Jews and Muslims in Dubai, Berlin, and Warsaw: Interactions, Peacebuilding Initiatives, and Improbable Encounters

What is the nature of interactions between Jews and Muslims in contemporary Dubai, Berlin, and Warsaw? The purpose of the three presented case studies is to evaluate the state of affairs and identify newly emerging trends and patterns in the given trans-urban context. The methodology is based on qualitative anthropological research, emphasising an emic perspective that centralises respondents’ own lived experiences and worldviews. The main research’s findings made evident that interactions between Muslims and Jews in each examined location are, to various extents, acknowledged, and in some cases, also embody a formative part of public discourses. Perhaps the most visible manifestations of these relations are represented by the ambitious interfaith projects that were recently established in each geographical area in focus. The Abrahamic Family House (UEA), The House of One (GE), and The Community of Conscience (PL) reveal the aspirations of multi-faith religious leaders to overcome polarising dichotomies and search for common ground. One of the conclusive outcomes of the study is a somewhat diminishing impact of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict on the Jewish–Muslim relations; however, the extent differs in each destination in focus. Finally, an unpredicted observation can be made. A surfacing inclination towards embracing a joint Muslim–Jewish Middle Eastern identity was perceived.

Comparison of Environmental Performance of Single-Family House and Multi-Storey Apartment in Turkey using Life Cycle Assessment

In recent years, there has been a significant transition from multi-storey buildings to single-family houses especially due to COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, people prefer to live in single-family houses or detached houses where they have more free space in outside of the house. The aim of this study is to quantify and compare the environmental performance of a single-family house and multi-storey apartment building in Turkey throughout their life cycle with cradle-to-grave approach. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) based on ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 was used to analyse the environmental impacts of the single-family house and multi-storey apartment buildings. The functional unit was chosen as 1m2 of floor area of a house over their lifespan (50 years). With cradle-to-grave approach of the LCA, the system boundaries for the environmental assessment covers the pre-operation, operation and post-operation stages. The results of this LCA study revealed that majority of the environmental impacts occurs at operation phase for both single-family house and multi-storey apartment. The operation stage has the highest impact with 79% and 78% share of the global warming potential (GWP) for single-family house and the multi-storey apartment, respectively. In comparison of environmental impact results, GWP of the multi-storey apartment per m2 of floor area is 30% lower than single-family house. The environmental impacts of the operation phase have significant importance on the overall environmental performance of both single-family house and multi-storey apartment. The results showed that electricity consumption and steel usage are the main contributors of the environmental impacts coming from the operation and pre-operation phases, respectively. To pave the way to a sustainable future, the building industry must strive to use of renewable energy sources and sustainable construction materials in order to reduce their environmental impacts with a sustainable approach.

Spaces of Privacy in Early Modern Dutch Egodocuments

While the word 'privacy' itself only started to appear in the Dutch language in the newspapers of the nineteenth-century, Michaël Green argues that the idea underlying it was already developing in the early seventeenth century in Dutch contexts. In his article, Green examines, first, transformations that occurred in the seventeenth century in architectural idealizations of the family house, where plans for corridors started to appear alongside locks and separate rooms. Then, based on several examples of egodocuments - among them the diaries of the schoolmaster David Beck and an autobiographical piece by Maria de Neufville - he focuses on how members of the middling and elite classes wrote about their own practical experiences of spatial and emotional privacy.

Effects of Climate Change on Thermal Comfort and Energy Demand in a Single-Family House in Poland

In regions with temperate climates, the thermal insulation of buildings is increased to reduce the need for heating. It might significantly reduce human thermal comfort in the summer period. The problem can increase with global warming. The aim of the paper is to analyze the heating and cooling demand, as well as thermal comfort in a single-family house located in Poland for three climate scenarios (typical, real, and future weather data) and for two types of thermal insulation of external walls. In the study, two ways of cooling the building were taken into account: using split air conditioners and using fresh airflow provided through the opening of windows. The open area and the temperatures for opening windows have been optimized using a two-criteria function. The energy simulation was carried out in EnergyPlus 9.4 software. The multi-zone model was validated on the basis of the temperature measurement. The results showed that there will be a problem with ensuring thermal comfort in the future, especially in well-insulated buildings. The energy demand for cooling will be greater than the demand for heating. The use of passive cooling is a good solution for residential buildings in these regions, and the number of discomfort hours is small (max 5%).

The Use of HSQoL-24 in an Assessment of Quality-of-Life Impairment among Hidradenitis Suppurativa Patients: First Look at Real-Life Data

Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a chronic inflammatory skin disorder with well-documented effects on patients’ quality of life (QoL). The aim of this study was to evaluate the QoL of patients with HS via the use of a newly developed questionnaire: Hidradenitis Suppurativa Quality of Life-24 (HSQoL-24). This study was performed on a population of 342 HS patients. Their QoL was assessed via the HSQoL-24 questionnaire. The perceived impairment of QoL due to HS in the studied group was considered to be serious (mean HSQoL-24 score: 58.3 ± 21.0 points). Women tended to experience a significantly higher impact from the disease than men (61.6 ± 19.2 points vs. 51.1 ± 23.1 points, p < 0.001). The HS severity had an effect on the perceived QoL, with statistically significant differences being evident between the self-assessed HS severity groups. The level of QoL impairment correlated positively with the number of affected body areas (r = 0.285, p < 0.001) and the duration of the disease (r = 0.173, p = 0.001), while the patients’ age at disease onset correlated negatively with the HSQoL-24 global score (r = −0.182, p = 0.001). Patients living in their family house scored higher than other groups. The least affected were patients who lived alone. The study shows that the HSQoL-24 questionnaire is a reliable, HS-specific tool for measuring the QoL among patients with HS in real-life clinical settings.

Assessment of environmental impacts and costs during life cycle stages of selected family houses

According to the European Green Deal, climate change and environmental degradation pose an existential threat to Europe and the world. Therefore, Europe needs a new “green” strategy to transform the EU into a modern and competitive, resource-intensive economy, with zero net greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. As a result, economic growth will be decoupled from resource use. The ever-increasing requirements for the urban environment to be carbon neutral lead to the rising needs for buildings from three dimensions of sustainability. It is well known that the construction and operation of buildings are the primary consumers of energy and material resources and significant polluters of the environment during all stages of their life cycle. This paper deals with analysing environmental impacts and life cycle cost of two family houses located in Kosice, eastern Slovakia. The total greenhouse gas emissions for family house 1 generates 45.89% more CO2 emissions during its life cycle. Discounted life cycle cost of a family house 1 is 74.33% higher and nominal even 77.22% higher than the nominal life cycle cost of a family house 2.

Dynamic LCA of a single-family house, equipped with a micro-cogeneration unit, using a variable share of biomethane

The current study presents the CO2-eq emissions of the operational energy use of a single-family house, equipped with a micro-cogeneration unit. A back-up boiler and electricity from the grid cover the remaining energy demand, not covered by the micro-CHP. Two different technologies are evaluated, i.e. ICE and fuel cell systems, operating with a variable share of biomethane, while two different substrates were considered for the biomethane generation. A dynamic LCA was applied for the electricity mix, coming from the grid, using different time steps. The results show that producing biomethane from biowaste compared to conventional natural gas is beneficial, in terms of CO2-eq emissions, independently of the micro-CHP technology, while the total CO2-eq emissions of the fuel cell technology are higher than those of the ICE, independently of the substrate and the biomethane share.

Gender Role Discrepancy, Discrepancy Stress, and Family Resilience of Minangkabau Family

Family resilience is an important ability for family in facing various challenges throughout the lifespan. The study about family resilience of Minangkabau ethnic people needs further exploration due to the increase in divorce rate in the last three years, indicating that these families were not resilient. The cause of the divorce was related to matrilocal residency (husband lives in wife’s house after marriage). This residency has the potential to cause the intervention of the wife’s family to the relationship of husband and wife, therefore leading to the lack of authority in the husband's role. This condition poses a risk to husbands to experience gender role discrepancy and discrepancy stress. The purpose of this study was to examine the contribution of gender role discrepancy and discrepancy stress to family resilience by involving 139 Minangkabau men who lived in the wife’s family house around the age 18-50 years old. This study used a quantitative research method. Sampling technique used in this study was a purposive sampling technique. All data collected were analyzed by using multiple regression method. Results showed that gender role discrepancy and discrepancy stress contributed significantly to family resilience by 10.5%. However, partial analysis showed that discrepancy stress alone did not contribute significantly to family resilience.