Assessing landscape features and ecosystem services of marine protected areas through photographs on social media: comparison of two archipelagos in Spain

Marine protected areas provide cultural services including the aesthetic appreciation of the landscape and the performance of recreational activities. In this study, we use the photographs shared by users in a digital repository to describe the distinctive characteristics of two terrestrial-maritime natural parks in Spain. In total, 1041 photos and 2342 tags generated by 76 users were analyzed. The results show the greatest salience of the landscape values, followed by historical monuments and the sighting of fauna and flora. The methodology based on the extraction of digital data from Flickr facilitates the efficient comparison of a Mediterranean archipelago (Cabrera Island) with an Atlantic archipelago (Cíes Islands). However, some important limitations were also detected in the descriptive capacity of this method, in comparison with the content analysis by external observers. But, overall, the evaluation of the subjective experience of visitors to natural areas can be very useful for tourism management of the marine environment.

OTOACOUSTIC EMISSION REGISTRATION CHARACTERISTICS IN CHILDREN OF THE FIRST 3 MONTHS OF LIFE AFTER ACUTE OTITIS MEDIA

Data on the frequency and nature of hearing impairment in newborns and children during the first months of life after acute otitis media are contradictory. Otoacoustic emission is one of the methods for assessing the hearing function in infants. The main advantages of this method are objectivity, non-invasiveness, speed and accuracy. Objectives. To evaluate the features of otoacoustic emission registration at the frequency of the product distortion in children of the first 3 months of life after an acute inflammation of the middle ear. Material and methods. Distortion-product otoacoustic emission was performed in 36 children after complete recovery from acute otitis media (main group) and in 32 children without otitis media (comparison group). The estimation of the amplitude and spectrum of the response received was performed. The analysis of the otoacoustic response at frequencies of 1 kHz, 1.5 kHz, 2 kHz, 3 kHz, 4 kHz, 5 kHz, 6 kHz, 8 kHz was carried out. Results. Otoacoustic emission was registered in 74.2% of investigations in the comparison group, in 56.0% of observations in otoscopically healthy ears in case of unilateral inflammation, in 35.1% of cases after a non-suppurative form of the disease, and only in 15.4% of cases after a purulent form of acute otitis media. Statistically significant differences were revealed in the frequency of registration of otoacoustic emission in children of the examined groups. The greatest amplitude of the signal/noise relationship was recorded at frequencies of 5 and 6 kHz, and the smallest one at the frequency of 1 kHz in all studied groups. Conclusions. A decrease in auditory function is observed in children of the first 3 months of life after past acute otitis media. This is confirmed by significantly higher rate of absence of otoacoustic emission in this group of patients. Distortion-product otoacoustic emission in children of the first 3 months of life is recommended to be carried out at frequencies of 1.5 kHz and higher.

Towards media systems framework in Asia Chinese and Korean media on framing the initial COVID-19 pandemic

Due to the relative lack of media comparison studies within Asian contexts, theoretical frameworks based in Western societies have been applied to knowledge production in the global South. Using a ‘most different’ design, this study compares the dimensions of media systems reflected in two Chinese and two Korean newspapers in their initial coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic. Content analysis showed statistically significant differences in distribution of sources, topics and valence, usage of frame types, and actors including domestic government and foreign entities held responsible between the two groups of media. Based on political implications of crisis on Chinese and Korean news content, we mainly discuss political instrumentalization and parallelism in the media in an Asian context. Finally, we open up the dimensions of media system from an Asian perspective and address the need for future research.