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This paper explores the pivotal role of non-state actors in Albania's European integration process, focusing on Albania as a candidate for EU membership. The aim is to assess how various non-state actors in Albania, including civil society organizations (CSOs), think tanks, businesses, and grassroots movements, have influenced and can further influence the country's path towards EU integration. Key findings emphasize the importance of transparency, accountability, and fairness in fostering trust among CSOs, politicians, and stakeholders. The study highlights the necessity for enhanced collaboration between local and central governments, institutions, and CSOs to streamline the integration process. Creating an inclusive environment where diverse voices are considered is identified as a crucial factor for successful collaboration. The paper also stresses the importance of regular information exchange and consultation between governments and CSOs. Sustainable and transparent financing mechanisms are deemed essential for CSOs' effectiveness, with recommendations for dedicated funds and improved financial transparency. Capacity-building support is acknowledged as vital for CSOs' continued positive impact on Albania's EU accession. The thesis advocates for investment in training and specialized courses to enhance CSOs' capabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Balancing exploration and anti-predation are fundamental to the fitness and survival of all animal species from early life stages. How these basic survival instincts drive learning remains poorly understood. Here, using a light/dark preference paradigm with well-controlled luminance history and constant visual surrounding in larval zebrafish, we analyzed intra- and intertrial dynamics for two behavioral components, dark avoidance and center avoidance. We uncover that larval zebrafish display short-term learning of dark avoidance with initial sensitization followed by habituation; they also exhibit long-term learning that is sensitive to trial interval length. We further show that such stereotyped learning patterns is stimulus-specific, as they are not observed for center avoidance. Finally, we demonstrate at individual levels that long-term learning is under homeostatic control. Together, our work has established a novel paradigm to understand learning, uncovered sequential sensitization and habituation, and demonstrated stimulus specificity, individuality, as well as dynamicity in learning.

The use of an unmanned aerial system (UAS) in construction project management (CPM) is an emerging methodology aimed at improving the performance of project management practices. Despite the different functions that an UAS offers, which are well covered in various sources ranging from isolated exploratory works to ad hoc case studies, construction practitioners still demonstrate little interest in UAS technology. The underwhelming interest is rooted in a lack of an understanding of the value of the data collected using UASs and their potential to enrich Building Information Modelling (BIM). This research presents the details of the UAS developed to check the accuracy of work performed, along with the generation of the corresponding progress payment reports as well as referencing and tracking information in real time, for a residential project. This study also discusses combining the data generated from the UAS and 5D BIM to develop a smart construction site. The UAS–BIM combination enables the project stakeholders to be fully informed of the work's progress and quality to avoid mistakes that could lead to extra costs and delays. The paper identified the main obstacles to applying the UAS via interviews with the project managers and tradespersons involved in the selected project. Assuredly, a digital culture is essential for a smart construction site to shift the project team from a passive data user to a more proactive analyzer to improve performance and site safety. Other obstacles include ethical reservations, legal requirements, liability risks, weather conditions, and the continuation of using an UAS in non-open-air construction environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper summarizes the activities of the Web Archiving Department of the National Széchényi Library in 2021 in four main fields: archive expansion and enrichment, technological development, knowledge dissemination and cooperation. The author describes the growth of the collection in terms of quantity, topic and genre; briefly presents the archiving and displaying software tested in the past year; lists the various forms of knowledge transfer related to preserving online content; and gives a progress report on the state of cooperation with domestic and foreign institutions and organisations, including the contract signed with the Internet Archive at the end of the year. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Between 2016 and 2019, I accompanied four student groups on the Camino de Santiago - however the planned 2020 project was cancelled due to the coronavirus epidemic. In this article, I describe the project, its planning, its implementation, and its conclusion, as well as some experiences and impressions of the participating students on the basis of an ethnographical approach. The projects presented have two objectives: on the one hand, to teach the students qualitative and quantitative research methods in a delimited, protected environment, and on the other hand, to introduce the students to the fascination of pilgrimage and the Camino de Santiago. During the four years, 45 students of different disciplines from BSP Business School Berlin and its partner universities in Berlin and Hamburg, participated in the projects. Although this paper can be used as a kind of instruction manual for student projects on the Camino de Santiago, it represents above all a work-in-progress that continually needs to be improved and adapted. I encourage other university teachers to embark on the Camino de Santiago with their students. It can be an enriching, valuable, and sometimes life-changing experience for all participants.

Changes in hematological parameters due to diabetes are reflected in changes in whole blood viscosity (WBV). Understanding the impact of diabetes and its cardiovascular disease (CVD) complications can provide substantiation of how laboratory tests for WBV are useful to monitor the progression and treatment. The review examines research work done in the past 20 years to provide a framework for the present agenda. This was a narrative review that followed the standard Scale for the Assessment of Narrative Review Articles (SANRA) approach. It includes both conceptual and empirical reviews. WBV was appraised in the context of bibliographic research on diabetes and other related factors such as metabolic syndrome (MetS) and oxidative stress. The association of abnormal erythrocytes as well as the relationship between WBV and MetS is established. Changes in diabetes that contribute to the development of diabetic cardiovascular complications occur through the pathway of WBV physiology. However, longitudinal analysis is very limited. There is a dearth of longitudinal study data on WBV in diabetes management. This lack of data justifies a need for further studies, especially prospective and retrospective analysis, to investigate the prevalence of diabetes mellitus about the prevalence of cardiovascular complications indices, especially estimated WBV (eWBV) between periods and within cohorts., Competing Interests: Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services info: All authors have declared that no financial support was received from any organization for the submitted work. Financial relationships: All authors have declared that they have no financial relationships at present or within the previous three years with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work. Other relationships: All authors have declared that there are no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work., (Copyright © 2024, Mbah et al.)

Between 2016 and 2019, I accompanied four student groups on the Camino de Santiago - however the planned 2020 project was cancelled due to the coronavirus epidemic. In this article, I describe the project, its planning, its implementation, and its conclusion, as well as some experiences and impressions of the participating students on the basis of an ethnographical approach. The projects presented have two objectives: on the one hand, to teach the students qualitative and quantitative research methods in a delimited, protected environment, and on the other hand, to introduce the students to the fascination of pilgrimage and the Camino de Santiago. During the four years, 45 students of different disciplines from BSP Business School Berlin and its partner universities in Berlin and Hamburg, participated in the projects. Although this paper can be used as a kind of instruction manual for student projects on the Camino de Santiago, it represents above all a workin-progress that continually needs to be improved and adapted. I encourage other university teachers to embark on the Camino de Santiago with their students. It can be an enriching, valuable, and sometimes life-changing experience for all participants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present editorial 2020 continues the series of status reports in Environmental Earth Sciences (EES) in previous years 2017 and 2019 (Kolditz et al. in Environ Earth Sci 77: 8, 2018, Kolditz et al. in Environ Earth Sci 79: 11, 2020). The year 2020 coming to an end was heavily influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic affecting all areas of life including research work and, therefore, scientific publishing as well ("Introduction"). One bright spot which shows longevity of journals that produce a quality product is that Environmental Earth Sciences (EES) is celebrating its 45th anniversary of publication. To this extent EES continues the tradition to honor the most cited papers contributing to the 2020 Impact Factor (IF) ("Highly and most cited topics") and provide information on the current status of EES as well as an outlook to 2021 ("Progress report") [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Studia Luridica Montenegrina is the property of University of Donja Gorica, Faculty of Legal Sciences 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 abstract 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 abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This editorial provides a follow-up to the status report in Environmental Earth Sciences (EES) of 2017. It includes the refined aims and scope of the journal (see "Scope and shape"), honors the most cited papers contributing to the 2019 impact factor (IF) (see Most cited topics and papers), and provides information on the current status of EES (see "Progress report"). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]