Chronic dermatophytosis: A clinical, epidemiological, mycological study

Background: Dermatophytes are a common cause of superficial fungal infection of the skin. The emergence of epidemic-like attacks of those chronic and recurring represents a public health problem. Materials and Methods: Two hundred patients with suspected fungal infection of the skin attending the Dermatology and Venereology Department of Al-Ramadi Teaching Hospital were examined. Fifty-nine patients with chronic dermatophytosis were selected for the study and fifty of those were subjected for culture. History taking and a physical examination were conducted for all patients. A wet mount of 10% potassium hydroxide and culture on Sabouraud dextrose agar was done for selected cases. Results: Among 59 patients with chronic infections, the main age group affected was 29 years old, with a nearly equal sex ratio. The mean duration of the illness was 1.2 years. Tinea corporis was the most common type. The Trichophyton genera were the most common (65%), and Trichophyton mentagrophyte was the most common species isolated (46%). Conclusion: Multiple factors have been associated with the appearance of epidemic-like attacks of chronic dermatophyte infections in Iraq in the last several years. Herein, we would like to shed light on these factors and the pathogens responsible.

Virtual internationalization as a new form of communication between university and foreign students during the global pandemic

This article introduces an original methodological approach to determining and creating mental images of the university and the region in which it is located for foreign students and enrollees. This approach is based on methodology of determining cultural artifacts, concepts and constants that may become the base for the digital visualization of the region’s (in which the university is located) cultural environment. Mental images created using this methodology are the foundation for the new form of communication that is the basis of the “virtual internationalization”. In the article we justify the idea that in the process of globalization - that was heavily influenced by the pandemic – universities can provide unique experiences in exploring culture, history and everyday life of a foreign country or a different region. It is this very experience that motivates enrollees in their choice of studying at a foreign university, and this is why it can be considered the driving force of internationalization, the importance of which for the university’s reputation is not diminished by the pandemic.

The Attraction of Literary Local Lore Material and Information from the Native Literature of Students in the Study of A.M. Gorky

The problem of perceiving fiction has aesthetic, sociological, historical and psychological aspects. In this regard, in the methodology of teaching Russian literature to the national audience, special attention is paid to the deep, faithful and subtle reproduction of the literary works of writers, the development of the reader’s talent. Fiction as a form of art is a special area of the aesthetic. In a truly fictional work, all its elements are subordinate to the expression of a certain content, expressive, figurative, therefore, the reader’s understanding of a literary work is not only aesthetic, but also evaluative in nature. There are three stages of students’ perception of the writer’s creation: 1) recreation and experience of images of the work, with the leading process of imagination; 2) understanding of the ideological content; V.G. Belinsky called this stage “true pleasure”; 3) the influence of fiction on the personality of the reader as a result of the perception of the work. Fiction affects the worldview, speech, moral behavior in society, aesthetic and artistic development, in general, the formation of a person’s personality. The teacher tries to ensure that students have the necessary knowledge, developed, recreational imagination, emotional sensitivity, a sense of the poetic word, observation, the ability to make comparisons, comparisons, generalizations, conclusions. Their perception of a work of art is a difficult process that directly depends on previous knowledge of literature, facts of the history of culture, history of society. The complexity of the spiritual world of a modern young person is due to the development of personality in the context of the rapid progress of society. All this poses a difficult task for methodological science - to diversify the means of analysis, its types and techniques, effective ways of influencing art on students. In the national audience, the main problem of studying Russian literature - the teacher needs to reveal Russian-national literary ties with specific examples, based on certain historical conditions, national specifics, use translations of the works of the Russian writer into the native language of students, literary local history material, highlight the attitude of cultural figures of the native people to the work of the Russian writer, to his personality.

The inventory of Michael Meyer’s property (1758) as a reflection of a Tallinn (Reval) merchant’s material world during the Age of the Enlightenment

The inventory of Tallinn merchant Michael Meyer’s (1704–1758) property is one of the largest inventories of an 18th century citizen of Tallinn. Almost the entire world of his possessions is reflected in this unique source. The inventory provides a comprehensive picture of his success, lifestyle, and hobbies, and the diverse list of household items provides a good idea of a prosperous merchant’s home in northeast Europe in the 18th century. The unique body of sources (Michael Meyer’s will, property inventory, and auction reports) provides comprehensive insight into the development of Tallinn’s material culture, i.e., the material culture history of Northern Europe, during the century of Enlightenment.

The virtual cultural tourist: Film-induced tourism and Kubo and the Two Strings

Over the past two decades, there has been growing research in film-induced tourism. Much of this research is focused on how film influences tourist destination choices. There has been less emphasis, however, on the nature and types of movies that may induce this attraction to such locations. By examining Kubo and the Two Strings (Knight, 2016), a stop-motion animation produced by Laika Studios, this paper aims to apply film studies to explore current understandings of film-induced tourism. This paper argues that Kubo is itself a form of film-induced tourism by positioning the viewer as a virtual cultural tourist whose cinematic experience may be likened to a veritable media pilgrimage through Japanese culture, history and aesthetics. The movie introduces the viewer into an imagined world that borrows from origami, Nō theatre, shamisen music, obon rituals and Japanese symbolism, philosophy and mythology. The resulting pastiche is a constructed diorama that is as transnational and postmodern as it is authentic and indigenous.

Nurturing Islamic and Socio-political Thoughts in Riau and Beyond: Exploring Raja Ali Haji’s Works

Raja Ali Haji is best-known as the author of the famous poem "Gurindam Dua Belas", even though he authored some other important poetries and proses that are often overlooked. In fact, he wrote a vast number of subjects in a variety of literary genres ranging from culture, history, politics, and jurisprudence to language. While other researchers such as Junus, Putten, Andaya, and Syam, have been concerned mainly with his works on culture, history, language, and jurisprudence, this study explores his works on Islamic and socio-political thoughts. Employing content analysis of relevant manuscripts and books, this study finds that Raja Ali Haji played various roles including as a religious scholar and a political thinker who synthesized culture and politics with Islam and whose thoughts have been extensively influential, mainly in Riau and beyond. This finding weakens the earlier assumption that Al-Mawardi political thoughts were more influential in the Malay world.

Urban Riverscapes: Reconnecting Urban Environments With the River Landscape

<p>Water is a fundamental component of New Zealand’s landscape, culture, history and identity. It is moving, changing form, accumulating and dispersing, it is ever changing never in the same context twice. Rivers are a single representation of this process in which we experience water in the landscape. New Zealand has beautiful and intense water ways that pass through urban environments, yet due to the flood protection measures in place, they are disconnected from the urban environment. They are difficult to access and do not hold a presence in our growing urban environment which they once had significance in. Stopbanks are the most common form of river flood protection infrastructure in New Zealand. They treat the river as a static element without giving them the space to move, flood and meander. They create a physical barrier between the urban environment and river space and do not respond to the differences of rivers and urban environments. Growing urbanisation is increasing the pressure on stormwater infrastructure and growing the risk and effects of flooding. Increasing magnitude and frequency of rainfall events is only putting more pressure on flood protection infrastructure and stopbank infrastructure is crumbling under the pressure. Urban environments are requiring a larger level of flood protection that the traditional stopbank can provide. This thesis is an investigation into the role of stopbanks for flood protection in urban river spaces and their effect of the experiential and ecological experience of the river. This investigation, developed through an analysis of the Waiwhakaiho River in New Plymouth, the Waikanae River in Kapiti and the Waipoua River in the Waiarapa informs a redesign of flood protection measures in New Zealand medium sized towns to repair the disconnection of the urban environment to the river.</p>

Cooperator or supporter: how can cross-boundary Macau–Zhuhai metropolis promote regional tourism together?

PurposeThis study initiated an investigation of how the Macau–Zhuhai tourism cooperated and discussed how Macau and Zhuhai could join hands to develop tourism in the region. The study demonstrated an approach for destination marketing organizations to explore online tourist-generated content and to understand tourists' perceptions of the destination image (DI).Design/methodology/approachA total of 1,291,057 reviews (535,317 for Macau and 755,740 for Zhuhai) were collected, analyzed and examined to determine how the DI s of Macau and Zhuhai changed during the period of 2015–2019 based on tourist-generated content on travel websites (TripAdvisor, Ctrip.com and Qyer.com) through a text-mining approach.FindingsThe result revealed that Macau and Zhuhai were in a hybrid of competition and collaboration on tourism DI s. First, Macau and Zhuhai competed in hotel and catering industry. Macau was appealing to international tourists and provided high-end and prestigious offerings; while Zhuhai was impressed by cost-effective accommodation and food. Second, Macau diversified industrial structure with diverse “Tourism, Leisure and Recreation” and “Culture, History and Art” more than Zhuhai did. Meanwhile, Macau should balance the different demands of international and Chinese tourists. Third, complementary potentials were found in natural resources, urbanization technology and tourism innovation and related projects.Practical implicationsThe research provides valuable insights for policymakers and industrial managers on their endeavors to develop DIs. Policymakers should be able to develop supportive mechanisms and tourism facilitators to promote industrial collaboration and mutual DIs. Managers could refer to the components in the changing DIs and identify the developmental gaps and cooperation potentials in their targeted areas.Originality/valueThe research fulfills the gap in regional tourism studies on Macau, in which the evaluation on synergetic influence and neighbor effect from Zhuhai has been underexplored. Facilitated by up-to-date data mining techniques, the study contributes to both DI and coopetition literature in tourism marketing; and this should inspire further studies on the antecedences of DI changes, resolutions to the competing interests and DIs of different stakeholders in different forms of strategic cooperation in regional tourism. The employment of DIs is an explicit demonstration of tourists' immersion and values attached to the destination, providing effective cues on the status of coopetition.

Urban Riverscapes: Reconnecting Urban Environments With the River Landscape

<p>Water is a fundamental component of New Zealand’s landscape, culture, history and identity. It is moving, changing form, accumulating and dispersing, it is ever changing never in the same context twice. Rivers are a single representation of this process in which we experience water in the landscape. New Zealand has beautiful and intense water ways that pass through urban environments, yet due to the flood protection measures in place, they are disconnected from the urban environment. They are difficult to access and do not hold a presence in our growing urban environment which they once had significance in. Stopbanks are the most common form of river flood protection infrastructure in New Zealand. They treat the river as a static element without giving them the space to move, flood and meander. They create a physical barrier between the urban environment and river space and do not respond to the differences of rivers and urban environments. Growing urbanisation is increasing the pressure on stormwater infrastructure and growing the risk and effects of flooding. Increasing magnitude and frequency of rainfall events is only putting more pressure on flood protection infrastructure and stopbank infrastructure is crumbling under the pressure. Urban environments are requiring a larger level of flood protection that the traditional stopbank can provide. This thesis is an investigation into the role of stopbanks for flood protection in urban river spaces and their effect of the experiential and ecological experience of the river. This investigation, developed through an analysis of the Waiwhakaiho River in New Plymouth, the Waikanae River in Kapiti and the Waipoua River in the Waiarapa informs a redesign of flood protection measures in New Zealand medium sized towns to repair the disconnection of the urban environment to the river.</p>

The carnival of Achoma – Caylloma

In this paper a tour of the Achoma Carnival is made, the most notable aspects of the carnival are described and the spiritual and cultural essence that enriches these festivals is reflected. Its people, its colors and its music combine to fill the atmosphere of magic that links culture, history and art with the present. This work also describes the elements that make carnival possible and their influence on the citizens of Achona and tourists who participate in the festivities. A detailed bibliographic review is carried out and the value of the culture and traditions of Peru is highlighted, specifically of Achoma, a place full of magic and passion for nature. The main results show that Carnival must continue to be an ancestral tradition and that its values must be preserved. Keywords: carnival, festivities, culture. References [1]G. Wood, «Reseña de El carnaval secuestrado o historia del carnaval de Alberto Ramos Santana,» Hispania Nova, Revista de historia contemporánea, nº 004, pp. 184-186, 2004. [2]M. Guimarey and F. Aliata, «El carnaval como práctica social espectacular: perspectivas para una revisión de la historiografía tradicional del Carnaval,» [Online]. Available: http://secyt.presi.unlp.edu.ar/cyt_htm/ebec07/pdf/guimarey.pdf. [Last access: September, 28 2021]. [3]M. Calcina, Y. Chávez, F. Herrera and O. Valdivia, «Plan Estratégico de la Provincia de Caylloma de la Región de Arequipa,» Pontificia Universidad Católicadel Perú, Lima-Perú, 2016. [4]M. Ráez, En los dominios del cóndor: fiestas y música tradicional del valle de colca, Lima-Perú: Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, 2002. [5]Wikiwand, «Distrito de Coporaque (Caylloma),» [Online]. Available: https://www.wikiwand.com/es/Distrito_de_Coporaque_(Caylloma). [Last access: September, 28 2021]. [6]FamilySearch, «Plantilla:Caylloma Provincia Mapa,» [Online]. Available: https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/es/index.php?title=Plantilla:Caylloma_Provincia_Mapa&mobileaction=toggle_view_desktop. [Last access: September, 28 2021]. [7]M. Sánchez, «Fiestas, rituales y nuevas TIC. Usos políticos y religiosos del Internet y el celular en la Comunidad de Yanque,» Revista del Instituto de Historia Rural Andina, vol. 2, nº 3, pp. 101-126, 2017. [8]O. Vargas, «LA DANZA Y SU INFLUENCIA EN LA IDENTIDAD NACIONAL DE LOS ESTUDIANTES DE LA FACULTAD DE CIENCIAS DE LA EDUCACIÓN DE LA UNIVERSIDAD NACIONAL DE SAN AGUSTÍN,» Universidad Nacional San Agustín de Arequipa, Arequipa-Perú, 2015. [9]Achoma-Arequipa Perú, «Guía Turística,» [Online]. Available: https://www.facebook.com/Achoma-Peru/. [Last access: September, 28 2021].