Acquiring unpublished population documents in Africa: a personal experience

Acquiring both published and unpublished documents produced in Africa is, generally, a difficult task due to the existing poor state of bibliographic control and the publishing industry. It is even more difficult to obtain unpublished documents in a specialized area of study such as demography--a diffuse area which cuts across several disciplines. This paper discusses the problems encountered on acquisition trips to some African countries to acquire unpublished population material. To help solve the problems, the Population Association of Africa must persuade its members to send copies of their publications to population libraries and documentation centers in their individual countries for dissemination to the other users in Africa. The various organizations and institutions in Africa engaged in the teaching and research of population studies should have an agreement to exchange copies of their theses. The Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the Organization of African Unity (OAU) should make representations to the various African member countries on the need to disseminate the results of vital censuses and surveys conducted. Finally, the Population Information Network for Africa (POPIN-AFRICA) with its coordinating unit at the population division of ECA should ensure that all the nodes of the network have the financial and other resources to be able to acquire the relevant documents needed for their operations.     

An Exploratory Factor Analysis of the Brief COPE with a Sample of Kenyan Caregivers

Given the high prevalence of HIV/AIDS in Kenya, more Kenyans now find themselves in the role of informal caregiver for a family member or multiple family members living with HIV/AIDS. However, there exists little research on how these individuals cope. The present study explores coping responses among caregivers for family members living with HIV/AIDS in Kenya. An exploratory factor analysis of the Brief COPE yielded five factors, with strong loadings on Emotional Support and Instrumental Support. Implications for using the Brief COPE in research and clinical practice among Kenyans are discussed.     

Fermion number fractionization

Solitons emerge as non-perturbative solutions of non-linear wave equations in classical and quantum theories. These are non-dispersive and localised packets of energy — remarkable properties for solutions of non-linear differential equations. In the presence of such objects, the solutions of Dirac equation lead to the curious phenomenon of ‘fractional fermion number’. Under normal conditions the fermion number takes strictly integral values. In this article, we describe this accidental discovery and its manifestation in polyacetylene chains, which has led to the development of organic conductors. (left) Kumar Rao is a Postdoctoral Fellow at PRL, Ahmedabad. He is interested in particle physics phenomenology as probed in particle colliders and formal aspects of quantum field theory. (right) Narendra Sahu is currently a postdoctoral fellow at Lancaster University, UK. His main research area includes Cosmology and Astroparticle physics. Currently he is working on dark matter and matter anti-matter asymmetry of the universe. (center) P K Panigrahi’s research interests are in the area of quantum computation, solitons in Bose Einstein condensates & nonlinear optical media. He is also deeply interested in science education and derives pleasure from long weekend walks.     

The Changing Role of Sports in Urban Development: A Case Study of Debrecen (Hungary)

In the last few decades, researchers are paying more and more attention to study the connections between sports and urban development. The main purpose of this study is to examine the changing role of sports in urban development through the example of Debrecen and to present the differences between the various historical periods. As a result, it can be concluded that on the one hand, in the inter-war years and in the period after 2000, the broader influence of sports was recognised, and local government made special efforts to use sports for the development of local economy, as well as for the improvement of the image of the city. By contrast, in the period between 1945 and 1990, the main approach used was from the side of mass sports, with satisfying the needs of workers and the general population deemed as the most important. On the other hand, from the early 1930s, i.e. from the beginning of urban planning (with the exception of the period during World War II and the 1950s), the leaders of the city paid special attention to ensure that sports facilities be included in the local development plans of Debrecen.     

Green roofs for storm water management: a review

The rapid urbanization and industrialization involve an unsustainable use of natural systems,leading to various problems in cities.The urban hydrological system experiences fluctuating amount of surfac...     

Educational Support for Saudi Students with Learning Disabilities in Higher Education

Disability laws in Saudi Arabia mandate that higher education institutions provide support for special needs learners in order to ensure educational opportunities equivalent to opportunities for their nondisabled peers. These institutions experience challenges, however, in providing the necessary support to undergraduate and postgraduate students with learning disabilities (LDs). We conducted an exploratory study to assess educational support requirements and affordances for undergraduate and postgraduate students with LDs attending institutions of higher education in Saudi Arabia. We completed semistructured interviews with 22 special needs learners diagnosed with a LD (16 undergraduate and six postgraduate). The findings suggest that additional support services are needed for undergraduate and postgraduate students with LDs attending Saudi institutions of higher education.     

The Socio-Cultural Image of Childhood (Based on an Analysis of Soviet and Russian Feature Films about Children)

The current state of childhood research is grounded in classical psychological theories, and Russian psychology is tied to cultural and historical theory in particular. These theories were invented to generalize and make sense of the realities of childhood as they existed at the time when these theories were created. Rapid social changes, especially during recent decades, have led to the emergence of a wide range of sources that bear witness to how the day-to-day life of childhood has changed. The understanding of childhood has continued to transform from one era to another. A metaphor was even coined to describe it, and at some point there was even a specific metaphor coined, “the disappearance of childhood.” This article seeks to explore how the image of childhood has changed in relation to the image of adulthood. As material for analysis, we chose Soviet and Russian movies from the 1940s to 2000s. The study is based on the assumption that a sequential analysis based on Yuri Lotman’s theory of the structure of the text demonstrates how the image of childhood changes over time. If in the 1940s and 1950s the child was presented as immature and not quite grown up, the adult was portrayed as the embodiment of the ideal form of the individual, and the main conflict was structured around childish immaturity, then gradually over the decades more and more main characters who were children and adults were portrayed as different kinds of individuals, and the child (or teenager) sometimes came to embody obviously negative features. The child–adult dichotomy itself lost its significance.