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Data compression combined with effective encryption is a common requirement of data storage and transmission. Low cost of these operations is often a high priority in order to increase transmission speed and reduce power usage. This requirement is crucial for battery-powered devices with limited resources, such as autonomous remote sensors or implants. Well-known and popular encryption techniques are frequently too expensive. This problem is on the increase as machine-to-machine communication and the Internet of Things are becoming a reality. Therefore, there is growing demand for finding trade-offs between security, cost and performance in lightweight cryptography. This article discusses asymmetric numeral systems— an innovative approach to entropy coding which can be used for compression with encryption. It provides a compression ratio comparable with arithmetic coding at a similar speed as Huffman coding; hence, this coding is starting to replace them in new compressors. Additionally, by perturbing its coding tables, the asymmetric numeral system makes it possible to simultaneously encrypt the encoded message at nearly no additional cost. The article introduces this approach and analyzes its security level. The basic application is reducing the number of rounds of some cipher used on ANS-compressed data, or completely removing an additional encryption layer when reaching a satisfactory protection level.

The research presented in this paper deals with issues related to the implementation of management and organizational innovations and their impact on the company’s competitiveness. The target group of the study are enterprises from the micro- small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) sector based in the Malopolska Voivodship, which in the years 2011-2014 were beneficiaries of the project “Transforming enterprises into intelligent organizations - advisory support for companies Malopolska Voivodship” implemented by The Rabka Region Development Foundation under the Operational Program Human Capital (POKL), Measure 8.1 - Development of employees and enterprises in the region, Sub-measure 8.1.1 - Supporting the development of professional qualifications and consulting for enterprises. The injection of knowledge from Mechanical engineering specialist and other specific areas of activity has a great impact in the development and modernization of the enterprises by introducing process, product, organizational or marketing innovations.

The objective of this study was to assess the potential of implementing GLOBAL. G.A.P. in bean-producing farms in the region of Talas in northern Kyrgyzstan. The assessment concerned the analysis of non-conformities with the GLOBAL G.A.P. standard in farms that had implemented the standard but had not been certified. The detailed objective was to identify critical areas in implementing said standard. To achieve the objective established, research was conducted in 2018. The research covered 112 farms that produce beans (local variety called ‘Łopatka’). Internal audits were carried out in the examined farms, in accordance with the checklist of the GLOBAL G.A.P. standard version 5.1. The results of the conducted research indicate that at the current level of agricultural development and awareness of farmers from Kyrgyzstan, implementation of the GLOBAL G.A.P. standard is going to be very difficult. Problems apply both to infrastructure and to producers’ mentality. Problems with infrastructure concern primarily the places to store plant protection products as well as mineral and organic fertilizers. Moreover, the identified non-conformities concerned adequate infrastructure serving for segregation and management of waste (both production waste and municipal waste). With respect to hygiene, problems concern both lack of sanitary infrastructure, as well as producers’ mentality associated with the need for maintaining hygiene. In most cases, the issue of the possibility of improving the condition of the environment within the farm’s premises is omitted. With respect to production technology, using organic and mineral fertilizers is problematic. In no case was water, soil or products analyzed, which is obligatory in the standard being discussed. A considerable problem in the area of the study is lack of support from government entities or companies dealing with efficient implementation of the standard. Effective development of the standard also depends on educating at the level of producers, inspectorate bodies, as well as on introducing quality management courses at individual education levels to the curriculum.

The aim of the study was to evaluate the content of Ni, Pb and Zn in the water and larvae of fish of the genus Atherinidae L., caught in three bays in the area of Sevastopol. The study was conducted in 2012 in the three bays in the area of Sevastopol: Galubaya, Omega and Karantinna. The results indicate that the content of all elements studied was at a higher level than that observed in the uncontaminated basins. The average concentration of Ni, Pb and Zn in water was respectively: 1.199; 14.62 and 64.32 μg · dm-3. The content of the elements studied in the examined fish larvae Atherinidae ranged from 6.413 to 19.65 mg Ni kg -1, from 1.749 to 5.393 mg Pb kg -1 and from 97.16 to 215.24 mg Zn kg-1.

Social media use is rapidly expanding in terms of frequency, duration, and the diversity of platforms available. Given evidence for associations between social media use, body image disturbances, and disordered eating it is important to identify potentially harmful aspects of social media use that could serve as intervention targets. This study surveyed two demographically diverse undergraduate student cohorts in 2015 and 2022 to compare patterns in social media use, body image, and disordered eating behaviors between samples, including as a function of the COVID-19 pandemic, and to test the hypothesized moderating role of specific content consumed in the association between social media use and maladaptive outcomes. Participants in 2022 reported greater body image disturbances, more frequent vomiting and laxative use, and more time spent on a greater number of social media accounts, with significantly greater use of image-based platforms such as Snapchat, TikTok, and YouTube. Moderated regression analyses suggest that type of content consumed, but not the amount of time spent on social media or diversity of platforms utilized, is associated with body image disturbances and disordered eating behaviors after controlling for gender and body mass index. Specifically, exposure to weight loss content was associated with lower body appreciation, greater fears of negative appearance evaluation, and more frequent binge eating. Contrary to initial hypotheses, exposure to body positivity/neutrality content did not have protective effects. Findings suggest that interventions targeting negative consequences of social media use should focus on addressing content consumed, rather than time spent on social media platforms., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors have no conflicts of interest/disclosures to report., (Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Craving is considered a key characteristic of diverse pathologies, but evidence suggests it may be a culture-bound construct. Almost 50% of American women crave chocolate specifically around the onset of menstruation. Research does not support popular accounts implicating physiological factors in menstrual chocolate craving etiology. We tested the novel hypothesis that greater menstrual craving prevalence in the U.S. is the product of internalized cultural norms. Women of diverse backgrounds (n = 275) reported on craving frequency and triggers and completed validated measures of acculturation. Foreign-born women were significantly less likely to endorse menstrual chocolate craving (17.3%), compared to women born to U.S.-born parents (32.7%, p = .03) and second generation immigrants (40.9%, p = .001). Second generation immigrant and foreign-born women endorsing menstrual chocolate craving reported significantly greater U.S. acculturation and lower identification with their native culture than non-menstrual cravers (all p < .001). Findings inform our understanding of food cravings, with important implications for the study of cravings in other domains.

Objective: Food cravings are common and have been implicated in eating-related pathology, including binge eating, bulimia nervosa, and unhealthy weight problems, but difficulties in defining and quantifying the phenomenon of craving are well documented. There has been an increase in focus on the study of cognitive mechanisms underlying craving, in particular the role of intrusive thoughts; however, existing craving measures fail to fully capture these aspects of the craving experience. The present study was designed to develop a psychometrically sound measure of the obsessive-compulsive aspects of food cravings., Methods: The proposed 14-item Obsessive Compulsive Eating Scale (OCES) is based on the existing and well-validated Obsessive Compulsive Drinking Scale, a self-report measure of obsessive thoughts about drinking and compulsive behaviors directed towards alcohol consumption. The OCES was administered to 224 respondents (57.4%, n = 128 women)., Results: Results of confirmatory factor analyses suggested a two-factorial structure of the OCES, which mirrors that of the Obsessive Compulsive Drinking Scale, on which it is based. The OCES had excellent internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.91) and demonstrated good convergent and criterion validity., Conclusions: The proposed OCES is a psychometrically sound addition to the body of measurements used to assess food cravings and their role in disordered eating patterns., (© 2016 The Obesity Society.)

Micro-thin-layer chromatography in two-dimensional (2D-mTLC) mode in normal- (NP) and reversed-phase (RP) systems by use of cyanopropyl-bonded stationary phases was applied to make fingerprints of 11 species of Mentha genus and two finished pharmaceutical products. Non-aqueous eluents were used in the NP systems. Mixtures of acetonitrile with water and methanol with water were used in the RP chromatographic systems. Optimization of one-dimensional systems was performed by determining RM vs. composition of mobile phase dependencies for standards occurring in various Mentha sp. On the basis of these dependencies, the most selective chromatographic systems for each run were chosen. Then most selective eluents were applied to optimize two-dimensional systems by creating RF in NP systems vs. RF in RP systems correlations. The best two-dimensional systems were chosen on the basis of R(2) values for RF vs. RF correlations (the lowest values of R(2) coefficients). The 2D-mTLC optimized systems were applied to separate phenolic compounds and make fingerprints of the examined plant materials., (© The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Seventy-three male and 68 female teenagers attending a VD clinic sponsored by Chicago Department of Health were surveyed to identify their reasons for visiting the clinic, symptoms experienced, and sources of VD information and referrals. Sex, previous VD history, and presenting symptoms were factors examined in the data analysis. More t han 75% of subjects visited the clinic without a previous VD history. The most frequently cited reason for seeking care for males was a suspected symptom of VD; whereas females' reasons were diversified. Unusual discharge and burning urination were common symptoms reported for both sexes. The chief source of VD information for all teenagers was friends. Mass media was reported as an important source of information for males, while females frequently cited health care personnel. Verereal disease symptoms, location of clinics, and awareness of the importance of early treatment emerged as important elements of VD education. The study suggested that the dissemination of VD information was more effective when a personal approach was utilized for both males and females. For early casefinding and treatment of VD, a personal approach seemed to play a key role in motivating the teenagers to seek health care.