The Influence of Terrorism Activities on Muslim-Christian Relations in Garissa County, Kenya

Terrorism is no doubt a global problem of the 21st century and as evidenced by the continued terror attacks, the menace is causing major global security distress. In Kenya terrorism has among other things considerably affected the Muslim-Christian relations in the country. Despite vast literature on terrorism and interreligious relations, there are limited research on the influence of terrorism on Muslim-Christian relations in Garissa County, Kenya hence this study. The general objective of this study was to examine the influence of terrorism on Muslim-Christian relations in Garissa County, Kenya. The study employed both descriptive and explanatory design. The target population of the study was 199,469 from Garissa County from which a sample of 384 respondents were obtained through purposive sampling. Data was collected from primary sources using; questionnaires, interview guide and focus group discussions as well as secondary sources, through literature review. The findings revealed that, terrorist selective attacks of Christians and the use Islamic concept of jihad during attacks have created suspicion and mistrust among the Muslims and Christians in the area. The study concludes that unless the misunderstanding of the concept of Jihad is demystified, the Muslims-Christians relations will significantly be affected as the terrorist will continue propagating their attacks as an Islamic concept of jihad. The study recommends that Muslim leaders needs to demystify the concept of Jihad in order to restore Muslim-Christian relations. Also, the Government security agencies and civil society, Muslim leaders, and Christians should continually organize awareness campaigns in the region to create alertness about the terrorist’s schemes.

Information Sharing in Oligopoly: Sharing Groups and Core-Periphery Architectures

The trade-off between the costs and benefits of disclosing a firm’s private information has been the object of a vast literature. The absence of incentives to share information on a common market demand prior to competition has been advocated to interpret information sharing as evidence of collusion. Recent contributions have looked at bilateral information sharing, showing that information sharing is consistent with pairwise stability, This paper studies the networked pattern of bilateral information sharing on market demand, focusing on the role of heterogeneous information (firms’ signals have different variances). We show that while pairwise stability predicts that i.i.d. signals are always shared in groups with a symmetric internal structure (both with and without side-payment and linking costs), heterogeneous signals are shared in asymmetric core-periphery architectures, in which “core” firms have more valuable information than periphery firms.

Reflections on Meaning and Immortality

This article revisits Bernard Williams’s influential argument that an immortal human life would be meaningless and argues for a shift in focus. There’s good reason to keep Williams’s framework for evaluating the prospects of meaning in continued life. But there’s also good reason to abandon the conception of human psychology that he, and most of the vast literature in response, uses to fill in that framework. Focusing on values, as opposed to desires, reveals that the most pressing threats to a meaningful immortal human life are not repetition or satisfaction, but rather changes in what the world has to offer.

Impacts of R&D Expenditures On Firms’ Innovation and Financial Performance: A Panel Data Evidence from Ethiopian Firms

In the era of the rapid development of knowledge economy and science, all countries have thought highly of technical innovation and greatly increased investment in R&D from time to time. The vast literature indicates that the relationship between R&D and firms’ performance is highly complex while evidences suggest that R&D positively influences firms’ performance, yet the process how R&D activities influence firms’ performance is still mixing. This paper explores the impacts of investment in R&D on firms’ performance from 476 firms in Ethiopia by employing a combination of the fixed-effect, PSM and ETE estimation methods. The findings of this study support the existence of a strong interaction between R&D activities and firms’ performance. The empirical results reveal that investment in R&D positively influences both innovation and long-term financial performance, while it negatively impacts shorter-term financial performance. Moreover, results show that the impacts of R&D activities vary significantly along the different category of firms confirming that heterogeneity is possible issue among firms considered. The results also indicate that availability of credit is more important moderating factor for the relationship between R&D investment and firms’ performance than legal system. The results from the current study have important implications for firms especially those from developing countries like Ethiopia with growing R&D operations. We propose that Ethiopian firms should invest more on R&D activities, such as the production of fundamental research and applied research to have better performance and enhance their competitiveness in the future.

Outsiders Looking in. The Re-enrolment Struggles of Early School Leavers in Norway

Despite a vast literature on the causes and consequences of leaving school prematurely, little scholarly and policy attention has been paid to those who re-enter education after a temporary withdrawal. Re-enrolment is often portrayed in the literature as an active act of agency requiring inner drive. Based on 18 interviews with young early school leavers and re-enrolees in Norway, we construct two empirically founded re-enrolment narratives: ‘opposing otherness through dreams of ordinariness’ and ‘accepting the rules of the game—re-enrolment as a fragile opportunity’. Although embracing and reproducing the discourse about educational credentials as being the key to a happy life, the narratives do not support the idea of a re-enrolment drive as being vital to succeed within educational institutions. While they aspire for normality and believe normality is achieved through educational credentials, they are in need of a support system that either accommodates their individual needs, or nudges them back ‘on right track’.

The More, the Merrier…? Antipsychotic Polypharmacy Treatment Strategies in Schizophrenia From a Pharmacology Perspective

Antipsychotic polypharmacy/drug combination treatment (APP) is a remarkably common practice in the schizophrenia context, given the lack of general support in treatment Guidelines. There is also a vast literature on APP outcomes, but a paucity of high-quality evidence-based data to guide and optimize adequate use of APP. This seems particularly true regarding many pharmacology-based considerations involved in APP treatment strategies. This paper first briefly summarizes clinical literature related to the use of APP. Against this backdrop, the pharmacological target profile features are then described of frequently used antipsychotic agents, in relation to estimated free plasma exposure levels at clinically efficacious dosing. APP strategies based on the properties of these drugs are then scrutinized and gauged within the background literature framework. The anticipated usefulness of APP from the pharmacological standpoint is detailed regarding efficacy, adverse effect (AE)/tolerability, and safety perspective, including why, when, and how it may be used to its advantage. For the purpose, a number of theoretically beneficial combinations as well as instances with suboptimal—and even futile—APP approaches are exemplified and discussed from the rational pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic pros and cons point-of-view. In this exposé, particular attention is paid to the utility and features of 3rd Generation Antipsychotic dopamine (DA) D2-D3 agonists within an APP setting.

Impact of Metformin Use on Survival in Patients Undergoing Liver Resection for Colorectal Cancer Metastases

Introduction Resection of colorectal liver metastases provides the best chance for survival in patients with Stage IV colorectal cancer; however, hepatic recurrence is frequent and the main cause of death. Multiple epidemiological studies have documented an association between metformin and anti-neoplastic effects in a variety of cancers. Given the vast literature, we evaluated the incidence on recurrence and survival of patients on metformin who undergo surgery for colorectal liver metastasis (CRLM). Methods We selected 270 consecutive patients with known CRLM who underwent hepatic metastases resection at our institution between January 1st 2012 and December 31st 2019. Patients were divided based on their use of metformin (n = 62) or no metformin (n = 208). Adjusted analysis of recurrence-free (RFS) and overall survival (OS) was performed. Results Patients on metformin had significantly longer RFS (HR: .44, 95% CI: .26-.75, P < .002; Median RFS: 49 months vs 33 months) and OS (HR .60, 95% CI .31-.97, P < .048, Median OS: 72 months vs 60 months). Additional factors associated with shorter RFS on univariate analysis included the following: CEA > 200 ng/ml (HR: 2.23, 95% CI 1.21-4.03, P < .010), positive liver margin (HR: 3.70, 95% CI 2.27-6.03, P < .001), and >1 tumor (HR: 1.98, 95% CI 1.26-3.09, P < .003). Liver margin remained a significant factor for predicting shorter OS (HR: 4.99, 95% CI 2.49-10.0, P < .001). Conclusion In this study, we found that patients with CRLM on metformin have prolonged RFS and OS postliver resection. Further prospective randomized trials need to be carried out to evaluate the anti-neoplastic effect of metformin in diabetic and non-diabetic cancer patients.

Patriarchy and Inequality in Bharti Kirchner’s Sharmila’s Book and Pastries: A Novel of Desserts and Discoveries

Literature produced by men was a prejudiced one and focused mainly on the might of men and feebleness of female members. This was resisted by women writers and they started shattering the prejudiced views of men and gave a proper solution to it. Moreover, they violated the sanctities of women as mere service renders and broke the stereotyped images of women as the classical Sita or Kannagi who were projected as submissive partners having no identity of their own. It is only through the writings of women writers, the real identity of the women was recognized and they became equal partners at home and in the society. This awakening was highly instrumental in turning the dark pages of the history of literature and spread brightness and happiness everywhere. At present, gender inequality has gained global attraction and this has resulted in the production of vast literature.

Bansho as part of lesson and lesson study: from the origins to the present

PurposeThis paper aims to provide an overview of the origins of bansho, how it has developed to be an indispensable practice in Japan and its influence on countries outside Japan. The integration of bansho into lesson study (LS) will also be presented.Design/methodology/approachThis paper draws on the vast literature on bansho from both in and outside Japan to illustrate the points mentioned above.FindingsRecapitulation on the history of chalkboard and bansho in different eras in Japan illustrated its endurance towards the test of time, geographical space and functions. While bansho remains a constant presence in LS research, there has not been any work that outlines how bansho is integrated into the LS cycle. Thus, a guideline on how bansho can be incorporated in the LS cycle is provided.Originality/valueA comprehensive overview of bansho allows educators and researchers outside Japan to move beyond the know-how and know-what of bansho; it would serve as an invaluable source to understand the core concepts underlying this classroom practice, thus avoiding the mere adaptation of bansho superficial aspects. This study also provides precise instruction on how bansho can be integrated into each step of the LS cycle, which will guide teachers and researchers in the future implementation of LS.

Determinants of Inter-Regional Financial Inclusion Heterogeneities in the Philippines

This study tries to contribute to the vast literature on promoting financial inclusion in Asia by exploring the key factors that affect the deepening of financial inclusion across the 17 regions of the Philippines for the period between 2013 and 2017. Using the regional multidimensional financial inclusion index (FII) that is developed by the Philippine central bank, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the study finds out that significant heterogeneities exist among regions, and that they persist over the period analyzed, suggesting most importantly that the least financially inclusive regions do not show rapid significant progress. Moreover, using different panel estimation techniques, we try to determine the possible factors that affect this inter-regional financial inclusion heterogeneities. Overall, we show that regional GDP per capita, population, a proxy for the availability of physical infrastructure, and the degree of mobile penetration are among the robust factors explaining the financial inclusion variations across these regions in the Philippines for the observed period.