Digital psychiatry in low-and-middle-income countries:New developments and the way forward

Low-and middle-income countries(LMICs)bear the greater share of the global mental health burden but are ill-equipped to deal with it because of severe resource constraints leading to a large treatment gap.The remote provision of mental health services by digital means can effectively augment conventional services in LMICs to reduce the treatment gap.Digital psychiatry in LMICs has always lagged behind high-income countries,but there have been encouraging developments in the last decade.There is increasing research on the efficacy of digital psychiatric interventions.However,the evidence is not adequate to conclude that digital psychiatric interventions are invariably effective in LMICs.A striking development has been the rise in mobile and smartphone ownership in LMICs,which has driven the increasing use of mobile technologies to deliver mental health services.An innovative use of mobile technologies has been to optimize task-shifting,which involves delivering mental healthcare services in community settings using non-specialist health professionals.Emerging evidence from LMICs shows that it is possible to use digital tools to train non-specialist workers effectively and ensure that the psychosocial interventions they deliver are efficacious.Despite these promising developments,many barriers such as service costs,underdeveloped infrastructure,lack of trained professionals,and significant disparities in access to digital services impede the progress of digital psychiatry in LMICs.To overcome these barriers,digital psychiatric services in LMICs should address contextual factors influencing the delivery of digital services,ensure collaboration between different stakeholders,and focus on reducing the digital divide.

Talking Justice,the Chinese Way

Western legal scholars learn from China’s approach to justice at a seminar held at Oxford University.Mediation can work better than prosecution and prison.

Narrative Empathy and Patriotism--An Analysis of the Chinese“Main-Melody”Film My People,My Country

Narrative empathy is a relatively new theory and it can guide researchers in the studies of main-melody films so as to promote the communication of the core values of the society.The rhetorical mechanism of narrative empathy can be illustrated from five rhetorical elements,including rhetor,rhetorical goal,rhetorical situation,rhetorical strategy and audience.The theory of narrative empathy can be applied to the case study of the film My People,My Country.In the production of this film,the directors are the rhetors.The rhetors uphold the tenet of closeness,choose the right rhetorical situation as the 70th birthday of the People’s Republic of China,and use appropriate rhetorical strategies in order to realize the rhetorical goals of evoking empathy and inspiring patriotic feelings in the audience’s minds.An exploration and application of narrative empathy can be conducive to the empathic communication of Chinese main-melody films in order to achieve better communication effect.

Challenges to establishing and maintaining kidney transplantation programs in developing countries:What are the coping strategies?

Kidney transplantation(KT)is the optimal form of renal replacement therapy for patients with end-stage renal diseases.However,this health service is not available to all patients,especially in developing countries.The deceased donor KT programs are mostly absent,and the living donor KT centers are scarce.Single-center studies presenting experiences from developing countries usually report a variety of challenges.This review addresses these challenges and the opposing strategies by reviewing the single-center experiences of developing countries.The financial challenges hamper the infrastructural and material availability,coverage of transplant costs,and qualification of medical personnel.The sociocultural challenges influence organ donation,equity of beneficence,and regular follow-up work.Low interests and motives for transplantation may result from high medicolegal responsibilities in KT practice,intense potential psychosocial burdens,complex qualification protocols,and low productivity or compensation for KT practice.Low medical literacy about KT advantages is prevalent among clinicians,patients,and the public.The inefficient organizational and regulatory oversight is translated into inefficient healthcare systems,absent national KT programs and registries,uncoordinated job descriptions and qualification protocols,uncoordinated on-site investigations with regulatory constraints,and the prevalence of commercial KT practices.These challenges resulted in noticeable differences between KT services in developed and developing countries.The coping strategies can be summarized in two main mechanisms:The first mechanism is maximizing the available resources by increasing the rates of living kidney donation,promoting the expertise of medical personnel,reducing material consumption,and supporting the establishment and maintenance of KT programs.The latter warrants the expansion of the public sector and the elimination of non-ethical KT practices.The second mechanism is recruiting external resources,including financial,experience,and training agreements.

Colorectal cancer’s burden attributable to a diet high in processed meat in the Belt and Road Initiative countries

BACKGROUND Colorectal cancer(CRC)plays a significant role in morbidity,mortality,and economic cost in the Belt and Road Initiative(“B and R”)countries.In addition,these countries have a substantial consumption of processed meat.However,the burden and trend of CRC in relation to the consumption of a diet high in processed meat(DHPM-CRC)in these“B and R”countries remain unknown.AIM To analyze the burden and trend of DHPM-CRC in the“B and R”countries from 1990 to 2019.METHODS We used the 2019 Global Burden of Disease Study to collate information regarding the burden of DHPM-CRC.Numbers and age-standardized rates(ASRs)of deaths along with the disability-adjusted life years(DALYs)were determined among the“B and R”countries in 1990 and 2019.Using joinpoint regression analysis,the average annual percent change(AAPC)was used to analyze the temporal trends of age-standardized DALYs rate(ASDALR)from 1990 to 2019 and in the final decade(2010–2019).RESULTS We found geographical differences in the burden of DHPM-CRC among“B and R”countries,with the three highest-ranking countries being the Russian Federation,China,and Ukraine in 1990,and China,the Russian Federation,and Poland in 2019.The burden of DHPM-CRC generally increased in most member countries from 1990 to 2019(all P<0.05).The absolute number of deaths and DALYs in DHPM-CRC were 3151.15[95%uncertainty interval(UI)665.74-5696.64]and 83249.31(95%UI 15628.64-151956.31)in China in 2019.However,the number of deaths(2627.57-2528.51)and DALYs(65867.39-55378.65)for DHPM-CRC in the Russian Federation has declined.The fastest increase in ASDALR for DHPM-CRC was observed in Vietnam,Southeast Asia,with an AAPC value of 3.90%[95%confidence interval(CI):3.63%-4.16%],whereas the fastest decline was observed in Kyrgyzstan,Central Asia,with an AAPC value of-2.05%(95%CI:-2.37%to-1.73%).A substantial upward trend in ASR of mortality,years lived with disability,years of life lost,and DALYs from DHPM-CRC changes in 1990-2019 and the final decade(2010-2019)for most Maritime Silk Route members in East Asia,South Asia,Southeast Asia,North Africa,and the Middle East,as well as Central Europe,while those of the most Land Silk Route members in Central Asia and Eastern Europe have decreased markedly(all P<0.05).The ASDALR for DHPM-CRC increased more in males than in females(all P<0.05).For those aged 50-74 years,the ASDALR for DHPM-CRC in 40 members exhibited an increasing trend,except for 20 members,including 7 members in Central Asia,Maldives,and 12 high or high-middle social development index(SDI)members in other regions(all P<0.05).CONCLUSION The burden of DHPM-CRC varies substantially across“B and R”countries and threatens public health.Relevant evidence-based policies and interventions tailored to the different trends of countries in SDIs or Silk Routes should be adopted to reduce the future burden of CRC in“B and R”countries via extensive collaboration.

Does country risk impact the banking sectors’non‑performing loans?Evidence from BRICS emerging economies

This study aims to fill the gap in the literature by specifically investigating the impact of country risk on the credit risk of the banking sectors operating in Brazil,Russia,India,China,and South Africa(BRICS),emerging countries.More specifically,we explore whether the country-specific risks,namely financial,economic,and political risks significantly impact the BRICS banking sectors’non-performing loans and also probe which risk has the most outstanding effect on credit risk.To do so,we perform panel data analysis using the quantile estimation approach covering the period 2004–2020.The empirical results reveal that the country risk significantly leads to increasing the banking sector’s credit risk and this effect is prominent in the banking sector of countries with a higher degree of non-performing loans(Q.25=−0.105,Q.50=−0.131,Q.75=−0.153,Q.95=−0.175).Furthermore,the results underscore that an emerging country’s political,economic,and financial instabilities are strongly associated with increasing the banking sector’s credit risk and a rise in political risk in particular has the most positive prominent impact on the banking sector of countries with a higher degree of non-performing loans(Q.25=−0.122,Q.50=−0.141,Q.75=−0.163,Q.95=−0.172).Moreover,the results suggest that,in addition to the banking sectorspecific determinants,credit risk is significantly impacted by the financial market development,lending interest rate,and global risk.The results are robust and have significant policy suggestions for many policymakers,bank executives,researchers,and analysts.

Socialization Development of ESG Business Models in Representative Asia-Pacific Countries:A State-of-the-Art Review and Recommendation

The integration of environmental,social,and governance(ESG)principles has become a pivotal factor in shaping sustainable and responsible corporate practices.The present study investigates the integration of ESG principles within corporate governance models in Asia-Pacific countries,focusing on socialization.By examining the governance culture,legal frameworks,and corporate practices in these representative countries,the paper delineates a strategic framework for embedding social governance into corporate strategies.The study introduces a Cultural,Economic,Legal,and Political(CELP)framework to assess corporate social governance,investigating the correlation between business practices and social changes.Through a systematic literature review and detailed thematic analysis,this paper aims to offer actionable insights and recommendations,guiding corporations in their transition towards more sustainable and socially responsible business practices.

On the Proof of the Contradiction of Set Theory

The article is devoted to proving the inconsistency of set theory arising from the existence of strange trees. All steps of the proof rely on common informal set-theoretic reasoning, but they take into account the prohibitions that were introduced into axiomatic set theories in order to overcome the difficulties encountered by the naive Cantor set theory. Therefore, in fact, the article is about proving the inconsistency of existing axiomatic set theories, in particular, the ZFC theory.

Post-war Sustainability-Driven School Buildings: A Review of the Literature

The Safe Schools Declaration of 2015 is an inter-governmental political agreement signed by several countries designed to protect the schooling of the school-aged population during armed conflicts.Yet,in countries where civil war erupted,schools were demolished.Several school-aged children were either forcibly recruited by governments or coerced by rebel groups to serve in armed fights.As a result,several children were deprived of their education and have remained suffering from deep psychological scars.The central question of the study is:What kind of sustainability-driven school buildings can be initiated in countries that are now enduring peace so that the learning environments are more comfortable and improve the well-being of the war-impacted children and school employees?After reviewing the literature,a strategic conceptual framework that incorporated the synergistic relationship between economic,social,and environmental aspects of sustainability was initiated to map out sustainable school buildings.In short,the conceptual framework proposed to construct school buildings in some of the war-affected developing countries includes assembling cost-efficiency and eco-effectiveness inputs,using renewable energy sources powered by natural sunlight,collecting rainwater in mud cisterns,reducing emissions of carbon oxides,and empowering the local community to be the main actors to design sustainable buildings during the preconstruction,construction,and post-construction stages to serve as learning spaces for the war-affected occupants and their neighborhoods.

Expo 2020 Dubai’s Impact on the United Arab Emirates’Brand:A Quantitative Analysis About American and European Media Companies

Countries implement corporate communication initiatives to improve their international relations,achieve different business objectives,and reinforce their brands.Nation branding activities are mainly based on international events:sport,culture,social issues.This paper evaluates the Expo 2020 Dubai’s impact on the United Arab Emirates’brand.We conducted a literature review about nation branding,and then we resorted to 15 indicators to analyze how the most important newspapers from some of the most influential countries(United States,Russia,France,and Germany)covered this event from a journalistic and corporate communication perspective.Our results proved that 82 articles were published about this topic,and the most common criteria respected were quoting organizers(n=61),using the Expo’s logo(n=45)and the image of a falcon(n=43).We concluded that most media companies focused on facts related to the Expo and did references to the country’s identity(values,flag,falcon),but most of them did not include links to the Dubai Expo’s and UAE public authorities’websites.

Discourse Analysis of the Belt and Road Initiative From the Perspective of Central Asian Countries: A Case Study of the Republic of Kazakhstan

This study employs Norman Fairclough’s Critical Discourse Analysis(CDA)three-dimensional model,using the Republic of Kazakhstan as a case study,to delve into the discourse construction of China’s Belt and Road Initiative(BRI)in Central Asian countries.Through detailed analysis of policy documents,media reports,and public discussions in Central Asian countries,this paper reveals how the BRI constructs specific social practices,discourse events,and textual meanings within these nations.The findings indicate that through this global development strategy,China has not only strengthened its economic ties with Central Asian countries but has also exerted profound influences on political,cultural,and social levels.

Cosmic Contributions to the Deposition of Petroleum Source Rocks: Review and Analysis

The development of globally distributed Phanerozoic petroleum source rocks is concentrated on time intervals, which correlate convincingly with climatic driven glaciation epochs of Earth’s history, repeated every 150 million years, and during sea level high stands and maxima of global magmatism with a period of 300 million years. The 150 million year periodicity appears to be related to the path of the solar system through the spiral arms of the Milky Way and the 300 million year periodicity to changes of the spiral system. The spiral arms are preferred birth places of new stars, of which the larger ones have only smaller lifespans. Their preliminary deaths ended with explosions and selectively with the development of so-called white dwarfs, neutron stars or black holes. The times of the explosions of intermediate (sun-like) stars can be determined by measuring the present brightness of the dwarfs. Not surprisingly the last two maxima of recordable near solar system star explosions took place during the presumably spiral arms driven glacial epochs in Eocene to present and Upper Jurassic times. Such near solar system star explosions may have been the source of intense neutrino showers, cosmic rays and star dust. This dust contained all kinds of chemical elements, including phosphorus and uranium. Such cosmic phosphorus may have supported, through fertilizing, the distribution of life on Earth additionally to local phosphorus resources via bloom of biota in lakes and oceans and the enhanced growth of plants on land across all climatic zones. Subsequently it maintained the development of petroleum source rocks of all organic matter types within black shales and coals. Via the distribution of remnants of exploding stars—mainly white dwarfs, but neutron stars and black holes have to be counted as well—a cosmic contribution can therefore casually linked to the deposition of petroleum source rocks on Earth, not only purely correlatively by their contemporaneous appearances.

Socio-economic development of countries based on the Composite Country Development Index(CCDI)

World experience indicates the existence of significant imbalances in the development of countries.The problem of assessing the rational development of the regional and national economy is becoming urgent,since such assessments can prevent development imbalances across countries.The aim of this study is to elaborate a methodology to assess the countries’socio-economic development by integraring 12 modern indices of socio-economic development into the Composite Country Development Index(CCDI).The methodology of this research was based on a set of key indices that described socio-economic development level in four fields(social development,digital development,economic development,and environmental security)and then these indices were integrated into the CCDI.The study further applied factor analysis and R-Studio software to define the gaps of social and economic development in 59 selected countries using the trigonometric function of the angle sine.The correlation analysis confirmed the existence of a close interrelation among the studied countries.This paper noted that due to the emergence of new priorities,it is necessary to revise the assessment methodology of socio-economic development level and expand them to cover the decisive factors.This was confirmed by the results obtained,demonstrating various combinations of the development level in the four fields and their impact on the CCDI.The scientific contribution of this research is to form a methodology(e.g.,the CCDI)for evaluating the socio-economic development level of countries in the world.

On Master Tanxu’s Thought of the Middle Way

This paper discusses Master Tanxu’s Thought of Middle Way from three aspects:interpreting the Middle Way with the Tiantai Sect’s thought of“Three Truths as a Unity”(三諦圓融),discussing“the Truth of the First Meaning of the Middle Way”(中道第一義諦)from the relationship between“the One Mind”and the Middle Way,and discussing gradations of practice of the Middle Way.

Research on Innovative Ways of Integrating Aesthetic Education with Ideological and Political Education in the New Era

Aesthetic education and ideological and political education undertake the educational responsibilities of educating people with beauty and cultivating people with morals,respectively.The innovation of aesthetic education and the reform of ideological and political education have common educational goals and target students.Integrating aesthetic education with ideological and political education can promote the overall healthy development of students,which has both historical and practical significance.In this paper,the importance and characteristics of integrating aesthetic education with ideological and political education in colleges and universities are analyzed from multiple dimensions,and four feasible ways of integrating aesthetic education with ideological and political education are proposed.The latter draws on extracurricular activities,emotional touch,a pleasant aesthetic atmosphere,and educational synergy to improve students’aesthetic literacy and cultivate correct ideological and political concepts among students.A survey of 1,047 students showed that the understanding and acceptance of ideological and political education were strengthened and improved after implementing these innovative integration ways.Taken together,the exploration and practice of these integration ways contribute to expanding the effect of ideological and political education in the new era and constitute important parts of the reform of college and university education in the new journey.

Soil formation in bauxite residue: The most promising way to large-scale and ecological disposal

Aluminum is an important basic raw material for national economic development.The alumina industry has been expanding rapidly due to the increasing demand for aluminum.Bauxite residue is a highly alkaline solid by-product generated when alumina is extracted from bauxite ore in alumina refineries[1,2].

Impact of Plastic Waste on the Human Health in Low-Income Countries: A Systematic Review

Background: Plastic pollution is the accumulation of waste composed of plastic and its derivatives all over the environment. Whether in the form of visible garbage or microparticles, as it slowly degrades, plastic pollution poses significant threats to terrestrial and aquatic habitats and the wildlife that call them home, whether through ingestion, entanglement or exposure to the chemicals contained in the material. Unfortunately, there is a lack of documentation on the impact of plastic waste on human health in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Methods: We searched five electronic databases (PubMed, Embase, Global Health, CINAHL and Web of Science) and gray literature, following the preferred reporting elements for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA), for the impact of plastic waste on human health in developing countries. We included quantitative and qualitative studies written in English and French. We assessed the quality of the included articles using the Mixed Methods Appraisal tool (MMAT). Results: A total of 3779 articles were initially identified by searching electronic databases. After eliminating duplicates, 3167 articles were reviewed based on title and abstract, and 26 were selected for full-text review. Only three articles were retained. The three articles dealt with practices likely to lead to oral exposure to plastic chemicals in human health, as well as the level of awareness of participants concerning the possible impact of plastic on human health, namely, the use of plastic baby bottles, the use of microwaves to cook food and reheat precooked food, the use of plastic bottles to store water in the refrigerator, water purifier containers with plastic bodies and plastic lunch boxes, the reuse of plastic bags and the inadequacy of treatment facilities. Conclusion: Plastic waste poses different risks to human health at every stage of its life cycle. Hence, strategies must be adopted to raise public awareness of the dangers of plastic waste to their health. Trial registration: The review protocol is registered in the PROSPERO international prospective register of systematic reviews (ID = CRD42023409087).

New Way of Predicting Production State by Carbon Isotope Fractionation in the Fuling Shale Gas Field,Southeast Sichuan Basin

Objective With the discovery of the Fuling shale gas field and the realization of commercial exploitation, the prediction of shale gas well production state has attracted wide attention of scholars at home and abroad.

Origin of the Dashuigou Independent Tellurium Deposit at the Southeastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau:Based on the Abundances of Trace Elements in the Country Rocks

Through a detailed study of the abundances and spatial-temporal distribution patterns of Te,Bi,As,Se,Cu,Pb,Zn,Au,and Ag in the rock types of different geological epochs in the Dashuigou independent tellurium deposit,and in combination with other research findings of previous researchers in this area,the authors conclude as follows:Abundances of the main ore-forming elements Te,Bi,As,Se,Au,and Ag are not high in the regional geological background,generally lower or close to their respective crustal Clark values,but almost all altered country rocks contain high levels of ore-forming elements.This indicates that the deposit’s ore-forming elements do not come from the country rocks.This also indicates that the geological thermal events that cause alteration and mineralization originate from depths and may be related to mantle plumes.Considering the distribution pattern of these ore-forming elements in the ore bodies’hanging wall and footwall,the metallogenic mechanism may be as follows:Mineralization is not achieved through lateral secretion in the horizontal or near horizontal direction,but rather through the upward movement and emplacement of deep ore-forming elements driven by geological processes such as mantle plumes.In addition,the migration of deep ore-forming elements is not achieved through dispersed infiltration between overlying rock particles,but through non widespread concentrated penetrating channels.This type of channel is likely to be the expansion structures where faults from different directions intersect,or where linear faults intersect with circular structures.

Stakeholders Theory:An Analysis of Eco-Labeling of Commercial Products in A Developing Country(Kenya) Stock Exchange Listed Companies

International environmental organizations propose voluntary eco-labeling as a market incentive to promote industry to operate in an ecologically sustainable and environmentally friendly manner,for instance,with the introduction of ISO 14000.These standards assist organizations to minimize their operations negatively affecting the environment and comply with applicable laws and regulations.Support for eco-labeling has been one of the ways that