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This study describes the features, manifestations and interrelationships of job stress, working capacity, professional performance and safety in loggers with a shift work organization in the North. This study involved 402 loggers. The research methods include questionnaires and psychophysiological diagnostics of stress and working capacity as well as questionnaires on the professional performance and safety of workers. The following statistical methods were used: correlation, multivariate dispersion and multi-regression stepwise analysis. It was found that the severity of stress, speed, accuracy and operator working capacity, as well as well-being, activity and mood in logging equipment operators, timber truck drivers and maintenance specialists statistically differ significantly. Higher professional stress and a more frequent decrease in professional performance are characteristic of truck drivers. Psychological and psychophysiological job stress and working capacity parameters are associated with the professional performance parameters of loggers. According to the results of a number of multi-regression analyses, the reduced professional performance markers of loggers include the index of stress, satiety, monotony and fatigue, vegetative balance and stress (method of M. Luscher and coefficients from G.A. Aminev), operator working capacity and reaction speed (CVMR). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highly diverse phages infecting thermophilic bacteria of the Thermus genus have been isolated over the years from hot springs around the world. Many of these phages are unique, rely on highly unusual developmental strategies, and encode novel enzymes. The variety of Thermus phages is clearly undersampled, as evidenced, for example, by a paucity of phage-matching spacers in Thermus CRISPR arrays. Using water samples collected from hot springs in the Kunashir Island from the Kuril archipelago and from the Tsaishi and Nokalakevi districts in the Republic of Georgia, we isolated several distinct phages infecting laboratory strains of Thermus thermophilus. Genomic sequence analysis of 11 phages revealed both close relatives of previously described Thermus phages isolated from geographically distant sites, as well as phages with very limited similarity to earlier isolates. Comparative analysis allowed us to predict several accessory phage genes whose products may be involved in host defense/interviral warfare, including a putative Type V CRISPR-cas system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Arctic is the high-latitude part of the Far North, including the land area and the Arctic Ocean marine environment within the exclusive economic zone of the Russian Federation. The importance of the Arctic issues is due to the fact that in the Russian Federation the formation and scientific rationale of priorities for the development of circumpolar territory are ones of the key objectives of Russia’s economic development. The study of various areas and problems of Arctic development shows the particularly crucial role of geography in the formulation and solution of national economic objectives. The role of geography is becoming increasingly important not only because of the huge impact of the geographical factor in the Far North and the Arctic, but also due to remarkable differentiation of natural and social conditions of economic activity. In recent decades, the natural and socio-economic environment in the Arctic has been undergoing rapid transformation. One example is climate change, which may have an impact on environmental management on a global scale. The purpose of the article is to demonstrate the current trends of climate change based on sources and to identify the impact of these processes on the processes of environmental management.

This article discusses the ways of creating a «smart city», as well as the positive and negative aspects of the impact of the introduction of smart city technologies on the realization of the human potential of the city of Moscow. In order to create a «smart city», it is necessary to follow the standards for its creation: human orientation, adaptability of urban infrastructure, improving the quality of urban resource management, comfortable and safe environment, emphasis on economic efficiency, including the service component of the urban environment. As a result, both possible prospects for the use of digital and «smart» technologies of the urban environment for the development of a person in career and personal aspects, as well as factors constraining this development associated with the digitalization of many economic processes were identified. As positive aspects of the influence of smart cities, trends such as the growth of individualism and the customization of the habitat in which a person lives, the expansion of the range of opportunities for independent action and self?development, etc. are highlighted. At the same time, the negative impact of the technologization of life in a smart city is also described. Also, the introduction of «smart technologies» is influenced by government programs. The conclusion is made about the discrepancy between the influence of a smart city on a person and the indisputability of its positive impact on the self–realization of residents. By leveraging technology to collect and analyze data, optimize energy consumption, and reduce waste and pollution, cities can meet the needs of their citizens while protecting the planet for future generations.

Post-concussive visually induced dizziness (VID), in which symptoms are provoked by exposure to complex visual motion, is associated with protracted recovery. Although vestibular rehabilitation therapy (VRT) is recommended to treat post-concussive dizziness, there is sparse literature reporting on specific VRT interventions treating VID. A consecutive series of 26 individuals referred for VRT post-concussion were retrospectively assessed for inclusion in this case series. Each participant underwent a combination of conventional VRT and a technology-enhanced visual desensitization home exercise program (HEP). Self-report and objective measures were recorded from initial and discharge therapy evaluations. Twenty-three individuals (mean age 23.1 ± 12.4) with post-concussive dizziness (mean 109 ± 56 days post-injury) and no evidence for peripheral vestibular dysfunction were included. Treatment duration averaged 6.9 ± 2.5 weeks. There were significant improvements in post-intervention on subjective and objective measures of dizziness and gait (p <.05). The response to intervention was independent of pre-injury migraine history but pre-injury depression/anxiety increased self-report of post-treatment anxiety. Concurrent treatment with medications did not influence response to treatment. The combination therapy intervention improved outcome measures consistent with VRT treatment outcomes in both concussion and non-traumatic vestibular conditions. Individuals referred for VRT post-concussion warrant assessment for VID and may benefit from the addition of technology-enhanced visual desensitization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Convergent clinical and neuroimaging evidence suggests that higher vestibular function is subserved by a distributed network including visuospatial, cognitive–affective, proprioceptive, and integrative brain regions. Clinical vestibular syndromes may perturb this network, resulting in deficits across a variety of functional domains. Here, we leverage structural and functional neuroimaging to characterize this extended network in healthy control participants and patients with post‐concussive vestibular dysfunction (PCVD). Then, 27 healthy control subjects (15 females) and 18 patients with subacute PCVD (12 female) were selected for participation. Eighty‐two regions of interest (network nodes) were identified based on previous publications, group‐wise differences in BOLD signal amplitude and connectivity, and multivariate pattern analysis on affective tests. Group‐specific "core" networks, as well as a "consensus" network comprised of connections common to all participants, were then generated based on probabilistic tractography and functional connectivity between the 82 nodes and subjected to analyses of node centrality and community structure. Whereas the consensus network was comprised of affective, integrative, and vestibular nodes, PCVD participants exhibited diminished integration and centrality among vestibular and affective nodes and increased centrality of visual, supplementary motor, and frontal and cingulate eye field nodes. Clinical outcomes, derived from dynamic posturography, were associated with approximately 62% of all connections but best predicted by amygdalar, prefrontal, and cingulate connectivity. No group‐wise differences in diffusion metrics or tractography were noted. These findings indicate that cognitive, affective, and proprioceptive substrates contribute to vestibular processing and performance and highlight the need to consider these domains during clinical diagnosis and treatment planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]