathogenic fungi were determined using mycelial growth rate method. [ Results ] The inhibition zone diameters of the mycelium extract against tested bacte- ria ranged from 13.0 to 17.5 mm, and that of the fermentation broth extract ranged from 10.5 to 12.7 ram. Enterobacter cloacae was the most sensitive to both my- celium extract and fermentation broth extract, with the inhibition zone diameters of 17.1 and 12.7 mm and the minimum inhibitory concentrations of 2.5 and 5 mg/mL, respectively. The inhibitory effects of the mycelium extract and the fermentation broth extract against Fusarium graminearum were the greatest, and the in- hibition rates were 89.88% and 69.53%, respectively. [ Conclusion] X. striata has potential antimicrobial activity and deserves to be further studied.

Total Phenolic Content and Antioxidant Activity of Standardized Extracts from Leaves and Cell Cultures of Three Callistemon Species

A comparative study was carried out with ethanolic (80%) extracts from leaves and cell cultures of three Callistemon species, namely C. lanceolatus (CL), C. viridiflorous (CV), and C. comboynensis (CC). Cell suspensions of the three species were grown in liquid Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium (100 ml) supplemented with 0.9 mg·g-1 kinetin in combination with 1.1 mg·g-1 NAA. The CL leaf extract was standardized to contain the highest amount of phenolics (104 ± 2.0 mg·g-1), followed by CC (95.8 ± 1.2 mg·g-1) and CV (79.8 ± 4.6 mg·g-1). On the other hand, cell cultures of CV contained more phenolics (14.9 ± 0.6 mg·g-1) than those of the other two species, CL and CC, which contained 12.2 ± 0.16 and 9.12 ± 0.16 mg·g-1, respectively. Nevertheless, CV leaf extract exhibited the highest antioxidant activity (91.4% ± 0.4%) at a concentration of 1000 μg·ml-1, comparable to 100 μg·ml-1 gallic acid (90.8% ± 1.5%).

Research on the Strategy of Integrating Red Culture into Patriotic Education Activities of Young People

Young people are the flowers of the motherland, is the future of the motherland, youth teachers have great responsibilities. Integrate red culture into daily teaching activities, inherit and carry forward, enhance children’s values, cultivate children’s excellent qualities such as patriotism and selfless dedication, improve children’s comprehensive quality, and let children grow up healthily. Taking red culture as the starting point, this paper discusses the strategy of integrating red cultural resources into patriotic education activities of teenagers, points out the existing problems in the current integration of red culture into patriotic education activities of teenagers and finds out the reasons;clarify the relevant concepts of red culture and patriotic education activities for young people;from the three aspects of integrating curriculum resources to enhance the significance of red culture education, creating a red environment to create a red education atmosphere, and digging deep into red cultural resources, this paper discusses the strategy of integrating red culture into patriotic education activities for young people, aiming to promote the organic combination of patriotic education activities and red culture for young people, and increase national and cultural self-confidence.

Optimization of Culture Components for Laccase Activity from Pleurotus Ostreatus P40 Using Response Surface Methodology

High enzymatic activity is required for laccase applications.Central composite design （CCD）-based response surface methodology （RSM） can effectively increase the enzymatic activity of Pleurotus ostreatus P40 in liquid substrate fermentation.Initial screening of the nutritional components was performed using a Plackett-Burman design.The variables,namely,bran,bagasse,Tween 80,and yeast extract,were found to have statistically significant effects on laccase activity.These variables were further optimized using CCD-based RSM.Optimal concentrations for the maximum laccase activity were 8.144 2 g/L bran,50 g/L bagasse,0.424 1 mL/L Tween 80,and 2.832 5 g/L yeast extract.Under optimized conditions,the maximum measured laccase activity reached 96 480 U/L,which was close to the predicted value （104 830 U/L） by RSM.Therefore,RSM can be used to optimize culture components for laccase activity from Pieurotus ostreatus P40.

Total Phenols,Flavonoids and Antioxidant Activity in Annona muricata and Annona purpurea Callus Culture

Callus cultures of Annona muricata and Annona purpurea were induced in Murashige and Skoog(MS)medium supplemented with different concentrations of 1-naphthylacetic acid(NAA),6-benzyladenine(BA)and 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid(2,4-D)utilized hypocotyls with explant.The highest percentage of callus formation was the treatment supplemented with 3 mg L-1 NAA for A.muricata(100%)while for A.purpurea in lower percentage(75%).BA stimulated the formation of shoots in all the evaluated concentrations,being the concentration of 2 mg L-1 the one that induced the greater formation of shoots for A.muricata(23 shoots/explant)and A.purpurea(28 shoots/explant).The content of total phenols,flavonoids and antioxidant activity was measured in the callus obtained from both species.The results showed that a higher content of total phenols was quantified in callus of A.purpurea(27.8 mg g-1 dw)compared to A.muricata(23.2 mg g-1 dw).The highest content of total flavonoids was observed in the callus of A.purpurea(8.0μg g-1 dw).Antioxidant activity was determined by the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydracil radical assay.The concentration required for 50%inhibition(IC50)of the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydracil radicals were 4.22μg mL-1 in methanolic extracts of callus of A.muricata,while in extracts of callus of A.purpurea was 2.86μg mL-1,in both cases was greater than that found for leaves.Callus culture of the species studied in this work represents an alternative for the production of natural antioxidants.

China-Israel Cultural and Trade Promotion Activities Attract Israelis

A series of China-Israel cultural and trade promotion activities were launched on January 8 at the China Cultural Center in Tel Aviv,attracting scores of Israelis.The three-day activities included a China-Israel cultural innovation program roadshow,“China Style”cultural and creative product exhibition as well as“This Moment in Pudong”photography exhibition to commemorate the 40th anniversary of China’s reform and openingup.“The Jewish Refugees and Shanghai”exhibition and“Oriental Rhythms”Yueju Opera class are also two important parts of these activities.China’s national intangible cultural heritage,pottery and porcelain,silk,embroidery,and tea ceremony were also staged.

Differential development and electrophysiological activity in cultured cortical neurons from the mouse and cynomolgus monkey

In vitro cultures of primary cortical neurons are widely used to investigate neuronal function.However,it has yet to be fully investigated whether there are significant differences in development and function between cultured rodent and primate cortical neurons,and whether these differences influence the utilization of cultured cortical neurons to model pathological conditions.Using in vitro culture techniques combined with immunofluorescence and electrophysiological methods,our study found that the development and maturation of primary cerebral cortical neurons from cynomolgus monkeys were slower than those from mice.We used a microelectrode array technique to compare the electrophysiological differences in cortical neurons,and found that primary cortical neurons from the mouse brain began to show electrical activity earlier than those from the cynomolgus monkey.Although cultured monkey cortical neurons developed slowly in vitro,they exhibited typical pathological features-revealed by immunofluorescent staining-when infected with adeno-associated viral vectors expressing mutant huntingtin(HTT),the Huntington’s disease protein.A quantitative analysis of the cultured monkey cortical neurons also confirmed that mutant HTT significantly reduced the length of neurites.Therefore,compared with the primary cortical neurons of mice,cultured monkey cortical neurons have longer developmental and survival times and greater sustained physiological activity,such as electrophysiological activity.Our findings also suggest that primary cynomolgus monkey neurons cultured in vitro can simulate a cell model of human neurodegenerative disease,and may be useful for investigating time-dependent neuronal death as well as treatment via neuronal regeneration.All mouse experiments and protocols were approved by the Animal Care and Use Committee of Jinan University of China(IACUC Approval No.20200512-04)on May 12,2020.All monkey experiments were approved by the IACUC protocol(IACUC Approval No.LDACU 20190820-01)on August 23,2019 for animal management and use.

Tourism Activation of Ethnic Cultural Heritage:A Case Study of Buyi Ethnic Minorities in Guizhou Province

Two typical traditional villages of Buyi Minority were selected as specific cases to explore tourism revitalization of cultural heritage,namely Yinzhai Village in Guiding County and Ancient Nanlong Village in Xingyi City from Guizhou Province.The 2 villages adopted different modes in tourism development,thus tourism revitalization of their Buyi cultural heritage showed differentiated results,this paper compared the 2 cases to explore the options and impacts of different tourism revitalization modes for the cultural heritage of ethnic minorities.