Analyzing the Variations in Emergency Department Boarding and Testing the Transferability of Forecasting Models across COVID-19 Pandemic Waves in Hong Kong: Hybrid CNN-LSTM approach to quantifying building-level socioecological risk (preprint)

Emergency department's (ED) boarding (defined as ED waiting time greater than four hours) has been linked to poor patient outcomes and health system performance. Yet, effective forecasting models is rare before COVID-19, lacking during the peri-COVID era. Here, a hybrid convolutional neural network (CNN)-Long short-term memory (LSTM) model was applied to public-domain data sourced from Hong Kong's Hospital Authority, Department of Health, and Housing Authority. In addition, we sought to identify the phase of the COVID-19 pandemic that most significantly perturbed our complex adaptive healthcare system, thereby revealing a stable pattern of interconnectedness among its components, using deep transfer learning methodology. Our result shows that 1) the greatest proportion of days with ED boarding was found between waves four and five; 2) the best-performing model for forecasting ED boarding was observed between waves four and five, which was based on features representing time-invariant residential buildings' built environment and sociodemographic profiles and the historical time series of ED boarding and case counts, compared to during the waves when best-performing forecasting is based on time-series features alone; and 3) when the model built from the period between waves four and five was applied to data from other waves via deep transfer learning, the transferred model enhanced the performance of indigenous models.

Ethnic inequalities in the access of cancer screening services for women´s in Peru (preprint)

Background Despite guidelines and increased healthcare resources, there are disparities in coverage of screening cancer services for non-white communities, addressing these health inequalities is crucial in multicultural countries like Peru. For this reason, the aim was evaluating ethnic inequalities in the women proportion that use cancer screening services in Peruvians regions.Methods An ecological was used to assess the ethnic inequalities in the proportion of women use of general cancer screening, clinical breast examination, mammography, and pap test in the 25 regions of Peru. The inequalities were approach by estimating the GINI coefficient among ethnic groups based on various sociodemographic characteristics, and the annual variation of the GINI coefficient.Results In Peruvians regions there is greater inequality in general cancer screening services among the indigenous (GINI: 0.321) and afroperuvians (GINI: 0.415), which have a GINI coefficient almost twice that of the white or mestizo group (GINI: 0.183). Also, sociodemographic characteristics such as low educational level, low income, living in rural areas, being over 64 years old, and lack of health insurance mediate these inequalities in the use of cancer screening services. In the temporal variation, an increase in inequality was identified to afroperuvians and indigenous groups after 2020.Conclusion In Peruvian regions there are marked ethnic inequalities in use of cancer screening services for indigenous and afroperuvians groups compared to the white or mestizo group, especially in those regions with larger populations with adverse socioeconomic conditions that have worsened for these ethnic groups after the COVID-19 pandemic in Peru.

Exploring Culinary Heritage: Insights from Local Gatekeepers in the Province of Antique Philippines (preprint)

This study explores the Province of Antique's culinary heritage through the perspectives of local gatekeepers, aiming to provide insights into the historical, cultural, and social significance of their practices. Through interviews and literature analysis, the research investigates the culinary practices, opportunities, and challenges faced by local gatekeepers. Major themes include the use of indigenous ingredients, traditional healing practices, and the impact of modernization on culinary traditions. Recipes such as Sinanlag nga Manok highlight the incorporation of local ingredients and sustainable practices. Challenges such as the loss of traditional knowledge and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic are also discussed. By shedding light on Antique's culinary heritage, the study aims to contribute to the promotion of cultural understanding, preservation of traditional practices, and support for local economies.

Indigenous Peoples’ evaluation of health risks when facing mandatory evacuation for birth during the COVID-19 pandemic: An Indigenous feminist analysis (preprint)

Background Indigenous Peoples living on Turtle Island are comprised of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis people and because of the Government of Canada’s mandatory evacuation policy, those living in rural and remote regions of Ontario are required to travel to urban, tertiary care centres to give birth. When evaluating the risk of travelling for birth, Indigenous Peoples understand, evaluate, and conceptualise health risks differently than Eurocentric biomedical models of health. Also, the global COVID-19 pandemic changed how people perceived risks to their health. Our research goal was to better understand how Indigenous parturients living in rural and remote communities conceptualised the risks associated with evacuation for birth before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods To achieve this goal, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 11 parturients who travelled for birth during the pandemic and with 5 family members of those who were evacuated for birth.Results Participants conceptualised evacuation for birth as riskier during the COVID-19 pandemic and identified how the pandemic exacerbated existing risks of travelling for birth. In fact, Indigenous parturients noted the increased risk of contracting COVID-19 when travelling to urban centres for perinatal care, the impact of public health restrictions on increased isolation from family and community, the emotional impact of fear during the pandemic, and the decreased availability of quality healthcare.Conclusions Using Indigenous Feminist Methodology and Indigenous Feminist Theory, we critically analysed how mandatory evacuation for birth functions as a colonial tool and how conceptualizations of risk empowered Indigenous Peoples to make decisions that reduced risks to their health during the pandemic. With the results of this study, policy makers and governments can better understand how Indigenous Peoples conceptualise risk related to evacuation for birth before and during the pandemic, and prioritise further consultation with Indigenous Peoples to collaborate in the delivery of the health and care they need and desire.

Difference in TMPRSS2 usage by Delta and Omicron variants of SARS-CoV-2: Implication for a sudden increase among children (preprint)

It has been postulated from a combination of evidence that a sudden increase in COVID-19 cases among pediatric patients after onset of the Omicron wave was attributed to a reduced requirement for TMPRSS2-mediated entry in pediatric airways with lower expression levels of TMPRSS2. Epidemic strains were isolated from the indigenous population in an area, and the levels of TMPRSS2 required for Delta and Omicron variants were assessed. As a result, Delta variants proliferated fully in cultures of TMPRSS2-positive Vero cells but not in TMPRSS2-negative Vero cell culture (350-fold, Delta vs 9.6-fold, Omicron). There was no obvious age-dependent selection of Omicron strains affected by the TMPRSS2 (9.6-fold, Adults vs. 12-fold, Children). A phylogenetic tree was generated and Blast searches (up to 100 references) for the spread of strains in the study area showed that each strain had almost identical homology (>99.5%) with foreign isolates, although indigenous strains had obvious differences from each other. This suggested that the differences had been present abroad for a long period. Therefore, the lower requirement for TMPRSS2 by Omicron strains might be applicable to epidemic strains globally. In conclusion, the property of TMPRSS2-independent cleavage makes Omicron proliferate with ease and allows epidemics among children with fewer TMPRSS2 on epithelial surfaces of the respiratory organs.

Equity as the new normal: the economic consequences of the pandemic, from The COVID Impact Project - focusing on systemically oppressed populations (preprint)

The objective of this study is to assess the employment impacts of COVID on systemically marginalized populations. A cross-sectional COVID Impact study examined participants during October 2020 to November 2021 at the Bridge Engagement Center in Ottawa, Canada. A survey co-created and administered by people with lived/living experience of being precariously housed, low-income, and/or racialized (including Indigenous peoples) assessed their demographics, socioeconomics, and health. Income and employment were assessed by descriptive statistics, directed acyclic graphs (DAGs), Bayesian logistic modeling and constructed a directed acyclic diagram to test the causality between selected demographics and employment income. Participants aged 16–65 years (n = 416) were male (n = 201), female (n = 198), and other (n = 5). Ethnicities were white (n = 118), African Caribbean Black (n = 118), Indigenous (n = 142) and other (n = 26). We observed social assistance receipt (88%), psychological distress (General Health Questionnaire-12 > 3) (47%), housing insecurity (61%), and food insecurity (65%). Sixteen of 59 newly unemployed people received pandemic funding. Unemployment (n = 340) odds ratios (95% credible intervals) were: Indigenous, 6.38 (5.36, 7.54); African Caribbean Black, 5.76 (4.85, 6.79); other, 3.81 (3.19, 4.50); and white, 1.81 (1.64, 1.99). Systemically marginalized populations demonstrated disproportionate impact by the COVID-19 pandemic with the highest odds of unemployment being for non-white populations during COVID, as compared to pre-COVID. The findings from this study indicate the urgent need for an equitable, inclusive, just, comprehensive, and most importantly compassionate social safety net that supports everyone.

Study of the protective OAS1 rs10774671-G allele against severe COVID-19 in Moroccans suggests a North African origin for Neanderthals (preprint)

Objectives: The clinical presentation of COVID-19 has shown high variability between individuals, which is partly due to genetic factors. The OAS1/2/3 cluster was found to be strongly associated with COVID-19 severity. We aimed to examine this locus for the occurrence of the critical variant, rs10774671, and its respective haplotype blocks within the Moroccan population. Methods: The frequency of SNPs at the cluster of OAS immunity genes was assessed from an in-house database in 157 unrelated individuals of Moroccan origin. The OAS1 exon 6 was sequenced by Sanger's method in 71 asymptomatic/mild and 74 moderate/severe individuals positive for SARS-CoV-2. Genotypic, allelic, and haplotype frequencies of three SNPs were compared between the two groups. Finally, males in our COVID-19 series were genotyped for the Berber-specific marker E-M81. Results: The prevalence of the OAS1 rs10774671-G allele in present-day Moroccans was 40.4%, close to that of Europeans. However, it was found equally on both the Neanderthal GGG haplotype and the African GAC haplotype with a frequency of 20% each. These two haplotypes, and hence the rs10774671-G allele, were significantly associated with the protection against severe COVID-19 (p = 0.034, p = 0.041, and p = 0.008 respectively). Surprisingly, among Berber men, the African haplotype was absent while the prevalence of the Neanderthal haplotype was close to that of Europeans. Conclusion: The protective rs10774671-G allele of OAS1 was found only in the Neanderthal haplotype in Berbers, the indigenous people of North Africa, suggesting that this region may have served as the stepping-stone for the passage of the hominids to the other continents.

Remote learning during COVID-19 and transformative learning theory: tendency towards Quadruple Helix Model for future post-secondary education in Indigenous contexts (preprint)

This paper aims to examine UCN (University College of the North) students’ remote learning experience during the COVID-19 pandemic to provide reference for future remote education in Indigenous contexts. Survey data are used for empirical analysis of the five themes: socio-demographic contexts; social activities, stress, and well-being; academic performance; course delivery; and student support services. Transformative learning theory and Quadruple Helix Model are used as a framework to explore the breadth and depth of such five themes. As the descriptive study shows, the majority of UCN students are over 25 years old and study in their first and second year with major challenges such as Internet connectivity, private space, and interruption. Mean values reveal that the remote learning performance is determined by concerns about COVID-19 infection, mental and physical health, isolation and lack of socio-cultural activities, students’ self-preparedness and motivation, and support services. The regression analysis shows that students’ concerns about COVID-19 infection interference with course completion are directly affected by their worries about themselves or someone in their families who could be exposed to COVID-19, their mental health, and blended course delivery. Therefore, students’ remote learning performance and their well-being will be enhanced if we take into consideration improving social distancing, educational technology, and course delivery with community-university culturally responsive collaboration. The research findings and the reviewed literature attest that transformative learning theory fits UCN’s remote learning practices to meet educational goals through the university-community collaboration, which is supported by the Quadruple Helix model. As a result, such remote learning practices engage students, particularly Indigenous students, and the practices will help upgrade universities with similar attributes globally into Mode 3 university, contributing to community economic development.

The Intersections of Energy and Housing Justice: Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected working class and Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities, who have been more likely to contract and die from the virus. These inequalities in part stem from higher rates of comorbidities such as asthma, which can be connected to local built environments. One area where these inequalities are starkest is in energy generation and distribution, where marginalized communities are both more likely to be exposed to hazards from energy production, whereas at the same time more likely to struggle to afford that energy, leading to difficult trade-offs with other necessities. In turn, many of these inequalities can be tied to spatial patterns of residential segregation, such as redlining, which cut off BIPOC communities in from the prevailing wealth generating mechanisms of the past century, leading to the patterns of divestment and hazard exposure seen today. In this article, we explore the connections between public health, energy production and consumption, and redlining, using Milwaukee, WI as a case study. Using data from March to June 2020, we perform quartile regressions to assess the relationship between positive COVID cases, local demographics, and the local energy environment. We find that low-income and BIPOC communities were more likely to contract COVID, while also facing higher energy burdens and exposure to respiratory hazards, as well as a statistically significant relationship between COVID rates and redlining policy. We argue these results call further research into the connections between energy insecurity and other forms of injustice that manifest within racial capitalism.

Wāhkōhtowin: Decolonizing Teacher Preparation for Rural, Urban and First Nations Schools

This paper stories the creation of the Wāhkōhtowin teacher preparation model on Treaty 6 territory in Saskatchewan, Canada. The model was created out of an educational partnership that responded to the teachings of Nēhiyaw (Cree) Indigenous Elders. We describe the theoretical framework of this Professional Development School (PDS) teacher preparation model that is designed to: decolonize teacher preparation in order to foster student learning and engagement;develop Nēhiyaw teacher identity and proficiency;and support reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples. The foundational constructs of the Wāhkōhtowin model of teacher preparation include: relationality, ceremony, language, and child-centredness. The spirit of Wāhkōhtowin teacher preparation is premised on three intents. Firstly, teacher candidates are encouraged to be free to be themselves and share the gifts they bring to the school setting (tipéyimisowin). Secondly, they are encouraged to -come home' to traditional teachings as they engage in cultural learning and identity formation (kīwēwin). Thirdly, their pedagogical growth and development as teachers is fostered with the focus on relational pedagogies, inclusiveness, and community (mamáwi kiskinomāsowin). We complete our paper by discussing the implementation of the Wāhkōhtowin model. We discuss the ways in which the model has had to shift to be responsive to: the unique relationships and contexts of different school systems;provincial budget cuts;the opportunity to expand the program into secondary schools;working with/through teacher turnover;the provision of language and cultural activities;land-based programming;professional development sessions;differing comfort levels and knowledge regarding Indigenous history and traditions;and the impact of COVID-19. © Society for the Provision of Education in Rural Education. All Rights Reserved.

Weaponization of Faith

Over the past six months, COVID-19 has had a disparate impact on the populations of Durham, North Carolina, and the United States in general. Economically, North Carolina is teetering on the edge of collapse, and many businesses have closed down. Families are suffering from illness, food insecurity, violence, lack of resources, inaccessible education and healthcare, and other disparities contributing to their overall loss of quality of life. The long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have yet to be seen. The weaponization of the church universal and partisan politicization of COVID-19 through white Christian nationalism in the United States increased pressure along economic, geographic, and racial divides, leaving communities devastated. The defunding and discrediting of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Environmental Protection Agency, as well as the historical disenfranchisement of indigenous and Black communities, racialized incarceration, and detention of children and families seeking political asylum, led to mass outbreaks with little to no state or spiritual resources. This chapter explores the theoethical and social implications of the role of the church during this pandemic as well as how decolonizing faith and relying on past traditions, womanism, and liberation theologies can help the church re-embrace a necessary ethic of care. This chapter will posit that a well-developed theology of care at the grassroots level is both a tradition of the church universal and a spiritual formation of endurance and resistance in times of crisis and suffering, reflecting the theodicy of a loving, inclusive, healing God who suffers alongside God's people. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023.

Global Women's Precarity, Borderlands, Decoloniality, and Transformative Change

This special issue of the Journal of International Women's Studies gathers its articles from presentations delivered at the 2022 8th World Conference on Women's Studies, which focused on themes of women's precarity, borderlands, decoloniality, and transformative change. The global pandemic of COVID-19 left humanity to grapple with volatile socio-economic and socio-political realities across borders. The impacts of crises are never gender-neutral and COVID-19 is no exception, as often the most marginalized groups from the Global North and South continue to suffer the brunt of the consequences in an increasingly disaggregated world. On one hand, lockdowns and quarantines promoted developments in virtual digital worlds, encouraging the global exchange of ideas. On the other hand, this digital world is an exclusive one that does not include the voices of impoverished people—especially women—who remain marginalized, vulnerable, and invisible. Feminist interventions in knowledge discourses have revealed other important forms of exclusion faced by women in terms of an assumed objectivity, which neglects embedded biases in gender studies. The challenge in feminist interventions comes in two layers. First, it is the construction of the Other regarding gender subjectivity across the North and South. And second, it is in terms of cultural subjectivity as these two regions emerge from different histories, cultures, and indigenous forms of knowledge. © 2023, Journal of International Women''s Studies. All Rights Reserved.

Effect of Process Variables on Pulp Yield of Indigenous Raw Materials

The biggest issue before pulp and paper producers is availability of quality raw material. India is fiber deficit country, this message has become more intense after covid when price of different raw materials are increased by 20-25%, . Chemical pulp is produced by chemical delignification of wood and non-wood plants. After kraft pulping the remaining lignin is removed by oxygen delignification and bleaching to produce higher purity cellulosic pulp. The goal of delignification processes is to remove lignin from the raw material without a negative effect on the cellulose and strength of pulp. The economics of pulp and paper production is more related to the yield of unbleached and bleached pulp production. Marginal increment in pulp yield reflects into savings of crore of rupees on yearly basis. An overall vigilant concern on process conditions and variables is required during production of pulp. BAT technology for pulping along with utilization of various additives and pretreatment methods allow to fine tune these process to obtain pulp with desired yield and quality. The primary aim of this paper is to review different process variables in respect to the yield of the pulp. © 2022 Indian Pulp and Paper Technical Association. All rights reserved.

Bringing order to Petra's tourism economy

The popularity of Petra, Jordan, as a tourist destination has surged among international visitors since the 1980s. This has led to the tourism sector's emergence as a major source of income for indigenous communities living adjacent to the ancient city's ruins. Rapidly expanding visitor numbers and business activity-both licensed and unlicensed-exposed the need for government to play an active role in organizing Petra's tourism industry. Drawing upon a thematic analysis of interviews I conducted in three tourism-reliant, tribal communities in Petra's vicinity in 2022, this case study examines relations between the Petra Development and Tourism Region Authority (PDTRA) and indigenous stakeholders in the local economy. Focusing on the period extending from 2019-just before the COVID-19 pandemic's onset-to 2022, I explore local perspectives towards PDTRA policies impacting indigenous work in the tourism sector. I find that legality, size, and internal organization of stakeholder groups affect their capacity to influence political decisions that impact their lives and livelihoods.

Comprehensive review about automatic classification of medicinal plants

The word Taxonomy is the way of Classification. It is the science of naming and classifying all the living organisms as well as extinct organisms of the world. Swedish Botanist Carlous Linnaeus was the father of taxonomy;Out of 17000 plant species present in India, more than 7600 plants are medicinal plants. Indigenous Indian medicines are formulations of traditional knowledge and medicinal plant extracts. The traditional knowledge is transferred from one generation to other generations which is used as drug for various diseases, instead of relying on what is the ingredients and proportions these drugs are based on traditional knowledge. These drugs involve the use of plant extract. The World Health Organization (WHO), leading agency in health care found that 80 % population in low economic output countries depend on traditional medicine for their essential health care[1]. In the current era of pandemic medicinal plant species like citrus spp, allium sativum, allium cepa found effective in management of COVID 19. As per WHO guidelines, In the field of medicinal research where clinical trials are used for new drug discovery, there is need of continuous supply of authenticated products which are correctly identified, classified, and verified [1]. Traditional identification and classification methods are not quick, efficient and reliable. Automated Classification of medicinal Plants help to conserve knowledge of medicinal plant species, share it from one generation to next generation and help the whole society to improve the knowledge about medicinal plants. The paper presents traditional and recent trends using Computer vision and machine learning for classifying medicinal plant species. The main focus is on Leaf image as input. It presents the challenges as well as opportunities in identifying and classifying medicinal plant species by performing comprehensive review of traditional methodologies. © 2023 Author(s).

Enulebo: Ethical imperative of Yorùbá thought on eating for COVID-19-related crises

Yorùbá conception of eating proffers certain ethical values that are insightful for mitigating Covid-19-related crises of mutual trust, suspicion, unreliability, self-centered interest and blame game among nations. This chapter interrogates the indigenous framework of Yorùbá notion of eating in order to discern its glocal contribution to the ongoing Covid-19 related crises. It employs critical and hermeneutical exposition by explicating key concepts and citations from Ifá corpus and other Yorùbá beliefs about eating as a process of bonding or communion. It argues that the Yorùbá conception of Enulebo substantiates the notion of eating as a process beyond mere indiscriminate consumption. It asserts further that 'eating' is a framework of interdependent relations, which foster the ethical values of fidelity of trust, reliability, tolerance/forbearance and common good devoid of the conspiracy of self-interest, ill-intention, suspicion, and blame-game. It recommends the adoption of the heuristic value of the Yorùbá notion of eating as a strategy to reframe the collective efforts of global stakeholders towards the attainment of viable conditions of solidarity, harmony and wellbeing that would, hopefully, mitigate the far reaching effect of the Covid-19-related crises. © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023. All rights reserved.

Global movement for Black lives: A conversation between Awino Okech and Shereen Essof

This conversation reflects on the importance of transnational Black solidarity in a global moment where the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed structural inequalities that sustain Black death and the global movement for Black lives has focussed attention on anti-Blackness. We reflect on the legacies of past and contemporary Black, Indigenous, People of Colour activism and the role that this has played in strengthening transnational efforts to deal with colonialism, imperialism and patriarchy. In highlighting how anti-Blackness is sustained across different institutions - from the academy to social movements, we centre Black feminist movements' role in building radical visions of equitable and transformative worlds through a focus on the nexus between patriarchy, capitalism and white supremacy. Black feminist visions we argue are geared at disrupting and transforming current power structures to advance justice and create liberatory futures. A central part of these liberatory futures lies in building collective power that is rooted in the political values of solidarity, hope and joy. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of European Journal of Women's Studies is the property of Sage Publications, Ltd. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

A Mosaic of Researcher "Back-Stories” and Oral History "Front-Stories”: COVID-19 and Metro Detroit BIPOC Entrepreneurs' Resilience

This chapter draws from an ongoing oral history project with Black, Indigenous, and Person of Color (BIPOC) entrepreneurs in Metro Detroit navigating the personal and professional trauma of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our chapter blends narrative strands from these oral histories with our own researcher "back-stories” to demonstrate the intersecting themes of lived experience that connect us. As faculty and students at a Detroit-based urban research university, our lives intersect with these narrators. Some of us are BIPOC entrepreneurs or their long-term customers or are married/related to small business owners;while others have tested positive for the coronavirus, or we know friends/family who have fallen sick or passed away from COVID;while yet others are completely new to the region and thus must traverse a difficult space as "outsiders” peering in, as we engage in this project together. By connecting the "back-stories” of our multiracial research team with the "front-stories” of the entrepreneurs, we co-create a pluri-vocal mosaic of resilience storytelling amid this pandemic. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022.

Conference Report (Re)shaping the inclusive city: the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning engages indigenous and immigrant voices, histories and lived experiences

The 62nd annual conference of the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning (ASCP) met from Nov 2-5, 2022 in Toronto, Canada. The conference brought together nearly 1,200 planning educators, researchers and students affiliated from more than thirty countries. Attendees were composed of approximately 700 faculty and more than 400 students. There were nearly 250 sessions including presentation of research papers, roundtable discussions, workshops, career information sessions and mobile sessions. The conference was the first in-person conference after two years of virtual convenings due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Local hosts for the conference included the University of Toronto, Toronto Metropolitan University and York University. The focal theme of the conference was "(re)shaping the inclusive city: engaging indigenous and immigrant voices, histories and lived experiences."