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The upgrade of the Large Hadron Collider spare beam dumps (Target Dump External, TDE) and the autopsy of the old operational TDE required to perform several activities in a high-radiation environment posing significant radiation protection challenges due to the residual activation of the equipment. To ensure high safety standards and to respect the ALARA principle, these challenges were addressed using the advanced Monte Carlo techniques to predict the residual ambient dose equivalent rate and the radionuclide inventory at different steps of the interventions. The CERN HSE-RP group makes extensive use of the FLUKA and ActiWiz codes to produce accurate estimates. This work aims to provide an overview of the radiation protection studies to optimise the interventions (ALARA) and to reduce the radiological risk for personnel and environment.

Introduction: Several studies show that there is a relationship between obesity and individual eating habits. Objective: To describe the relationship between dietary behavior and staturo-ponderal status in individuals of Kenitra. Materials and methods: This work was developed in Kenitra (February 01 to March 30, 2021), it was carried out on a sample of 100 subjects including both sexes with an age range between 18 and 65 years. Data are collected through a questionnaire that includes anthropometric measurements, dietary habits, age and gender. Results: Individuals who had three meals per day had a high BMI average (36.41 kg/m2) with a significant difference (p=0.0404) between BMI and the number of meals per day. As well as individuals who consumed high-fat foods, their mean BMI was high (36.41 kg/m2) with a significant difference (p=0,0120) between intake of high-fat foods and BMI. Conclusion: It is shown that there is a relationship between obesity and eating behavior, and obesity and eating high-fat foods, suggesting that controlling eating behavior helps individuals reduce body weight and have a normal high weight.

Healthcare-associated infections (HCAIs) occurring outside of health facilities are underestimated because there are a lack of structured preventive organization and absence of epidemiological surveillance. HCAI prevalence is likely to grow with the increase in patient care outside of health institutions.To set up a situational analysis of good hygiene practices among private general practitioners (GPs) to better organize HCAI prevention in this sector.A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted between November 2017 and March 2018, using a self-administered questionnaire among all GPs in Sousse City, Tunisia.Participation rate was 93.1%. There was a predominance of male GPs (63%), with a sex ratio of 1.7:1. Up-to-date vaccination status was reported by 82 (75.9%) of GPs. Fifty-six (51.3%) GPs used hydroalcoholic solutions, 13 (12.1%) adopted autoclaving, and 106 (98.1%) wore gloves during invasive care. Blood exposure accidents (BEAs) were reported by 38 (35.2%; declared in 26.3% of cases) and were more prevalent in the group aged50 years who used significantly more reusable equipment. BEAs were primarily due to needle-stick injuries (86.8%).We identified the priority axes to be considered in organizing HCAI prevention in the private sector, which allows guidance of GPs, avoiding their isolation and compensating for their lack of training and information. This requires willingness and a culture of improving the quality and safety of care in this sector. Committed involvement of several stakeholders at different levels of decision-making in health care is needed.تطبيق ممارسات النظافة الجيدة في القطاع الحر في تونس.محمد محجوب، ألفى عزي، أسماء عمار، نهال العمري، حسن أشاش، منصور نجاح.الخلفية : يصعب تقدير مدى خطورة التّعفنات المتّصلة بالرّعاية الصّحية الواقع الكشف عنها خارج المرافق الصحية العمومية بسبب عدم وجود قواعد وقائية منظّمة ومهيكلة إضافة إلى غياب المراقبة الوبائية ومن المرجّح أن يزداد انتشارها مع زيادة رعاية المرضى خارج المرافق الصحية.هدفت هذه الدراسة الى تقييم مستوى تطبيق قواعد حفظ الصحة وسلامة الخدمات الصحية وجودتها لدى أطباء القطاع الخاص من أجل تنظيم أفضل للوقاية من التعفنات المتّصلة بالرّعاية الصحية.دراسة تحليلية على ضوء استبيان شخصي أجريت خلال السنوات 2017 (نوفمبر/تشرين الثاني) و2018 (مارس/اذار) مع جميع أطباء القطاع الخاص في ولاية سوسة (الجمهورية التونسية).النّتائج: بلغ معدّل المشاركة 91.1٪. ولقد كان أغلب المشاركين من الذّكور 62.96٪ (نسبة الجنس 1.7 :1). تمّ التّصريح عن حالات التحصينات المحينة من 75.9٪ من الأطباء المستجوبين. كما ذكر 53.7٪ أنهم يختارون المواد المائية الكحولية لغسل الأيدي.وذكر 12.1٪ أنهم يعتمدون التّعقيم للمعدّات الطبية المتعدّدة الاستعمال. كما أبلغ 98.1٪ عن استخدامهم القفاّزات أثناء الرّعاية الصحية العنيفة. وأشار 35.2٪ إلى وقوعهم ضحايا حوادث التعرض للدّم (حوادث معلنة في 26.3٪) وهي حوادث أكثر انتشارا بين أطباء القطاع الخاص الذين تفوق أعمارهم 50 سنة إضافة إلى أنهم يستخدمون إحصائيا أكثر المعدات الطبية المتعددة الاستعمال.الاستنتاجات : تمّ تحديد المحاور ذات الأولوية التي يتعين تنظيمها للحدّ والوقاية من التعفنات الجرثومية المتصلة بالرعاية الصحية في القطاع الخاص لتجنّب الوضع الحالي المتمثل في ضعف إدماجهم في البرامج المهيكلة ويحد من افتقارهم للمعلومات والتدريب. يستدعي تحسين جودة و سلامة الرعاية الصحية في القطاع الخاص ثقافة مستفيضة وإرادة لدى كل المتداخلين على جميع مستويات القرار في مجال الصحة.Application des bonnes pratiques d’hygiène dans le secteur libéral en Tunisie.Les infections associées aux soins (IAS) survenant en dehors des établissements de santé sont sousestimées en raison de l’absence d’organisation structurée de la prévention et de l’inexistence de la surveillance épidémiologique. Leur prévalence est susceptible d’augmenter avec l’accroissement des prises en charge des patients à l’extérieur des institutions sanitaires.Dresser un état des lieux des bonnes pratiques d’hygiène auprès des omnipraticiens libéraux pour mieux organiser la prévention des IAS dans ce secteur.Il s’agit d’une étude descriptive transversale, menée en 2017 (novembre)-2018 (mars), à l’aide d’un questionnaire auto-administré auprès de tous les omnipraticiens du gouvernorat de Sousse-Ville (Tunisie).Le taux de participation était de 93,1 %. Une prédominance des omnipraticiens de sexe masculin (63 %) a été notée (sex-ratio=1,7 : 1). Un statut vaccinal à jour a été rapporté par 82 omnipraticiens (75,9 %). Cinquante-six omnipraticiens 53,7 % optaient pour l’usage des solutions hydro-alcooliques, 13 (12,1 %) avaient adopté l’ autoclavage et 106 (98,1 %) déclaraient porter des gants d’omnipraticiens lors des soins invasifs ; 38 (35,2 %) notifiaient être victimes d’accidents exposant au sang (AES) (déclarés dans 26,3 % des cas) ; ce type d’accident était plus prévalent dans le groupe des plus de 50 ans, lequel semble utiliser statistiquement davantage le matériel réutilisable. Les AES sont dus surtout aux piqûres (86,8 %).Nous avons identifié les axes prioritaires à considérer en organisant la prévention des IAS en secteur libéral, ce qui permet d’orienter les omnipraticiens, d’éviter leur isolement et de combler les manques de formation et d’information. Ceci nécessite une volonté et une culture pour l’amélioration de la qualité et de sécurité des soins dans ce secteur et l’implication engageante et concrète de plusieurs intervenants à différents niveaux de décisions en santé.

ABSTRACT: Regardless of the porosity of the matrix, fractures have a crucial role in increasing permeability. In this article, the critical role that natural fractures may play in enhancing fluid flow characteristics is considered. An attempt to demonstrate the contribution of fractures on enhancing the permeability was done, assuming the genetic relationship between complex fracture systems at different scales. A multiscale-based statistical approach was adopted to compare hydraulic properties of two tight sandstone fields in a Cambro Ordovician reservoir situated in the Ahnet Basin, Algeria. The first field, situated in the Eastern region, denotes smaller fractures with three different orientations. In comparison, the second field, located in Western domain, is dominated by long faults, oriented N-S. However, the most predominant direction is NW-SE. In the first part, the connectivity of the networks was analyzed, and the results were plotted in a ternary diagram showing that the first field is characterized by a strong connectivity, probably due to the higher intensity of faults. Then, the dilation and shear tendency were displayed based on the current stress of the field. The outputs showed that fractures in the first field have a dilation and slip tendency higher which means that they are probably open and can participate in the creation of a fluid flow path. This is probably due to their orientation, parallel to the maximum horizontal stress. In the second part of this paper, naturally open fractures at the borehole scale were investigated and then compared to the seismic scale. Finally, the matching of the results at the two scales was studied. 1. INTRODUCTION A fractured reservoir consists of initially continuous deposits, which, as a result of the settlement, diagenesis, and deformation, have fractures. This type of reservoir would contain between 20% and 25% of the world’s available hydrocarbon reserves. Natural fracturing is a very important parameter in the assessment of an oil reservoir (Aoun et al., 2021). It can have several effects on production performance, both in primary recovery and in secondary or tertiary recovery. Traditional techniques used in the oil industry to characterize natural fracturing and its distribution at the reservoir level are insufficient. The seismic investigation provides a good visualization of the distribution of large-scale fracture zones. Well data can sometimes provide access to a satisfactory characterization of small-scale fracturing as long as the analysis of the images and the cores are done properly. On the other hand, intermediate-scale features (small faults, fractured corridors), undetectable by seismic tools and too much localized to be systematically characterized by the analysis of well data, remain very difficult to apprehend. However, their presence, detected at random by the progress of the drilling, proves to be decisive in controlling the hydrodynamic behavior of reservoirs. In this paper, we propose a qualitative and quantitative characterization of fracture networks.

In this paper we consider the Sturm-Liouville transform ℱ(f) on ℝ+. We analyze the concentration of this transform on sets of finite measure. In particular, Donoho-Stark and Benedicks-type uncertainty principles are given.

The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 prompted higher education institutions in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to switch to online learning for the safety of their citizens. The main purpose of this study is to determine the relationship between four indicators of digital learning experience and the intensity of student socio-pedagogical communication after the transition to distance learning. The data were collected from Ajman University, a private university in the UAE, during the spring of 2020. The sample consisted of 381 students who were surveyed using an online survey tool or email. First, this study found that the majority of students had access to digital tools and the Internet; however, a small number struggled with weak and unreliable Internet connection. Most students had a moderate to high ability to use digital technology, but some encountered difficulties and required assistance. Most students utilised digital communication tools for over five hours daily. The study also found a general lack of digital competency among students and difficulties in using digital tools for remote learning, highlighting the importance of investing in the development of digital skills. The study also found an intensification of social relationships and an increase in communication frequency between students and instructors; however, inadequate instructor–student communication remained a challenge. Finally, the multiple linear regression model showed that indicators such as the communication dimension of the lessons and the participatory nature of the courses positively impacted the intensity of student communication after the transition to distance learning.

International audience; No abstract available

The polymer inclusion membranes (PIMs) containing Cellulose triacetate as polymer base, 2-NPOE as a plasticizer, and Calix[4]resorcinarene (RC8) as a carrier were prepared and characterized. Microstructure and surface of PIMs were characterized by scanning electron microscope, FTIR, UV/vis spectroscopy, and Thermogravimetric Analysis, respectively. In order to obtain information on the composition and interactions that may manifest between the constituents of the membrane. The PIMs were applied in the elimination of Methylene Blue (MB) dye from model solution as synthetic aqueous wastewater. Furthermore, the effects of different parameters such as internal and external PIMs environment on the transport performance of MB were also investigated. The results confirming that the content of the carrier and plasticizer in the membrane had a significant impact on the property of PIMs. The transport of dye was in line with the first-order kinetics equation. The highest flux value "8.88 × 10–7 mol.m−2 s−1" was obtained with a calix [4] resorcinarene as a transporter in polymer inclusion membrane at pH 11 in the feed and 0.3 M HCl in the stripping phase when MB initial concentration was 100 mg/L. The membrane has better stability under optimum conditions and maximum transport was observed after 30 h of permeation time.

يكتسي موضوع القيم الاجتماعية في حياة الأسرة الجزائرية أهمية بالغة تكمن في أثرها على تماسك النسيج الاجتماعي وانعكاس ذلك على استقرار الوطن وحفاظه على موروثه الثقافي، وهذا ما جعل من الموضوع محل دراسة متجدّدة من الباحثين في ميدان العلوم الإنسانية والاجتماعية بفروعها، وما زاده أهمية ارتباطه بتطورات مستمرة إلى يومنا هذا في مجال تكنولوجيات الإعلام والاتصال جعلت منه موضوعا يشغل مؤسسات المجتمع بشكل دائم، فكان ولا يزال بمثابة التحدّي الذي يحتاج إلى دراسة تساهم في البحث عن سبل الاستثمار في تلك التكنولوجيات الحديثة للحفاظ على القيم الاجتماعية والثقافية بدل الخوف من سلبيات ما يأتي عبر الأقمار الاصطناعية من قيم وثقافات معولمة. ومن هذا المنطلق حاولنا في هذا الموضوع البحث في هاته التحديات من منظور مزدوج يُلمّ بمتغيرات الموضوع لننتقل من 'فوبيا' الخوف والرّؤية السلبية لإفرازات التكنولوجيات الحديثة على النسيج الاجتماعي وقيم الأسرة الجزائرية إلى الرؤية الإيجابية وإمكانية الاستثمار فيها لتدعيم التماسك الاجتماعي.

The growth-survival paradigm predicts that year-class strength is determined by growth-dependent mortality during the larval stage. In Atlantic mackerel Scomber scombrus, the possibility that strong growth-dependent mortality extends into the early juvenile stage has not previously been tested because of the difficulty in sampling young-of-the-year (YOY) juveniles. The present study determined the timing of the ‘endpoint’ during the early ontogeny, when growth-selective mortality decreases and recruitment is set. We relied on regurgitations from one of the main predators of mackerel, the northern gannet Morus bassanus, as a source of YOY juveniles. Early growth trajectories of YOY mackerel were reconstructed from the otolith microstructure and were compared to those of 1-yr-old (OYO) juveniles from the same cohort for the year classes of 2015 and 2017. In both cohorts, the early growth trajectory of OYO fish was faster than that of YOY juveniles, indicating that growth-selective mortality extended beyond the larval stage. For the 2017 cohort, the comparison of larval growth trajectories between 2-mo-old YOY, 3mo-old YOY and OYO juveniles indicated that strong selection for fast growth persisted until the pre-wintering period, but that winter mortality likely did not play an important role in shaping year-class strength. These findings suggest that in Atlantic mackerel, the endpoint when the relative strength of cohorts is fixed occurs at the age of 3 mo. These results highlight the importance of considering growth-dependent mortality processes occurring beyond the larval stage to obtain a better understanding of causes of recruitment variability.

In our fieldwork, we frequently encountered forced migrants who articulate discourses that engage in the hierarchization, essentialization, and othering of other migrants. This led us to interrogat...

This paper is an exposition of some results on calculation of the K-functional which have number of applications of interpolation theory. In particular some recent problems in image processing and singular integral operators require the computation of suitable K-functionals. In this paper we will give some results concerning the equivalence of a K-functional and the modulus of smoothness constructed by the generalized Steklov function. We mention here that we have generalized the Steklov’s function for Fourier transform to quaternion linear canonical transform. This paper generalizes also Titchmarsh’s theorem for measurable sets from complex domain to hyper complex domain by using quaternion algebras, associated with the quaternion linear canonical transform.

This paper is based mainly on Titchmarsh’s theorem (Introduction to the theory of Fourier integrals. Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1937, Theorem 84) in the one-dimensional case. Abilov et al. (Comput Math Math Phys 48:2146, 2008) proved two useful estimates for the Fourier transform in the space of square integral multivariable functions on certain classes of functions characterized by the generalized continuity modulus, and these estimates are proved by Abilovs for only two variables, using a translation operator. The purpose of this paper is to study these estimates for Quaternion Fourier transforms, also the functions satisfy Lipschitz conditions of certain orders. Thus we study the Quaternion Fourier transforms of Lipschitz function in the functions space $$L^r({\mathbb {R}}^{2},{\mathcal {H}})$$, where $${\mathcal {H}}$$ a quaternion algebra which will be specified in due course.

Background: A mild increase in testicular and epididymal temperatures in men, bulls and rams (pendulous scrotum) inhibits spermatogenesis and increases the percentage of sperm with an abnormal morphology. However, the stages of spermatogenesis that are most sensitive to a mild increase in testicular temperature in men are unknown. The aim of the present study was to explore the effects of a mild induced increase in testicular and epididymal temperature (i.e., testicular temperature maintained below the core body temperature) on sperm morphology in humans depending on the physiological time of spermatogenesis and epididymal transit. Methods: Five healthy volunteers were enrolled in an experimental study in which testicular and epididymal temperatures were increased by maintaining the testes in a supra-scrotal position with a specially designed underwear worn 15±1 h a day for 120 consecutive days. Semen collection was scheduled on specific days depending on spermatogenic stages and epididymal transit. Results: Sperm morphology and the multiple anomalies index (MAI) were analysed before, during and after heating. This mild induced increase in testicular and epididymal temperatures resulted in a significant rise in the percentage of morphologically abnormal spermatozoa on day 34 of heating, which remained elevated throughout the heating period and persisted until 45 days after cessation of heating. The MAI was significantly increased on day 20 throughout the heating period and persisted 45 days after cessation of heating. An increase in the percentage of anomalies in the sperm head, acrosome or tail occurred on days 34 and/or 45 of heating. Abnormal sperm morphology and MAI reverted to control values 73 days after cessation of heating. Conclusions: A mild sustained increase in testicular and epididymal temperature in man leads morphological abnormalities in spermatozoa mainly due to an impairment of spermiogenesis and meiosis.

Background Congenital unilateral absence of vas deferens has been diagnosed in fertile and normozoospermic males and is associated with the risk of unilateral renal absence or cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator mutations; but no prediction model currently exists to diagnose this condition. Objectives The study aims to identify clinical and biological variables that may have a predictive value for the diagnosis of congenital unilateral absence of vas deferens in male partners of infertile couples MATERIALS AND METHODS: We designed a retrospective, cross-sectional, case-control study on electronic health records of a single tertiary-care andrological centre collected between 1998 and 2018. We included all subjects diagnosed with congenital unilateral absence of vas deferens using combined scrotal and transrectal ultrasounds. Controls were confirmed free of congenital unilateral absence of vas deferens by the same way. Both groups received standardised exploration procedures. Multivariable logistic regression model was built in a backward stepwise manner. Model performance and calibration were assessed. The study is reported according to TRIPOD statement. Results We included 69 congenital unilateral absence of vas deferens cases and 78 controls. Cases had a lower semen volume than controls. The congenital unilateral absence of vas deferens risk was associated with history of cryptorchidism and both levels of semen fructose and α-glucosidase. These predictors were confirmed by a random forest algorithm. The area under the curve was 0.886 (95% interval: 0.81-0.92). Calibration was performed with the Hosmer-Lemeshow test (p = 0.88). Discussion and conclusion History of cryptorchidism, semen fructose and α-glucosidase were identified as relevant and independent predictors for the diagnosis of congenital unilateral absence of vas deferens. The model enables to identify male patients with a high risk of congenital unilateral absence of vas deferens to whom a transrectal ultrasounds would be proposed to confirm the diagnosis, whatever their semen parameters. It will also help to address the risks of unilateral renal absence and of cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator mutations carrying during the management of infertile couples.

The (right-sided) quaternion Fourier transform satisfies some uncertainty principles in a similar way to the Euclidean Fourier transform. Donoho–Stark’s uncertainty principle is obtained for the quaternion Fourier transform.

Context Abnormalities in the hypothalamo–pituitary–gonadal axis have long been reported in Noonan syndrome (NS) males with only few data available in prepubertal children. Objective The aim of this study was to describe the gonadal function of NS males from childhood to adulthood. Design It is a retrospective chart review. Patients and methods A total of 37 males with a genetically confirmed diagnosis of NS were included. Clinical and genetic features, as well as serum hormone levels (LH, FSH, testosterone, anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH), and inhibin B) were analysed. Results Of the 37 patients, 16 (43%) children had entered puberty at a median age of 13.5 years (range: 11.4–15.0 years); age at pubertal onset was negatively correlated with BMI SDS (r = −0.541; P = 0.022). In pubertal boys, testosterone levels were normal suggesting a normal Leydig cell function. In contrast, NS patients had significant lower levels of AMH (mean SDS: −0.6 ± 1.1; P = 0.003) and inhibin B (mean SDS: −1.1 ± 1.2; P NS-PTPN11 patients, whereas these markers did not differ from healthy children in SOS1 patients. No difference was found between cryptorchid and non-cryptorchid patients for AMH and inhibin B levels (P = 0.43 and 0.62 respectively). Four NS-PTPN11 patients had a severe primary hypogonadism with azoospermia/cryptozoospermia. Conclusions NS males display Sertoli cell-specific primary testicular insufficiency, whereas Leydig cell function seems to be unaffected.

In this paper, we examine the order of magnitude of the octonion Fourier transform (OFT) for real-valued functions of three variables and satisfiying certain Lipschitz conditions. In addition, using the analog of the operator Steklov, we construct the generalized modulus of smoothness, and also using the Laplacian operator we define the K-functional. We use the octonion Fourier transform (OFT) of real-valued functions of three variables to prove the equivalence between K-functionals and modulus of smoothness in the space of square-integrable functions (in Lebesgue sense).

The level of funding available for research and development (R&D) of diagnostics (D) and therapeutics (T) for incurable diseases varies and is not associated with the extent of their disease burden. Crowdfunding is a promising way to increase funding for R&D of D&T for underfunded incurable diseases, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease, which has not been exploited to its full capacity. Investing into efforts to educate patients and researchers about its prospective is a worthwhile endeavor, which could lead to the generation of substantial new capital to finance the development of novel therapeutics for these diseases.

In this present work, we generalize Titchmarsh’s theorem for the complex- or hypercomplex-valued functions. Firstly, we examine the order of magnitude of the windowed linear canonical transform (WLCT) of complex-valued functions that achieved certain Lipschitz conditions on $${\mathbb {R}}$$ . Secondly, we studied the order of magnitude of the 2-D continuous quaternion wavelet transform (CQWT) of certain quaternionic valued Lipschitz functions.

In this chapter, we share our reflections about the fieldwork that they conducted in October 2018 in Jordan’s Azraq camp for Syrian refugees. The research project was initially designed to conduct qualitative in-depth interviews with Syrian refugees in order to collect testimonies of their personal experiences of Daesh’s modes of governance in the territories they conquered between 2013 and 2017. However, the difficult-to-research characteristic of our topic triggered our interviewees’ reluctance to participate in the interviews, which drove us to considerably re-orient our research towards examining living conditions in the camp. We integrated this important development in a deeper reflection on refugees’ vulnerability and strategies to mitigate them in the particular spatial layout of the Azraq camp. We share here our experience of accessing the camp and inserting ourselves in a network of power relations that involves the camp as a space for mobility control, the managing staff, and the residents with their social practices, vulnerabilities, and attempts at recovering their spatial agency.

En Tunisie, des politiques récentes cherchent à mettre en place une participation effective des populations rurales à la formulation de plans territoriaux de développement intégrant des dimensions économiques, sociales et environnementales. Le programme PACTE expérimente une démarche pilote pour mettre en oeuvre cette participation dans six zones rurales, grâce à la constitution de comités de territoire. Pour préparer le travail de chaque comité, des habitants ont participé à la réalisation d’un diagnostic de leur territoire pour identifier les principaux enjeux de développement. Ensuite, ils ont formulé des propositions d’action pour répondre à ces enjeux, verbalement lors d’ateliers et, en dehors des ateliers, en utilisant des fiches mises à leur disposition puis collectées. L’article analyse les actions proposées par des habitants d’une zone d’intervention située dans le gouvernorat du Kef. L’analyse porte sur : i) les finalités de ces actions, à savoir dans quelle mesure ces actions répondent aux enjeux identifiés ; et 2) les caractéristiques de ces actions, notamment leur dimension individuelle ou collective et leur degré d’innovation. L’analyse est basée sur les comptes rendus des ateliers, les fiches de propositions d’actions collectées, et des entretiens auprès de membres d’institutions publiques de développement. Les actions proposées par les habitants couvrent l’essentiel des enjeux identifiés au cours des ateliers. Parmi les fiches remplies, ces habitants donnent la priorité à des actions individuelles et génératrices de revenu et, en particulier, à des activités qu’ils pratiquent déjà. Lors des ateliers, les participants ont envisagé des actions plus diverses, parfois innovantes, et plus souvent de nature collective. L’analyse proposée ici a permis d’identifier des opportunités pour la production de connaissances communes entre les futurs membres des comités de territoire, et entre eux et les membres des institutions publiques de développement. Le projet PACTE constitue une expérience innovante de mise en oeuvre d’une démarche participative à grande échelle pour le diagnostic territorial et la formulation de proposition d’action en zone rurale au Maghreb. La réflexion sur les méthodes et moyens à utiliser pour permettre cette participation est un chantier sur lequel il sera important de continuer à avancer dans les années à venir.

Forced migration is often viewed as a linear movement out of danger into safety. This is empirically inaccurate because migration is in itself an extremely violent process. Moreover, migration and asylum political agendas in many reception countries are often confined to the logic of deterrence and containment instead of addressing the vulnerabilities of forced migrants. While previous efforts to address this, such as measures taken by issuing the Nansen passports or adopting creative means of integrating refugees in Uganda have been pioneering, there is no global effort to address this situation for these millions of refugees. This chapter approaches the problem through a designerly lens with a view to offering a creative, innovative, and humane solution. Borrowing concepts from Design Thinking, it examines the idea and implications of collectivised protection schemes in order to decrease migrants’ vulnerabilities. More precisely, it discusses the feasibility of abandoning the case-by-case review of asylum application that is currently implemented by Refugee Convention signatory states and replace it with collectivised delivery of the refugee status to specific communities that were displaced. Aware of the objections to such an approach, the intention of this chapter is to start a political, ethical, and legal discussion about the current state of the refugee determination process and the vulnerabilisation of forced migrants.

Inadequate living conditions in collective accommodation centres for refugees and asylum seekers—such as issues of overcrowding, privacy, or segregation—have negative consequences for the health and well-being of the residents and can lead to accumulated experiences of violence. We borrow from psychoanalytic, feminist, and existential theories and argue how these experiences can engender vulnerability. However, we also underline that refugees and asylum seekers should not be considered vulnerable per se. People who fled from the Middle East and North Africa to Europe against all odds, and who are confronted with completely new and unfamiliar experiences in the resettlement country possess tremendous strength and power. We rather point to structural forces that contribute to the vulnerabilisation of refugees and asylum seekers. We focus on the context of refugee accommodation and emphasise how structures and processes deem refugees and asylum seekers vulnerable and can disturb their sense of emplacement. We support this by analysing women’s experiences in collective accommodation centres in Germany during the Covid-19 pandemic.

A serious lack of funding exists for the research and development (R&D) of therapeutics, diagnostics, and preventive measures for neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). Hence, crowdfunding to finance R&D for NTDs has high importance, because it is a new and alternate source of capital. This study explores current trends of crowdfunding for R&D for NTDs. Our study showed that, although the number of crowdfunding campaigns for NTDs has been increasing since 2010, crowdfunding overall has not reached its full potential. Several factors contributing positively to the success of crowdfunding campaigns were identified. These and the promotion of the crowdfunding ecosystem could aid the unlocking of its potential as a complementary financing source to conventional funding practices of R&D for NTDs.

Résumé CONTEXTE Malgré un usage ancien, ce n’est qu’en 1999 que l’OMS propose dans son manuel d’examen du sperme humain de doser plusieurs composés biochimiques du plasma séminal pour l’exploration fonctionnelles des glandes annexes. A la même période, un effort international s’organise pour standardiser les examens de laboratoires et augmenter leur performance avec l’accréditation selon la norme ISO 15189. Dans ce contexte, la participation des laboratoires aux programmes d’évaluation externe de la qualité (EEQ) est une exigence fondamentale. Afin de les aider à faire face à cette obligation, nous avons organisé un EEQ pour la biochimie séminale basé sur des échantillons commutables. Dans ce travail, nous souhaitons rapporter une vue globale sur l’offre analytique française, sur les méthodes de dosage utilisées et leurs performances. Nous évaluons également leur potentiel à répondre aux exigences de la norme concernant l’accréditation. RESULTATS Nous avons proposé entre 2014 et 2019 sept enquêtes. Une médiane de six laboratoires a répondu à chaque enquête, soit un ratio d’un laboratoire pour 11.2 millions d’habitants. Sept marqueurs séminaux sont dosés en routine mais un noyau dur de 4 marqueurs est partagé par tous les laboratoires: citrate, zinc (prostate), fructose (vésicules séminales) et α-1,4 glucosidase (épididyme). L’usage de méthodes marquées CE-IVD a concerné entre 0 et 75% de l’ensemble des dosages. Tous les laboratoires ont rendu des résultats de zinc dans les limites acceptables définies, 75% pour le citrate et α-1,4 glucosidase et 67% pour le fructose. En combinant toutes les données recueillies, nous avons construit un score qui a permis de classer le potentiel d’accréditation des marqueurs séminaux: l’accréditation du citrate, fructose et zinc ne devrait pas poser problème, l’ α-1,4 glucosidase présente une faiblesse analytique mais la phosphatase prostatique, la L-carnitine libre et la glycérophosphocholine ne sont pas accréditables en l’état actuel. Conclusion Nous avons organisé un programme d’EEQ de biochimie séminale pour aider les laboratoires français à répondre à l’exigence d’accréditation totale en 2020. Ce programme est. perfectible mais il a permis de révéler les forces et faiblesses de ce paysage analytique. Des méthodes sont disponibles pour une exploration biochimique efficiente de la prostate et des vésicules séminales mais celle des épididymes est apparue particulièrement fragile. Ce problème andrologique doit être pris en compte par les autorités sanitaires et les sociétés savantes concernées.

Objective Increased expression of soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase 1 (sFlt-1), associated with a decrease in placental growth factor (PlGF), plays a key role in the pathogenesis of preeclampsia (PE). We evaluated the prognostic value of the sFlt-1/PlGF ratio for the onset of adverse maternofetal outcomes (AMFO) in case of early-onset PE with attempted expectant management. Study Design From October 2016 through November 2018, all singleton pregnancies complicated by early-onset PE (before 34 weeks of gestation) were included in a cohort study. The plasma levels of sFlt-1 and PlGF were blindly measured on admission. For the statistical analysis, we performed a bivariate analysis, a comparison of the receiving operating characteristic curves and a survival analysis estimated by the Kaplan–Meier method. Results Among 109 early PE, AMFO occurred in 87 pregnancies (79.8%), mainly hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelet count syndrome and severe fetal heart rate abnormalities requiring urgent delivery. The area under the curve (AUC) of sFlt-1/PlGF ratio was 0.82 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.73–0.88) for the risk of AMFO and the difference between the AUCs was significant for each separate standard parameter (p = 0.018 for initial diastolic blood pressure, p = 0.013 for alanine aminotransferase, p Conclusion The sFlt-1/PlGF ratio is an additional tool in the prediction of AMFO in proven early-onset PE, which is likely to improve care by anticipating severe complications. Key Points

Additional file 3: Table S2. Scoring of seminal biomarkers according to EQA results. Table S3. Primary purposes of an EQA scheme.

Additional file 2: Table S1. Overview of the analytical methods used to assay seminal biomarkers for the surveys.

Additional file 1. Setting analytical performance specifications for seminal biomarkers according to the Milan consensus model 3.

International audience; More and more literature and practice recommend involving the public at the early stages of the policy cycle, i.e. issue identification, definition of the policy objectives and policy design. Policy design involves, among others, identifying solutions, ideas or alternatives which may address the policy objectives. Three main arguments are often put forward to advocate for the involvement of stakeholders, or the public, in policy design: a "user-centered " argument (i.e. for the policy to better meet people's priorities), an innovation argument (i.e. to conceive new solutions) and a collective argument (i.e. to identify collective actions and better tackle environmental problems). However, in both research and practice these arguments have been challenged. Research has insufficiently generated evidence of the influence of large-scale participation in policy design on resulting proposed actions. The objective of this paper is to analyze whether a large-scale participatory process leads to action proposals that fit people's priorities and that are innovative and collective. It draws from a land management and rural development policy design experiment conducted in six vulnerable areas of Tunisia. 4,300 direct participants were involved and 11,583 action proposals were collected. Our results highlight the influence of the local circumstances on innovation and the interest towards collective actions. Our results also show that whether policy design is made individually or in group influences the outcomes. The results also suggest that appropriate facilitation can help fostering more collective and innovative actions. We conclude the paper by opening up the idea of hybridizing policy design methods with methods from political and agricultural sciences in order to better understand the drivers and rationalities behind participants' action proposals.

The Weinstein transform satisfies some uncertainty principles in a similar way to the Euclidean Fourier transform. Donoho–Stark’s uncertainty principle is obtained for the Weinstein transform.