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For many years, economic growth has been one the main objectives of economies around the world. Recently, the central focus has diverted from the quantitative to the qualitative approach. Mainstream research acknowledged that institutional quality along with country risk is among the most significant factors that contribute to the achievement of high economic development rates. Country risk is associated with the probability that investors or companies from a certain country will face greater instability or losses and includes financial, economic, and political risks. Lower political risk ranks first in the category of main drives that enable countries to attract more foreign direct investments and allow markets to operate efficiently. This article examined the recent evolutions in terms of the concept and main antecedents of the political risks, considering the current negative disruptions that economies were forced to experience, covering aspects related to health, wars, and economic downturns. The analysis identified that a high political risk negatively impacts demographics, environment, and the health system. The ability of countries to bounce back and develop a strong resilient economy toward adverse shocks depends on the institutional quality and the effectiveness of policymakers, who are responsible for elaborating efficient economic policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Strongly affected by the Coronavirus pandemic, by the difficult recovery, with inflation, with discontinuities regarding the supply (supply chain issues), the international economy was more recently upset by the war and its effects, and also an energy crisis; in this context, when hostilities are still in full swing, it is difficult to quantify consequences, repercussions. However, one thing is clear - the country risk landscape is undergoing deep changes, the states neighboring the conflict are not the only ones affected, and global economic actors are facing totally unexpected challenges. Whether it is about Ukraine or Taiwan, or about other regions, one thing is clear - we are living in a conflict era, and the economic effects are deep and complex; the energy crisis has become a reality, and the recession is likely, despite a still high resilience. We therefore propose, in our short study, to highlight some aspects that, we certainly believe, will modify the country risk architecture and the subsequent approach to this concept. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Age is one of the strongest risk factors for the development of neurodegenerative diseases, the majority of which involve misfolded protein aggregates in the brain. These protein aggregates are thought to drive pathology and are attractive targets for the development of new therapies. However, it is unclear how age influences the onset of pathology and the accompanying molecular response. To address this knowledge gap, we used a model of seeded tau pathology to profile the transcriptomic changes in 3 and 12 month old mice in response to developing tau hyperphosphorylation and aggregation. First, we found the burden of hyperphosphorylated tau pathology in mice injected at 12 months of age was moderately reduced compared to animals injected at 3 months. On a molecular level, we found an inflammation‐related subset of genes, including C3 and the disease‐associated microglia genes Ctsd, Cst7, and Clec7a, were more expressed early in disease in 12 but not 3 month old mice. These findings provide evidence of an early, age‐specific response to tau pathology, which could serve as a marker for the severity of downstream pathology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Being indebted is a normal state. The difficulty arises, however, when the concept of indebtedness exceeds the chances and / or limits of the possibility of repayment. Over-indebtedness is identified when household incomes become insufficient to meet long-term commitments and payment obligations. Of course, the debtor becomes insolvent, despite the decline in living standards. The increased vulnerability to risk factors of monetary-financial shocks is associated with overindebtedness and is the basis of the ideas used in our historical-economic research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background The ventral midbrain contains a diverse array of neurons, including dopaminergic neurons of the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and substantia nigra (SN) and neurons of the red nucleus (RN). Dopaminergic and RN neurons have been shown to arise from ventral mesencephalic precursors that express Sonic Hedgehog (Shh). However, Shh expression, which is initially confined to the mesencephalic ventral midline, expands laterally and is then downregulated in the ventral midline. In contrast, expression of the Hedgehog target gene Gli1 initiates in the ventral midline prior to Shh expression, but after the onset of Shh expression it is expressed in precursors lateral to Shh-positive cells. Given these dynamic gene expression patterns, Shh and Gli1 expression could delineate different progenitor populations at distinct embryonic time points. Results We employed genetic inducible fate mapping (GIFM) to investigate whether precursors that express Shh (Shh-GIFM) or transduce Shh signaling (Gli1-GIFM) at different time points give rise to different ventral midbrain cell types. We find that precursors restricted to the ventral midline are labeled at embryonic day (E)7.5 with Gli1-GIFM, and with Shh-GIFM at E8.5. These precursors give rise to all subtypes of midbrain dopaminergic neurons and the anterior RN. A broader domain of progenitors that includes the ventral midline is marked with Gli1-GIFM at E8.5 and with Shh-GIFM at E9.5; these fate-mapped cells also contribute to all midbrain dopaminergic subtypes and to the entire RN. In contrast, a lateral progenitor domain that is labeled with Gli1-GIFM at E9.5 and with Shh-GIFM at E11.5 has a markedly reduced potential to give rise to the RN and to SN dopaminergic neurons, and preferentially gives rise to the ventral-medial VTA. In addition, cells derived from Shh- and Gli1-expressing progenitors located outside of the ventral midline give rise to astrocytes. Conclusions We define a ventral midbrain precursor map based on the timing of Gli1 and Shh expression, and suggest that the diversity of midbrain dopaminergic neurons is at least partially determined during their precursor stage when their medial-lateral position, differential gene expression and the time when they leave the ventricular zone influence their fate decisions.

In this paper, we aim to assess whether rationalism is a feature that usually accompanies the architecture and the evolution of financial and economic crisis. We find that, unfortunately, the lack of rationalism and pseudo-rationalism are the rule, not the exception, which created, and still do, the vulnerabilities of modern global economic systems. Once again, these shortcomings and limits of rationalism have negative effects. We found that the volatility of the present context is a pseudo-rationalist cause of the latest crisis which created social, political, military and economic turbulences. Moreover, the economic cycles were generated by the incompetence of political power and its legalized manifested corruption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Change consists in a noticeable transformation in time, which affects the structure or functioning of the social organization of a community, changing the course of its history. Without being allowed to induce delusions, change imposes development examples for our society, taking on the role of a modernizing agent. The purpose of the present paper is to provide an overview on the process of social modernization via economic, social, cultural and political structures of human communities and government forms, concluding with the fact that modernism is the movement that sets modernization in motion. Our conclusion is that modernism tries to “mask” decadence through innovation, but also considering ‘traditional’ as a reality and not disadvantage. Innovation is necessary as well in order to overcome limits of our past, but it cannot cancel traditions and neither does it have the moral rights to do so. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In his Republic, Plato advances the idea of the ideal state - founded on the classical virtues: wisdom, courage, caution, and justice. The search for the collective good (wellness) has since been a necessary benchmark in any government. But would such a structure be functional? This state would only be possible if the power was in the hands of the philosophers (as Plato said) - or if the governors would become philosophers. The subtle meaning of such an expression is that wise men should lead the state. From the classical antiquity until today, many have tried to materialize the classical virtues in a model state, called the ideal state, able to guarantee the harmonization of individual interests with social interests. But ... the ideal state can only be a beautiful utopia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The economic development of the society raised the awareness towards the need to explain the evolution of the economic process and phenomena, to formulate laws that govern the economic activity, and even more importantly the economic knowledge. How accurate do we perceive reality? A comprehensive answer to this question implies both economic and historical roots. On one hand, thinking economically compels our logical coordinates of the utilitarian arguments and, at the same time of avoiding consumerism. On the other hand, the history guides us through paths that offer identity to our present and future, despite the fact they have been already drawn in the past. The main purpose of this article is to highlight the importance of the relationship between the economic and historical argument in investigating the complexity of the contemporary economic system, these two research resources being an anchor that supports the reality in a more concrete way than each of them separately. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The "Great Depression" from 1929-1933 caused a series of negative effects upon the worldwide economies, which highlighted a wide range of shortcomings these economies were confronting long time ago. Romania had to face one of the most important sustainability tests in the history. The solutions elaborated by the economists of that time concentrated upon the development of recovery plans and the optimal use of the financial resources. One of the key sector taken into consideration was the banking system. The main purpose of this article is to present a short review considering the role of the bank credit, as an instrument in promoting economic growth and development, in the view of Mitită Constantinescu, the Governor of the Romanian National Bank between 1938 and 1939. As a man of state and of finance, Mitiţă Constantinescu tried to reorganize and modernize it, in order to respond to the specific needs of the society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Who is responsible for the financial crisis started in the U.S.A. in 2007, which then ravaged the whole world and has not ended even today? Can it be delimited? This paper attempts to provide several possible answers to these questions, generated by as many problems. And its motivation is simple: the contours of the future global economic recovery cannot do without the explanation of the crisis, and especially without the identification of its main responsible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]