Biodegradation of sulfamethazine by Trametes versicolor: Removal from sewage sludge and identification of intermediate products by UPLC-QqTOF-MS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Garcia-Galan, Ma. Jesus, E-mail: mggqam@cid.csic.es [Departament de Quimica Ambiental, IDAEA-CSIC, C/Jordi Girona 18-26, 08034 Barcelona (Spain); Rodriguez-Rodriguez, Carlos E., E-mail: CarlosEsteban.Rodriguez@uab.cat [Unitat asociada de Biocatalisi Aplicada IQAC-CSIC, Escola d' Enginyeria, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Barcelona (Spain); Centro de Investigacion en Contaminacion Ambiental, Universidad de Costa Rica, 2060 San Jose (Costa Rica); Vicent, Teresa, E-mail: Teresa.Vicent@uab.cat [Departament d' Enginyeria Quimica, Escola d' Enginyeria, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Barcelona (Spain); Caminal, Gloria, E-mail: Gloria.Caminal@uab.cat [Unitat asociada de Biocatalisi Aplicada IQAC-CSIC, Escola d' Enginyeria, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Barcelona (Spain); Diaz-Cruz, M. Silvia, E-mail: sdcqam@cid.csic.es [Departament de Quimica Ambiental, IDAEA-CSIC, C/Jordi Girona 18-26, 08034 Barcelona (Spain); Barcelo, Damia, E-mail: dbcqam@cid.csic.es [Departament de Quimica Ambiental, IDAEA-CSIC, C/Jordi Girona 18-26, 08034 Barcelona (Spain); Catalan Institute for Water Research (ICRA), Parc Cientific i Tecnologic de la Universitat de Girona. C/Emili Grahit, 101 Edifici H2O, E-17003 Girona (Spain); King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451 (Saudi Arabia)

2011-11-15

Degradation of the sulfonamide sulfamethazine (SMZ) by the white-rot fungus Trametes versicolor was assessed. Elimination was achieved to nearly undetectable levels after 20 h in liquid medium when SMZ was added at 9 mg L{sup -1}. Experiments with purified laccase and laccase-mediators resulted in almost complete removal. On the other hand, inhibition of SMZ degradation was observed when piperonilbutoxide, a cytochrome P450-inhibitor, was added to the fungal cultures. UPLC-QqTOF-MS analysis allowed the identification and confirmation of 4 different SMZ degradation intermediates produced by fungal cultures or purified laccase: desulfo-SMZ, N{sup 4}-formyl-SMZ, N{sup 4}-hydroxy-SMZ and desamino-SMZ; nonetheless SMZ mineralization was not demonstrated with the isotopically labeled sulfamethazine-phenyl-{sup 13}C{sub 6} after 7 days. Inoculation of T. versicolor to sterilized sewage sludge in solid-phase systems showed complete elimination of SMZ and also of other sulfonamides (sulfapyridine, sulfathiazole) at real environmental concentrations, making this fungus an interesting candidate for further remediation research. - Highlights: {yields}Degradation of sulfamethazine by Trametes versicolor was evaluated. {yields}The laccase enzymatic system and cytochrome P-450 were involved in the degradation. {yields}Four different degradation products of sulfamethazine were identified and confirmed. {yields}The molecular structures and masses of the metabolites were accurately calculated. {yields}Full elimination of sulfamethazine was observed in regular sewage sludge.

The use of Amazon fungus ( Trametes sp.) in the production of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The use of Amazon fungus (Trametes sp.) in the production of cellulase and xylanase. Salony Aquino Pereira, Rafael Lopes e Oliveira, Sergio Duvoisin Jr, Leonor Alves de Oliveira da Silva, Patrícia Melchionna Albuquerque ...

Tramesan, a novel polysaccharide from Trametes versicolor. Structural characterization and biological effects.

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Marzia Scarpari

Full Text Available Mushrooms represent a formidable source of bioactive compounds. Some of these may be considered as biological response modifiers; these include compounds with a specific biological function: antibiotics (e.g. plectasin, immune system stimulator (e,g, lentinan, antitumor agents (e.g. krestin, PSK and hypolipidemic agents (e.g. lovastatin inter alia. In this study, we focused on the Chinese medicinal mushroom "yun zhi", Trametes versicolor, traditionally used for (cit. "replenish essence and qi (vital energy". Previous studies indicated the potential activity of extracts from culture filtrate of asexual mycelia of T. versicolor in controlling the growth and secondary metabolism (e.g. mycotoxins of plant pathogenic fungi. The quest of active principles produced by T. versicolor, allowed us characterising an exo-polysaccharide released in its culture filtrate and naming it Tramesan. Herein we evaluate the biological activity of Tramesan in different organisms: plants, mammals and plant pathogenic fungi. We suggest that the bioactivity of Tramesan relies mostly on its ability to act as pro antioxidant molecule regardless the biological system on which it was applied.

DECREASEMENT OF COLOUR AND COD CONTENT OF THE LIQUID WASTE PRODUCT FROM THE JEANS WASHING INDUSTRY BY CHITOSAN AND Trametes versicolor

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Rumondang Bulan

2010-06-01

Full Text Available Chitosan and Trametes versicolor were used as the material for processing liquid waste product from the jeans washing industry in this study as they were more economics and no negative damage in the environmental life. This research is to find out the chitosan and Trametes versicolor effect as the coagulant in decreasing the colour and the COD content of the liquid waste product from the jeans washing industry using the coagulation method and floculation. The dosage of chitosan and Trametes versicolor were 200, 400, 600, 800 and 1000 mg/L of the liquid waste product whereas the combination of chitosan and Trametes versicolor were 4:1, 3:2, 2:3 and 1:4. The data resulted from the analysis were shown as a graphics. The research results show that the optimum dosage of chitosan as coagulant was 800 mg/L which was able to decrease the colour intensity. For blue colour, the intensity decreased from 1.2 to 0.1%; the yellow colour intensity decreased from 0.9 to 0.0% and the COD 91.23%. The optimum dosage of Trametes versicolor of 600 mg/L was able to decrease the blue colour intensity from 1.2 to 0.11%; the yellow colour intensity from 0.9 to 0.1% and the COD was 91.37%. By using the combinationof chitosan and Trametes versicolor it was shown that the best result was using the 3:2 ratio which was able to decrease the blue colour intensity from 0.9 to 0.1% and the yellow colour intensity from 0.9 to 0.0% and the COD was 86.68%.   Keywords: colour intensity, COD, liquid waste product of the jeans washing, chitosan, Trametes versicolor

Continuous degradation of a mixture of sulfonamides by Trametes versicolor and identification of metabolites from sulfapyridine and sulfathiazole

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rodríguez-Rodríguez, Carlos E.; Jesús García-Galán, Ma.; Blánquez, Paqui; Díaz-Cruz, M. Silvia; Barceló, Damià; Caminal, Glòria; Vicent, Teresa

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Degradation of sulfapyridine and sulfathiazole by Trametes versicolor was evaluated. ► The role of laccase and cytochrome P450 was determined. ► Degradation metabolites were identified for sulfapyridine (8) and sulfathiazole (5). ► A mixture of three sulfonamides was degraded in a continuous fluidized bed reactor. - Abstract: In this study, we assessed the degradation of the sulfonamides sulfapyridine (SPY) and sulfathiazole (STZ) by the white-rot fungus Trametes versicolor. Complete degradation was accomplished in fungal cultures at initial pollutant concentrations of approximately 10 mg L −1 , although a longer period of time was needed to completely remove STZ in comparison to SPY. When cytochrome P450 inhibitors were added to the fungal cultures, STZ degradation was partially suppressed, while no additional effect was observed for SPY. Experiments with purified laccase and laccase mediators caused the removal of greater than 75% of each antibiotic. Ultra-performance liquid chromatography-quadupole time of flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QqTOF-MS) analyses allowed the identification of a total of eight degradation intermediates of SPY in both the in vivo and the laccase experiments, being its desulfonated moiety the commonly detected product. For STZ, a total of five products were identified. A fluidized bed reactor with T. versicolor pellets degraded a mixture of sulfonamides (SPY, STZ and sulfamethazine, SMZ) by greater than 94% each at a hydraulic residence time of 72 h. Because wastewater contains many diverse pollutants, these results highlight the potential of T. versicolor as a bioremediation agent not only for the removal of antibiotics but also for the elimination of a wide range of contaminants.

Continuous degradation of a mixture of sulfonamides by Trametes versicolor and identification of metabolites from sulfapyridine and sulfathiazole

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rodriguez-Rodriguez, Carlos E., E-mail: CarlosEsteban.Rodriguez@uab.cat [Unitat asociada de Biocatalisi Aplicada IQAC-CSIC, Escola d' Enginyeria, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Barcelona (Spain); Centro de Investigacion en Contaminacion Ambiental, Universidad de Costa Rica, 2060 San Jose (Costa Rica); Jesus Garcia-Galan, Ma. [Departament de Quimica Ambiental, IDAEA-CSIC, C/Jordi Girona 18-26, 08034, Barcelona (Spain); Blanquez, Paqui [Departament d' Enginyeria Quimica, Escola d' Enginyeria, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Barcelona (Spain); Diaz-Cruz, M. Silvia [Departament de Quimica Ambiental, IDAEA-CSIC, C/Jordi Girona 18-26, 08034, Barcelona (Spain); Barcelo, Damia [Departament de Quimica Ambiental, IDAEA-CSIC, C/Jordi Girona 18-26, 08034, Barcelona (Spain); Catalan Institute for Water Research (ICRA), Parc Cientific i Tecnologic de la Universitat de Girona, C/Emili Grahit, 101 Edifici H2O, E-17003 Girona (Spain); Caminal, Gloria [Unitat asociada de Biocatalisi Aplicada IQAC-CSIC, Escola d' Enginyeria, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Barcelona (Spain); Vicent, Teresa [Departament d' Enginyeria Quimica, Escola d' Enginyeria, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Barcelona (Spain)

2012-04-30

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Degradation of sulfapyridine and sulfathiazole by Trametes versicolor was evaluated. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The role of laccase and cytochrome P450 was determined. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Degradation metabolites were identified for sulfapyridine (8) and sulfathiazole (5). Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer A mixture of three sulfonamides was degraded in a continuous fluidized bed reactor. - Abstract: In this study, we assessed the degradation of the sulfonamides sulfapyridine (SPY) and sulfathiazole (STZ) by the white-rot fungus Trametes versicolor. Complete degradation was accomplished in fungal cultures at initial pollutant concentrations of approximately 10 mg L{sup -1}, although a longer period of time was needed to completely remove STZ in comparison to SPY. When cytochrome P450 inhibitors were added to the fungal cultures, STZ degradation was partially suppressed, while no additional effect was observed for SPY. Experiments with purified laccase and laccase mediators caused the removal of greater than 75% of each antibiotic. Ultra-performance liquid chromatography-quadupole time of flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QqTOF-MS) analyses allowed the identification of a total of eight degradation intermediates of SPY in both the in vivo and the laccase experiments, being its desulfonated moiety the commonly detected product. For STZ, a total of five products were identified. A fluidized bed reactor with T. versicolor pellets degraded a mixture of sulfonamides (SPY, STZ and sulfamethazine, SMZ) by greater than 94% each at a hydraulic residence time of 72 h. Because wastewater contains many diverse pollutants, these results highlight the potential of T. versicolor as a bioremediation agent not only for the removal of antibiotics but also for the elimination of a wide range of contaminants.

Enhancing the laccase production and laccase gene expression in the white-rot fungus Trametes velutina 5930 with great potential for biotechnological applications by different metal ions and aromatic compounds.

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Yang Yang

Full Text Available Laccase is useful for various biotechnological and industrial applications. The white-rot fungus Trametes velutina 5930 and its laccase, isolated from the Shennongjia Nature Reserve in China by our laboratory, has great potential for practical application in environmental biotechnology. However, the original level of laccase produced by Trametes velutina 5930 was relatively low in the absence of any inducer. Therefore, in order to enhance the laccase production by Trametes velutina 5930 and make better use of this fungus in the field of environmental biotechnology, the regulation of laccase production and laccase gene expression in Trametes velutina 5930 were investigated in this study. Different metal ions such as Cu(2+ and Fe(2+ could stimulate the laccase synthesis and laccase gene transcription in Trametes velutina 5930. Some aromatic compounds structurally related to lignin, such as tannic acid, syringic acid, cinnamic acid, gallic acid and guaiacol, could also enhance the level of laccase activity and laccase gene transcription. We also found that there existed a positive synergistic effect of aromatic compound and metal ion on the laccase production and laccase gene transcription in Trametes velutina 5930. Taken together, our study may contribute to the improvement of laccase productivity by Trametes velutina 5930.

Enhancing the laccase production and laccase gene expression in the white-rot fungus Trametes velutina 5930 with great potential for biotechnological applications by different metal ions and aromatic compounds.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Yang; Wei, Fuxiang; Zhuo, Rui; Fan, Fangfang; Liu, Huahua; Zhang, Chen; Ma, Li; Jiang, Mulan; Zhang, Xiaoyu

2013-01-01

Laccase is useful for various biotechnological and industrial applications. The white-rot fungus Trametes velutina 5930 and its laccase, isolated from the Shennongjia Nature Reserve in China by our laboratory, has great potential for practical application in environmental biotechnology. However, the original level of laccase produced by Trametes velutina 5930 was relatively low in the absence of any inducer. Therefore, in order to enhance the laccase production by Trametes velutina 5930 and make better use of this fungus in the field of environmental biotechnology, the regulation of laccase production and laccase gene expression in Trametes velutina 5930 were investigated in this study. Different metal ions such as Cu(2+) and Fe(2+) could stimulate the laccase synthesis and laccase gene transcription in Trametes velutina 5930. Some aromatic compounds structurally related to lignin, such as tannic acid, syringic acid, cinnamic acid, gallic acid and guaiacol, could also enhance the level of laccase activity and laccase gene transcription. We also found that there existed a positive synergistic effect of aromatic compound and metal ion on the laccase production and laccase gene transcription in Trametes velutina 5930. Taken together, our study may contribute to the improvement of laccase productivity by Trametes velutina 5930.

DECOLORIZATION OF AZO DYES AND MINERALIZATION OF PHENANTHRENE BY TRAMETES SP. AS03 ISOLATED FROM INDONESIAN MANGROVE FOREST

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Asep Hidayat

2014-04-01

Full Text Available Textile industry contributes the most disposals of synthetic dyes, and about 40% of textile dyes has been generating high amount of colored wastewater. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs, such as phenanthrene, is a group of organic compounds, that structurally comprised of two or more benzene rings, which persist in air, water, and soil. The organic pollutants of dyes and PAHs have adversely effects the food chain and are potentially toxic, mutagenic, and carcinogenic to the environment. The objective of this research is to screen and investigate the potential fungus from mangrove forest to degrade azo dyes and phenanthrene.  In this study, fungi were collected from mangrove forest in Riau Province – Sumatra – Indonesia. Previously, Trametes sp. AS03 is one of the fungi isolated from mangrove forest in Riau Province, that was able to decolorize Remazol Brilliant Blue R (RBBR. The capability of Trametes sp. AS03 to decolorize four azo dyes, Remazol B. Violet (V5, Levafix Orange E3GA (Or64, Levafix B. Red E-6BA (R159, and Sumifix S. Scarlet 2GF (R222, were further evaluated. The result shows that Trametes sp. AS03 decolorized 91, 60, 48, and 31 of V5, R222, R159, and Or64, respectively. By showing its capability to decolorize some of the dyes, Trametes sp. AS03 was used to break down phenanthrene. AS03 degraded more than 70% of phenanthrene in 15 days.

The effect of surfactant on pollutant biosorption of Trametes versicolor

Science.gov (United States)

Gül, Ülküye Dudu; Silah, Hülya; Akbaş, Halide; Has, Merve

2016-04-01

The major problem concerning industrial wastewater is treatment of dye and heavy metal containing effluents. Industrial effluents are also contained surfactants that are used as levelling, dispersing and wetting agents. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of surfactant on textile dye biosorption properties of a white rot fungus named Trametes versicolor. Reactive dyes are commonly used in textile industry because of their advantages such as brightness and excellent color fastness. A recative textile dye, called Everzol Black, was used in this study. The low-cost mollasses medium is used for fungal growth. The usage of mollases, the sugar refinery effluent as a source of energy and nutrients, gained importance because of reducing the cost and also reusing another waste. In biosorption process the effect of surfactant on dye removal properties of T. versicolor was examined as a function of pH, dye consentration and surfactant concentration. The results of this study showed that the surfactant enhanced the dye removal capacity of Trametes versicolor. The dye and surfactant molecules were interacted electrostatically and these electrostatic interactions improved dye removal properties of filamentous fungus T. versicolor. The results of this study recommended the use of surfactants as an inducer in textile wastewater treatment technologies.

EVALUACIÓN DE ACTIVIDADES ENDOGLUCANASA, EXOGLUCANASA, LACASA Y LIGNINA PEROXIDASA EN DIEZ HONGOS DE PUDRICIÓN BLANCA

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SANDRA MONTOYA B.

Full Text Available Este trabajo presenta una vía de rastreo de producción de enzimas lignocelulolíticas en diez especies de hongos de pudrición blanca: Lentinula edodes, Schizophyllum commune, Trametes trogii, Coriolus versicolor, Pycnoporus sanguineus, Ganoderma applanatum, Ganoderma lucidum, Grifola frondosa, Pleurotus ostreatus y Auricularia delicata. Estas especies primero fueron rastreadas sobre medios de cultivo sólido que contienen carboximetil celulosa, celulosa cristalina, ABTS (2,2´-azino-bis(3-etilbenzotiazolina-6-sulfonato y azure B, los cuales evidenciaron la producción de las enzimas endoglucanasa, exoglucanasa, lacasa y lignina peroxidasa (LiP. Las actividades celulolíticas fueron detectadas a los cinco días de incubación con el indicador rojo congo, formándose un halo claro-blanco en las zonas donde se degrada la celulosa. Para las ligninasas, este rastreo consistió en el seguimiento a la formación de halos verdes por oxidación del ABTS para lacasa y halos de decoloración sobre el azure B para la LiP durante 14 días de incubación. De este rastreo cualitativo, se seleccionaron cuatro cepas (G. lucidum, L. edodes, C. versicolor y T. Trogii, como las mejores productoras de enzimas celulolíticas y ligninolíticas. Estas cuatro especies fueron inoculadas sobre un sustrato de aserrín de roble, obteniéndose 51,8% de lignina degradada por L. edodes y 22% de celulosa degrada por C. versicolor.

Changes in oxidative enzyme activity during interspecific mycelial interactions involving the white-rot fungus Trametes versicolor

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Hiscox, J.; Baldrian, Petr; Rogers, H. J.; Boddy, L.

2010-01-01

Roč. 47, č. 6 (2010), s. 562-571 ISSN 1087-1845 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z50200510 Keywords : Interactions * Basidiomycetes * Trametes Subject RIV: EE - Microbiology, Virology Impact factor: 3.333, year: 2010

Decolorization and detoxification of reactive industrial dyes by immobilized fungi Trametes pubescens and Pleurotus ostreatus

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Caiseri, L.; Varese, G.C.; Anastasi, A.; Prigione, V.; Svobodová, Kateřina; Marchisio, V.F.; Novotný, Čeněk

2008-01-01

Roč. 53, č. 1 (2008), s. 44-52 ISSN 0015-5632 R&D Projects: GA AV ČR IAA6020411 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z50200510 Keywords : decolorization * detoxification * trametes pubescens Subject RIV: EE - Microbiology, Virology Impact factor: 1.172, year: 2008

Xenobiotic Compounds Degradation by Heterologous Expression of a Trametes sanguineus Laccase in Trichoderma atroviride.

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Edgar Balcázar-López

Full Text Available Fungal laccases are enzymes that have been studied because of their ability to decolorize and detoxify effluents; they are also used in paper bleaching, synthesis of polymers, bioremediation, etc. In this work we were able to express a laccase from Trametes (Pycnoporus sanguineus in the filamentous fungus Trichoderma atroviride. For this purpose, a transformation vector was designed to integrate the gene of interest in an intergenic locus near the blu17 terminator region. Although monosporic selection was still necessary, stable integration at the desired locus was achieved. The native signal peptide from T. sanguineus laccase was successful to secrete the recombinant protein into the culture medium. The purified, heterologously expressed laccase maintained similar properties to those observed in the native enzyme (Km and kcat and kcat/km values for ABTS, thermostability, substrate range, pH optimum, etc. To determine the bioremediation potential of this modified strain, the laccase-overexpressing Trichoderma strain was used to remove xenobiotic compounds. Phenolic compounds present in industrial wastewater and bisphenol A (an endocrine disruptor from the culture medium were more efficiently removed by this modified strain than with the wild type. In addition, the heterologously expressed laccase was able to decolorize different dyes as well as remove benzo[α]pyrene and phenanthrene in vitro, showing its potential for xenobiotic compound degradation.

Exploitation of Trametes versicolor for bioremediation of endocrine disrupting chemicals in bioreactors.

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Cinzia Pezzella

Full Text Available Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs are environmental contaminants causing increasing concerns due to their toxicity, persistence and ubiquity. In the present study, degradative capabilities of Trametes versicolor, Pleurotus ostreatus and Phanerochaete chrysosporium to act on five EDCs, which represent different classes of chemicals (phenols, parabens and phthalate and were first applied as single compounds, were assessed. T. versicolor was selected due to its efficiency against target EDCs and its potentialities were exploited against a mixture of EDCs in a cost-effective bioremediation process. A fed-batch approach as well as a starvation strategy were applied in order to reduce the need for input of 'fresh' biomass, and avoid the requirement for external nutrients. The fungus was successfully operated in two different bioreactors over one week. Semi-batch cultures were carried out by daily adding a mixture of EDCs to the bioreactors in a total of five consecutive degradation cycles. T. versicolor was able to efficiently remove all compounds during each cycle converting up to 21 mg L-1 day-1 of the tested EDCs. The maintained ability of T. versicolor to remove EDCs without any additional nutrients represents the main outcome of this study, which enables to forecast its application in a water treatment process.

Direct ethanol production from starch, wheat bran and rice straw by the white rot fungus Trametes hirsuta

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Okamoto, Kenji; Nitta, Yasuyuki; Maekawa, Nitaro; Yanase, Hideshi

2011-01-01

The white rot fungus Trametes hirsuta produced ethanol from a variety of hexoses: glucose, mannose, cellobiose and maltose, with yields of 0.49. 0.48, 0.47 and 0.47 g/g of ethanol per sugar utilized, respectively. In addition, this fungus showed relatively favorable xylose consumption and ethanol

Mating tests among geographically separated collections of the Trametes versicolor (Fr.) Pilát (Basidiomycetes, Polyporales) group

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Tomšovský, Michal; Homolka, Ladislav

2004-01-01

Roč. 79, 3-4 (2004), s. 425-431 ISSN 0029-5035 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA526/02/1216; GA ČR GD206/03/H137 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z5020903 Keywords : trametes versicolor * mating tests Subject RIV: EE - Microbiology, Virology Impact factor: 0.594, year: 2004

Structure and characteristics of an endo-beta-1,4-glucanase, isolated from Trametes hirsuta, with high degradation to crystalline cellulose.

Science.gov (United States)

Nozaki, Kouichi; Seki, Takahiro; Matsui, Keiko; Mizuno, Masahiro; Kanda, Takahisa; Amano, Yoshihiko

2007-10-01

Trametes hirsuta produced cellulose-degrading enzymes when it was grown in a cellulosic medium such as Avicel or wheat bran. An endo-beta-1,4-glucanase (ThEG) was purified from the culture filtrate, and the gene and the cDNA were isolated. The gene consisted of an open reading frame encoding 384 amino acids, interrupted by 11 introns. The whole sequence showed high homology with that of family 5 glycoside hydrolase. The properties of the recombinant enzyme (rEG) in Aspergillus oryzae were compared with those of the En-1 from Irpex lacteus, which showed the highest homology among all the endoglucanases reported. The rEG activity against Avicel was about 8 times higher than that of En-1 when based on CMC degradation. A remarkable structural difference between the two enzymes was the length of the linker connecting the cellulose-binding domain to the catalytic domain.

Degradation of the drug sodium diclofenac by Trametes versicolor pellets and identification of some intermediates by NMR

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Marco-Urrea, Ernest [Departament d' Enginyeria Quimica and Institut de Ciencia i Tecnologia Ambiental, Escola d' Enginyeria (Estonia), Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB), 08193 Bellaterra (Spain); Perez-Trujillo, Miriam [Servei de Ressonancia Magnetica Nuclear, UAB, 08193 Bellaterra (Spain); Cruz-Morato, Carles [Departament d' Enginyeria Quimica and Institut de Ciencia i Tecnologia Ambiental, Escola d' Enginyeria (Estonia), Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB), 08193 Bellaterra (Spain); Caminal, Gloria, E-mail: gloria.caminal@uab.es [Unitat de Biocatalisis Aplicada associada al IQAC (CSIC-UAB), EE, UAB, 08193 Bellaterra (Spain); Vicent, Teresa [Departament d' Enginyeria Quimica and Institut de Ciencia i Tecnologia Ambiental, Escola d' Enginyeria (Estonia), Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB), 08193 Bellaterra (Spain)

2010-04-15

Degradation of diclofenac sodium, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug widely found in the aquatic environment, was assessed using the white-rot fungus Trametes versicolor. Almost complete diclofenac removal ({>=}94%) occurred the first hour with T. versicolor pellets when the drug was added at relatively high (10 mg L{sup -1}) and environmentally relevant low (45 {mu}g L{sup -1}) concentrations in a defined liquid medium. In vivo and in vitro experiments using the cytochrome P450 inhibitor 1-aminobenzotriazole and purified laccase, respectively, suggested at least two different mechanisms employed by T. versicolor to initiate diclofenac degradation. Two hydroxylated metabolites, 4'-hydroxydiclofenac and 5-hydroxydiclofenac, were structurally elucidated by nuclear magnetic resonance as degradation intermediates in fungal cultures spiked with diclofenac. Both parent compound and intermediates disappeared after 24 h leading to a decrease in ecotoxicity calculated by the Microtox test. Laccase-catalyzed transformation of diclofenac led to the formation of 4-(2,6-dichlorophenylamino)-1,3-benzenedimethanol, which was not detected in in vivo experiments probably due to the low laccase activity levels observed through the first hours of incubation.

Degradation of the drug sodium diclofenac by Trametes versicolor pellets and identification of some intermediates by NMR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marco-Urrea, Ernest; Perez-Trujillo, Miriam; Cruz-Morato, Carles; Caminal, Gloria; Vicent, Teresa

2010-01-01

Degradation of diclofenac sodium, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug widely found in the aquatic environment, was assessed using the white-rot fungus Trametes versicolor. Almost complete diclofenac removal (≥94%) occurred the first hour with T. versicolor pellets when the drug was added at relatively high (10 mg L -1 ) and environmentally relevant low (45 μg L -1 ) concentrations in a defined liquid medium. In vivo and in vitro experiments using the cytochrome P450 inhibitor 1-aminobenzotriazole and purified laccase, respectively, suggested at least two different mechanisms employed by T. versicolor to initiate diclofenac degradation. Two hydroxylated metabolites, 4'-hydroxydiclofenac and 5-hydroxydiclofenac, were structurally elucidated by nuclear magnetic resonance as degradation intermediates in fungal cultures spiked with diclofenac. Both parent compound and intermediates disappeared after 24 h leading to a decrease in ecotoxicity calculated by the Microtox test. Laccase-catalyzed transformation of diclofenac led to the formation of 4-(2,6-dichlorophenylamino)-1,3-benzenedimethanol, which was not detected in in vivo experiments probably due to the low laccase activity levels observed through the first hours of incubation.

Gravimetric screening method for fungal decay of paper: inoculation with Trametes versicolor.

Science.gov (United States)

Råberg, Ulrika; Hafrén, Jonas

2009-10-01

The European standard test EN 113 for fungal degradation of solid wood has been adapted for degradation of paper by white rot fungus (Trametes versicolor). Fungal degradation of paper sheets may potentially be used for screening different wood preservatives on paper instead of solid wood. The paper samples showed higher relative mass losses compared to wood, and samples pretreated with boric acid, copper sulfate and polymerized linseed oil were successfully tested for biodegradation using the paper sheet method. The results on paper degradation were compared with wood, both as wood blocks (according to standard test) and wood cut in sections forming layered structures mimicking paper layers.

Real-time PCR analysis of carbon catabolite repression of cellobiose gene transcription in Trametes versicolor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stapleton, P. C.; O' Mahoney, J.; Dobson, A. D. W. [National University of Ireland, Microbiology Department, Cork (Ireland)

2004-02-01

Previous reports indicate that in white rot fungi such as Trametes versicolor, the production of cellobiose dehydrogenase (CDH), an extracellular haemo-flavo-enzyme, is subject to carbon catabolite repression by both glucose and maltose, and that the repression is mediated at the transcriptional level. This paper describes the results of an investigation of CDH gene transcription in cellulolytic cultures of T. versicolor, in the presence of other additional carbon sources such as glucose, arabinose, and xylose. Using real time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay methods in the presence of these other additional carbon sources, the levels of repression observed are quantitatively determined in an effort to obtain more accurate measurements of carbon catabolite repression of CDH production in this ligninolytic fungus. Ninety-six hours after addition, results of the analysis showed reduction in CDH transcript levels of 19-fold for galactose, 92-fold for arabinose and 114-fold for xylose. The greatest repressive effect was exhibited by glucose. In this case the reduction in CDH transcript levels was 3400-fold. CDH plays an important role in lignin degradation, and there is also substantial interest in the biotechnological applications of CDH, most particularly in the pulp and paper industry. 24 refs., 4 figs.

Antioxidative activities and chemical characterization of polysaccharide extracts from the widely used mushrooms Ganoderma applanatum, Ganoderma lucidum, Lentinus edodes and Trametes versicolor

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kozarski, M.; Klaus, A.; Niksic, M.; Vrvic, M.M.; Todorovic, N.; Jakovljevic, D.; Griensven, van L.J.L.D.

2012-01-01

Antioxidant activities of polysaccharide extracts of four of the most widely known mushrooms often used in medicinal applications as well as in tea and food, namely Ganoderma applanatum, Ganoderma lucidum, Lentinus edodes and Trametes versicolor, were studied. G. applanatum and L edodes extracts

Study On Selenium Accumulation In Turkey Tail Fungus (Trametes Versicolor) By Using Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Le Xuam Tham; Ho Van Hai; Bui Thi Minh Hai; Nguyen Giang; Nguyen Thi Dieu Hanh

2008-01-01

Medicinal mushroom Kawaratake Trametes versicolor strain obtained from Chiba University, Japan, was fermented at stationary Erlenmayer flasks 250 ml, containing PG media with Se (10 ppm as selenate) and without Se (control) supplement, incubated at 32-34 o C (room temperature in Ho Chi Minh City). Selenium was added as dissolve selenate Na 2 SeO 4 , in which Se was enriched with 74 Se. Under neutron fluxes in nuclear reactor 74 Se will be activated into 75 Se emitted gamma rays (n-γ reaction), recorded for calculations of Se contents in the samples. Cultivation of Kawaratake on mixed substrates based sawdusts supplemented with Se by injecting directly into center region of the substrate based on rubber tree sawdust. Analysis of Se contents in fungal biomass harvested by using INAA with neutron flux at 10 12 cm -2 .s -1 in Nuclear Reactor at Dalat City, Vietnam. The results obtained with Trametes versicolor showed Se levels in mycelial biomass up to 600-1500 ppm, while in the control (without Se supplement), only trace of Se (1 ppm more or less) was found. It would be related to the researches on configurations of complex of polysaccharides and proteins in biomass with high bioactivities. Se would substitute S for some due structures and enhance their antioxydant activities. (author)

Influence of xylem ray integrity and degree of polymerization on bending strength of beech wood decayed by Pleurotus ostreatus and Trametes versicolor

Science.gov (United States)

Ehsan Bari; Reza Oladi; Olaf Schmidt; Carol A. Clausen; Katie Ohno; Darrel D. Nicholas; Mehrdad Ghodskhah Daryaei; Maryam Karim

2015-01-01

The scope of this research was to evaluate the influence of xylem ray (XR) and degree of polymerization (DP) of holocellulose in Oriental beech wood (Fagus orientalis Lipsky.) on impact bending strength against two white-rot fungi. Beech wood specimens, exposed to Pleurotus ostreatus and Trametes versicolor, were evaluated for...

Oxidoreductases from Trametes spp. in Biotechnology: A Wealth of Catalytic Activity

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Gibson S. Nyanhongo

2007-01-01

Full Text Available Those oxidoreductases that are part of the ligninolytic complex of basidiomycete and ascomycete fungi have played an increasingly important role in biotechnological applications during the last decade. The stability of these extracellular enzymes, their good solubility, and a multitude of catalyzed reactions contribute to this trend. This review focuses on a single genus of white-rot basidiomycetes, Trametes, to highlight the numerous possibilities for the application of this microorganism as well as three of its enzymes: laccase, cellobiose dehydrogenase, and pyranose 2-oxidase. Whereas laccase is without doubt a major player in biotechnology, the two other enzymes are less well known, but represent emerging biocatalysts with potential. Both cellobiose dehydrogenase and pyranose 2-oxidase are presumed to participate in lignin breakdown and will be used to exemplify the potential of less prominent oxidoreductases from this genus.

EFFECT OF PARTICLE SIZE AND AERATION ON THE BIOLOGICAL DELIGNIFICATION OF CORN STRAW USING Trametes sp 44

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Samuel Quintanar Gómez,

2011-11-01

Full Text Available Straw is an agricultural byproduct that can be utilized to obtain bioethanol without affecting animal or human sustinence. This process involves recovering the sugars and reducing the lignin content present through the use of ligninolytic fungi such as the basidiomycete Trametes sp. 44. Fermentation was carried out using particle sizes 4 (4.76 mm, No. 4 sieve and 8 (2.30 mm, No. 8 sieve, and two velocities of airflow (100 and 200 mL/min. Study results showed that particle size affected the production of hydrolytic enzymes, as particle size 8 favored the expression of cellulases and hemicellulases. In addition, both aeration and particle size affected the expression of ligninolytic enzymes, as it was observed that with particle size 8 and airflow of 200 mL/min, the study detected 63 AU/mL of LiP and 11 AU/mL of MnP. In the case of laccase, the enzymatic activity detected reached 220 AU/mL using particle size 8 and an airflow velocity of 200 mL/min. Statistical analysis indicated that the treatment that produced the highest biological delignification occurred when Trametes sp. 44 was grown on corn straw at particle size 4 and airflow of 100 mL/min, conditions that yielded 34% delignification at day 12 of fermentation.

High Laccase Expression by Trametes versicolor in a Simulated Textile Effluent with Different Carbon Sources and PHs

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Cristiane Ottoni

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Textile effluents are highly polluting and have variable and complex compositions. They can be extremely complex, with high salt concentrations and alkaline pHs. A fixed-bed bioreactor was used in the present study to simulate a textile effluent treatment, where the white-rot fungus, Trametes versicolor, efficiently decolourised the azo dye Reactive Black 5 over 28 days. This occurred under high alkaline conditions, which is unusual, but advantageous, for successful decolourisation processes. Active dye decolourisation was maintained by operation in continuous culture. Colour was eliminated during the course of operation and maximum laccase (Lcc activity (80.2 U∙L−1 was detected after glycerol addition to the bioreactor. Lcc2 gene expression was evaluated with different carbon sources and pH values based on reverse transcriptase-PCR (polymerase chain reaction. Glycerol was shown to promote the highest lcc2 expression at pH 5.5, followed by sucrose and then glucose. The highest levels of expression occurred between three and four days, which corroborate the maximum Lcc activity observed for sucrose and glycerol on the bioreactor. These results give new insights into the use of T. versicolor in textile dye wastewater treatment with high pHs.

Removal of pharmaceuticals, polybrominated flame retardants and UV-filters from sludge by the fungus Trametes versicolor in bioslurry reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rodríguez-Rodríguez, Carlos E.; Barón, Enrique; Gago-Ferrero, Pablo; Jelić, Aleksandra; Llorca, Marta; Farré, Marinella; Díaz-Cruz, M. Silvia; Eljarrat, Ethel; Petrović, Mira; Caminal, Glòria; Barceló, Damià

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Sludge from a WWTP was treated in a fungal slurry reactor with Trametes versicolor. ► Twenty-four pharmaceuticals were removed at important extents. ► UV-filters and brominated flame retardants were also degraded. ► Overall toxicity of sludge increased despite the pollutant removal. - Abstract: Conventional wastewater treatments are inefficient in the removal of many organic pollutants. The presence of these contaminants in the final sludge represents a source of environmental pollution due to the increasing use of biosolids in land application. A biotechnological approach which employed the fungus Trametes versicolor in a sludge-bioslurry reactor was assessed in order to remove several groups of emerging pollutants. Biological fungal activity was monitored by means of ergosterol and laccase determinations. Fifteen out of 24 detected pharmaceuticals were removed at efficiencies over 50% after the treatment, including eight completely degraded. Removal ranged between 16–53% and 22–100% for the brominated flame retardants and the UV-filters, respectively. Only two of all the detected compounds remained unchanged after the treatment. Although elimination results are promising, the toxicity of the final sludge increased after the treatment. This finding is contrary to the toxicity results obtained in similar treatments of sludge with T. versicolor in solid-phase.

Characterization of purified and Xerogel immobilized Novel Lignin Peroxidase produced from Trametes versicolor IBL-04 using solid state medium of Corncobs

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Asgher Muhammad

2012-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Cost-effective production of industrially important enzymes is a key for their successful exploitation on industrial scale. Keeping in view the extensive industrial applications of lignin peroxidase (LiP, this study was performed to purify and characterize the LiP from an indigenous strain of Trametes versicolor IBL-04. Xerogel matrix enzyme immobilization technique was applied to improve the kinetic and thermo-stability characteristics of LiP to fulfil the requirements of the modern enzyme consumer sector of biotechnology. Results A novel LiP was isolated from an indigenous T. versicolor IBL-04 strain. T. versicolor IBL-04 was cultured in solid state fermentation (SSF medium of corn cobs and maximum LiP activity of 592 ± 6 U/mL was recorded after five days of incubation under optimum culture conditions. The crude LiP was 3.3-fold purified with specific activity of 553 U/mg after passing through the DEAE-cellulose and Sephadex-G-100 chromatography columns. The purified LiP exhibited a relatively low molecular weight (30 kDa homogenous single band on native and SDS-PAGE. The LiP was immobilized by entrapping in xerogel matrix of trimethoxysilane (TMOS and proplytetramethoxysilane (PTMS and maximum immobilization efficiency of 88.6% was achieved. The free and immobilized LiPs were characterized and the results showed that the free and immobilized LiPs had optimum pH 6 and 5 while optimum temperatures were 60°C and 80°C, respectively. Immobilization was found to enhance the activity and thermo-stability potential of LiP significantly and immobilized LiP remained stable over broad pH and temperature range as compare to free enzyme. Kinetic constants Km and Vmax were 70 and 56 μM and 588 and 417 U/mg for the free and immobilized LiPs, respectively. Activity of this novel extra thermo-stable LiP was stimulated to variable extents by Cu2+, Mn2+ and Fe2+ whereas, Cystein, EDTA and Ag+ showed inhibitory effects

Removal of pharmaceuticals, polybrominated flame retardants and UV-filters from sludge by the fungus Trametes versicolor in bioslurry reactor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rodriguez-Rodriguez, Carlos E. [Unitat Asociada de Biocatalisi Aplicada IQAC-CSIC, Escola d' Enginyeria, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Barcelona (Spain); Centro de Investigacion en Contaminacion Ambiental, Universidad de Costa Rica, 2060 San Jose (Costa Rica); Baron, Enrique; Gago-Ferrero, Pablo; Jelic, Aleksandra; Llorca, Marta; Farre, Marinella; Diaz-Cruz, M. Silvia; Eljarrat, Ethel [Department of Environmental Chemistry, Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Research (IDAEA), Spanish Council for Scientific Research (CSIC), Jordi Girona 18-26, 08034 Barcelona (Spain); Petrovic, Mira [Institucio Catalana de Reserca i Estudis Avancats (ICREA), Passeig Lluis Companys 23, 80010 Barcelona (Spain); Catalan Institute for Water Research (ICRA), H2O Building, Scientific and Technological Park of the University of Girona, 101-E-17003 Girona (Spain); Caminal, Gloria, E-mail: Gloria.Caminal@uab.cat [Unitat Asociada de Biocatalisi Aplicada IQAC-CSIC, Escola d' Enginyeria, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Barcelona (Spain); Barcelo, Damia [Department of Environmental Chemistry, Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Research (IDAEA), Spanish Council for Scientific Research (CSIC), Jordi Girona 18-26, 08034 Barcelona (Spain); Catalan Institute for Water Research (ICRA), H2O Building, Scientific and Technological Park of the University of Girona, 101-E-17003 Girona (Spain); King Saud University (KSU), P.O. Box 2455, 11451 Riyadh (Saudi Arabia); and others

2012-09-30

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Sludge from a WWTP was treated in a fungal slurry reactor with Trametes versicolor. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Twenty-four pharmaceuticals were removed at important extents. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer UV-filters and brominated flame retardants were also degraded. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Overall toxicity of sludge increased despite the pollutant removal. - Abstract: Conventional wastewater treatments are inefficient in the removal of many organic pollutants. The presence of these contaminants in the final sludge represents a source of environmental pollution due to the increasing use of biosolids in land application. A biotechnological approach which employed the fungus Trametes versicolor in a sludge-bioslurry reactor was assessed in order to remove several groups of emerging pollutants. Biological fungal activity was monitored by means of ergosterol and laccase determinations. Fifteen out of 24 detected pharmaceuticals were removed at efficiencies over 50% after the treatment, including eight completely degraded. Removal ranged between 16-53% and 22-100% for the brominated flame retardants and the UV-filters, respectively. Only two of all the detected compounds remained unchanged after the treatment. Although elimination results are promising, the toxicity of the final sludge increased after the treatment. This finding is contrary to the toxicity results obtained in similar treatments of sludge with T. versicolor in solid-phase.

Aroma Characterization and Safety Assessment of a Beverage Fermented by Trametes versicolor.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Yanyan; Fraatz, Marco Alexander; Müller, Julia; Schmitz, Hans-Joachim; Birk, Florian; Schrenk, Dieter; Zorn, Holger

2015-08-12

A cereal-based beverage was developed by fermentation of wort with the basidiomycete Trametes versicolor. The beverage possessed a fruity, fresh, and slightly floral aroma. The volatiles of the beverage were isolated by liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) and additionally by headspace solid phase microextraction (HS-SPME). The aroma compounds were analyzed by a gas chromatography system equipped with a tandem mass spectrometer and an olfactory detection port (GC-MS/MS-O) followed by aroma (extract) dilution analysis. Thirty-four different odor impressions were perceived, and 27 corresponding compounds were identified. Fifteen key odorants with flavor dilution (FD) factors ranging from 8 to 128 were quantitated, and their respective odor activity values (OAVs) were calculated. Six key odorants were synthesized de novo by T. versicolor. Furthermore, quantitative changes during the fermentation process were analyzed. To prepare for the market introduction of the beverage, a comprehensive safety assessment was performed.

Enzymatic removal of estrogenic activity of nonylphenol and octylphenol aqueous solutions by immobilized laccase from Trametes versicolor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Catapane, Maria [Institute of Genetics and Biophysics “ABT”, Via P. Castellino, 111, 80131 Naples (Italy); National Institute of Biostructures and Biosystems (INBB), Viale Medaglie d’Oro, 305, 00136 Rome (Italy); Nicolucci, Carla; Menale, Ciro; Mita, Luigi [National Institute of Biostructures and Biosystems (INBB), Viale Medaglie d’Oro, 305, 00136 Rome (Italy); Department of Experimental Medicine, Second University of Naples, Via S. M. di Costantinopoli, 16, 80138 Naples (Italy); Rossi, Sergio [Institute of Genetics and Biophysics “ABT”, Via P. Castellino, 111, 80131 Naples (Italy); Mita, Damiano G., E-mail: mita@igb.cnr.it [Institute of Genetics and Biophysics “ABT”, Via P. Castellino, 111, 80131 Naples (Italy); National Institute of Biostructures and Biosystems (INBB), Viale Medaglie d’Oro, 305, 00136 Rome (Italy); Department of Experimental Medicine, Second University of Naples, Via S. M. di Costantinopoli, 16, 80138 Naples (Italy); Diano, Nadia [Institute of Genetics and Biophysics “ABT”, Via P. Castellino, 111, 80131 Naples (Italy); National Institute of Biostructures and Biosystems (INBB), Viale Medaglie d’Oro, 305, 00136 Rome (Italy); Department of Experimental Medicine, Second University of Naples, Via S. M. di Costantinopoli, 16, 80138 Naples (Italy)

2013-03-15

Highlights: ► Endocrine disruptors cause adverse effects in living organisms. ► Nonylphenol and Octylphenol are alkylphenols recognized as endocrine disruptors. ► It is necessary to remove or reduce their presence in the environment. ► Waters polluted by these pollutants have been bioremediated by immobilized laccase from Trametes versicolor. ► Laccase treated solutions were found to have lost any estrogenic activity. -- Abstract: A fluidized bed reactor, filled with laccase-based beads, has been employed to bioremediate aqueous solutions polluted by endocrine disruptors belonging to the alkylphenols (APs) class. In particular Octylphenol and Nonylphenol have been studied. The catalytic activity of free and immobilized laccase from Trametes versicolor has been characterized as a function of pH, temperature and substrate concentration in the reaction medium. In view of practical applications for each substrate concentration the removal efficiency (RE), the time to halve the initial concentration (τ{sub 50}), and the t{sub c=0}, i.e. the time to reach complete pollutant removal, have been calculated. The immobilized laccase exhibited a lower affinity for octylphenol (K{sub m} = 1.11 mM) than for Nonylphenol (K{sub m} = 0.72 mM), but all the other parameters of applicative interest resulted more significant for octylphenol. For example, the times to reach the complete removal of octylphenol compared to those for nonylphenol at the same concentration is shorter of about 15% (at low concentrations) up to 40% (at high concentrations). The study of cell proliferation with MPP89 cells, a human mesothelioma cell line, and the assay with the YES test indicated the loss of estrogenic activity of the APs solutions after laccase treatment.

Intracellular Enzymes Contribution to the Biocatalytic Removal of Pharmaceuticals by Trametes hirsuta.

Science.gov (United States)

Haroune, Lounès; Saibi, Sabrina; Cabana, Hubert; Bellenger, Jean-Philippe

2017-01-17

The use of white rot fungi (WRF) for bioremediation of recalcitrant trace organic contaminants (TrOCs) is becoming greatly popular. Biosorption and lignin modifying enzymes (LMEs) are the most often reported mechanisms of action. Intracellular enzymes, such as cytochrome P450 (CYP450), have also been suggested to contribute. However, direct evidence of TrOCs uptake and intracellular transformation is lacking. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relative contribution of biosorption, extracellular LMEs activity, TrOCs uptake, and intracellular CYP450 on the removal of six nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIs) by Trametes hirsuta. Results show that for most tested NSAIs, LMEs activity and biosorption failed to explain the observed removal. Most tested TrOCs are quickly taken up and intracellularly transformed. Fine characterization of intracellular transformation using ketoprofen showed that CYP450 is not the sole intracellular enzyme responsible for intracellular transformation. The contribution of CYP450 in further transformation of ketoprofen byproducts is also reported. These results illustrate that TrOCs transformation by WRF is a more complex process than previously reported. Rapid uptake of TrOCs and intracellular transformation through diverse enzymatic systems appears to be important components of WRF efficiency toward TrOCs.

Proteomics investigation reveals cell death-associated proteins of basidiomycete fungus Trametes versicolor treated with Ferruginol.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Yu-Han; Yeh, Ting-Feng; Chu, Fang-Hua; Hsu, Fu-Lan; Chang, Shang-Tzen

2015-01-14

Ferruginol has antifungal activity against wood-rot fungi (basidiomycetes). However, specific research on the antifungal mechanisms of ferruginol is scarce. Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and fluorescent image analysis were employed to evaluate the differential protein expression of wood-rot fungus Trametes versicolor treated with or without ferruginol. Results from protein identification of tryptic peptides via liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (LC–ESI-MS/MS) analyses revealed 17 protein assignments with differential expression. Downregulation of cytoskeleton β-tubulin 3 indicates that ferruginol has potential to be used as a microtubule-disrupting agent. Downregulation of major facilitator superfamily (MFS)–multiple drug resistance (MDR) transporter and peroxiredoxin TSA1 were observed, suggesting reduction in self-defensive capabilities of T. versicolor. In addition, the proteins involved in polypeptide sorting and DNA repair were also downregulated, while heat shock proteins and autophagy-related protein 7 were upregulated. These observations reveal that such cellular dysfunction and damage caused by ferruginol lead to growth inhibition and autophagic cell death of fungi.

Laccase Gene Expression and Vinasse Biodegradation by Trametes hirsuta Strain Bm-2

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Raúl Tapia-Tussell

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Vinasse is the dark-colored wastewater that is generated by bioethanol distilleries from feedstock molasses. The vinasse that is generated from molasses contains high amounts of pollutants, including phenolic compounds and melanoindin. The goal of this work was to study the expression of laccase genes in the Trametes hirsuta strain Bm-2, isolated in Yucatan, Mexico, in the presence of phenolic compounds, as well as its effectiveness in removing colorants from vinasse. In the presence of all phenolic compounds tested (guaiacol, ferulic acid, and vanillic acid, increased levels of laccase-encoding mRNA were observed. Transcript levels in the presence of guaiacol were 40 times higher than those in the control. The lcc1 and lcc2 genes of T. hirsuta were differentially expressed; guaiacol and vanillin induced the expression of both genes, whereas ferulic acid only induced the expression of lcc2. The discoloration of vinasse was concomitant with the increase in laccase activity. The highest value of enzyme activity (2543.7 U/mL was obtained in 10% (v/v vinasse, which corresponded to a 69.2% increase in discoloration. This study demonstrates the potential of the Bm-2 strain of T. hirsuta for the biodegradation of vinasse.

Effect Of Metal Ions On Triphenylmethane Dye Decolorization By Laccase From Trametes Versicolor

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chmelová Daniela

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was investigate the influence of different metal ions on laccase activity and triphenylmethane dye decolorization by laccase from white-rot fungus Trametes versicolor. Laccase activity was inhibited by monovalent ions (Li+, Na+, K+ and Ag+ but the presence of divalent ions increased laccase activity at the concentration of 10 mmol/l. The effect of metal ions on decolorization of triphenylmethane dyes with different structures namely Bromochlorophenol Blue, Bromophenol Blue, Bromocresol Blue and Phenol Red was tested. The presence of metal ions (Na+, K+, Mg2+, Ca2+, Ba2+, Mn2+, Zn2+ slightly decreased triphenylmethane dye decolorization by laccase from T. versicolor except Na+ and Mg2+, which caused the increase of decolorization for all tested dyes. Decolorization of selected dyes showed that the presence of low-molecular-weight compounds is necessary for effective decolorization. Hydroxybenzotriazole (HBT is the most frequently used. Although HBT belongs to most frequently used redox mediator and generally increase decolorization efficiency, so its presence decreased decolorization percentage of Bromophenol Blue and Bromochlorophenol Blue, the influence of metal ions to dye decolorization by laccase has the similar course with or without presence of redox mediator HBT.

Oxygen cathode based on a layer-by-layer self-assembled laccase and osmium redox mediator

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Szamocki, R.; Flexer, V. [INQUIMAE-DQIAyQF, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, 1428 Buenos Aires (Argentina); Levin, L.; Forchiasin, F. [Micologia Experimental, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biologia Experimental. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, 1428 Buenos Aires (Argentina); Calvo, E.J. [INQUIMAE-DQIAyQF, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, 1428 Buenos Aires (Argentina)], E-mail: calvo@qi.fcen.uba.ar

2009-02-28

Trametes trogii laccase has been studied as biocatalyst for the oxygen electro-reduction in three different systems: (i) soluble laccase was studied in solution; (ii) an enzyme monolayer was tethered to a gold surface by dithiobis N-succinimidyl propionate (DTSP), with a soluble osmium pyridine-bipyridine redox mediator in both cases. The third case (iii) consisted in the sequential immobilization of laccase and the osmium complex derivatized poly(allylamine) self-assembled layer-by-layer (LbL) on mercaptopropane sulfonate modified gold to produce an all integrated and wired enzymatic oxygen cathode. The polycation was the same osmium complex covalently bound to poly-(ally-lamine) backbone (PAH-Os), the polyanion was the enzyme adsorbed from a solution of a suitable pH so that the protein carries a net negative charge. The adsorption of laccase was studied by monitoring the mass uptake with a quartz crystal microbalance and the oxygen reduction electrocatalysis was studied by linear scan voltammetry. While for the three cases, oxygen electrocatalysis mediated by the osmium complex was observed, for tethered laccase direct electron transfer in the absence of redox mediator was also apparent but no electrocatalysis for the oxygen reduction was recorded in the absence of mediator in solution. For the fully integrated LbL self-assembled laccase and redox mediator (case iii) a catalytic reduction of oxygen could be recorded at different oxygen partial pressures and different electrolyte pH. The tolerance of the reaction to methanol and chloride was also investigated.

Oxygen cathode based on a layer-by-layer self-assembled laccase and osmium redox mediator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Szamocki, R.; Flexer, V.; Levin, L.; Forchiasin, F.; Calvo, E.J.

2009-01-01

Trametes trogii laccase has been studied as biocatalyst for the oxygen electro-reduction in three different systems: (i) soluble laccase was studied in solution; (ii) an enzyme monolayer was tethered to a gold surface by dithiobis N-succinimidyl propionate (DTSP), with a soluble osmium pyridine-bipyridine redox mediator in both cases. The third case (iii) consisted in the sequential immobilization of laccase and the osmium complex derivatized poly(allylamine) self-assembled layer-by-layer (LbL) on mercaptopropane sulfonate modified gold to produce an all integrated and wired enzymatic oxygen cathode. The polycation was the same osmium complex covalently bound to poly-(ally-lamine) backbone (PAH-Os), the polyanion was the enzyme adsorbed from a solution of a suitable pH so that the protein carries a net negative charge. The adsorption of laccase was studied by monitoring the mass uptake with a quartz crystal microbalance and the oxygen reduction electrocatalysis was studied by linear scan voltammetry. While for the three cases, oxygen electrocatalysis mediated by the osmium complex was observed, for tethered laccase direct electron transfer in the absence of redox mediator was also apparent but no electrocatalysis for the oxygen reduction was recorded in the absence of mediator in solution. For the fully integrated LbL self-assembled laccase and redox mediator (case iii) a catalytic reduction of oxygen could be recorded at different oxygen partial pressures and different electrolyte pH. The tolerance of the reaction to methanol and chloride was also investigated

Phase 1 Clinical Trial of Trametes versicolor in Women with Breast Cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Torkelson, Carolyn J; Sweet, Erin; Martzen, Mark R; Sasagawa, Masa; Wenner, Cynthia A; Gay, Juliette; Putiri, Amy; Standish, Leanna J

2012-01-01

Introduction. Orally administered preparations from the Trametes versicolor (Tv) mushroom have been hypothesized to improve immune response in women with breast cancer after standard chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Methods. A phase I, two-center, dose escalation study was done to determine the maximum tolerated dose of a Tv preparation when taken daily in divided doses for 6 weeks after recent completion of radiotherapy. Eleven participants were recruited and nine women completed the study. Each cohort was comprised of three participants given one of three doses of Tv (3, 6, or 9 grams). Immune data was collected pre- and postradiation, at 3 on-treatment time points and after a 3-week washout. Results. Nine adverse events were reported (7 mild, 1 moderate, and 1 severe), suggesting that Tv was well tolerated. Immunological results indicated trends in (1) increased lymphocyte counts at 6 and 9 grams/day; (2) increased natural killer cell functional activity at 6 grams/day; (3) dose-related increases in CD8(+) T cells and CD19(+) B cells , but not CD4(+) T cells or CD16(+)56(+) NK cells. Conclusion. These findings show that up to 9 grams/day of a Tv preparation is safe and tolerable in women with breast cancer in the postprimary treatment setting. This Tv preparation may improve immune status in immunocompromised breast cancer patients following standard primary oncologic treatment.

Enzyme-Catalyzed Oxidation of 17β-Estradiol Using Immobilized Laccase from Trametes versicolor

Science.gov (United States)

Cardinal-Watkins, Chantale; Nicell, Jim A.

2011-01-01

Many natural and synthetic estrogens are amenable to oxidation through the catalytic action of oxidative enzymes such as the fungal laccase Trametes versicolor. This study focused on characterizing the conversion of estradiol (E2) using laccase that had been immobilized by covalent bonding onto silica beads contained in a bench-scale continuous-flow packed bed reactor. Conversion of E2 accomplished in the reactor declined when the temperature of the system was changed from room temperature to just above freezing at pH 5 as a result of a reduced rate of reaction rather than inactivation of the enzyme. Similarly, conversion increased when the system was brought to warmer temperatures. E2 conversion increased when the pH of the influent to the immobilized laccase reactor was changed from pH 7 to pH 5, but longer-term experiments showed that the enzyme is more stable at pH 7. Results also showed that the immobilized laccase maintained its activity when treating a constant supply of aqueous E2 at a low mean residence time over a 12-hour period and when treating a constant supply of aqueous E2 at a high mean residence time over a period of 9 days. PMID:21869925

Advanced oxidation of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene isomers (BTEX) by Trametes versicolor.

Science.gov (United States)

Aranda, Elisabet; Marco-Urrea, Ernest; Caminal, Gloria; Arias, María E; García-Romera, Inmaculada; Guillén, Francisco

2010-09-15

Advanced oxidation of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and o-, m-, and p-xylene (BTEX) by the extracellular hydroxyl radicals (*OH) generated by the white-rot fungus Trametes versicolor is for the first time demonstrated. The production of *OH was induced by incubating the fungus with 2,6-dimethoxy-1,4-benzoquinone (DBQ) and Fe3+-EDTA. Under these conditions, *OH were generated through DBQ redox cycling catalyzed by quinone reductase and laccase. The capability of T. versicolor growing in malt extract medium to produce *OH by this mechanism was shown during primary and secondary metabolism, and was quantitatively modulated by the replacement of EDTA by oxalate and Mn2+ addition to DBQ incubations. Oxidation of BTEX was observed only under *OH induction conditions. *OH involvement was inferred from the high correlation observed between the rates at which they were produced under different DBQ redox cycling conditions and those of benzene removal, and the production of phenol as a typical hydroxylation product of *OH attack on benzene. All the BTEX compounds (500 microM) were oxidized at a similar rate, reaching an average of 71% degradation in 6 h samples. After this time oxidation stopped due to O2 depletion in the closed vials used in the incubations. Copyright 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Production of Trametes pubescens laccase under submerged and semi-solid culture conditions on agro-industrial wastes.

Science.gov (United States)

Gonzalez, Juan C; Medina, Sandra C; Rodriguez, Alexander; Osma, Johann F; Alméciga-Díaz, Carlos J; Sánchez, Oscar F

2013-01-01

Laccases are copper-containing enzymes involved in the degradation of lignocellulosic materials and used in the treatment of phenol-containing wastewater. In this study we investigated the effect of culture conditions, i.e. submerged or semi-solid, and copper supplementation on laccase production by Trametespubescens grown on coffee husk, soybean pod husk, or cedar sawdust. The highest specific laccase activity was achieved when the culture was conducted under submerged conditions supplemented with copper (5 mM), and using coffee husk as substrate. The crude extracts presented two laccase isoforms with molecular mass of 120 (Lac1) and 60 kDa (Lac2). Regardless of the substrate, enzymatic crude extract and purified fractions behaved similarly at different temperatures and pHs, most of them presented the maximum activity at 55 °C and a pH range between 2 and 3. In addition, they showed similar stability and electro-chemical properties. At optimal culture conditions laccase activity was 7.69 ± 0.28 U mg(-1) of protein for the crude extract, and 0.08 ± 0.001 and 2.86 ± 0.05 U mg(-1) of protein for Lac1 and Lac2, respectively. In summary, these results show the potential of coffee husk as an important and economical growth medium to produce laccase, offering a new alternative use for this common agro-industrial byproduct.

Production of Trametes pubescens laccase under submerged and semi-solid culture conditions on agro-industrial wastes.

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Juan C Gonzalez

Full Text Available Laccases are copper-containing enzymes involved in the degradation of lignocellulosic materials and used in the treatment of phenol-containing wastewater. In this study we investigated the effect of culture conditions, i.e. submerged or semi-solid, and copper supplementation on laccase production by Trametespubescens grown on coffee husk, soybean pod husk, or cedar sawdust. The highest specific laccase activity was achieved when the culture was conducted under submerged conditions supplemented with copper (5 mM, and using coffee husk as substrate. The crude extracts presented two laccase isoforms with molecular mass of 120 (Lac1 and 60 kDa (Lac2. Regardless of the substrate, enzymatic crude extract and purified fractions behaved similarly at different temperatures and pHs, most of them presented the maximum activity at 55 °C and a pH range between 2 and 3. In addition, they showed similar stability and electro-chemical properties. At optimal culture conditions laccase activity was 7.69 ± 0.28 U mg(-1 of protein for the crude extract, and 0.08 ± 0.001 and 2.86 ± 0.05 U mg(-1 of protein for Lac1 and Lac2, respectively. In summary, these results show the potential of coffee husk as an important and economical growth medium to produce laccase, offering a new alternative use for this common agro-industrial byproduct.

Biochemical and molecular characterization of Coriolopsis rigida laccases involved in transformation of the solid waste from olive oil production.

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Díaz, Rosario; Saparrat, Mario C N; Jurado, Miguel; García-Romera, Inmaculada; Ocampo, Juan Antonio; Martínez, María Jesús

2010-09-01

Two laccase isoenzymes were purified and characterized from the basidiomycete Coriolopsis rigida during transformation of the water-soluble fraction of "alpeorujo" (WSFA), a solid residue derived from the olive oil production containing high levels of toxic compounds. Zymogram assays of laccases secreted by the fungus growing on WSFA and WSFA supplemented with glucose showed two bands with isoelectric points of 3.3 and 3.4. The kinetic studies of the two purified isoenzymes showed similar affinity on 2,6-dimethoxyphenol and 2,2'-azinobis-(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonic acid), used as phenolic and non-phenolic model substrate, respectively. The molecular mass of both proteins was 66 kDa with 9% N-linked carbohydrate. Physico-chemical properties of the purified laccases from media containing WSFA were similar to those obtained from medium with glucose as the main carbon source. In-vitro studies performed with the purified laccases revealed a 42% phenol reduction of WSFA, as well as changes in the molecular mass distribution. These findings indicate that these laccases are involved in the process of transformation, via polymerization by the oxidation of phenolic compounds present in WSFA. A single laccase gene, containing an open reading frame of 1,488 bp, was obtained in PCR amplifications performed with cDNA extracted from mycelia grown on WSFA. The product of the gene shares 90% identity (95% similarity) with a laccase from Trametes trogii and 89% identity (95% similarity) with a laccase from Coriolopsis gallica. This is the first report on purification and molecular characterization of laccases directly involved in the transformation of olive oil residues.

Degradation of anthracene by laccase of Trametes versicolor in the presence of different mediator compounds.

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Johannes, C; Majcherczyk, A; Hüttermann, A

1996-10-01

Laccase of Trametes versicolor was generally able to oxidize anthracene in vitro. After 72 h incubation about 35% of the anthracene was transformed stoichiometrically to 9,10-anthraquinone. Transformation of anthracene increased rapidly in the presence of different mediators that readily generate stable radicals: 2,2'-azino-bis-(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) and 1-hydroxybenzotriazole. For the reaction, the presence of both the laccase and the mediator was necessary. In the presence of 0.005 mM 1-hydroxybenzotriazole this conversion had removed 47% of the anthracene after 72 h; 75% of the substrate was oxidized during this period when ABTS (1 mM) was used as mediator. In contrast to reactions without or with only low concentrations of a mediator, there was a discrepancy between the disappearance of anthracene and the formation of 9,10-anthraquinone in mediator-forced reactions. Coupling-products of mediators with anthracene degradation products were found. Anthracene disappeared nearly completely after incubation for 72 h with laccase in a 0.1 mM solution of 1-hydroxybenzotriazole and was transformed to 9,10-anthraquinone in about 80% yield; 90% of the substrate was transformed in the presence of ABTS (2.0 mM) resulting again in 80% quinone. Phenothiazine was not effective in this system.

Degradation of Aflatoxins by Means of Laccases from Trametes versicolor: An In Silico Insight

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Luca Dellafiora

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites of fungi that contaminate food and feed, and are involved in a series of foodborne illnesses and disorders in humans and animals. The mitigation of mycotoxin content via enzymatic degradation is a strategy to ensure safer food and feed, and to address the forthcoming issues in view of the global trade and sustainability. Nevertheless, the search for active enzymes is still challenging and time-consuming. The in silico analysis may strongly support the research by providing the evidence-based hierarchization of enzymes for a rational design of more effective experimental trials. The present work dealt with the degradation of aflatoxin B1 and M1 by laccase enzymes from Trametes versicolor. The enzymes–substrate interaction for various enzyme isoforms was investigated through 3D molecular modeling techniques. Structural differences among the isoforms have been pinpointed, which may cause different patterns of interaction between aflatoxin B1 and M1. The possible formation of different products of degradation can be argued accordingly. Moreover, the laccase gamma isoform was identified as the most suitable for protein engineering aimed at ameliorating the substrate specificity. Overall, 3D modeling proved to be an effective analytical tool to assess the enzyme–substrate interaction and provided a solid foothold for supporting the search of degrading enzyme at the early stage.

Degradation of selected agrochemicals by the white rot fungus Trametes versicolor.

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Mir-Tutusaus, Josep Anton; Masís-Mora, Mario; Corcellas, Cayo; Eljarrat, Ethel; Barceló, Damià; Sarrà, Montserrat; Caminal, Glòria; Vicent, Teresa; Rodríguez-Rodríguez, Carlos E

2014-12-01

Use of agrochemicals is a worldwide practice that exerts an important effect on the environment; therefore the search of approaches for the elimination of such pollutants should be encouraged. The degradation of the insecticides imiprothrin (IP) and cypermethrin (CP), the insecticide/nematicide carbofuran (CBF) and the antibiotic of agricultural use oxytetracycline (OTC) were assayed with the white rot fungus Trametes versicolor. Experiments with fungal pellets demonstrated extensive degradation of the four tested agrochemicals, at rates that followed the pattern IP>OTC>CP>CBF. In vitro assays with laccase-mediator systems showed that this extracellular enzyme participates in the transformation of IP but not in the cases of CBF and OTC. On the other hand, in vivo studies with inhibitors of cytochrome P450 revealed that this intracellular system plays an important role in the degradation of IP, OTC and CBF, but not for CP. The compounds 3-(2,2-dichlorovinyl)-2,2-dimethylcyclopropane carboxylic acid (DCCA) and 3-phenoxybenzoic acid (PBA) were detected as transformation products of CP, as a result of the breakdown of the molecule. Meanwhile, 3-hydroxycarbofuran was detected as a transformation product of CBF; this metabolite tended to accumulate during the process, nonetheless, the toxicity of the system was effectively reduced. Simultaneous degradation of CBF and OTC showed a reduction in toxicity; similarly, when successive additions of OTC were done during the slower degradation of CBF, the fungal pellets were able to degrade both compounds. The simultaneous degradation of the four compounds successfully took place with minimal inhibition of fungal activity and resulted in the reduction of the global toxicity, thus supporting the potential use of T. versicolor for the treatment of diverse agrochemicals. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effects of glucose on the Reactive Black 5 (RB5 decolorization by two white rot basidiomycetes

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Tony Hadibarata

2011-11-01

Full Text Available The capacities of glucose in the decolorization process of an azo dye, Reactive Black 5 (RB5, by two white rot basidiomycetes, Pleurotus sp. F019 and Trametes sp. F054 were investigated. The results indicated that the dye degradation by the two fungi was extremely correlated with the presence of glucose in the culture and the process of fungi growth. Decolorization of 200 mg dye/l was increased from 62% and 69% to 100% within 20–25 h with the increase of glucose from 5 to 15 g/l, and the activity of manganese dependent peroxidase (MnP increased by 2–9 fold in this case. Hydrogen peroxide of 0.55 mg/l and 0.43 mg/l were detected in 10 h in Pleurotus sp. F019 and Trametes sp. F054 cultures.

Biological Pretreatment of Mexican Caribbean Macroalgae Consortiums Using Bm-2 Strain (Trametes hirsuta and Its Enzymatic Broth to Improve Biomethane Potential

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Raúl Tapia-Tussell

2018-02-01

Full Text Available The macroalgae consortium biomass in the Mexican Caribbean represents an emerging and promising biofuel feedstock. Its biological pretreatment and potential for energetic conversion to biomethane were investigated, since some macroalgae have hard cell walls that present an obstacle to efficient methane production when those substrates are used. It has been revealed by anaerobic digestion assays that pretreatment with a Bm-2 strain (Trametes hirsuta isolated from decaying wood in Yucatan, Mexico was 104 L CH4 kg·VS−1; In fact, the fungal pretreatment produced a 20% increase in methane yield, with important amounts of alkali metals Ca, K, Mg, Na of 78 g/L, ash 35.5% and lignin 15.6%. It is unlikely that high concentrations of ash and alkali metals will produce an ideal feedstock for combustion or pyrolysis, but they can be recommended for a biological process.

Direct ethanol production from starch, wheat bran and rice straw by the white rot fungus Trametes hirsuta.

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Okamoto, Kenji; Nitta, Yasuyuki; Maekawa, Nitaro; Yanase, Hideshi

2011-03-07

The white rot fungus Trametes hirsuta produced ethanol from a variety of hexoses: glucose, mannose, cellobiose and maltose, with yields of 0.49, 0.48, 0.47 and 0.47 g/g of ethanol per sugar utilized, respectively. In addition, this fungus showed relatively favorable xylose consumption and ethanol production with a yield of 0.44 g/g. T. hirsuta was capable of directly fermenting starch, wheat bran and rice straw to ethanol without acid or enzymatic hydrolysis. Maximum ethanol concentrations of 9.1, 4.3 and 3.0 g/l, corresponding to 89.2%, 78.8% and 57.4% of the theoretical yield, were obtained when the fungus was grown in a medium containing 20 g/l starch, wheat bran or rice straw, respectively. The fermentation of rice straw pretreated with ball milling led to a small improvement in the ethanol yield: 3.4 g ethanol/20 g ball-milled rice straw. As T. hirsuta is an efficient microorganism capable of hydrolyzing biomass to fermentable sugars and directly converting them to ethanol, it may represent a suitable microorganism in consolidated bioprocessing applications. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Treatment of a Textile Effluent from Dyeing with Cochineal Extracts Using Trametes versicolor Fungus

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Gabriela Arroyo-Figueroa

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Trametes versicolor (Tv fungus can degrade synthetic dyes that contain azo groups, anthraquinone, triphenylmethane polymers, and heterocyclic groups. However, no references have been found related to the degradation of natural dyes, such as the carminic acid that is contained in the cochineal extract. Experiments to determine the decolorization of the effluent used in the cotton dyeing process with cochineal extract by means of Tv fungus were done. Treatments to determine decolorization in the presence or absence of Kirk's medium, glucose, and fungus, with an addition of 50% (v v-1 of nonsterilized effluent were performed. Physicochemical characterization was performed at the start and end of the treatment. Degradation kinetics were determined. A direct relationship was found between the dry weight of fungi, pH, and the decolorization system, with higher decolorization at lower pH levels (pH ~4.3. High decolorization (81% ± 0.09; 88% ± 0.17; and 99% ± 0.04 for three of the eight treatments (Kirk's medium without glucose, Kirk's medium with glucose, and without medium with glucose, respectively was found. Toxicity tests determined an increase in the initial effluent toxicity (7.33 TU compared with the final treatment (47.73 TU in a period of 11 days. For this system, a degradation sequence of the carminic acid structure present in the effluent by the Tv fungus is suggested, in which it is seen that metabolites still containing aromatic structures are generated.

Treatment of a textile effluent from dyeing with cochineal extracts using Trametes versicolor fungus.

Science.gov (United States)

Arroyo-Figueroa, Gabriela; Ruiz-Aguilar, Graciela M L; López-Martínez, Leticia; González-Sánchez, Guillermo; Cuevas-Rodríguez, Germán; Rodríguez-Vázquez, Refugio

2011-05-05

Trametes versicolor (Tv) fungus can degrade synthetic dyes that contain azo groups, anthraquinone, triphenylmethane polymers, and heterocyclic groups. However, no references have been found related to the degradation of natural dyes, such as the carminic acid that is contained in the cochineal extract. Experiments to determine the decolorization of the effluent used in the cotton dyeing process with cochineal extract by means of Tv fungus were done. Treatments to determine decolorization in the presence or absence of Kirk's medium, glucose, and fungus, with an addition of 50% (v v-1) of nonsterilized effluent were performed. Physicochemical characterization was performed at the start and end of the treatment. Degradation kinetics were determined. A direct relationship was found between the dry weight of fungi, pH, and the decolorization system, with higher decolorization at lower pH levels (pH ~4.3). High decolorization (81% ± 0.09; 88% ± 0.17; and 99% ± 0.04) for three of the eight treatments (Kirk's medium without glucose, Kirk's medium with glucose, and without medium with glucose, respectively) was found. Toxicity tests determined an increase in the initial effluent toxicity (7.33 TU) compared with the final treatment (47.73 TU) in a period of 11 days. For this system, a degradation sequence of the carminic acid structure present in the effluent by the Tv fungus is suggested, in which it is seen that metabolites still containing aromatic structures are generated.

Estudo da descoloração do corante FD&C azul no 2 Indigotina pelo tratamento combinado do fungo Trametes versicolor e processo de filtração lenta

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Maria Margareth Gonçalves Lopes

2014-06-01

Full Text Available O uso de fungos na descoloração de corantes com métodos economicamente viáveis de produção de água bacteriologicamente segura há muito vem sendo descrito por diversos autores. Este trabalho teve por objetivo investigar a eficiência da remoção de corante artificial FD&C azul no 2 Indigotina, com uso do fungo de degradação branca Trametes versicolor em combinação com a filtração lenta. Para a realização dos trabalhos, foram instalados dois protótipos de filtros lentos denominados FL-A e FL-B - no sobrenadante do filtro FL-A foi inoculado o referido fungo, e o filtro FL-B foi utilizado como controle (sem inoculação do microrganismo. O melhor percentual de remoção do corante pelo fungo Trametes versicolor em combinação com a filtração lenta foi de 44,74% 24 horas após a atividade máxima registrada de lacase. Os resultados mostraram que a filtração lenta combinada com o tratamento com o fungo T. versicolor não apresenta grande potencial para remoção de cor em 21 dias de tratamento, visto que os produtos microbianos gerados interferem no processo de filtração, diminuindo a eficiência do processo físico. Entretanto, restringindo o tempo de tratamento a 24 horas após a atividade enzimática máxima, o tratamento combinado apresentou boa eficiência.

Phenol oxidation of petrol refinery wastewater catalyzed by Laccase

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vargas, Maria Carolina; Ramirez, Nubia E.

2002-01-01

Laccase has been obtained through two different production systems, the first using Pleurotus ostreatus in solid-state fermentation, the second one using Trametes versicolor in submerged culture. Different substrates (by products from yeast, flour and beverage industries) have been evaluated in both systems. Maximum laccase yield with Pleurotus ostreatus (25 u/ml) was obtained in a wheat bran medium. The maximum enzyme concentration level using Trametes versicolor (25 u/ml) was achieved in a submerged system, containing 10% vinasse, 4,5% wheat bran and 0,2% molasses per liter of waste. Culture filtrate extracted from Pleurotus ostreatus was used to remove phenol from wastewater. The enzymatic treatment is effective over a wide pH and temperature range. The Laccase treatment has been successfully used to dephenolize industrial petrol refinery wastewater. The advantage of Laccase dephenolization is that this enzyme uses molecular oxygen as an oxidant

Estudo da descoloração do corante FD&C azul no 2 Indigotina pelo tratamento combinado do fungo Trametes versicolor e processo de filtração lenta

OpenAIRE

Lopes, Maria Margareth Gonçalves; Sales, Paulo de Tarso Ferreira; Campos, Luiza Cintra; Schimidt, Fernando; Santiago, Mariângela Fontes

2014-01-01

O uso de fungos na descoloração de corantes com métodos economicamente viáveis de produção de água bacteriologicamente segura há muito vem sendo descrito por diversos autores. Este trabalho teve por objetivo investigar a eficiência da remoção de corante artificial FD&C azul no 2 Indigotina, com uso do fungo de degradação branca Trametes versicolor em combinação com a filtração lenta. Para a realização dos trabalhos, foram instalados dois protótipos de filtros lentos denominados FL-A e FL-B - ...

DECOLORIZATION OF TEXTILE DYES BY NEWLY ISOLATED TRAMETES VERSICOLOR STRAIN Sevil PİLATİN, Buket KUNDUHOĞLU

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Buket KUNDUHOĞLU

2011-08-01

Full Text Available In this century, the amount of industrial produces and their consumption has increased tremendously. Along with this increase, accumulation of industrial waste and its effect on nature has causedserious problems. Because of including various chemicals and especially dye, textile waste water is one of the most hazardous industrial wastes. Color is the most important pollutant in waste water and it should be decolorized. Decolorization is more important than degradation of organic substances from waste water. Even a small amount of dye found changes the color of rivers, lakes and other waterresources, and reduces the penetration of light and solubility of gases. White rot fungus are used as a biological system in degradation and decolorizing of textile dyes.In this study, parameters for decolorization of several textile dyes (Blue 49, Orange 12, Orange 13, Red 31, Black 5, RBBR by newly isolated Trametes versicolor M96was studied.It has been determined that pH, amount of inoculum, shaking speed (rpm, dye concentration and temperature are important factors in decolorization of the studied dyes. The maximum decolorization was found pH 4.5, amount of inoculums 50 ml, shaking speed 200 rpm, dye concentration 50 mg/l and heat 30 °C.

Metabolization and degradation kinetics of the urban-use pesticide fipronil by white rot fungus Trametes versicolor.

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Wolfand, Jordyn M; LeFevre, Gregory H; Luthy, Richard G

2016-10-12

Fipronil is a recalcitrant phenylpyrazole-based pesticide used for flea/tick treatment and termite control that is distributed in urban aquatic environments via stormwater and contributes to stream toxicity. We discovered that fipronil is rapidly metabolized (t 1/2 = 4.2 d) by the white rot fungus Trametes versicolor to fipronil sulfone and multiple previously unknown fipronil transformation products, lowering fipronil concentration by 96.5%. Using an LC-QTOF-MS untargeted metabolomics approach, we identified four novel fipronil fungal transformation products: hydroxylated fipronil sulfone, glycosylated fipronil sulfone, and two compounds with unresolved structures. These results are consistent with identified enzymatic detoxification pathways wherein conjugation with sugar moieties follows initial ring functionalization (hydroxylation). The proposed pathway is supported by kinetic evidence of transformation product formation. Fipronil loss by sorption, hydrolysis, and photolysis was negligible. When T. versicolor was exposed to the cytochrome P450 enzyme inhibitor 1-aminobenzotriazole, oxidation of fipronil and production of hydroxylated and glycosylated transformation products significantly decreased (p = 0.038, 0.0037, 0.0023, respectively), indicating that fipronil is metabolized intracellularly by cytochrome P450 enzymes. Elucidating fipronil transformation products is critical because pesticide target specificity can be lost via structural alteration, broadening classes of impacted organisms. Integration of fungi in engineered natural treatment systems could be a viable strategy for pesticide removal from stormwater runoff.

Laccase Production from a Temperature and pH Tolerant Fungal Strain of Trametes hirsuta (MTCC 11397

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Kusum Dhakar

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Laccase production by a temperature and pH tolerant fungal strain (GBPI-CDF-03 isolated from a glacial site in Indian Himalayan Region (IHR has been investigated. The fungus developed white cottony mass on potato dextrose agar and revealed thread-like mycelium under microscope. ITS region analysis of fungus showed its 100% similarity with Trametes hirsuta. The fungus tolerated temperature from 4 to 48°C ± 2 (25°C opt. and pH 3–13 (5–7 opt.. Molecular weight of laccase was determined approximately 45 kDa by native PAGE. Amplification of laccase gene fragment (corresponding to the copper-binding conserved domain contained 200 bp. The optimum pH for laccase production, at optimum growth temperature, was determined between 5.5 and 7.5. In optimization experiments, fructose and ammonium sulfate were found to be the best carbon and nitrogen sources, respectively, for enhancing the laccase production. Production of laccase was favored by high carbon/nitrogen ratio. Addition of CuSO4 (up to 1.0 mM induced laccase production up to 2-fold, in case of 0.4 mM concentration. Addition of organic solvents also induced the production of laccase; acetone showed the highest (2-fold induction. The study has implications in bioprospecting of ecologically resilient microbial strains.

Fungal Biotransormation Products of Dehydroabietic Acid

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Beek, van T.A.; Claassen, F.W.; Dorado, J.; Godejohann, M.; Sierra-Alvarez, R.; Wijnberg, J.B.P.A.

2007-01-01

Dehydroabietic acid (DHA) (1) is one of the main compounds in Scots pine wood responsible for aquatic and microbial toxicity. The degradation of 1 by Trametes versicolor and Phlebiopsis gigantea in liquid stationary cultures was followed by HPLC-DAD-ELSD. Both fungi rapidly degraded DHA relative to

Determination of co-metabolism for 1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis(4-chlorophenyl) ethane (DDT) degradation with enzymes from Trametes versicolor U97.

Science.gov (United States)

Sari, Ajeng Arum; Tachibana, Sanro; Itoh, Kazutaka

2012-08-01

Trametes versicolor U97 isolated from nature degraded 73% of the 1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis(4-chlorophenyl) ethane (DDT) in a malt extract liquid medium after a 40-d incubation period. This paper presents a kinetic study of microbial growth using the Monod equation. T. versicolor U97 degraded DDT during an exponential growth phase, using glucose as a carbon source for growth. The growth of T. versicolor U97 was not affected by DDT. DDT was degraded by T. versicolor U97 only when the secondary metabolism coincided with the production of several enzymes. Furthermore, modeling of several inhibitors using the partial least squares function in Minitab 15, revealed lignin peroxidase (98.7 U/l) plays a role in the degradation of DDT. T. versicolor U97 produced several metabolites included a single-ring aromatic compound, 4-chlorobenzoic acid. Copyright © 2012 The Society for Biotechnology, Japan. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Adsorption of Trametes versicolor laccase to soil iron and aluminum minerals: enzyme activity, kinetics and stability studies.

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Wu, Yue; Jiang, Ying; Jiao, Jiaguo; Liu, Manqiang; Hu, Feng; Griffiths, Bryan S; Li, Huixin

2014-02-01

Laccases play an important role in the degradation of soil phenol or phenol-like substance and can be potentially used in soil remediation through immobilization. Iron and aluminum minerals can adsorb extracellular enzymes in soil environment. In the present study, we investigated the adsorptive interaction of laccase, from the white-rot fungus Trametes versicolor, with soil iron and aluminum minerals and characterized the properties of the enzyme after adsorption to minerals. Results showed that both soil iron and aluminum minerals adsorbed great amount of laccase, independent of the mineral specific surface areas. Adsorbed laccases retained 26-64% of the activity of the free enzyme. Compared to the free laccase, all adsorbed laccases showed higher Km values and lower Vmax values, indicating a reduced enzyme-substrate affinity and a lower rate of substrate conversion in reactions catalyzed by the adsorbed laccase. Adsorbed laccases exhibited increased catalytic activities compared to the free laccase at low pH, implying the suitable application of iron and aluminum mineral-adsorbed T. versicolor laccase in soil bioremediation, especially in acid soils. In terms of the thermal profiles, adsorbed laccases showed decreased thermal stability and higher temperature sensitivity relative to the free laccase. Moreover, adsorption improved the resistance of laccase to proteolysis and extended the lifespan of laccase. Our results implied that adsorbed T. versicolor laccase on soil iron and aluminum minerals had promising potential in soil remediation. Crown Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Enhanced biodegradation of antibiotic combinations via the sequential treatment of the sludge resulting from pharmaceutical wastewater treatment using white-rot fungi Trametes versicolor and Bjerkandera adusta.

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Aydin, Sevcan

2016-07-01

While anaerobic treatment is capable of treating pharmaceutical wastewater and removing antibiotics in liquid phases, solid phases may still contain significant amounts of antibiotics following this treatment. The main goal of this study was to evaluate the use of white-rot fungi to remove erythromycin, sulfamethoxazole, and tetracycline combinations from biosolids. The degradation potential of Trametes versicolor and Bjerkandera adusta was evaluated via the sequential treatment of anaerobic sludge. Polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE) analyses were used to identify competition between the autochthonous microbial communities and white-rot fungi. Solid-phase treatment using white-rot fungi substantially reduced antibiotic concentrations and toxicity in sludge. According to PCR-DGGE results, there is an association between species of fungus and antibiotic type as a result of the different transformation pathways of fungal strains. Fungal post-treatment of sludge represents a promising method of removing antibiotic combinations, therefore holding a significant promise as an environmentally friendly means of degrading the antibiotics present in sludge.

Oxidation of atenolol, propranolol, carbamazepine and clofibric acid by a biological Fenton-like system mediated by the white-rot fungus Trametes versicolor.

Science.gov (United States)

Marco-Urrea, Ernest; Radjenović, Jelena; Caminal, Gloria; Petrović, Mira; Vicent, Teresa; Barceló, Damià

2010-01-01

Biological advanced oxidation of the pharmaceuticals clofibric acid (CA), carbamazepine (CBZP), atenolol (ATL) and propranolol (PPL) is reported for the first time. Extracellular oxidizing species were produced through a quinone redox cycling mechanism catalyzed by an intracellular quinone reductase and any of the ligninolytic enzymes of Trametes versicolor after addition of the lignin-derived quinone 2,6-dimethoxy-1,4-benzoquinone (DBQ) and Fe(3+)-oxalate in the medium. Time-course experiments with approximately 10mg L(-1) of initial pharmaceutical concentration resulted in percent degradations above 80% after 6h of incubation. Oxidation of pharmaceuticals was only observed under DBQ redox cycling conditions. A similar degradation pattern was observed when CBZP was added at the environmentally relevant concentration of 50 microg L(-1). Depletion of DBQ due to the attack of oxidizing agents was assumed to be the main limiting factor of pharmaceutical degradation. The main degradation products, that resulted to be pharmaceutical hydroxylated derivatives, were structurally elucidated. The detected 4- and 7-hydroxycarbamazepine intermediates of CBZP degradation were not reported to date. Total disappearance of intermediates was observed in all the experiments at the end of the incubation period. (c) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Olive mill wastewater biodegradation potential of white-rot fungi--Mode of action of fungal culture extracts and effects of ligninolytic enzymes.

Science.gov (United States)

Ntougias, Spyridon; Baldrian, Petr; Ehaliotis, Constantinos; Nerud, Frantisek; Merhautová, Věra; Zervakis, Georgios I

2015-01-01

Forty-nine white-rot strains belonging to 38 species of Basidiomycota were evaluated for olive-mill wastewater (OMW) degradation. Almost all fungi caused high total phenolics (>60%) and color (⩽ 70%) reduction, while COD and phytotoxicity decreased to a lesser extent. Culture extracts from selected Agrocybe cylindracea, Inonotus andersonii, Pleurotus ostreatus and Trametes versicolor strains showed non-altered physicochemical and enzymatic activity profiles when applied to raw OMW in the presence or absence of commercial catalase, indicating no interaction of the latter with fungal enzymes and no competition for H2O2. Hydrogen peroxide's addition resulted in drastic OMW's decolorization, with no effect on phenolic content, suggesting that oxidation affects colored components, but not necessarily phenolics. When fungal extracts were heat-treated, no phenolics decrease was observed demonstrating thus their enzymatic rather than physicochemical oxidation. Laccases added to OMW were reversibly inhibited by the effluent's high phenolic load, while peroxidases were stable and active during the entire process. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Bioremediation of lignosulphonates by lignin-degrading basidiomycetous fungi.

Science.gov (United States)

Eugenio, M E; Carbajo, J M; Terrón, M C; González, A E; Villar, J C

2008-07-01

The capability of some ligninolytic fungi to degrade lignosulphonates has been studied. Three lignosulphonates concentrations, three culture media and seven different basidiomycetes in solid-cultures have been assayed to select the conditions for further experiments on submerged cultures. The best results of growth and lignosulphonate decolourization in solid-cultures were obtained with Pycnoporus sanguineus, Coriolus pubescens and Trametes sp. I-62 on Kirk's medium and 1% and 2% of lignosulphonate concentrations. In submerged cultures the lignosulphonate decolourization rate was generally higher when it was added on the 6th day, rather than when it was added from the beginning of the incubation and C. pubescens and P. sanguineus showed again the optimum results of decolourization. Extracellular laccase activity increased with lignosulphonate concentration in all assayed fungi, suggesting that lignosulphonate act as inductors of laccase activity.

EFECTO DE LA GLUCOSA Y NITRATO DE AMONIO SOBRE LAS ENZIMAS LIGNINOLÍTICAS PRODUCIDAS POR Trametes versicolor INMOVILIZADO EN ESPUMA Y LA DECOLORACIÓN DE UN EFLUENTE PAPELERO EN UN BIORREACTOR DE LECHO FLUIDIZADO

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M. Martínez-Salgado

2005-12-01

Full Text Available En Colombia se han realizado varios estudios para el tratamiento de aguas residuales de la industria papelera a escala de laboratorio, con el hongo Trametes versicolor inmovilizado en espuma de poliuretano; este hongo ha sido ampliamente estudiado por la producción de enzimas ligninolíticas y su potencial uso en la decoloración de efluentes. En este trabajo, se estudió el efecto de una fuente de carbono (glucosa y una de nitrógeno (nitrato de amonio en un biorreactor de lecho fluidizado, con adición al medio de cultivo de 0.02% (v/v de Tween 80, 12 ppm de MnSO4 y 1 mM de CuSO4, desarrollando un diseño factorial 22 con dos diferentes concentraciones de los nutrientes, siendo éstos las variables independientes y las variables dependientes fueron la actividad enzimática, las unidades de color y el consumo de sustrato los cuales fueron determinados por métodos colorimétricos, además de la biomasa y pH. El uso del biorreactor de lecho fluidizado con entrada de aire constante, arrojó datos importantes sobre la decoloracióny la producción de enzimas en el agua residual no estéril. Los máximos valores de la enzima Mnperoxidasa fueron hallados en las concentraciones altas y bajas de glucosa y nitrato de amonio con valores de 9.257U y 6.502U; para la enzima Lacasa, al adicionar separadamente las dos variables se obtuvo valores de 8.618U y 8.341U. Las enzimas fueron relacionadas con la disminución de las unidades de color hasta 481.06UC, junto con el aumento de la biomasa del hongo Trametes versicolor hasta 3.365 g junto con flora nativa del agua residual. Los resultados encontrados, determinaron que las variables de consumo de sustrato y biomasa, tienen una gran importancia debido a que el aumento de la biomasa genera un aumento en la actividad de la enzima MnP y en la reducción de las unidades de color.

Biodegradation of brominated aromatics by cultures and laccase of Trametes versicolor

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Uhnáková, Bronislava; Petříčková, Alena; Biedermann, David; Homolka, Ladislav; Vejvoda, Vojtěch; Bednář, P.; Papoušková, B.; Šulc, Miroslav; Martínková, Ludmila

2009-01-01

Roč. 76, č. 6 (2009), s. 826-832 ISSN 0045-6535 R&D Projects: GA MŠk 2B06151 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z50200510 Keywords : Brominated phenols * Tetrabromobisphenol A * Laccase Subject RIV: CE - Biochemistry Impact factor: 3.253, year: 2009

Degradation of hop bitter acids by fungi

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huszcza, Ewa; Bartmanska, Agnieszka; Aniol, Miroslaw; Maczka, Wanda; Zolnierczyk, Anna; Wawrzenczyk, Czeslaw

2008-01-01

Nine fungal strains related to: Trametes versicolor, Nigrospora oryzae, Inonotus radiatus, Crumenulopsis sororia, Coryneum betulinum, Cryptosporiopsis radicicola, Fusarium equiseti, Rhodotorula glutinis and Candida parapsilosis were tested for their ability to degrade humulones and lupulones. The best results were obtained for T. versicolor culture, in which humulones and lupulones were fully degraded after 4 days of incubation in the dark or after 36 h in the light. The experiments were performed on a commercial hop extract and on sterilized spent hops

Decolorization efficiency of Funalia trogii under static condition ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

PO4, starch-urea, sucrose-NH4H2PO4 and sucrose-urea containing media. Maximum decolorization was found as 9.61 and 7.77 mg dye/g dry mycelium weight in media containing no extra carbon and nitrogen sources. Kinetic studies were also ...

Enhancement of ligninolytic enzyme activities in a Trametes maxima–Paecilomyces carneus co-culture: Key factors revealed after screening using a Plackett–Burman experimental design

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Wilberth Chan Cupul

2014-05-01

Conclusions: Interaction between indigenous fungi: T. maxima–P. carneus improves laccase and MnP activities. The inoculation time of P. carneus on T. maxima plays an important role in the laccase and MnP enhancement. The nutritional requirements for enzyme improvement in a co-culture system are different from those required for a monoculture system.

The use of Trametes versicolor laccase for the polymerization of aniline in the presence of vesicles as templates.

Science.gov (United States)

Junker, Katja; Kissner, Reinhard; Rakvin, Boris; Guo, Zengwei; Willeke, Martin; Busato, Stephan; Weber, Thomas; Walde, Peter

2014-02-05

The enzymatic polymerization of aniline to polyaniline (PANI) with Trametes versicolor laccase (TvL) as catalyst and dioxygen (O₂) as oxidant was investigated in an aqueous medium containing unilamellar vesicles with an average diameter of about 80 nm formed from AOT (=sodium bis(2-ethylhexyl) sulfosuccinate). Compared to the same reaction carried out with horseradish peroxidase isoenzyme C (HRPC) as catalyst and hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) as oxidant, notable differences were found in the kinetics of the reaction, as well as in the characteristics of the PANI obtained. Under comparable optimal conditions, which are pH 3.5 for TvL/O₂ and pH 4.3 for HRPC/H₂O₂, the reaction with TvL/O₂ was much slower than with HRPC/H₂O₂, i.e. ≈27 days vs. 1 day reaction time to reach equilibrium with >90% yield at 25 °C. Although in both cases, aniline monomer coupling occurred mainly via the carbon atom in para position of aniline, UV-vis-NIR absorption and EPR measurements indicate that the reaction with TvL/O₂ yielded mainly overoxidized products (with λ(max)=730 nm). These products had a lower amount of unpaired electrons if compared with the products obtained with HRPC/H₂O₂ (with λ(max)≈1000 nm, which is characteristic for the polaron state of PANI-ES, the emeraldine salt form of PANI). Similarly to previous findings with HRPC/H₂O₂, enzyme inactivation occurred during the polymerization also in the case of TvL/O₂. Since the aqueous PANI-vesicle suspensions obtained are of high colloidal stability, they can be used directly as ink in a conventional thermal inkjet printer for printing on paper or on surface treated polyimide films. Printed PANI-ES patterns on paper changed colour from green (emeraldine salt) to blue (emeraldine base) upon exposure to ammonia gas, demonstrating the expected ammonia sensing properties. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

FIBER QUALITIES OF PRETREATED BETUNG BAMBOO (Dendrocalamusasper BY MIXED CULTURE OF WHITE-ROT FUNGI WITH RESPECT TO ITS USE FOR PULP/PAPER

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Widya Fatriasari

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Previous research on anatomical structures of pretreated large (betung bamboo (Dendrocalamusasper using single culture of white-rot fungi has been investigated, which revealed that the pretreatment caused the decrease in the Runkel ratioas well as the coefficient rigidity and the increase in the flexibility ratio of their corresponding bamboo fibers. However, there is no study reported on the anatomical structure changes of them caused by pretreatment using mixed culture of white-rot fungi. This paper reports the results of the research on paper/pulp quality after different treatments. Pretreatment that used Trametes versicolor fungi and lasted for 45 days inflicted intensive fiber damages compared with those of untreated bamboo (control. Fresh and barkless large (betung bamboo chips of 2 year's old, and 1.6 cm in length, were inoculated by 10% of mixed culture of white-rot fungi inoculums stock for 30 and 45 days in room temperature. There were four treatment groups of mixed culture, i.e T. versi color and P. ostreatus (TVPO; P. ostreatus and P. chrysosporium (POPC; P. chrysosporium and T.versi color (PCTV; and P.chrysosporium,  T.versicolorand  P.ostreatus  (TVPCPO.After  the  inoculation  period,  the  chips  weremacerated into separate fibers using Scultze method to analyze the fiber dimension and its derived values. The fibers were then observed regarding their macro and microscopic structures by optical microscope. Mixed culture pretreatment of white-rot fungi accelerated improvement of fiber morphology and fiber derived value characteristics, except for Muhlsteph ratio. The fiber derived values oftreated bamboo tended to improve compared to those of untreated bamboo, there by requiring milder pulping conditions. Accordingly, the treated bamboo would indicatively produce a good quality pulp (grade I based on FAO and LPHH (Forest Product Research Report requirements. Co-culture treatment using P. chrysosporium and P. ostreatus for

Exploring the natural fungal biodiversity of tropical and temperate forests toward improvement of biomass conversion.

Science.gov (United States)

Berrin, Jean-Guy; Navarro, David; Couturier, Marie; Olivé, Caroline; Grisel, Sacha; Haon, Mireille; Taussac, Sabine; Lechat, Christian; Courtecuisse, Régis; Favel, Anne; Coutinho, Pedro M; Lesage-Meessen, Laurence

2012-09-01

In this study, natural fungal diversity in wood-decaying species was explored for biomass deconstruction. In 2007 and 2008, fungal isolates were collected in temperate forests mainly from metropolitan France and in tropical forests mainly from French Guiana. We recovered and identified 74 monomorph cultures using morphological and molecular identification tools. Following production of fungal secretomes under inductive conditions, we evaluated the capacity of these fungal strains to potentiate a commercial Trichoderma reesei cellulase cocktail for the release of soluble sugars from biomass. The secretome of 19 isolates led to an improvement in biomass conversion of at least 23%. Of the isolates, the Trametes gibbosa BRFM 952 (Banque de Ressources Fongiques de Marseille) secretome performed best, with 60% improved conversion, a feature that was not universal to the Trametes and related genera. Enzymatic characterization of the T. gibbosa BRFM 952 secretome revealed an unexpected high activity on crystalline cellulose, higher than that of the T. reesei cellulase cocktail. This report highlights the interest in a systematic high-throughput assessment of collected fungal biodiversity to improve the enzymatic conversion of lignocellulosic biomass. It enabled the unbiased identification of new fungal strains issued from biodiversity with high biotechnological potential.

Co-composting of spent coffee ground with olive mill wastewater sludge and poultry manure and effect of Trametes versicolor inoculation on the compost maturity.

Science.gov (United States)

Hachicha, Ridha; Rekik, Olfa; Hachicha, Salma; Ferchichi, Mounir; Woodward, Steve; Moncef, Nasri; Cegarra, Juan; Mechichi, Tahar

2012-07-01

The co-composting of spent coffee grounds, olive mill wastewater sludge and poultry manure was investigated on a semi-industrial scale. In order to reduce the toxicity of the phenolic fraction and to improve the degree of composting humification, composts were inoculated with the white-rot fungus Trametes versicolor in the early stages of the maturation phase. During composting, a range of physico-chemical parameters (temperature and both organic matter and C/N reduction), total organic carbon, total nitrogen, elemental composition, lignin degradation and spectroscopic characteristics of the humic acids (HAs) were determined; impacts of the composting process on germination index of Hordeum vulgare and Lactuca sativa were assessed. The coffee waste proved to be a highly compostable feedstock, resulting in mature final compost with a germination index of 120% in less than 5 months composting. In addition, inoculation with T. versicolor led to a greater degree of aromatization of HA than in the control pile. Moreover, in the inoculated mixture, lignin degradation was three times greater and HA increased by 30% (P<0.05), compared to the control pile. In the T. versicolor inoculated mixture, the averages of C and N were significantly enhanced in the HA molecules (P<0.05), by 26% and 22%, respectively. This improvement in the degree of humification was confirmed by the ratio of optical densities of HA solutions at 465 and 665 nm which was lower for HA from the treated mixture (4.5) than that from the control pile (5.4). Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Level of heavy metals in some edible and poisonous macrofungi from Batman of South East Anatolia, Turkey.

Science.gov (United States)

Yesil, Omer Faruk; Yildiz, Abdunnasir; Yavuz, Omer

2004-07-01

The macrofungi specimens were collected and identified from locations around Batman province of Turkey. A group of 21 macrofungi were collected from 29 different locations and analysed for the heavy metal contents. The highest Pb and Cu levels were found in Russula rubroalba while the highest Cd level was determined for the species Agaricus xanthodermus. Fe level was maximum for the species Funalia trogii; Mn for Mycena personsii; Zn level was for Morchella esculenta and Co level was for the species Agaricus xanthodermus. The lowest Cd, Cu, Mn and Zn contents were found in Inotus hispidus.

Structural basis for binding of fluorinated glucose and galactose to Trametes multicolor pyranose 2-oxidase variants with improved galactose conversion.

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Tien Chye Tan

Full Text Available Each year, about six million tons of lactose are generated from liquid whey as industrial byproduct, and optimally this large carbohydrate waste should be used for the production of value-added products. Trametes multicolor pyranose 2-oxidase (TmP2O catalyzes the oxidation of various monosaccharides to the corresponding 2-keto sugars. Thus, a potential use of TmP2O is to convert the products from lactose hydrolysis, D-glucose and D-galactose, to more valuable products such as tagatose. Oxidation of glucose is however strongly favored over galactose, and oxidation of both substrates at more equal rates is desirable. Characterization of TmP2O variants (H450G, V546C, H450G/V546C with improved D-galactose conversion has been given earlier, of which H450G displayed the best relative conversion between the substrates. To rationalize the changes in conversion rates, we have analyzed high-resolution crystal structures of the aforementioned mutants with bound 2- and 3-fluorinated glucose and galactose. Binding of glucose and galactose in the productive 2-oxidation binding mode is nearly identical in all mutants, suggesting that this binding mode is essentially unaffected by the mutations. For the competing glucose binding mode, enzyme variants carrying the H450G replacement stabilize glucose as the α-anomer in position for 3-oxidation. The backbone relaxation at position 450 allows the substrate-binding loop to fold tightly around the ligand. V546C however stabilize glucose as the β-anomer using an open loop conformation. Improved binding of galactose is enabled by subtle relaxation effects at key active-site backbone positions. The competing binding mode for galactose 2-oxidation by V546C stabilizes the β-anomer for oxidation at C1, whereas H450G variants stabilize the 3-oxidation binding mode of the galactose α-anomer. The present study provides a detailed description of binding modes that rationalize changes in the relative conversion rates of D

Structural basis for binding of fluorinated glucose and galactose to Trametes multicolor pyranose 2-oxidase variants with improved galactose conversion.

Science.gov (United States)

Tan, Tien Chye; Spadiut, Oliver; Gandini, Rosaria; Haltrich, Dietmar; Divne, Christina

2014-01-01

Each year, about six million tons of lactose are generated from liquid whey as industrial byproduct, and optimally this large carbohydrate waste should be used for the production of value-added products. Trametes multicolor pyranose 2-oxidase (TmP2O) catalyzes the oxidation of various monosaccharides to the corresponding 2-keto sugars. Thus, a potential use of TmP2O is to convert the products from lactose hydrolysis, D-glucose and D-galactose, to more valuable products such as tagatose. Oxidation of glucose is however strongly favored over galactose, and oxidation of both substrates at more equal rates is desirable. Characterization of TmP2O variants (H450G, V546C, H450G/V546C) with improved D-galactose conversion has been given earlier, of which H450G displayed the best relative conversion between the substrates. To rationalize the changes in conversion rates, we have analyzed high-resolution crystal structures of the aforementioned mutants with bound 2- and 3-fluorinated glucose and galactose. Binding of glucose and galactose in the productive 2-oxidation binding mode is nearly identical in all mutants, suggesting that this binding mode is essentially unaffected by the mutations. For the competing glucose binding mode, enzyme variants carrying the H450G replacement stabilize glucose as the α-anomer in position for 3-oxidation. The backbone relaxation at position 450 allows the substrate-binding loop to fold tightly around the ligand. V546C however stabilize glucose as the β-anomer using an open loop conformation. Improved binding of galactose is enabled by subtle relaxation effects at key active-site backbone positions. The competing binding mode for galactose 2-oxidation by V546C stabilizes the β-anomer for oxidation at C1, whereas H450G variants stabilize the 3-oxidation binding mode of the galactose α-anomer. The present study provides a detailed description of binding modes that rationalize changes in the relative conversion rates of D-glucose and D

Alteration of white-rot basidiomycetes cellulase and xylanase activities in the submerged co-cultivation and optimization of enzyme production by Irpex lacteus and Schizophyllum commune.

Science.gov (United States)

Metreveli, Eka; Kachlishvili, Eva; Singer, Steven W; Elisashvili, Vladimir

2017-10-01

Mono and dual cultures of four white-rot basidiomycete species were evaluated for cellulase and xylanase activity under submerged fermentation conditions. Co-cultivation of Pycnoporus coccineus or Trametes hirsuta with Schizophyllum commune displayed antagonistic interactions resulting in the decrease of endoglucanase and total cellulase activities. In contrast, increases in cellulase and xylanase activity were revealed through the compatible interactions of Irpex lacteus with S. commune. Co-cultivation conditions were optimized for maximum enzyme production by I. lacteus and S. commune, the best producers of cellulase/xylanase and β-glucosidase, respectively. An optimized medium for the target enzyme production by the mixed culture was established in a laboratory fermenter yielding 7U/mL total cellulase, 142U/mL endoglucanase, 104U/mL xylanase, and 5.2U/mL β-glucosidase. The dual culture approach resulted in an enzymatic mixture with 11% improved lignocellulose saccharification potential compared to enzymes from a monoculture of I. lacteus. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Biotechnological modification of lignin

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1989-01-01

A literature search of organisms capable of degrading lignin was conducted. Four fungi were selected for study and these were Phanerochaete chrysosporium, Chrysosporium pruinosum, Phlebia tremellosus and Trametes versicolor. Other organisms, Pleurotus ostreatus, Pleurotus florida and Lentinus edodes were also tested in preliminary experiments. All cultures were screened for their ability to degrade the lignin component of aspen sawdust and also lignin extracted from steam-exploded wood. This type of screen was followed by analysis of culture filtrates for the presence of ligninase, the marker enzyme for lignin degradation. Phanerochaete chrysosporium and consequently chosen for further studies in fermentors. Considerable efforts were directed to production of ligninase in fermentors. Only when Chrysosporium pruinosum was pre-cultured in a shake flask for 4 days and then transferred to a fermentor could ligninase activity be detected. The enzyme from shake flasks has been concentrated ready for use in bench-scale studies on cell-free depolymerization of lignin. 13 refs., 8 tabs.

CHARACTERIZATION OF WOOD DECAY BY ROT FUNGI USING COLORIMETRY AND INFRARED SPECTROSCOPY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mírian de Almeida Costa

2011-09-01

Full Text Available Wood samples of marupá (Simarouba amara and andiroba (Carapa guianenis were submitted to Trametes versicolor (white rot and Gloeophylum trabeum (brown rot fungi attack. Colorimetry was used to determine the color of the wood before and after wood decaying fungi. To evaluate the changes in chemical compounds levels in the wood samples, the diffuse reflectance medium infrared spectroscopy was used. Both wood were non resistant against white rot fungus, while with brown rot attack andiroba was resistant and marupá was not. After Gloeophyllum trabeum attack both woods changed to a darken color, and after Trametes versicolor attack andiroba changed to a lighter color and marupá darkened slightly, The analysis showed a reduction in the peak intensity of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin, for both species, after Trametes versicolor attack and a reduction in the peak intensity of cellulose after Gloeophyllum trabeum attack.

Caracterização do ataque de fungos apodrecedores de madeiras através da colorimetria e da espectroscopia de infravermelho

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mírian de Almeida Costa

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Wood samples of marupá (Simarouba amara and andiroba (Carapa guianenis were submitted to Trametes versicolor (white rot and Gloeophylum trabeum (brown rot fungi attack. Colorimetry was used to determine the color of the wood before and after wood decaying fungi. To evaluate the changes in chemical compounds levels in the wood samples, the diffuse reflectance medium infrared spectroscopy was used. Both wood were non resistant against white rot fungus, while with brown rot attack andiroba was resistant and marupá was not. After Gloeophyllum trabeum attack both woods changed to a darken color, and after Trametes versicolor attack andiroba changed to a lighter color and marupá darkened slightly, The analysis showed a reduction in the peak intensity of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin, for both species, after Trametes versicolor attack and a reduction in the peak intensity of cellulose after Gloeophyllum trabeum attack.

Screening of micro-organisms for decolorization of melanins produced by bluestain fungi.

Science.gov (United States)

Rättö, M; Chatani, M; Ritschkoff, A C; Viikari, L

2001-03-01

A total of 17 fungi and four bacteria were screened for their ability to decolorize melanin, using isolated extracellular melanin of the bluestain fungus Aureobasidium pullulans as substrate. On agar media, decolorization was observed by four fungal strains: Bjerkandera adusta VTT-D-99746, Galactomyces geotrichum VTT-D-84228, Trametes hirsuta VTT-D-95443 and Trametes versicolor VTT-D-99747. The four fungi were more efficient on nitrogen-limited medium than on complete medium. The melanin-decolorizing activity of G. geotrichum appeared to be located on the mycelium and could be liberated into the medium enzymatically.

Cultural Robotics: The Culture of Robotics and Robotics in Culture

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Hooman Samani

2013-12-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we have investigated the concept of “Cultural Robotics” with regard to the evolution of social into cultural robots in the 21st Century. By defining the concept of culture, the potential development of a culture between humans and robots is explored. Based on the cultural values of the robotics developers, and the learning ability of current robots, cultural attributes in this regard are in the process of being formed, which would define the new concept of cultural robotics. According to the importance of the embodiment of robots in the sense of presence, the influence of robots in communication culture is anticipated. The sustainability of robotics culture based on diversity for cultural communities for various acceptance modalities is explored in order to anticipate the creation of different attributes of culture between robots and humans in the future.

Cultural Robotics: The Culture of Robotics and Robotics in Culture

OpenAIRE

Hooman Samani; Elham Saadatian; Natalie Pang; Doros Polydorou; Owen Noel Newton Fernando; Ryohei Nakatsu; Jeffrey Tzu Kwan Valino Koh

2013-01-01

In this paper, we have investigated the concept of “Cultural Robotics” with regard to the evolution of social into cultural robots in the 21st Century. By defining the concept of culture, the potential development of a culture between humans and robots is explored. Based on the cultural values of the robotics developers, and the learning ability of current robots, cultural attributes in this regard are in the process of being formed, which would define the new concept of cultural robotics. Ac...

Safeguards Culture: Analogies from Safety Culture and Security Culture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Naito, K.

2013-01-01

The terminology of 'safeguards culture' has been used loosely by safeguards experts as an essential element for establishing an organizational environment of stakeholders for the effective and efficient implementation of international safeguards. However, unlike the other two triplet brothers/ sisters of 3S's (Safety, Security, Safeguards), there is no formally established definition of safeguards culture. In the case of safety culture, INSAG (the International Nuclear Safety Advisory Group) has extensively dealt with its concept, elaborating its definition and key characteristics, and published its report, INSAG-4, as the IAEA Safety Series 75. On the other hand, security culture has also been defined by AdSec (the Advisory Group on Nuclear Security). In this paper, a provisional definition of safeguards culture is made on the analogies of safety culture and security culture, and an effort is made to describe essential elements of safeguards culture. It is proposed for SAGSI (the Standing Advisory Group on Safeguards Implementation) to formally consider the definition of safeguards culture and its characteristics. The paper is followed by the slides of the presentation. (author)

Producing a True Lignin Depolymerase for Biobleaching Softwood Kraft Pulp

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Simo Sarkanen

2002-02-04

This project constituted an intensive effort devoted to producing, from the white-rot fungus Tramets Cingulata, a lignin degrading enzyme (lignin depolymerase) that is directly able to biobleach or delignify softwood kraft pulp brownstock. To this end, the solutions in which T. cingulata was grown contained dissolved kraft lignin which fulfilled two functions; it behaved as a lignin deploymerase substrate and it also appeared to act as an inducer of enzyme expression. However, the lignin depolymerase isoenzymes (and other extracellular T. cingulata enzymes) interacted very strongly with both the kraft lignin components and the fungal hypae, so the isolating these proteins from the culture solutions proved to be unexpectedly difficult. Even after extensive experimentation with a variety of protein purification techniques, only one approach appeared to be capable of purifying lignin depolymerases to homogeneity. Unfortunately the procedure was extremely laborious; it involved the iso electric focusing of concentrated buffer-exchanged culture solutions followed by electro-elution of the desired protein bands from the appropriate polyacrylamide gel segments

Effect of type of fungal culture, type of pellets and pH on the semi-continuous post-treatment of an anaerobically-pretreated weak black liquor from kraft pulp industry

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Robledo-Narvaez, P. N.; Ortega-Clemente, L. A.; Ponce-Noyola, M. T.; Rinderknecht-Seijas, N. F.; Poggi-Varaldo, H. M.

2009-07-01

It is well known that fungi belonging to the Basidiomycetes (such as Trametes versicolor, Lentinus edodes, Phanerochaete chrysosporium) are microorganisms with a demonstrated capability of degrading lignin and its derivatives using a powerful and diverse group of enzymes. Because of these features, ligninolytic fungi have been used for the treatment or post-treatment of a variety of recalcitrant and toxic effluents, those of the Kraft industry among them. Yet, most of reported fungal treatments so far required the supplementation with glucose or other soluble carbohydrates, pH 4 to 4,5, and their effective performance was demonstrated only for short periods of operation time. (Author)

COMPETENCIA CULTURAL E INTELIGENCIA CULTURAL. APORTES A LA MEDIACIÓN CULTURAL DOCENTE CULTURAL (COMPETENCE AND CULTURAL INTELLIGENCE. CONTRIBUTIONS TO CULTURAL MEDIATION FOR TEACHERS

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D'Antoni Maurizia

2011-08-01

Full Text Available Resumen:El ensayo nace como parte de una investigación mayor que se publicará sobre la inserción profesional docente en la Universidad de Costa Rica. Su finalidad en la investigación en curso es la de explorar los aportes de los estudios sobre competencia cultural e inteligencia cultural, para identificar planteamientos teóricos que fortalezcan nuevos espacios para la mediación cultural docente en la Universidad. Se concluye que el concepto de competencia cultural representa un aporte importante, si se revisa la idea de cultura que subyace y se le transforma en “competencia intercultural”. Luego, se define mediación cultural, evidenciándose la importancia de la nueva figura profesional en el contexto actual, los ámbitos de acción donde se ha empleado y se manifiesta la necesidad de promover mediadores y mediadoras culturales en Costa Rica también.Abstract: The essay comes as part of a larger investigation to be published about teachers’ professional integration at the University of Costa Rica. His purpose in the ongoing investigation is to explore the contributions of studies on cultural competency and cultural understanding, to identify new theoretical approaches and strengthen new cultural spaces for teaching mediation at the University. We conclude that the concept of cultural competence represents an important contribution, if we review the underlying idea of culture and it is transformed into "intercultural competence". The definition of cultural mediation points to the importance of the new professional figure in the current context, evidencing the areas of action where it has been used and showing the need to promote cultural mediators in Costa Rica as well.

ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE AND MANAGEMENT CULTURE

OpenAIRE

Tudor Hobeanu; Loredana Vacarescu Hobeanu

2010-01-01

Communication reveals the importance of organizational culture and management culture supported by the remarkable results in economic and social level of organization. Their functions are presented and specific ways of expression levels of organizational culture and ways of adapting to the requirements of the organization's management culture.

Cultural commons and cultural evolution

OpenAIRE

Bravo, Giangiacomo

2010-01-01

Culture evolves following a process that is akin to biological evolution, although with some significant differences. At the same time culture has often a collective good value for human groups. This paper studies culture in an evolutionary perspective, with a focus on the implications of group definition for the coexistence of different cultures. A model of cultural evolution is presented where agents interacts in an artificial environment. The belonging to a specific memetic group is a majo...

Culture-lovers and Culture-leavers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Frank Huysmans; Andries van den Broek; Jos de Haan

2005-01-01

Who are the people in the Netherlands with an active interest in cultural heritage and the performing arts, and who prefer to leave these forms of culture alone? Have the size and composition of the groups of 'culture-lovers' and 'culture-leavers' changed since the end of the 1970s? These are the

Cultural Humility and Hospital Safety Culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Hook, Joshua N; Boan, David; Davis, Don E; Aten, Jamie D; Ruiz, John M; Maryon, Thomas

2016-12-01

Hospital safety culture is an integral part of providing high quality care for patients, as well as promoting a safe and healthy environment for healthcare workers. In this article, we explore the extent to which cultural humility, which involves openness to cultural diverse individuals and groups, is related to hospital safety culture. A sample of 2011 hospital employees from four hospitals completed measures of organizational cultural humility and hospital safety culture. Higher perceptions of organizational cultural humility were associated with higher levels of general perceptions of hospital safety, as well as more positive ratings on non-punitive response to error (i.e., mistakes of staff are not held against them), handoffs and transitions, and organizational learning. The cultural humility of one's organization may be an important factor to help improve hospital safety culture. We conclude by discussing potential directions for future research.

What is culture in «cultural economy»? Defining culture to create measurable models in cultural economy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aníbal Monasterio Astobiza

2017-07-01

Full Text Available The idea of culture is somewhat vague and ambiguous for the formal goals of economics. The aim of this paper is to define the notion of culture better so as to help build economic explanations based on culture and therefore to measure its impact in every activity or beliefs associated with culture. To define culture according to the canonical evolutionary definition, it is any kind of ritualised behaviour that becomes meaningful for a group and that remains more or less constant and is transmitted down through the generations. Economic institutions are founded, implicitly or explicitly, on a worldview of how humans function; culture is an essential part of understanding us as humans, making it necessary to describe what we understand by culture correctly. In this paper we review the literature on evolutionary anthropology and psychology dealing with the concept of culture to warn that economic modelling ignores intangible benefits of culture rendering economics unable to measure certain cultural items in the digital consumer society.

FROM CULTURAL IMPOTENCE TO CULTURAL AMPUTATION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sukhanov Vyacheslav Vladimirovich

2013-02-01

Full Text Available Cultural space of any state is formed by a population that is within its borders. In this article, the author introduces a new cultural definitions «cultural impotence» and «cultural amputation», justifying their use, both in terms of population of the Russian Federation and the European Union and America. The article analyzes the state of society and the cultural factors that influence the development of society in Russia, there are options to bring the country out of a deep cultural crisis. Also established a close relationship between the domestic policy of the state and development of culture.

Bastyr/UW Oncomycology Translational Research Center

Data.gov (United States)

Federal Laboratory Consortium — Research Area: FungiProgram: Partnerships for CAM Clinical Translational ResearchDescription:Trametes versicolor is an immunologically active medicinal mushroom that...

FROM CULTURAL IMPOTENCE TO CULTURAL AMPUTATION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Вячеслав Владимирович Суханов

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Cultural space of any state is formed by a population that is within its borders. In this article, the author introduces a new cultural definitions «cultural impotence» and «cultural amputation», justifying their use, both in terms of population of the Russian Federation and the European Union and America. The article analyzes the state of society and the cultural factors that influence the development of society in Russia, there are options to bring the country out of a deep cultural crisis. Also established a close relationship between the domestic policy of the state and development of culture.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.12731/2218-7405-2013-2-1

Japanese Shame Culture and American Guilt Culture

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Lu Weijie

2016-01-01

Culture is an important factor contributing to the success of intercultural communication. In the east and west, there are many different cultures, among which Japanese shame culture and American guilt culture are two typical ones. Influenced by different cultures, these two countries have different characteristics, which reminds us that in intercultural communication culture should be paid much attention to.

The Role of Culture Theory in Cross-Cultural Training: A Multimethod Study of Culture-Specific, Culture-General, and Culture Theory-Based Assimilators.

Science.gov (United States)

Bhawuk, Dharm P. S.

1998-01-01

In a multimethod evaluation of cross-cultural training tools involving 102 exchange students at a midwestern university, a theory-based individualism and collectivism assimilator tool had significant advantages over culture-specific and culture-general assimilators and a control condition. Results support theory-based culture assimilators. (SLD)

Quantitative Structure Activity Relationship of Cinnamaldehyde Compounds against Wood-Decaying Fungi

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Dongmei Yang

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Cinnamaldehyde, of the genius Cinnamomum, is a major constituent of the bark of the cinnamon tree and possesses broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity. In this study, we used best multiple linear regression (BMLR to develop quantitative structure activity relationship (QSAR models for cinnamaldehyde derivatives against wood-decaying fungi Trametes versicolor and Gloeophyllun trabeum. Based on the two optimal QSAR models, we then designed and synthesized two novel cinnamaldehyde compounds. The QSAR models exhibited good correlation coefficients: R2Tv = 0.910 for Trametes versicolor and R2Gt = 0.926 for Gloeophyllun trabeum. Small errors between the experimental and calculated values of two designed compounds indicated that these two QSAR models have strong predictability and stability.

Cultural Analysis - towards cross-cultural understanding

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gullestrup, Hans

The book considers intercultural understanding and co-action, partly by means of general insight into concept of culture and the dimensions which bring about cultural differences, and partly as a methodology to analyse a certain culture - whether one's own or others'. This leads towards an unders......The book considers intercultural understanding and co-action, partly by means of general insight into concept of culture and the dimensions which bring about cultural differences, and partly as a methodology to analyse a certain culture - whether one's own or others'. This leads towards...... a theoretical/abstract proposal for cultural understanding. The second part presents a theoretical/abstract proposal for under-standing intercultural plurality and complexity. The third part provides an empirical model for the analysis of intercultural co-action. Finally, the fourth part present and discusses...

Hispanic Culture and Relational Cultural Theory

Science.gov (United States)

Ruiz, Elizabeth

2005-01-01

Traditional personality theories do not consider the impact of culture on personality development. Yet, to provide culturally relevant services to the increasing Hispanic population in the U.S., more culturally relevant theories must be identified. This paper presents Relational Cultural Theory (RCT) as an alternative model to understanding…

Cultural Competence and the Operational Commander: Moving Beyond Cultural Awareness into Culture-Centric Warfare

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Karcanes, James A

2007-01-01

.... Understanding the different levels of cultural awareness -- cultural consideration, cultural understanding, and cultural competence -- will help usher in a new focus on culture-centric warfare...

Characterization of the Factors that Influence Sinapine Concentration in Rapeseed Meal during Fermentation

Science.gov (United States)

Niu, Yanxing; Jiang, Mulan; Guo, Mian; Wan, Chuyun; Hu, Shuangxi; Jin, Hu; Huang, Fenghong

2015-01-01

We analyzed and compared the difference in sinapine concentration in rapeseed meal between the filamentous fungus, Trametes sp 48424, and the yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, in both liquid and solid-state fermentation. During liquid and solid-state fermentation by Trametes sp 48424, the sinapine concentration decreased significantly. In contrast, the liquid and solid-state fermentation process by Saccharomyces cerevisiae just slightly decreased the sinapine concentration (P ≤ 0.05). After the solid-state fermented samples were dried, the concentration of sinapine in rapeseed meal decreased significantly in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Based on the measurement of laccase activity, we observed that laccase induced the decrease in the concentration of sinapine during fermentation with Trametes sp 48424. In order to eliminate the influence of microorganisms and the metabolites produced during fermentation, high moisture rapeseed meal and the original rapeseed meal were dried at 90°C and 105°C, respectively. During drying, the concentration of sinapine in high moisture rapeseed meal decreased rapidly and we obtained a high correlation coefficient between the concentration of sinapine and loss of moisture. Our results suggest that drying and enzymes, especially laccase that is produced during the solid-state fermentation process, may be the main factors that affect the concentration of sinapine in rapeseed meal. PMID:25606856

Induction of Laccase, Lignin Peroxidase and Manganese Peroxidase Activities in White-Rot Fungi Using Copper Complexes

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Martina Vrsanska

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Ligninolytic enzymes, such as laccase, lignin peroxidase and manganese peroxidase, are biotechnologically-important enzymes. The ability of five white-rot fungal strains Daedaleopsis confragosa, Fomes fomentarius, Trametes gibbosa, Trametes suaveolens and Trametes versicolor to produce these enzymes has been studied. Three different copper(II complexes have been prepared ((Him[Cu(im4(H2O2](btc·3H2O, where im = imidazole, H3btc = 1,3,5-benzenetricarboxylic acid, [Cu3(pmdien3(btc](ClO43·6H2O and [Cu3(mdpta3(btc](ClO43·4H2O, where pmdien = N,N,N′,N′′,N′′-pentamethyl-diethylenetriamine and mdpta = N,N-bis-(3-aminopropylmethyl- amine, and their potential application for laccase and peroxidases induction have been tested. The enzyme-inducing activities of the complexes were compared with that of copper sulfate, and it has been found that all of the complexes are suitable for the induction of laccase and peroxidase activities in white-rot fungi; however, the newly-synthesized complex M1 showed the greatest potential for the induction. With respect to the different copper inducers, this parameter seems to be important for enzyme activity, which depends also on the fungal strains.

Culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Timothy B; Rodríguez, Melanie Domenech; Bernal, Guillermo

2011-02-01

This article summarizes the definitions, means, and research of adapting psychotherapy to clients' cultural backgrounds. We begin by reviewing the prevailing definitions of cultural adaptation and providing a clinical example. We present an original meta-analysis of 65 experimental and quasi-experimental studies involving 8,620 participants. The omnibus effect size of d = .46 indicates that treatments specifically adapted for clients of color were moderately more effective with that clientele than traditional treatments. The most effective treatments tended to be those with greater numbers of cultural adaptations. Mental health services targeted to a specific cultural group were several times more effective than those provided to clients from a variety of cultural backgrounds. We recommend a series of research-supported therapeutic practices that account for clients' culture, with culture-specific treatments being more effective than generally culture-sensitive treatments. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

A Cultural Sexuality or a Sexual Culture?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vandermeersch, Patrick

1990-01-01

P. Vandermeersch, A Cultural Sexuality or a Sexual Culture? In: F. VAN DE VIJVER & G. HUTSCHEMAEKERS (ed.), The Investigation of Culture. Current Issues in Cultural Psychology, Tilburg, Tilburg University Press, 1990, 43-58.

CONNECTION BETWEEN ECONOMICS, CULTURE AND CULTURAL DIPLOMACY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Agil Valiyev

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Today, culture is one of the main feeble factors of economic development.  The leading role of culture in economic development should be argued as multiplied: so, on firstly, as domestic value, on secondly, as a main factor of regional economic development advanced to raised gravity of different regions for residents, tourists and investors, on thirdly, as major parameters of social development based on tolerance, creativity and knowledge. To the different international experiences, culture is main part of economic development in our life. Cultural diversities are combined into a main reason economic development model. The article consist of explainations about the understanding of culture, cultural diplomacy and economics, approach on conflicts between culture and economics, to find how affecting of culture to economic development, the role of culture in economic development of Azerbaijan. The article can be considered as a useful resource  for experts and researchers conducting research in this field.

Culture éducative, culture méthodologique et apprenants d'une langue-culture lointaine

OpenAIRE

サガズ, ミシェル; Sagaz, Michel

2016-01-01

It has long been recognized that we cannot separate culture and language (cultural and linguistic dimensions) when speaking of teaching and learning foreign languages. But, in this context, it seems that the notion of culture is related, exclusively or largely, to the culture which is linked to the language being studied by students (arts, popular culture, everyday life culture, etc.). This article highlights the fact that other aspects of culture should be taken into account in the intercult...

From cultural traditions to cumulative culture: parameterizing the differences between human and nonhuman culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Kempe, Marius; Lycett, Stephen J; Mesoudi, Alex

2014-10-21

Diverse species exhibit cultural traditions, i.e. population-specific profiles of socially learned traits, from songbird dialects to primate tool-use behaviours. However, only humans appear to possess cumulative culture, in which cultural traits increase in complexity over successive generations. Theoretically, it is currently unclear what factors give rise to these phenomena, and consequently why cultural traditions are found in several species but cumulative culture in only one. Here, we address this by constructing and analysing cultural evolutionary models of both phenomena that replicate empirically attestable levels of cultural variation and complexity in chimpanzees and humans. In our model of cultural traditions (Model 1), we find that realistic cultural variation between populations can be maintained even when individuals in different populations invent the same traits and migration between populations is frequent, and under a range of levels of social learning accuracy. This lends support to claims that putative cultural traditions are indeed cultural (rather than genetic) in origin, and suggests that cultural traditions should be widespread in species capable of social learning. Our model of cumulative culture (Model 2) indicates that both the accuracy of social learning and the number of cultural demonstrators interact to determine the complexity of a trait that can be maintained in a population. Combining these models (Model 3) creates two qualitatively distinct regimes in which there are either a few, simple traits, or many, complex traits. We suggest that these regimes correspond to nonhuman and human cultures, respectively. The rarity of cumulative culture in nature may result from this interaction between social learning accuracy and number of demonstrators. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Reconceptualizing Cultural Globalization: Connecting the “Cultural Global” and the “Cultural Local”

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stephen Magu

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Scholars generally are in agreement that the pace of globalization is rapidly accelerating. Globalization’s impact, beyond the socio-economic and political discourses, is affecting conceptions of culture and cultural studies, and changing and restructuring spaces, global, national and personal interactions and relationships. The “texts” and artifacts borne of culture—activities, events and our conception thereof are a mechanism for the propagation of culture. Simultaneously Westernization/Americanization impacts local cultures through consumerism, which obfuscates local traditions, knowledge and experiences. This research argues that culture is a dynamic, adaptive concept and practice, “borrowing” liberally from ideological and technological innovations of other cultures and integrating these borrowed aspects into the construction and modification of culture across spatial and geographical divides to ensure particular cultures’ survival. The research shows that the local affects the global, and vice versa. It selects local communication “texts” to show that cultures are not “victims” of globalization or the proliferation of mass media. Cultures actively adopt and integrate globalization’s technological artifacts. Globalization’s positive effects are dynamic and span cultural interactions and permeate structures of authority at personal, national and global levels.

Academic Culture and Campus Culture of Universities

Science.gov (United States)

Shen, Xi; Tian, Xianghong

2012-01-01

Academic culture of universities mainly consists of academic outlooks, academic spirits, academic ethics and academic environments. Campus culture in a university is characterized by individuality, academic feature, opening, leading, variety and creativity. The academic culture enhances the construction of campus culture. The campus culture…

The effect of cultural interaction on cumulative cultural evolution.

Science.gov (United States)

Nakahashi, Wataru

2014-07-07

Cultural transmission and cultural evolution are important for animals, especially for humans. I developed a new analytical model of cultural evolution, in which each newborn learns cultural traits from multiple individuals (exemplars) in parental generation, individually explores around learned cultural traits, judges the utility of known cultural traits, and adopts a mature cultural trait. Cultural evolutionary speed increases when individuals explore a wider range of cultural traits, accurately judge the skill level of cultural traits (strong direct bias), do not strongly conform to the population mean, increase the exploration range according to the variety of socially learned cultural traits (condition dependent exploration), and make smaller errors in social learning. Number of exemplars, population size, similarity of cultural traits between exemplars, and one-to-many transmission have little effect on cultural evolutionary speed. I also investigated how cultural interaction between two populations with different mean skill levels affects their cultural evolution. A population sometimes increases in skill level more if it encounters a less skilled population than if it does not encounter anyone. A less skilled population sometimes exceeds a more skilled population in skill level by cultural interaction between both populations. The appropriateness of this analytical method is confirmed by individual-based simulations. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cross-cultural dimensions : organisational culture in Philip Morris, Lietuva

OpenAIRE

Grundey, Dainora

2008-01-01

Business globalization raised the new priorities for cross-cultural management theory and practice. The goal of this article is according to cross-cultural management and organizational culture theories to propose a new model of organizational culture with cross-cultural dimensions. The objectives of the paper are as follows: a) to disclose the essence of cross-cultural management and organizational culture; b) to carry out the empirical research of organizational culture in a selected Lithua...

Cultural Centre, Destination Cultural Offer and Visitor Satisfaction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Benxiang Zeng

2017-10-01

Full Text Available This paper aims to establish the link between tourists’ perceptions on cultural offers and their overall satisfaction, and explore the implication of this link for sustainable tourist destination management. Assessing online customers’ reviews, this study identifies a positive correlation between visitors’ perspectives and experiences at the on-site cultural centre and visitors’ destination satisfaction. It suggests that the on-site cultural centre plays a critical role in building up visitors’ perception on cultural attributes of the destination, and its impact on visitor satisfaction is a double-edged sword. Visitors’ positive perspectives on the cultural centre enhance visitors’ experiences and contribute to their destination satisfaction; however, not only does a negative perspective on their cultural and spiritual experience compromise visitors’ satisfaction, but also subsequent negative online reviews damage the destination image and discourage visitor return/visit. The findings help destination management organisations to better understand visitors’ preference for cultural centres and therefore to improve visitors’ cultural experience. This paper appeals for further study of on-site cultural centres’ role in forming destination cultural attributes, and of social media’s potential in enriching cultural experience.

Cultural Understanding Through Cross-Cultural Analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Briere, Jean-Francois

1986-01-01

A college course used an explicit intercultural approach and collective research activities to compare French and American cultures and to examine the reasons for cultural attitudes and culture conflict. Class assignments dealt with contrastive analyses of American and French institutions like advertising, cinema, feminism, etc. (MSE)

Cultural similarity, cultural competence, and nurse workforce diversity.

Science.gov (United States)

McGinnis, Sandra L; Brush, Barbara L; Moore, Jean

2010-11-01

Proponents of health workforce diversity argue that increasing the number of minority health care providers will enhance cultural similarity between patients and providers as well as the health system's capacity to provide culturally competent care. Measuring cultural similarity has been difficult, however, given that current benchmarks of workforce diversity categorize health workers by major racial/ethnic classifications rather than by cultural measures. This study examined the use of national racial/ethnic categories in both patient and registered nurse (RN) populations and found them to be a poor indicator of cultural similarity. Rather, we found that cultural similarity between RN and patient populations needs to be established at the level of local labor markets and broadened to include other cultural parameters such as country of origin, primary language, and self-identified ancestry. Only then can the relationship between cultural similarity and cultural competence be accurately determined and its outcomes measured.

Cultural neuroscience and psychopathology: prospects for cultural psychiatry.

Science.gov (United States)

Choudhury, Suparna; Kirmayer, Laurence J

2009-01-01

There is a long tradition that seeks to understand the impact of culture on the causes, form, treatment, and outcome of psychiatric disorders. An early, colonialist literature attributed cultural characteristics and variations in psychopathology and behavior to deficiencies in the brains of colonized peoples. Contemporary research in social and cultural neuroscience holds the promise of moving beyond these invidious comparisons to a more sophisticated understanding of cultural variations in brain function relevant to psychiatry. To achieve this, however, we need better models of the nature of psychopathology and of culture itself. Culture is not simply a set of traits or characteristics shared by people with a common geographic, historical, or ethnic background. Current anthropology understands culture as fluid, flexible systems of discourse, institutions, and practices, which individuals actively use for self-fashioning and social positioning. Globalization introduces new cultural dynamics and demands that we rethink culture in relation to a wider domain of evolving identities, knowledge, and practice. Psychopathology is not reducible to brain dysfunction in either its causes, mechanisms, or expression. In addition to neuropsychiatric disorders, the problems that people bring to psychiatrists may result from disorders in cognition, the personal and social meanings of experience, and the dynamics of interpersonal interactions or social systems and institutions. The shifting meanings of culture and psychopathology have implications for efforts to apply cultural neuroscience to psychiatry. We consider how cultural neuroscience can refine use of culture and its role in psychopathology using the example of adolescent aggression as a symptom of conduct disorder.

Cross-Cultural Impression Management: A Cultural Knowledge Audit Model

Science.gov (United States)

Spong, Abigail; Kamau, Caroline

2012-01-01

Purpose: Many people moving into a new culture for work or study do so without prior cross-cultural training, yet successful cultural adaptation has important ramifications. The purpose of this paper is to focus on cross-cultural impression management as an element of cultural adaptation. Does cultural adaptation begin by paying strong attention…

Dehistoricized Cultural Identity and Cultural Othering

Science.gov (United States)

Weiguo, Qu

2013-01-01

The assumption that each culture has its own distinctive identity has been generally accepted in the discussion of cultural identities. Quite often identity formation is not perceived as a dynamic and interactive ongoing process that engages other cultures and involves change in its responses to different challenges at different times. I will…

What Is so "Cultural" About Cultural Entrepreneurship

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Staffan Albinsson

2017-04-01

Full Text Available The term “cultural entrepreneurship” has been increasingly used during the new millennium, mirroring the rapidly growing importance of the “quaternary sector of the economy,” i.e. knowledge-based industries, including culture. Exploration of the literature in which the term “cultural entrepreneurship” is used does not bring a solid, clear-cut, and unambiguous understanding of its definition or meaning. The aim of this paper is to present various uses of the concept and to bring about some clarity in how the concept can be understood. Two overarching uses of the cultural entrepreneurship concept have been found: 1. the anthropologist’s and institutional economist’s use, which indicates the dynamic development of intangible cultural features such as symbols, myths, languages, beliefs, values, norms, rituals, and attitudes in and between societies, and 2. the arts development use, which indicates the dynamic development of cultural services, tangible goods, and individual or collective career promotion. Most authors use a cultural entrepreneurship concept without defining it. Authors could apply more precise definitions by using a quadruple bottom-line framework to position themselves in the nexus of financial, social, artistic, and cultural perspectives.

Cultural tourism and tourism cultures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ooi, Can-Seng

Presenting a comprehensive and dynamic understanding of cultural tourism, this volume examines cultural mediators and how they help tourists appreciate foreign cultures. It also shows how tourism experiences are strategically crafted by mediators, the complexity of the mediation process, and how...... various products are mediated differently. A number of different products are investigated, including destination brand identities, "living" cultures and everyday life, art and history. The author illustrates his arguments by comparing the tourism strategies of Copenhagen and Singapore, and demonstrates...... how tourism is an agent for social change. The author also offers an original and refreshing way of understanding tourist behaviour through the concept of the "versatile tourist". The book's empirical cases and dialogic framework provide new and deep insights into tourism activities. In his...

Examining Cultural Intelligence and Cross-Cultural Negotiation Effectiveness

Science.gov (United States)

Groves, Kevin S.; Feyerherm, Ann; Gu, Minhua

2015-01-01

International negotiation failures are often linked to deficiencies in negotiator cross-cultural capabilities, including limited understanding of the cultures engaged in the transaction, an inability to communicate with persons from different cultural backgrounds, and limited behavioral flexibility to adapt to culturally unfamiliar contexts.…

Culture-specific delusions. Sense and nonsense in cultural context.

Science.gov (United States)

Gaines, A D

1995-06-01

It can be said that a definition of delusions requires the invocation of cultural understandings, standards of acceptability, as well as conceptions of reality and the forces that animate it. For these reasons, the determination of delusional or normative ideation can only be effected properly within particular cultural contexts. The cross-cultural record suggests that it is difficult to separate the delusional from the cultural; a belief that is patterened and culturally specific is, by definition a cultural, not a delusional belief. One must rely upon particular, relevant local cultural understandings to ascertain when the bounds of culture have been transgressed and meaning has given way to unshareable nonsense.

Culture suédoise, culture d’entreprise, culture populaire

OpenAIRE

Merle, Anthony

2013-01-01

Plus qu’un commerce, IKEA est un phénomène culturel à trois dimensions, à la fois image (construite ?) de la culture suédoise, modèle (prétendu ?) d’une certaine culture d’entreprise, et marque imprégnant largement la culture populaire. Par sa communication et sa politique, le groupe IKEA se présente comme vendeur d’un Ailleurs, à savoir celui de son origine suédoise. À partir du cas IKEA, cet article a pour objectif d’interroger le rôle de la distance cognitive (Ici/Ailleurs) pour comprendre...

Organizational culture

OpenAIRE

Schein, Edgar H.

1988-01-01

Cultural orientations of an organization can be its greatest strength, providing the basis for problem solving, cooperation, and communication. Culture, however, can also inhibit needed changes. Cultural changes typically happen slowly – but without cultural change, many other organizational changes are doomed to fail. The dominant culture of an organization is a major contributor to its success. But, of course, no organizational culture is purely one type or another. And the existence of sec...

Cultural tourism is in context of mass culture

OpenAIRE

Гарбар, Г. А.

2014-01-01

Philosophic analysis of tourist activity within mass culture is carried out in the thesis. Cultural tourism within mass culture is more than orientation on cultural values, it is the understanding of peculiar cultural values within the context of generally accepted ones, confirmation of tourist activity peculiarities.Having reviewed tourism as a coherent system, the facts about impact of tourism on the society development are determined, potential development zones are identified, which are a...

Citizenship and cultural diversity in agenda of cultural policies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Patricia Silva Dorneles

2016-01-01

Full Text Available This is a discussion paper which aims to contribute to the systematization of studies, concepts and practices on cultural policies which have been developed in previous years in Brazil and are orienting cultural actions and public programs in the country, also influencing the Occupational Therapy. Citizenship and Cultural Diversity are concepts under construction and are part of the of the agenda of cultural policies and as well as the reflections and practices of various occupational therapists who are acting in a constant dialogue with the cultural area by means of the formation in cultural management, cultural mapping, programs and grant projects aimed to promote inventive identities, traditional communities, native populations, urban mobility, and cultural networks and exchange initiatives, among others. The article presents the process of this conceptual construction and the constitution of experiences aiming the democratization of the culture in the history of Brazilian cultural public policies, over which are being discussed approach paths and possibilities for Occupational Therapy.

Cultural hegemony? Educators' perspectives on facilitating cross-cultural dialogue.

Science.gov (United States)

Zaidi, Zareen; Verstegen, Daniëlle; Vyas, Rashmi; Hamed, Omayma; Dornan, Tim; Morahan, Page

2016-01-01

We live in an age when education is being internationalized. This can confront students with 'cultural hegemony' that can result from the unequal distribution of power and privilege in global society. The name that is given to awareness of social inequality is 'critical consciousness'. Cross-cultural dialogue provides an opportunity for learners to develop critical consciousness to counter cultural hegemony. The purpose of this research was to understand how learners engage with cross-cultural dialogue, so we can help them do so more effectively in the future. The setting for this research was an online discussion in an international health professions educator fellowship program. We introduced scenarios with cultural references to study the reaction of participants to cultural conversation cues. We used an inductive thematic analysis to explore power and hegemony issues. Participants reflected that personally they were more likely to take part in cross-cultural discussions if they recognized the context discussed or had prior exposure to educational settings with cultural diversity. They identified barriers as lack of skills in facilitating cross-cultural discussions and fear of offending others. They suggested deliberately introducing cultural issues throughout the curriculum. Our results indicate that developing critical consciousness and cross-cultural competency will require instructional design to identify longitudinal opportunities to bring up cross-cultural issues, and training facilitators to foster cross-cultural discussions by asking clarifying questions and navigating crucial/sensitive conversations.

Safeguards Culture

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Frazar, Sarah L.; Mladineo, Stephen V.

2012-07-01

The concepts of nuclear safety and security culture are well established; however, a common understanding of safeguards culture is not internationally recognized. Supported by the National Nuclear Security Administration, the authors prepared this report, an analysis of the concept of safeguards culture, and gauged its value to the safeguards community. The authors explored distinctions between safeguards culture, safeguards compliance, and safeguards performance, and evaluated synergies and differences between safeguards culture and safety/security culture. The report concludes with suggested next steps.

Cultural hegemony? Educators’ perspectives on facilitating cross-cultural dialogue

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zareen Zaidi

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Background: We live in an age when education is being internationalized. This can confront students with ‘cultural hegemony’ that can result from the unequal distribution of power and privilege in global society. The name that is given to awareness of social inequality is ‘critical consciousness’. Cross-cultural dialogue provides an opportunity for learners to develop critical consciousness to counter cultural hegemony. The purpose of this research was to understand how learners engage with cross-cultural dialogue, so we can help them do so more effectively in the future. Method: The setting for this research was an online discussion in an international health professions educator fellowship program. We introduced scenarios with cultural references to study the reaction of participants to cultural conversation cues. We used an inductive thematic analysis to explore power and hegemony issues. Results: Participants reflected that personally they were more likely to take part in cross-cultural discussions if they recognized the context discussed or had prior exposure to educational settings with cultural diversity. They identified barriers as lack of skills in facilitating cross-cultural discussions and fear of offending others. They suggested deliberately introducing cultural issues throughout the curriculum. Conclusion: Our results indicate that developing critical consciousness and cross-cultural competency will require instructional design to identify longitudinal opportunities to bring up cross-cultural issues, and training facilitators to foster cross-cultural discussions by asking clarifying questions and navigating crucial/sensitive conversations.

Cultural hegemony? Educators’ perspectives on facilitating cross-cultural dialogue

Science.gov (United States)

Zaidi, Zareen; Verstegen, Daniëlle; Vyas, Rashmi; Hamed, Omayma; Dornan, Tim; Morahan, Page

2016-01-01

Background We live in an age when education is being internationalized. This can confront students with ‘cultural hegemony’ that can result from the unequal distribution of power and privilege in global society. The name that is given to awareness of social inequality is ‘critical consciousness’. Cross-cultural dialogue provides an opportunity for learners to develop critical consciousness to counter cultural hegemony. The purpose of this research was to understand how learners engage with cross-cultural dialogue, so we can help them do so more effectively in the future. Method The setting for this research was an online discussion in an international health professions educator fellowship program. We introduced scenarios with cultural references to study the reaction of participants to cultural conversation cues. We used an inductive thematic analysis to explore power and hegemony issues. Results Participants reflected that personally they were more likely to take part in cross-cultural discussions if they recognized the context discussed or had prior exposure to educational settings with cultural diversity. They identified barriers as lack of skills in facilitating cross-cultural discussions and fear of offending others. They suggested deliberately introducing cultural issues throughout the curriculum. Conclusion Our results indicate that developing critical consciousness and cross-cultural competency will require instructional design to identify longitudinal opportunities to bring up cross-cultural issues, and training facilitators to foster cross-cultural discussions by asking clarifying questions and navigating crucial/sensitive conversations. PMID:27890048

CULTURE, CULTURE LEARNING AND NEW TECHNOLOGIES: TOWARDS A PEDAGOGICAL FRAMEWORK

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mike Levy

2007-02-01

Full Text Available This paper seeks to improve approaches to the learning and teaching of culture using new technologies by relating the key qualities and dimensions of the culture concept to elements within a pedagogical framework. In Part One, five facets of the culture concept are developed: culture as elemental; culture as relative; culture as group membership; culture as contested; and culture as individual (variable and multiple. Each perspective aims to provide a focus for thinking about culture, and thereby to provide a valid and useful point of departure for thinking about the practice of culture learning and teaching with new technologies. The referenced literature draws from a broad range of disciplines and definitions of culture. In Part Two, five projects are chosen to represent relevant technologies currently in use for culture learning: e-mail, chat, a discussion forum and a Web-based project. Each project is used to illustrate facets of the culture concept discussed in Part One with a view to identifying key elements within a pedagogical framework that can help us respond effectively to the challenge of culture learning and teaching utilising new technologies. Thus the goal is to align fundamental qualities of the culture concept with specific pedagogical designs, tasks and technologies.

Cultural Competence and the Operational Commander: Moving Beyond Cultural Awareness into Culture-Centric Warfare

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Karcanes, James A

2007-01-01

The term "cultural awareness" serves as the new favorite Department of Defense buzzword but fails in its definition to adequately articulate the complexity of culture and the high level of cultural...

Cultural Journalism and Cultural Critique in a changing Media Landscape

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nørgaard Kristensen, Nete; From, Unni

2015-01-01

This special issue addresses a topic of journalism studies that has previously been somewhat neglected but which has gained increasing scholarly attention since the mid-2000s: the coverage and evaluation of art and culture, or what we term “cultural journalism and cultural critique.......” In this introduction, we highlight three issues that serve to frame the study of cultural journalism and cultural critique more generally and the eight articles of this special issue more specifically: (1) the constant challenge of demarcating cultural journalism and cultural critique, including the interrelations...... of “journalism” and “critique”; (2) the dialectic of globalisation’s cultural homogenisation, on the one hand, and the specificity of local/national cultures, on the other; and (3) the digital media landscape seen in terms of the need to rethink, perhaps even redefine cultural journalism and cultural critique...

Culture, Personality, Health, and Family Dynamics: Cultural Competence in the Selection of Culturally Sensitive Treatments

Science.gov (United States)

Sperry, Len

2010-01-01

Cultural sensitivity and cultural competence in the selection of culturally sensitive treatments is a requisite for effective counseling practice in working with diverse clients and their families, particularly when clients present with health issues or medical problems. Described here is a strategy for selecting culturally sensitive treatments…

Cultured Trash, Not Trash Culture

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Taufiqurrohman Taufiqurrohman

2017-09-01

Full Text Available As civilized creature, human actually can manage trash as well as possible although it is often stereotyped as a vain thing. This article gives the proof that trash can be cultured as well so that a society can take benefits from the existence of it. This article parses ways of orderly managing it at schools, in this case two schools in Jepara. The results say that trash can be cultured by having an organization to manage the Trash Bank at schools and to train students to classify and recycle trash then take advantage of it by selling the collected and the recycled trash. It makes trash have good transformation of values, repelling against the prior stereotype. Finally, by taking example from Trash Bank management at schools, human can have so cultured trash that they would not be trapped by trash culture.

Cultural entrepreneurship

NARCIS (Netherlands)

A. Klamer (Arjo)

2011-01-01

textabstractCultural entrepreneurship is a new character in the cultural sector. This paper characterizes the cultural entrepreneur paying homage to the hermeneutic approach of Don Lavoie and others. The challenge is to render the "cultural" meaningful. An invention is the highlighting of the

Playing up and playing down cultural identity: Introducing cultural influence and cultural variability.

Science.gov (United States)

Ferguson, Gail M; Nguyen, Jacqueline; Iturbide, Maria I

2017-01-01

Cultural variability (CV) is introduced as an overlooked dimension of cultural identity development pertaining to emphasizing and de-emphasizing the influence of a single cultural identity (i.e., cultural influence [CI]) on daily interactions and behaviors. The Cultural IDentity Influence Measure (CIDIM) is introduced as a novel measure of CI and CV, and hypothesis-driven validation is conducted in two samples along with exploration of associations between CV and well-being. A multicultural sample of 242 emerging adults participated in a daily diary study (Mage = 19.95 years, SDage = 1.40) by completing up to eight daily online surveys containing the CIDIM, criterion measures (ethnic identity, other group orientation, ethnic identity salience and daily variability in salience, social desirability), and measures of personal and interpersonal well-being. A second validation sample (n = 245) completed a 1-time survey with the CIDIM and a subset of criterion measures. Results using both samples show evidence of CI and CV and demonstrate the validity, reliability, and domain-sensitivity of the CIDIM. Further, CV made unique and positive contributions to predicting interaction quality after accounting for ethnic salience and variability in ethnic salience. An analytic approach utilizing standard deviations produced near-identical results to multilevel modeling and is recommended for parsimony. Ethnic minority and majority individuals make daily adjustments to play up and play down the influence of cultural identity on their social interactions and behaviors, and these adjustments predict interpersonal well-being. Cultural influence and cultural variability contribute to our emerging understanding of cultural identity as dynamic and agentic. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Migration, cultural bereavement and cultural identity

OpenAIRE

BHUGRA, DINESH; BECKER, MATTHEW A

2005-01-01

Migration has contributed to the richness in diversity of cultures, ethnicities and races in developed countries. Individuals who migrate experience multiple stresses that can impact their mental well being, including the loss of cultural norms, religious customs, and social support systems, adjustment to a new culture and changes in identity and concept of self. Indeed, the rates of mental illness are increased in some migrant groups. Mental health practitioners need to be ...

Managing Culture--Making Culture Work for You

Science.gov (United States)

National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER), 2006

2006-01-01

An understanding of culture in organisations can offer insights into individual and group behaviour, and leadership. It can help to explain not just what happens in an organisation, but why it happens. However, many people are concerned not just with understanding culture, and hence organisational life. They see culture as something to be…

SOLID-PHASE TREATMENT OF A PENTACHLOROPHENOL- CONTAMINATED SOIL USING LIGNIN-DEGRADING FUNGI

Science.gov (United States)

The abilities of three lignin-degrading fungi, Phanerochaete chrysosporium, Phanerochaete sordida, and Trametes hirsuta, to deplete pentachlorophenol (PCP) from soil contaminated with PCP and creosote were evaluated. A total of seven fungal and three control treatments ...

Types of cross-cultural studies in cross-cultural psychology

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van de Vijver, F.J.R.; Lonner, W.J.; Dinnel, D.L.; Hayes, S.A.; Sattler, D.N.

2003-01-01

From a methodological perspective cross-cultural studies in psychology differ in three dimensions. First, cross-cultural psychological studies can be exploratory or test specific hypotheses. Second, some cross-cultural studies compare countries or ethnic groups while other cross-cultural studies

Cultural values and cross-cultural video consumption on YouTube

Science.gov (United States)

Macy, Michael

2017-01-01

Video-sharing social media like YouTube provide access to diverse cultural products from all over the world, making it possible to test theories that the Web facilitates global cultural convergence. Drawing on a daily listing of YouTube’s most popular videos across 58 countries, we investigate the consumption of popular videos in countries that differ in cultural values, language, gross domestic product, and Internet penetration rate. Although online social media facilitate global access to cultural products, we find this technological capability does not result in universal cultural convergence. Instead, consumption of popular videos in culturally different countries appears to be constrained by cultural values. Cross-cultural convergence is more advanced in cosmopolitan countries with cultural values that favor individualism and power inequality. PMID:28531228

Cultural values and cross-cultural video consumption on YouTube.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Minsu; Park, Jaram; Baek, Young Min; Macy, Michael

2017-01-01

Video-sharing social media like YouTube provide access to diverse cultural products from all over the world, making it possible to test theories that the Web facilitates global cultural convergence. Drawing on a daily listing of YouTube's most popular videos across 58 countries, we investigate the consumption of popular videos in countries that differ in cultural values, language, gross domestic product, and Internet penetration rate. Although online social media facilitate global access to cultural products, we find this technological capability does not result in universal cultural convergence. Instead, consumption of popular videos in culturally different countries appears to be constrained by cultural values. Cross-cultural convergence is more advanced in cosmopolitan countries with cultural values that favor individualism and power inequality.

Cultural values and cross-cultural video consumption on YouTube.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Minsu Park

Full Text Available Video-sharing social media like YouTube provide access to diverse cultural products from all over the world, making it possible to test theories that the Web facilitates global cultural convergence. Drawing on a daily listing of YouTube's most popular videos across 58 countries, we investigate the consumption of popular videos in countries that differ in cultural values, language, gross domestic product, and Internet penetration rate. Although online social media facilitate global access to cultural products, we find this technological capability does not result in universal cultural convergence. Instead, consumption of popular videos in culturally different countries appears to be constrained by cultural values. Cross-cultural convergence is more advanced in cosmopolitan countries with cultural values that favor individualism and power inequality.

Blood culture bottles are superior to conventional media for vitreous culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Thariya, Patsuda; Yospaiboon, Yosanan; Sinawat, Suthasinee; Sanguansak, Thuss; Bhoomibunchoo, Chavakij; Laovirojjanakul, Wipada

2016-08-01

To compare blood culture bottles and conventional media for the vitreous culture in patients with clinically suspected infectious endophthalmitis. Retrospective comparative study at KKU Eye Center, Khon Kaen University. There were 342 patients with clinically suspected infectious endophthalmitis participated in the study. The vitreous specimens were inoculated in both blood culture bottles and on conventional culture media (blood agar, MacConkey agar, chocolate agar, Sabouraud dextrose agar and thioglycolate broth). The number of positive culture yields in both blood culture bottles and conventional media. Positive culture yields in both methods were found in 151 eyes (49.5%). There were 136 of 151 eyes (90.1%) with positive culture in blood culture bottles, whereas 99 of 151 eyes (65.6%) yielded positive cultures in conventional media. These findings were different with a statistical significance (P culture bottles and conventional media improved the yield. Blood culture bottles are superior to conventional media for vitreous culture in clinically suspected infectious endophthalmitis. Vitreous culture using blood culture bottles should be recommended as the primary method for microbiological diagnosis. A combination of both methods further improves the positive culture yield. © 2016 Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists.

Family Counseling: Cultural Sensitivity, Relativism, and the Cultural Defense.

Science.gov (United States)

May, Kathleen M.

1998-01-01

Cultural sensitivity, cultural relativism, and the cultural defense are defined and described. Each concept is addressed in terms of its relationship to couple and family counseling. The role of counselor must be broadened and deepened to include the role of cultural broker. (Author/EMK)

Industrial cultures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Lauge Baungaard

1996-01-01

The chapter deals with different paradigms andtheories of cultural development. The problem toexplain change and methods to analyse developmentin different cultures are presented and discussed.......The chapter deals with different paradigms andtheories of cultural development. The problem toexplain change and methods to analyse developmentin different cultures are presented and discussed....

Beyond cultural values? Cultural leadership ideals and entrepreneurship

OpenAIRE

Stephan, Ute; Pathak, Saurav

2016-01-01

This paper offers a fresh perspective on national culture and entrepreneurship research. It explores the role of Culturally-endorsed implicit Leadership Theories (CLTs) – i.e., the cultural expectations about outstanding, ideal leadership – on individual entrepreneurship. Developing arguments based on culture-entrepreneurship fit, we predict that charismatic and self-protective CLTs positively affect entrepreneurship. They provide a context that enables entrepreneurs to be co-operative in ord...

Articulating cultures: socio-cultural experiences of black female ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Articulating cultures: socio-cultural experiences of black female immigrant students in South African schools 1. ... Gender and Behaviour ... and worrisome issue is that of the erosion of the social and cultural mores of Black3 immigrant students.

Occupation, well-being, and culture: Theory and cultural humility.

Science.gov (United States)

Hammell, Karen R Whalley

2013-10-01

The Canadian Model of Occupational Performance and Engagement depicts individuals embedded within cultural environments that afford occupational possibilities. Culture pertains not solely to ethnicity or race but to any dimension of diversity, including class, gender, sexual orientation, and ability. This paper highlights specific dimensions of cultural diversity and their relationships to occupational engagement and well-being. Cultural variations constitute the basis for a socially constructed hierarchy of traits that significantly determine occupational opportunities and impact mental health and well-being. Cultural humility is an approach to redressing power imbalances in client-therapist relationships by incorporating critical self-evaluation and recognizing that cultural differences lie not within clients but within client-therapist relationships. It is proposed that theoretical relevance would be enhanced if culturally diverse perspectives were incorporated into theories of occupation. Cultural humility is advocated as an approach to theoretical development and in efforts to counter professional Eurocentrism, ethnocentrism, and intellectual colonialism.

Nuclear safety culture based on the organizational and individual culture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Jingxi; Ren Ou

2005-01-01

The nuclear safety culture is used increasingly and developed by countries that have nu- clear plants all over the world, since the term 'safety culture' was first introduced by IAEA in 1986. Enterprises culture reflects many terms in an enterprise, such as management level and staff quality. The safety culture is the center in a nuclear enterprises culture, and relates directly to the safety and outstanding achievement of operation. This paper discusses the nuclear safety culture from the viewpoints of the organizational and individual cultures. (authors)

Digital culture as a converging paradigm for technology and culture: Challenges for the culture sector

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aleksandra Uzelac

2010-05-01

Full Text Available Digital culture is a new and complex concept. Digital advances are increasingly interacting with the world of culture and the arts, leading to a convergence of technologies, media and information and shaping communication modes. The new possibilities offered by the digital technologies -namely, global connectivity and the emergence of new networks- challenge our traditional understanding of culture and make it necessary for us to take on the board the concept of a digital culture. This article views digital culture as a new social system that determines experiences and opportunities for the citizens of today. Digital technologies and the networked environment have introduced new practices, opportunities and threats, and the culture sector needs to find appropriate ways for operating in this new reality.

Exploring the 'cultural' in cultural competencies in Pacific mental health.

Science.gov (United States)

Samu, Kathleen Seataoai; Suaalii-Sauni, Tamasailau

2009-02-01

Cultural competency is about the ability of individuals and systems to respond respectfully and effectively to the cultural needs of peoples of all cultures. Its general attributes include knowledge, attitudes, skills and professional judgment. In Pacific mental health, 'the cultural' is generally understood to be ethnic culture. Accordingly, Pacific cultural competencies assume ethnic specific markers. In mental health Pacific cultural competencies has seen a blending of cultural and clinical beliefs and practices. This paper provides an overview of five key theme areas arising from Auckland-based ethnic-specific Pacific workshop data: language, family, tapu relationships, skills and organisation policy. Workshop participants comprised of Pacific mental health providers, Pacific consumers, family members of Pacific consumers and members of the Pacific community members. This paper purports that identifying the perceptions of different Pacific groups on ethnic-specific elements of cultural competencies are necessary to build and strengthen the capacity and capability of mental health services to provide culturally relevant services.

On Tea Bowl from Jianzhan to Tenmoku: Material Culture and Intangible Culture in Cultural Diffusion

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jianping Guan

2014-12-01

Full Text Available According to precise and scientific literature that recorded, Chinese tea culture has a documented history of more than 1700 years. During which period, Yuan Dynasty was considered a crucial turning-point with great changes. The current tea culture in China is an adoption and innovation of Ming and Qing dynasty, especially in the form of processing technology. For those elements inherited from Tang and Song dynasties, however, they were more directly adopted systematically by Japan. Ever since powdered tea culture from Song dynasty was accepted in Japan, Jianzhan, the tea bowl that gained renowned reputation in the Song tea culture was also introduced and became tenmoku (tianmu after localization. As the transformation of Chinese tea culture ended in Japan, Japanese tea culture of wabi-cha was shaped after the tenmoku’s obvious decline in value. Jianzhan’s prosper, and tenmoku’s emergence and transition, all proved a definitive impact from intangible culture.

Bridging Culture On-Line: Strategies for Teaching Cultural Sensitivity.

Science.gov (United States)

Wendler, M. Cecilia; Struthers, Roxanne

2002-01-01

An online cross-cultural health course for nurses sought to provide access to cultural experiences by culturally congruent use of a minority visiting scholar and required participation in cultural enrichment activities. Course and faculty evaluations were designed to be appropriate for the asynchronous environment. (Contains 25 references.) (SK)

Cultural relativism and cultural diversity: implications for nursing practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Baker, C

1997-09-01

This article examines the doctrine of cultural relativism in nursing practice. To introduce the issue, an overview of the intellectual history of cultural relativism is presented. The academic themes of the debate surrounding cultural relativism are illustrated with an example of the social controversy in France involving cultural relativism as used to defend the practice of female genital excision among immigrant communities. The dilemma faced by nursing in making cross-cultural judgments is then examined in the light of the academic and social debates. The article concludes with a theoretical resolution of the issue of cultural relativism for nursing practice that is based on hermeneutic philosophy.

Culture Analysis: The Interaction of Organizational and National Culture

OpenAIRE

Marina Arnoldovna Makarchenko

2015-01-01

The article is devoted to the interaction between organizational culture factors. A comparative analysis of the Russian and Argentine companies culture using different methods shows the impact of the national mentality in organizational culture. The thesis is the need to introduce the term "regional culture" in relation to modern Russia.

Cultural evolutionary theory: How culture evolves and why it matters.

Science.gov (United States)

Creanza, Nicole; Kolodny, Oren; Feldman, Marcus W

2017-07-24

Human cultural traits-behaviors, ideas, and technologies that can be learned from other individuals-can exhibit complex patterns of transmission and evolution, and researchers have developed theoretical models, both verbal and mathematical, to facilitate our understanding of these patterns. Many of the first quantitative models of cultural evolution were modified from existing concepts in theoretical population genetics because cultural evolution has many parallels with, as well as clear differences from, genetic evolution. Furthermore, cultural and genetic evolution can interact with one another and influence both transmission and selection. This interaction requires theoretical treatments of gene-culture coevolution and dual inheritance, in addition to purely cultural evolution. In addition, cultural evolutionary theory is a natural component of studies in demography, human ecology, and many other disciplines. Here, we review the core concepts in cultural evolutionary theory as they pertain to the extension of biology through culture, focusing on cultural evolutionary applications in population genetics, ecology, and demography. For each of these disciplines, we review the theoretical literature and highlight relevant empirical studies. We also discuss the societal implications of the study of cultural evolution and of the interactions of humans with one another and with their environment.

Making Safety Culture a Corporate Culture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Svenningsson, J.

2016-01-01

Safety Culture is something that we have actively worked with in the nuclear industry for a long time. Formally, it has been on the agenda since the Chernobyl accident. However, the work with creating a safe organizational culture can of course be traced back even further in time. Over the years a lot has happened in how we are approaching the concept of safety culture and especially how we look upon the human being as a part of the system and how we as humans interact with the organization and technology. For an organization to have a culture that promotes safety it is essential to create an ownership of safety with all workers within the site. To create this ownership it is vital to have the undivided commitment of the management. It all starts with the fundamental values of the organization. These values must then be concluded in firm expectations of behaviors that apply to all workers and management. This could be referred to as expectation of a Professional Behavior that allows us to live up to the company values. At OKG nuclear power plant, a successful Business Improvement Program was recently carried out with intention to develop and contribute to the maturity of the organization in terms of safety. One of the sub-programs of the program was called Professional Behavior - With purpose of making safety into a corporate culture. At OKG, Safety culture is something that systematically been addressed and worked with since 2004. Even though the Safety Culture program could be considered to already have reached a certain level of maturity the Business Improvement program helped the organization to lay the foundation for further development by clarify expected behaviors that was firmly cemented in to the corporate values.

Creating Cultural Consumers: The Dynamics of Cultural Capital Acquisition

Science.gov (United States)

Kisida, Brian; Greene, Jay P.; Bowen, Daniel H.

2014-01-01

The theories of cultural reproduction and cultural mobility have largely shaped the study of the effects of cultural capital on academic outcomes. Missing in this debate has been a rigorous examination of how children actually acquire cultural capital when it is not provided by their families. Drawing on data from a large-scale experimental study…

Mediating production and consumption: cultural capital and 'cultural workers'.

Science.gov (United States)

Wright, David

2005-03-01

This paper examines recent debates about the role of what Bourdieu termed cultural intermediaries in the formation and reproduction of the relations of cultural capital. Workers in the cultural or creative industries were given a central place in Bourdieu's schema in the creation of hierarchies of value in the production and consumption of symbolic goods. Subsequent writers about the apparent emergence of a creative economy (Lash and Urry 1994; Featherstone 1991) have given workers involved in the production and distribution of cultural goods a pivotal place in the development of late or post-modernity. More recent work (Negus 2002; Nixon and du Gay 2002) has criticized the validity and coherence of the term as it has come to be understood and called for more rigour in its definition and use. This paper adds to this debate by considering the book trade as a space in which the gap between production and consumption of cultural goods is mediated. It suggests that cultural intermediaries, as cultural workers, are engaged in the reproduction of the cultural aspects of social class by 'shoring up' their insecure position in the relations of cultural capital, rather than simply being the taste leaders of a reflexive modernity.

Forensic culture as epistemic culture: the sociology of forensic science.

Science.gov (United States)

Cole, Simon A

2013-03-01

This paper explores whether we can interpret the notion of 'forensic culture' as something akin to what Knorr-Cetina called an 'epistemic culture'. Can we speak of a 'forensic culture', and, if so, how is it similar to, or different from, other epistemic cultures that exist in what is conventionally called 'science'? This question has important policy implications given the National Academy Science's (NAS) recent identification of 'culture' as one of the problems at the root of what it identified as 'serious deficiencies' in U.S. forensic science and 'scientific culture' as an antidote to those problems. Finding the NAS's characterisation of 'scientific culture' overly general and naïve, this paper offers a preliminary exploration of what might be called a 'forensic culture'. Specifically, the paper explores the way in which few of the empirical findings accumulated by sociologists of science about research science seem to apply to forensic science. Instead, forensic science seems to have developed a distinct culture for which a sociological analysis will require new explanatory tools. Faithful sociological analysis of 'forensic culture' will be a necessary prerequisite for the kind of culture change prescribed by external reformist bodies like the NAS. Copyright © 2012. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Culture Three Ways: Culture and Subcultures Within Countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Oyserman, Daphna

2017-01-03

Culture can be thought of as a set of everyday practices and a core theme-individualism, collectivism, or honor-as well as the capacity to understand each of these themes. In one's own culture, it is easy to fail to see that a cultural lens exists and instead to think that there is no lens at all, only reality. Hence, studying culture requires stepping out of it. There are two main methods to do so: The first involves using between-group comparisons to highlight differences and the second involves using experimental methods to test the consequences of disruption to implicit cultural frames. These methods highlight three ways that culture organizes experience: (a) It shields reflexive processing by making everyday life feel predictable, (b) it scaffolds which cognitive procedure (connect, separate, or order) will be the default in ambiguous situations, and (c) it facilitates situation-specific accessibility of alternate cognitive procedures. Modern societal social-demographic trends reduce predictability and increase collectivism and honor-based go-to cognitive procedures.

Within- and between-culture variation: individual differences and the cultural logics of honor, face, and dignity cultures.

Science.gov (United States)

Leung, Angela K-Y; Cohen, Dov

2011-03-01

The CuPS (Culture × Person × Situation) approach attempts to jointly consider culture and individual differences, without treating either as noise and without reducing one to the other. Culture is important because it helps define psychological situations and create meaningful clusters of behavior according to particular logics. Individual differences are important because individuals vary in the extent to which they endorse or reject a culture's ideals. Further, because different cultures are organized by different logics, individual differences mean something different in each. Central to these studies are concepts of honor-related violence and individual worth as being inalienable versus socially conferred. We illustrate our argument with 2 experiments involving participants from honor, face, and dignity cultures. The studies showed that the same "type" of person who was most helpful, honest, and likely to behave with integrity in one culture was the "type" of person least likely to do so in another culture. We discuss how CuPS can provide a rudimentary but integrated approach to understanding both within- and between-culture variation. (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved

Driving Cultures: Cars, Young People and Cultural Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sarah Redshaw

2011-11-01

Full Text Available This article describes the Driving Cultures research, the cultural importance of the car and the psychological approaches central to research in the field of road safety and investigations of the over–representation of young people in crashes. The aim of the article is to outline driving as a cultural practice drawing on the experiences of young people as described in focus groups in order to show how cultural research can contribute to a social concern such as traffic injury and death.

Exploration of Food Culture in Kisumu: A Socio-Cultural Perspective

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fredrick Argwenge Odede

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Increasingly food culture in the context of socio-cultural dimension is becoming important for sustainable urban development. In the last four years food festivals have been held in Kisumu attracting several interests both from within and without the City. The Kisumu fish night event of 2013 marked the melting point of food culture in Kisumu. This paper thus explores the noble intention of integrating food culture in Kisumu as a socio-cultural capital for the advancement of City sustainable development agenda. To an agrarian society, life is about food from its production, the processing/preservation up to the consumption or the sharing. People connect to their cultural or ethnic background through similar food patterns.  People from different cultural backgrounds eat different foods leading to the question: Are Luos in Kisumu defined by their own food culture? This study further investigated the mode of production, and storage of food resources, examined food cuisines of the Luo community in Kisumu, and assessed the food habits, practices and beliefs associated with food cuisines, as well as, the nutritional and socio-cultural values of Luo cuisines. The research employed qualitative methods of data collection such as interviews, observation, focused group discussion and photography using purposive and snowball sampling technique. Content analysis was used to draw general universal statements in thematic areas with respect to the research objectives. The study revealed that Luo community in Kisumu has a food culture laced with rich cultural practices, rituals and societal norms that defines them as a distinct cultural identity but interacts with other cultural groups in the metropolitan city of Kisumu. Further, the study confirms that indeed food culture is vital for sustainable development of urban centre granted that Kisumu largely evolved as urban centre for exchange of goods for food.

Cultural Studies and Sociology of Culture in Germany: Relations and Interrelations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Udo Göttlich

2013-06-01

Full Text Available Over the last three decades, attitudes towards cultural studies in Germany have developed within contexts of contact and conflict with a variety of disciplines, e.g. ethnology, anthropology, sociology, as well as the sociology of culture, liter-ary studies and Kulturwissenschaft(en. On the one hand there is a strong academ-ic interest in how cultural studies perceives and analyzes media culture, popular culture and everyday life. On the other hand boundaries with humanities and so-cial science remain, which leads to criticism and conflicts with cultural studies and its achievements.I will discuss some of the problems concerning the perception and reception of cultural studies among representatives of Kulturwissenschaft(en and sociology of culture. Furthermore I will draw on the role of cultural studies in thematizing cul-tural change and conflicts, and its ability to do so in a way that shows the im-portance of culture and politics.

Film Cross-culture Research under the Perspective of Language and Culture

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

罗淞译

2015-01-01

Language as an important tool of cultural transmission, it can achieve the cross-culture development of film. With the strength of globalization, film cross-culture communication are increasing, and how to enhance the communication of film through language and culture and let more people enjoy the thought expressed in film is one of the most important content for cross-culture development of mant films. Different cultural backgrounds will produce large diversities in watching a same film, so it is helpful for the cross-culture development of film when making good use of culture and language, on the contrary, it will become a hindrance. This article do research on cross-culture development of film under the perspective of language and culture to find out the existing problems in present cross-culture development of film and put forward effective resolution strategy in order to promote certain reference for the internationalization of China’s film industry.

CORPORATE CULTURE AS A TOOL TO IMPROVE SAFETY CULTURE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Erika SUJOVÁ

2013-07-01

Full Text Available The aim of the article is to explain interconnectivity between corporate culture and safety culture, which aim to utilize motivation to prevent work accidents and other unwanted events in an enterprise. The article deals with ways how to improve approaches to Occupational Health & Safety, OH&S, at work place through proper direction of corporate culture. It introduces internal and external determinants of corporate culture, which have a significant effect. The article introduces common features of corporate culture and safety culture as an element of the OH&S management system with emphasis on system effectiveness. The final portion of the article presents the hierarchy of needs model, which may serve as a basis motivating employees to follow safety and health rules at work place.

Simultaneous production of laccase and decolouration of the diazo dye Reactive Black 5 in a fixed-bed bioreactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Enayatzamir, Kheirghadam; Alikhani, Hossein A.; Rodriguez Couto, Susana

2009-01-01

In this paper the production of laccase and the decolouration of the recalcitrant diazo dye Reactive Black 5 (RB5) by the white-rot fungus Trametes pubescens immobilised on stainless steel sponges in a fixed-bed reactor were studied. Laccase production was increased by 10-fold in the presence of RB5 and reached a maximum value of 1025 U/l. Enhanced laccase production in the presence of RB5 in this fungus is an added advantage during biodegradation of RB5-containing effluents. The decolouration of RB5 was due to two processes: dye adsorption onto the fungal mycelium and dye degradation by the laccase enzymes produced by the fungus. RB5 decolouration was performed during four successive batches obtaining high decolouration percentages (74%, 43% and 52% in 24 h for the first, third and four batch, respectively) without addition of redox mediators. Also, the in vitro decolouration of RB5 by the concentrated culture extract, containing mainly laccase, produced in the above bioreactor was studied. The decolouration percentages obtained were considerably lower (around 20% in 24 h) than that attained with the whole culture

Simultaneous production of laccase and decolouration of the diazo dye Reactive Black 5 in a fixed-bed bioreactor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Enayatzamir, Kheirghadam [Department of Chemical Engineering, Rovira i Virgili University, Av. Paisos Catalans 26, 43007 Tarragona (Spain); Department of Soil Science Engineering, University of Tehran, Karaj (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Alikhani, Hossein A. [Department of Soil Science Engineering, University of Tehran, Karaj (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Rodriguez Couto, Susana [Department of Chemical Engineering, Rovira i Virgili University, Av. Paisos Catalans 26, 43007 Tarragona (Spain)], E-mail: susana.rodriguez@urv.cat

2009-05-15

In this paper the production of laccase and the decolouration of the recalcitrant diazo dye Reactive Black 5 (RB5) by the white-rot fungus Trametes pubescens immobilised on stainless steel sponges in a fixed-bed reactor were studied. Laccase production was increased by 10-fold in the presence of RB5 and reached a maximum value of 1025 U/l. Enhanced laccase production in the presence of RB5 in this fungus is an added advantage during biodegradation of RB5-containing effluents. The decolouration of RB5 was due to two processes: dye adsorption onto the fungal mycelium and dye degradation by the laccase enzymes produced by the fungus. RB5 decolouration was performed during four successive batches obtaining high decolouration percentages (74%, 43% and 52% in 24 h for the first, third and four batch, respectively) without addition of redox mediators. Also, the in vitro decolouration of RB5 by the concentrated culture extract, containing mainly laccase, produced in the above bioreactor was studied. The decolouration percentages obtained were considerably lower (around 20% in 24 h) than that attained with the whole culture.

Competencia cultural e inteligencia cultural. Aportes a la mediación cultural docente

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Maurizia D'Antoni

2011-01-01

Full Text Available El ensayo nace como parte de una investigación mayor que se publicará sobre la inserción profesional docente en la Universidad de Costa Rica. Su finalidad en la investigación en curso es la de explorar los aportes de los estudios sobre competencia cultural e inteligencia cultural, para identificar planteamientos teóricos que fortalezcan nuevos espacios para la mediación cultural docente en la Universidad. Se concluye que el concepto de competencia cultural representa un aporte importante, si se revisa la idea de cultura que subyace y se le transforma en "competencia intercultural". Luego, se define mediación cultural, evidenciándose la importancia de la nueva figura profesional en el contexto actual, los ámbitos de acción donde se ha empleado y se manifiesta la necesidad de promover mediadores y mediadoras culturales en Costa Rica también.

Human nature, human culture: the case of cultural evolution.

Science.gov (United States)

Lewens, Tim

2017-10-06

In recent years, far from arguing that evolutionary approaches to our own species permit us to describe the fundamental character of human nature, a prominent group of cultural evolutionary theorists has instead argued that the very idea of 'human nature' is one we should reject. It makes no sense, they argue, to speak of human nature in opposition to human culture. The very same sceptical arguments have also led some thinkers-usually from social anthropology-to dismiss the intimately related idea that we can talk of human culture in opposition to human nature. How, then, are we supposed to understand the cultural evolutionary project itself, whose proponents seem to deny the distinction between human nature and human culture, while simultaneously relying on a closely allied distinction between 'genetic' (or sometimes 'organic') evolution and 'cultural' evolution? This paper defends the cultural evolutionary project against the charge that, in refusing to endorse the concept of human nature, it has inadvertently sabotaged itself.

Aging in culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Fung, Helene H

2013-06-01

This article reviews the empirical studies that test socioemotional aging across cultures. The review focuses on comparisons between Western (mostly North Americans and Germans) and Eastern cultures (mostly Chinese) in areas including age-related personality, social relationships, and cognition. Based on the review, I argue that aging is a meaning-making process. Individuals from each cultural context internalize cultural values with age. These internalized cultural values become goals that guide adult development. When individuals from different cultures each pursue their own goals with age, cultural differences in socioemotional aging occur.

Culture, cross-role consistency, and adjustment: testing trait and cultural psychology perspectives.

Science.gov (United States)

Church, A Timothy; Anderson-Harumi, Cheryl A; del Prado, Alicia M; Curtis, Guy J; Tanaka-Matsumi, Junko; Valdez Medina, José L; Mastor, Khairul A; White, Fiona A; Miramontes, Lilia A; Katigbak, Marcia S

2008-09-01

Trait and cultural psychology perspectives on cross-role consistency and its relation to adjustment were examined in 2 individualistic cultures, the United States (N=231) and Australia (N=195), and 4 collectivistic cultures, Mexico (N=199), the Philippines (N=195), Malaysia (N=217), and Japan (N=180). Cross-role consistency in trait ratings was evident in all cultures, supporting trait perspectives. Cultural comparisons of mean consistency provided support for cultural psychology perspectives as applied to East Asian cultures (i.e., Japan) but not collectivistic cultures more generally. Some but not all of the hypothesized predictors of consistency were supported across cultures. Cross-role consistency predicted aspects of adjustment in all cultures, but prediction was most reliable in the U.S. sample and weakest in the Japanese sample. Alternative constructs proposed by cultural psychologists--personality coherence, social appraisal, and relationship harmony--predicted adjustment in all cultures but were not, as hypothesized, better predictors of adjustment in collectivistic cultures than in individualistic cultures.

Considering the culture of disability in cultural competence education.

Science.gov (United States)

Eddey, Gary E; Robey, Kenneth L

2005-07-01

Cultural competence extends beyond understanding those values, beliefs, and needs that are associated with patients' age or gender or with their racial, ethnic, or religious backgrounds. People hold many simultaneous cultural associations, and each have implications for the care process. The "culture of disability" is a pan-ethnic culture for which a set of physician competencies are required to ensure appropriate, culturally sensitive care to persons with congenital or acquired disabilities. Such competencies include communicating with patients who have deficits in verbal communication and avoidance of infantilizing speech; understanding the values and needs of persons with disabilities; the ability to encourage self-advocacy skills of patients and families; acknowledging the core values of disability culture including the emphasis on interdependence rather than independence; and feeling comfortable with patients with complex disabilities. Medical schools have developed programs to increase students' exposure to persons with disabilities and it is suggested that such programs are most effective when they are the result of collaboration with community-based facilities or organizations that serve persons with disabilities in the natural environment. Combining lecture-based instruction and structured experiences with the opportunity for students to interact with patients in their natural environments may facilitate development of competencies with respect to patients with disabilities. The culture of disability should be included as one of the many cultures addressed in cultural competence initiatives in medical school and residency curricula.

Urine culture

Science.gov (United States)

Culture and sensitivity - urine ... when urinating. You also may have a urine culture after you have been treated for an infection. ... when bacteria or yeast are found in the culture. This likely means that you have a urinary ...

Spatial Culture

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Reeh, Henrik

2012-01-01

Spatial Culture – A Humanities Perspective Abstract of introductory essay by Henrik Reeh Secured by alliances between socio-political development and cultural practices, a new field of humanistic studies in spatial culture has developed since the 1990s. To focus on links between urban culture...... and modern society is, however, an intellectual practice which has a much longer history. Already in the 1980s, the debate on the modern and the postmodern cited Paris and Los Angeles as spatio-cultural illustrations of these major philosophical concepts. Earlier, in the history of critical studies, the work...... Foucault considered a constitutive feature of 20th-century thinking and one that continues to occupy intellectual and cultural debates in the third millennium. A conceptual framework is, nevertheless, necessary, if the humanities are to adequa-tely address city and space – themes that have long been...

Macro-evolutionary studies of cultural diversity: a review of empirical studies of cultural transmission and cultural adaptation.

Science.gov (United States)

Mace, Ruth; Jordan, Fiona M

2011-02-12

A growing body of theoretical and empirical research has examined cultural transmission and adaptive cultural behaviour at the individual, within-group level. However, relatively few studies have tried to examine proximate transmission or test ultimate adaptive hypotheses about behavioural or cultural diversity at a between-societies macro-level. In both the history of anthropology and in present-day work, a common approach to examining adaptive behaviour at the macro-level has been through correlating various cultural traits with features of ecology. We discuss some difficulties with simple ecological associations, and then review cultural phylogenetic studies that have attempted to go beyond correlations to understand the underlying cultural evolutionary processes. We conclude with an example of a phylogenetically controlled approach to understanding proximate transmission pathways in Austronesian cultural diversity.

Modification of wheat straw lignin by solid state fermentation with white-rot fungi

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dinis, M.J.; Bezerra, R.M.F.; Nunes, F.; Dias, A.A.; Guedes, C.; Ferreira, L.M.M.; Cone, J.W.; Marques, G.S.M.; Barros, A.R.N.; Rodrigues, M.A.M.

2009-01-01

The potential of crude enzyme extracts, obtained from solid state cultivation of four white-rot fungi (Trametes versicolor, Bjerkandera adusta, Ganoderma applanatum and Phlebia rufa), was exploited to modify wheat straw cell wall. At different fermentation times, manganese-dependent peroxidase

Skin or nail culture

Science.gov (United States)

Mucosal culture; Culture - skin; Culture - mucosal; Nail culture; Culture - fingernail; Fingernail culture ... There, it is placed in a special dish (culture). It is then watched to see if bacteria, ...

Bile culture

Science.gov (United States)

Culture - bile ... is placed in a special dish called a culture medium to see if bacteria, viruses, or fungi ... Chernecky CC, Berger BJ. Body fluid - anaerobic culture. In: ... . 6th ed. St Louis, MO: Elsevier Saunders; 2013:225-226. Kim AY, ...

Developing Cultural Awareness

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

İsmail Fırat Altay

2005-04-01

Full Text Available This paper aims at emphasizing the issue of teaching of culture in foreign languageteaching. In this respect, the reasons of teaching culture in foreign language classes arefocused on initially. So, the justifications of teaching culture are considered and explainedand by the help of a dialogue. Right after this, ways of developing cultural awareness is takeninto account. At this step, types of courses to develop cultural awareness are dealt with.Developing cultural awareness in class is another aspect to handle. Besides, ways ofdeveloping cultural awareness outside the class are worked on. Whether there are dangers ofusing culture in foreign language class is explained in dangers and problems part. In theconclusion, ideas of the writer on the subject as final remarks are clarified.

Cultural Diversity and the Changing Culture of Education

Science.gov (United States)

Nderu-Boddington, Eulalee

2008-01-01

The paper will examine the change in schools brought about by cultural diversity and examines the theories that surround the topic. I will evaluate and examine ways in which schools can accommodate cultural diversity. References will be made to cultural and social changes in our schools and how education is affected by such changes. The issue of…

Culture and Creativity

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Michelsen, Anders Ib

INTRODUCTION The present publication deals with issues of imagination and creativity as a notion, philosophy – and social and cultural form, with point of departure in current debates on visual culture. Whereas these debates cover a large ground, spanning from media studies over design to cultural...... studies, they seldom reflect on the basic fact that visual culture in its present form indicates a huge collective creativity in some capacity, implicating the entire postwar era. From early focuses on the possible social and cultural roles of the image in the 1950s and 60s - e.g. in work of Roland...... and cognitive science. Thus visual culture points to an interesting inroad to - and a possible novel focus on - the image - pictorial representation - as an issue of cultural creativity. For one thing the current interest in visual culture goes along with a surge in concrete interest in culture and creativity...

Safety culture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Keen, L.J.

2003-01-01

Safety culture has become a topic of increasing interest for industry and regulators as issues are raised on safety problems around the world. The keys to safety culture are organizational effectiveness, effective communications, organizational learning, and a culture that encourages the identification and resolution of safety issues. The necessity of a strong safety culture places an onus on all of us to continually question whether the safety measures already in place are sufficient, and are being applied. (author)

Development of safety culture - A Chinese traditional cultural perspective

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhou Weihong . E-mail zhouwh@lanps.com

2002-01-01

Living in a social community, the culture of an enterprise is certainly under the influence of that society. Safety culture of nuclear utilities is the core of the enterprise culture. As a formal expression as defined in INSAG 3 and 4 by IAEA, it as a matter of fact originated from the summing up of the experiences of western nuclear industry, particularly after such epoch-making accidents of Three Miles Island and Chernobyl. In view of the geographical culture theory, whether or not this conception of western industrial culture will be absorbed and assimilated by Chinese Nuclear Industry is a challenging issue. This is because, on the one hand, Nuclear Power is comparatively speaking a newly developing industry in China and, on the other hand, China has enjoyed an uninterrupted history of traditional culture over five thousand years. In other words, whether the new and alien values will conflict with or be constructively assimilated by our traditional mindset is a critical question to be answered in any development program of safety culture. (author)

CULTURAL TOURISM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dana POP

2016-07-01

Full Text Available In this paper we will try to analyse the cultural tourism. We will start by referring to the complex concepts of tourism and culture and to the synergies existing between them. We will define cultural tourism and present its appearance and evolution as well as its importance as a modern form of tourism. We will present the various types of cultural tourism with their characteristics and the specific features of cultural tourists according to their interests. We will also mention that there are advantages and disadvantages for any kind of tourism depending on the position – local communities, companies or tourists. For the future we will refer to the new partnership between UNWTO and UNESCO.

Cultural humility: measuring openness to culturally diverse clients.

Science.gov (United States)

Hook, Joshua N; Davis, Don E; Owen, Jesse; Worthington, Everett L; Utsey, Shawn O

2013-07-01

Building on recent theory stressing multicultural orientation, as well as the development of virtues and dispositions associated with multicultural values, we introduce the construct of cultural humility, defined as having an interpersonal stance that is other-oriented rather than self-focused, characterized by respect and lack of superiority toward an individual's cultural background and experience. In 4 studies, we provide evidence for the estimated reliability and construct validity of a client-rated measure of a therapist's cultural humility, and we demonstrate that client perceptions of their therapist's cultural humility are positively associated with developing a strong working alliance. Furthermore, client perceptions of their therapist's cultural humility were positively associated with improvement in therapy, and this relationship was mediated by a strong working alliance. We consider implications for research, practice, and training. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved.

National Culture Influence over the Organizational Culture in Romania

OpenAIRE

Carataº Maria Alina; Spãtariu Elena Cerasela

2012-01-01

The present paper aims highlighting the characteristics of the organisational culture concept in Romania. In the first part of the paper, we have presented the importance of organizational culture theory through a literature review; we described the factors that have an impact on it. In the second part, we developed ideas about the national culture of Romania, the national frame and how this affects the organizational culture, and we presented its peculiarities.

Handling Culture

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Pieter van Nispen tot Pannerden

2011-01-01

The article indicates how companies may prepare for and deal with cultural differences. Because the research base is still rather limited an overall perspective may not be realised. After discussing definitions and concepts of culture, as well as values, cultural differences between states are

Churnalism, Cultural (Inter)mediation and Sourcing in Cultural Journalism

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kristensen, Nete Nørgaard

2017-01-01

Taking a point of departure in theories about cultural (inter)mediation, this article provides a theoretical framework for explaining the pervasion of churnalism within the specialised beat of cultural journalism. Compared to other types of journalists, cultural journalists are “journalists...

Potential of Wood-Rotting Fungi to Attack Polystyrene Sulfonate and Its Depolymerisation by Gloeophyllum trabeum via Hydroquinone-Driven Fenton Chemistry.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martin C Krueger

Full Text Available Synthetic polymers often pose environmental hazards due to low biodegradation rates and resulting accumulation. In this study, a selection of wood-rotting fungi representing different lignocellulose decay types was screened for oxidative biodegradation of the polymer polystyrene sulfonate (PSS. Brown-rot basidiomycetes showed PSS depolymerisation of up to 50 % reduction in number-average molecular mass (Mn within 20 days. In-depth investigations with the most efficient depolymeriser, a Gloeophyllum trabeum strain, pointed at extracellular hydroquinone-driven Fenton chemistry responsible for depolymerisation. Detection of hydroxyl radicals present in the culture supernatants showed good compliance with depolymerisation over the time course of PSS degradation. 2,5-Dimethoxy-1,4-hydroquinone (2,5-DMHQ, which was detected in supernatants of active cultures via liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry, was demonstrated to drive the Fenton processes in G. trabeum cultures. Up to 80% reduction in Mn of PSS where observed when fungal cultures were additionally supplemented with 2,5-dimethoxy benzoquinone, the oxidized from of 2,5-DMHQ. Furthermore, 2,5-DMHQ could initiate the Fenton's reagent-mediated PSS depolymerisation in cell-free systems. In contrast, white-rot fungi were unable to cause substantial depolymerising effects despite the expression of lignin-modifying exo-enzymes. Detailed investigations with laccase from Trametes versicolor revealed that only in presence of certain redox mediators limited PSS depolymerisation occurred. Our results indicate that brown-rot fungi might be suitable organisms for the biodegradation of recalcitrant synthetic polymeric pollutants.

Working with culture: culturally appropriate mental health care for Asian Americans.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Mijung; Chesla, Catherine A; Rehm, Roberta S; Chun, Kevin M

2011-11-01

The aim of this study is to describe how mental healthcare providers adapted their practice to meet the unique needs of Asian Americans. As the number of ethnic minorities and multicultural patients and families rapidly increases, cultural competency becomes an essential skill for all healthcare providers. The lack of knowledge about how healthcare providers grapple with diverse cultures and cultural competency limits the ability of others to deliver patient-centred care across cultural lines. Interpretive phenomenology guided the design and conduct of this study. Twenty mental healthcare providers who treated Asian Americans were recruited. Narrative data were collected through face-to-face, in-depth interviews between 2006 and 2007. Three characteristics of culturally appropriate care for Asian Americans were identified. Cultural brokering: providers addressed issues stemming from cultural differences via bicultural skills education. Asian American patients generally received broader education than current literature recommended. Supporting families in transition: providers assisted Asian American families during transition from and to professional care. Using cultural knowledge to enhance competent care: providers' knowledge of Asian culture and flexible attitudes affected the care that they provided. Culturally competent providers were able to identify cultural issues that were relevant to the specific situation, and incorporated cultural solutions into the care provided. Culturally appropriate care is nuanced and context specific. Thus, more sophisticated and broader conceptualizations are necessary to prepare nurses for such complex practice. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Beyond Culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Barron, Daniel D.

1993-01-01

Discusses the lack of literature relating to cultural differences and school library media programs and reviews the book "Beyond Culture" by Edward T. Hall. Highlights include the population/environment crisis, cultural literacy, the use of technology, and Marshall McLuhan's idea of the global village. (LRW)

Bio-Culturalism

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Grodal, Torben Kragh

2007-01-01

The article argues on the basis of analyses of successful films for children that not only cultural determinants but also innate determinats are important, and that film studies should combine cultural studies with cognitive theory, evolutionary theory and neuroscience, an approach that is called...... Bio-culturalism....

Perceived cultural importance and actual self-importance of values in cultural identification.

Science.gov (United States)

Wan, Ching; Chiu, Chi-yue; Tam, Kim-pong; Lee, Sau-lai; Lau, Ivy Yee-man; Peng, Siqing

2007-02-01

Cross-cultural psychologists assume that core cultural values define to a large extent what a culture is. Typically, core values are identified through an actual self-importance approach, in which core values are those that members of the culture as a group strongly endorse. In this article, the authors propose a perceived cultural importance approach to identifying core values, in which core values are values that members of the culture as a group generally believe to be important in the culture. In 5 studies, the authors examine the utility of the perceived cultural importance approach. Results consistently showed that, compared with values of high actual self-importance, values of high perceived cultural importance play a more important role in cultural identification. These findings have important implications for conceptualizing and measuring cultures. ((c) 2007 APA, all rights reserved).

Culture-sensitive psychotraumatology

Science.gov (United States)

Schnyder, Ulrich; Bryant, Richard A.; Ehlers, Anke; Foa, Edna B.; Hasan, Aram; Mwiti, Gladys; Kristensen, Christian H.; Neuner, Frank; Oe, Misari; Yule, William

2016-01-01

Background Although there is some evidence of the posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) construct's cross cultural validity, trauma-related disorders may vary across cultures, and the same may be true for treatments that address such conditions. Experienced therapists tailor psychotherapy to each patient's particular situation, to the nature of the patient's psychopathology, to the stage of therapy, and so on. In addition, culture-sensitive psychotherapists try to understand how culture enhances the meaning of their patient's life history, the cultural components of their illness and help-seeking behaviors, as well as their expectations with regard to treatment. We cannot take for granted that all treatment-seeking trauma survivors speak our language or share our cultural values. Therefore, we need to increase our cultural competencies. Methods The authors of this article are clinicians and/or researchers from across the globe, working with trauma survivors in various settings. Each author focused on one or more specific cultural aspects of working with trauma survivors and highlighted the following aspects. Results As a result of culture-specific individual and collective meanings linked to trauma and trauma-related disorders survivors may be exposed to (self-)stigma in the aftermath of trauma. Patients who are reluctant to talk about their traumatic experiences may instead be willing to write or use other ways of accessing the painful memories such as drawing. In other cultures, community and family cohesion are crucial elements of recovery. While awareness of culture-specific aspects is important, we also need to beware of premature cultural stereotyping. When disseminating empirically supported psychotherapies for PTSD across cultures, a number of additional challenges need to be taken into account: many low and middle income countries have very limited resources available and suffer from a poor health infrastructure. Conclusions In summary, culture

Creating a Culture by Governance: Issues in Managing Culture

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ma. Victoria T. Herrera

2001-12-01

Full Text Available The management of culture involves a network of agencies, institutions and entities both from the public and private sectors. This is part of a collective process by which objects acwuire cultural significance. We create images of our nations, tell stories, and construct experiences for other people through exhibitions, festivals and other cultural activities. Our role is never neutral and it is important to recognize this power and the implications of our actions.In the Philippines, government has taken an active role in the production and management of culture. In spite of the relatively small percentage of funding spent on culture and the arts, it has extended support through various institutions and agencies that, at present, comprise a complex network. Through their respective programs, government has defined paths of cultural production-- from the larger policy framework for organizations to specific commemorative programs. Given this range of involvement, how has the state empowered people and organizations shape culture? What strategies has it taken to extend to support the production and distribution of culture?This paper focuses on two case studies that represent strategies the state has taken in cultural management. At a macro level, the changes the Cultural Center of the Philippines underwent reflect shifting policies and priorities. As products of changing political administrations, this institution went through a re-orientation of its mission. This came with an abrupt expansion in scale but without the necessary resources to support the CCP's new programs. At a micro level, the second evaluates the refurbished Rizal Shrine, Fort Santiago, one of the major projects of the now defunct National Centennial Commission. This underscores the need for a more transparent decision-making process, prioritizing the interest of the museum's public and not just that of the specialists who control the production of knowledge.

Culture of health of a person as a part of physical culture

OpenAIRE

A.P. Khalajtsan

2014-01-01

Purpose: to determine the general concepts of the theory and methods of physical education. On the basis of their form defining the components of physical culture and personality reflect the place of culture health of individuals among these components. Material: processed more than 40 references. Results: a definition of generalizing concepts of "culture", "health", "physical culture", "culture of health" formulated defining components of physical culture personality: health culture personal...

Inmovilización de hongos ligninolíticos para la remoción del colorante negro reactivo 5

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jorge Andrés Fernández

2009-01-01

Full Text Available La presencia de colorantes azoicos en aguas residuales de la industria textil es un problema ambiental y sanitario, porque muchos de estos compuestos son cancerígenos. Los tratamientos biológicos son una alternativa para la remoción de ese tipo de colorantes. En el presente trabajo se evaluó el efecto de tres hongos de podredumbre blanca, Trametes versicolor, Pleurotus ostreatus y Phanerochaete chrysosporium sobre la decoloración de un agua que contiene colorante negro reactivo 5 (NR5, ampliamente usado en la industria textil. Se estudió la inmovilización de estos hongos en dos soportes, espuma de poliuretano y estropajo (L. cylíndrica para seleccionar el mejor soporte y el hongo con mayor capacidad para la decoloración. Ambos soportes fueron igualmente efectivos, pero se seleccionó estropajo por ser un producto natural. El hongo que generó los mayores porcentajes de decoloración en 4 días fue Trametes versicolor, con 96%, 98% y 98% para agua con concentración de NR5 300 ppm, 150 ppm y 75 ppm, respectivamente. La actividad lacasa para cada concentración de NR5 fue 8 U L-1, 7 U L-1 y 5 U L-1. Waste water from the textile industry represents a major environmental and health problem because it contains azo dyes whose carcirogenic effect has been tested in research. Biological treatment represents a valuable alternative for removing these dyes. The effect of Trametes versicolor, Pleurotus ostreatus and Phanerochaete chrysosporium rot fungi on decoloration of water containing reactive black five (NR5 textile dye was evaluated in this work. Immobilising the fungi on polyurethane foam and luffa sponge (Luffa cylindrica supports was studied in order to select the best support and the fungi having the best decolorisation. Both supports were equally effective; however, the luffa sponge was selected as being a natural product. Trametes versicolor produced the highest decolorisation percentages in four days (96%, 98% and 98% for 300 ppm, 150

Media and Culture-building

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohammad Reza Dehshiri

2010-01-01

Full Text Available First of all, the present study would explain 6-layer dimensions of culture –including beliefs, values, and norms (as the core of culture, and symbols, rituals, and customs, technologies, skills, and innovations (as the culture surface. Then, applying communication theories besides exploring the concept of “culture-building” involving culture-admission (affecting both core and surface of culture and culture-orientation (affecting culture’s surface; it would analyze the cultural affects media has in thoughts, normalizing, symbolizing, socialization, modeling, and innovation. The assessed hypothesis emphasizes that in the core of culture, media play an educational and stabilizing role in culture-admission process, while in the surface of culture –the culture-orientation process- they could transform behaviors and social models.

Avatar Culture

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Koda, Tomoko; Ishida, Toru; Rehm, Matthias

2009-01-01

and Western designers. The goals of the study were: (1) to investigate cultural differences in avatar expression evaluation and apply findings from psychological studies of human facial expression recognition, (2) to identify expressions and design features that cause cultural differences in avatar facial...... expression interpretation. The results of our study confirmed that (1) there are cultural differences in interpreting avatars’ facial expressions, and the psychological theory that suggests physical proximity affects facial expression recognition accuracy is also applicable to avatar facial expressions, (2......Avatars are increasingly used to express our emotions in our online communications. Such avatars are used based on the assumption that avatar expressions are interpreted universally among all cultures. This paper investigated cross-cultural evaluations of avatar expressions designed by Japanese...

“What Cultural Policies?” Explicit and Implicit Cultural Policies in Lebanon

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nadia von Maltzahn

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Cultural policies define a vision for culture, and provide frameworks for institutional practice to translate this vision on the ground. A 1981 study on Lebanese cultural policy reached the conclusion that one cannot speak of cultural policies in Lebanon if one refers to state laws, regulations and plans. However, if cultural policy was understood as the method of a state to give its citizens the space to develop themselves in a way that they could create culture, one could certainly speak of cultural policies in Lebanon (Abou Rizk. In cultural policy research, there is a distinction between explicit and implicit cultural policy (Ahearne. In this article, the concept of explicit and implicit cultural policy is applied to the case of Lebanon. The two terms are extended so that the former does not only include cultural policies designatedas such by the state, but also those created by civil society actors, and that the latter does not only include political strategies, but also practices that in the end determine cultural policies. Drawing on empirical research conducted in the context of a larger study on the role of cultural institutions in the public sphere, the power struggles between different actors involved in cultural policy making cultural policy defined in the Lebanese context, which in turn will be positioned within the regional context.

The outcome of infected total knee arthroplasty: culture-positive versus culture-negative.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Young-Hoo; Park, Jang-Won; Kim, Jun-Shik; Kim, Dong-Jin

2015-10-01

We studied the outcome in culture-positive and culture-negative infected total knee arthroplasty (TKA). We retrospectively reviewed 140 patients with culture-positive and 102 patients with culture-negative infected TKAs. We determined the infection control rate and clinical outcome after repeated debridement, and repeated 2-stage TKA in the culture-positive and culture-negative groups. The mean follow-up was 9.3 years (range 5-14 years) in the culture-positive group and 10.6 years (5-22) in the culture-negative group. The overall infection control rate was 56 % in both groups after the first treatment. The overall infection control rate was 90 % in the culture-positive group and 95 % in the culture-negative group. A functional knee was obtained in 90 % in the culture-positive group and 95 % in the culture-negative group. The data suggest that treatment according to the types of infection in both culture-positive and culture-negative groups after TKA controlled infection and maintained functional TKA with a firm level of fixation for most patients. Repeated debridement and repeated two-stage exchange TKA further improved infection control rates after the initial treatment and increased the likelihood of maintaining a functional TKA.

Culture-sensitive psychotraumatology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ulrich Schnyder

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Background: Although there is some evidence of the posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD construct's cross cultural validity, trauma-related disorders may vary across cultures, and the same may be true for treatments that address such conditions. Experienced therapists tailor psychotherapy to each patient's particular situation, to the nature of the patient's psychopathology, to the stage of therapy, and so on. In addition, culture-sensitive psychotherapists try to understand how culture enhances the meaning of their patient's life history, the cultural components of their illness and help-seeking behaviors, as well as their expectations with regard to treatment. We cannot take for granted that all treatment-seeking trauma survivors speak our language or share our cultural values. Therefore, we need to increase our cultural competencies. Methods: The authors of this article are clinicians and/or researchers from across the globe, working with trauma survivors in various settings. Each author focused on one or more specific cultural aspects of working with trauma survivors and highlighted the following aspects. Results: As a result of culture-specific individual and collective meanings linked to trauma and trauma-related disorders survivors may be exposed to (self-stigma in the aftermath of trauma. Patients who are reluctant to talk about their traumatic experiences may instead be willing to write or use other ways of accessing the painful memories such as drawing. In other cultures, community and family cohesion are crucial elements of recovery. While awareness of culture-specific aspects is important, we also need to beware of premature cultural stereotyping. When disseminating empirically supported psychotherapies for PTSD across cultures, a number of additional challenges need to be taken into account: many low and middle income countries have very limited resources available and suffer from a poor health infrastructure. Conclusions: In summary

Exploring Culture : Exercises, Stories and Synthetic Cultures

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hofstede, G.J.

2002-01-01

A unique training book containing over 100 culture awareness exercises, dialogues, stories incidents and simulations that bring to life Geert Hofstede's five dimensions of culture. These dimensions are: power distance, collectivism versus individualism, femininity versus masculinity, uncertainly

Evaluation of Fungal Deterioration in Liquidambar orientalis Mill. heartwood by FT-IR and light microscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

Nural Yilgor; Dilek Dogu; Roderquita Moore; Evren Terzi; S. Nami Kartal

2013-01-01

The chemical and morphological changes in heartwood specimens of Liquidambar orientalis Mill. caused by the white-rot fungus Trametes versicolor and the brown-rot fungi Tyromyces palustris and Gloeophyllum trabeum were studied by wet chemistry, FT-IR, GC-MS analyses, and photo-...

Pro- and antioxidative properties of medicinal mushroom extracts

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Song, W.; Griensven, van L.J.L.D.

2008-01-01

Hot water extracts of 2 groups of medicinal mushrooms have been tested from the genera Agaricus, Antrodia, Auricularia, Coprinus, Cordyceps, Hericium, Grifola, Ganoderma, Lentinus, Phellinus, and Trametes for ROS-generating activity in human cells and for DPPH-TEAC antioxidant activity. Group 1

Polymerization of different lignins by laccase

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mattinen, M.L.; Suortti, T.; Gosselink, R.J.A.; Argyropoulos, D.S.; Evtuguin, D.; Suurnäkki, A.; Jong, de E.; Tamminen, T.

2008-01-01

In this study the oxidative polymerization of different lignins, i.e. Flax Soda lignin, Spruce EMAL, and Eucalyptus Dioxane lignin by Trametes hirsuta laccase was compared. Initially the structures of the different lignins were compared by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The reactivity of

Identification of a laccase from Ganoderma lucidum CBS 229.93 having potential for enhancing cellulase catalyzed lignocellulose degradation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sitarz, Anna Katarzyna; Mikkelsen, Jørn Dalgaard; Højrup, Peter

2013-01-01

Based on a differential pre-screening of 44 white-rot fungi on a lignocellulose-supplemented minimal medium, four basidiomycetes were selected for further study: Ganoderma lucidum, Polyporus brumalis, Polyporus ciliatus and Trametes versicolor. Only G. lucidum was able to grow vividly on malt...

Laboratory Workflow Analysis of Culture of Periprosthetic Tissues in Blood Culture Bottles.

Science.gov (United States)

Peel, Trisha N; Sedarski, John A; Dylla, Brenda L; Shannon, Samantha K; Amirahmadi, Fazlollaah; Hughes, John G; Cheng, Allen C; Patel, Robin

2017-09-01

Culture of periprosthetic tissue specimens in blood culture bottles is more sensitive than conventional techniques, but the impact on laboratory workflow has yet to be addressed. Herein, we examined the impact of culture of periprosthetic tissues in blood culture bottles on laboratory workflow and cost. The workflow was process mapped, decision tree models were constructed using probabilities of positive and negative cultures drawn from our published study (T. N. Peel, B. L. Dylla, J. G. Hughes, D. T. Lynch, K. E. Greenwood-Quaintance, A. C. Cheng, J. N. Mandrekar, and R. Patel, mBio 7:e01776-15, 2016, https://doi.org/10.1128/mBio.01776-15), and the processing times and resource costs from the laboratory staff time viewpoint were used to compare periprosthetic tissues culture processes using conventional techniques with culture in blood culture bottles. Sensitivity analysis was performed using various rates of positive cultures. Annualized labor savings were estimated based on salary costs from the U.S. Labor Bureau for Laboratory staff. The model demonstrated a 60.1% reduction in mean total staff time with the adoption of tissue inoculation into blood culture bottles compared to conventional techniques (mean ± standard deviation, 30.7 ± 27.6 versus 77.0 ± 35.3 h per month, respectively; P < 0.001). The estimated annualized labor cost savings of culture using blood culture bottles was $10,876.83 (±$337.16). Sensitivity analysis was performed using various rates of culture positivity (5 to 50%). Culture in blood culture bottles was cost-effective, based on the estimated labor cost savings of $2,132.71 for each percent increase in test accuracy. In conclusion, culture of periprosthetic tissue in blood culture bottles is not only more accurate than but is also cost-saving compared to conventional culture methods. Copyright © 2017 American Society for Microbiology.

The Reaffirmation of Cultural Identity in Cross-cultural Encounters.

Science.gov (United States)

Kosmitzki, Corinne

1996-01-01

Examines the relationship between cultural contact and cultural identity as conceptualized in two research approaches: social identity theory and acculturation. The groups studied were German and Americans who either lived in their nonnative culture or had no direct contact. Comparisons between bicultural and monocultural groups revealed a…

Blockbusters as vehicles for cultural debate in cultural journalism

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

From, Unni; Kristensen, Nete Nørgaard

2014-01-01

Taking our point of departure in ‘the cultural intermediary’ as theoretical concept (Bourdieu, 1984; Maguire and Matthews, 2012) and in the coverage of blockbuster movies on Danish cultural pages from 1960 to 2012, this paper analyses the changing role of the cultural journalist and the changing ...

Manuscript Cultures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

What do Mesoamerica, Greece, Byzantium, Island, Chad, Ethiopia, India, Tibet, China and Japan have in common? Like many other cultures of the world, they share a particular form of cultural heritage: ancient handwritten documents. In 2007, scholars from some20 countries around the world gathered...... at the University of Copenhagen for a workshop on manuscripts to compare notes. This event led to the publication of this volume, which brings together16 articles on philological, cultural, and material aspects of manuscripts in search for a common ground across disciplines and cultures....

Urban Cultural Heritage Endangerment: Degradation of historico-cultural landscapes

Science.gov (United States)

Vaz, Eric; Cabral, Pedro; Caetano, Mário; Painho, Marco; Nijkamp, Peter

2010-05-01

Sustainable development has become one of the great debates of policy-making of the XXI century. The world, is facing unprecedented change following the anthropocentrism of socio-economic growth. However, the commitment of man to ‘transmit to future generations at least the same as had' (ref) seems to be a narrowing, given extensive urban growth, population increase and climate change. However, over the last twenty years, the usage of spatial information systems have brought a positive contribution for better acknowledging the problem of environmental change, and bringing more constructive approaches to planning. Prompted by much research interest in Europe, a broad specter of biodiversity loss models, pollution and environmental degradation algorithms as well as climate change models, have become important tools under the European umbrella. Recognizing the essence of sustainable development, historico-cultural and archaeological regions have a remarkable role in the transformation of landscapes and maintenance of cultural and regional identity. Furthermore, the socio-economic, political-geographic and cultural-scientific history of the dynamics of places and localities on our earth is reflected in their historico-cultural heritage. This patrimony comprises cultural assets, such as old churches, palaces, museums, urban parks, historical architecture of cities, or landscapes of historical interest. Historico-cultural heritage also includes archaeological sites, which sometimes not only have a local value but may have a worldwide significance (e.g. Pompeii). However, massive urban growth is affecting directly the existing historico-cultural resources throughout the European region, and little attention is given to this juxtaposing reality of peri-urban growth and cultural / archaeological heritage preservation. Also, the settling patterns within historico-cultural local clusters follow a similar pattern as current growth tendencies, given the physical conditions of

Cultural diversity for virtual characters investigating behavioral aspects across cultures

CERN Document Server

Endrass, Birgit

2014-01-01

Culture plays a crucial role in our lives. Depending on our cultural background, we judge on and react to everything that we encounter. Subtle differences in behavior can lead to misunderstandings or even culture shock. In a similar manner, virtual characters can be declined by certain user groups when showing culturally inappropriate behavior. But how can social aspects such as culture be integrated into the behavioral models of virtual characters Birgit Endrass addresses this question by carrying out a hybrid approach that is based on theoretical background from the social sciences as well a

Developing cultural sensitivity

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ruddock, Heidi; Turner, deSalle

2007-01-01

. Background. Many countries are becoming culturally diverse, but healthcare systems and nursing education often remain mono-cultural and focused on the norms and needs of the majority culture. To meet the needs of all members of multicultural societies, nurses need to develop cultural sensitivity......Title. Developing cultural sensitivity: nursing students’ experiences of a study abroad programme Aim. This paper is a report of a study to explore whether having an international learning experience as part of a nursing education programme promoted cultural sensitivity in nursing students...... and incorporate this into caregiving. Method. A Gadamerian hermeneutic phenomenological approach was adopted. Data were collected in 2004 by using in-depth conversational interviews and analysed using the Turner method. Findings. Developing cultural sensitivity involves a complex interplay between becoming...

Cultural factors in collegiate eating disorder pathology: When family culture clashes with individual culture

OpenAIRE

Tomiyama, AJ; Mann, T

2008-01-01

The authors evaluated the validity of familial enmeshment (extreme proximity in family relationships) as a risk factor for eating disorders across cultural value orientations. They tested the hypothesis that although familial enmeshment may be a risk factor for eating disorder pathology for (1) participants of non-Asian descent or (2) culturally independent participants, enmeshment will not be a risk factor for (1) participants of Asian descent or (2) culturally interdependent participants. P...

Templates for Cross-Cultural and Culturally Specific Usability Testing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Clemmensen, Torkil

2011-01-01

The cultural diversity of users of technology challenges our methods for usability testing. This article suggests templates for cross-culturally and culturally specific usability testing, based on studies of usability testing in companies in Mumbai, Beijing, and Copenhagen. Study 1 was a cross...... tests. The result was the construction of templates for usability testing. The culturally specific templates were in Mumbai “user-centered evaluation,” Copenhagen “client-centered evaluation,” and Beijing “evaluator-centered evaluation.” The findings are compared with related research...

Understanding Culture: A Literature Review Comparing Three Cultural Pedagogies

OpenAIRE

Tabitha Kidwell

2017-01-01

Culture is an integral part of language study, but the field has yet to put forward a coherent theoretical argument for how culture can or should be incorporated in language education.  In an effort to remedy this situation, this paper reviews literature on the teaching of culture, drawing on Larzén’s (2005) identification of three pedagogies used to teach about culture within the language classroom:  through a pedagogy of information, a pedagogy of preparation, and a pedagogy of encounter.  ...

Grist and mills: on the cultural origins of cultural learning

Science.gov (United States)

Heyes, Cecilia

2012-01-01

Cumulative cultural evolution is what ‘makes us odd’; our capacity to learn facts and techniques from others, and to refine them over generations, plays a major role in making human minds and lives radically different from those of other animals. In this article, I discuss cognitive processes that are known collectively as ‘cultural learning’ because they enable cumulative cultural evolution. These cognitive processes include reading, social learning, imitation, teaching, social motivation and theory of mind. Taking the first of these three types of cultural learning as examples, I ask whether and to what extent these cognitive processes have been adapted genetically or culturally to enable cumulative cultural evolution. I find that recent empirical work in comparative psychology, developmental psychology and cognitive neuroscience provides surprisingly little evidence of genetic adaptation, and ample evidence of cultural adaptation. This raises the possibility that it is not only ‘grist’ but also ‘mills’ that are culturally inherited; through social interaction in the course of development, we not only acquire facts about the world and how to deal with it (grist), we also build the cognitive processes that make ‘fact inheritance’ possible (mills). PMID:22734061

Armenian Cultural Astronomy

Science.gov (United States)

Farmanyan, S. V.; Mickaelian, A. M.

2015-07-01

Cultural Astronomy is the reflection of sky events in various fields of nations' culture. In foreign literature this field is also called "Astronomy in Culture" or "Astronomy and Culture". Cultural astronomy is the set of interdisciplinary fields studying the astronomical systems of current or ancient societies and cultures. It is manifested in Religion, Mythology, Folklore, Poetry, Art, Linguistics and other fields. In recent years, considerable attention has been paid to this sphere, particularly international organizations were established, conferences are held and journals are published. Armenia is also rich in cultural astronomy. The present paper focuses on Armenian archaeoastronomy and cultural astronomy, including many creations related to astronomical knowledge; calendars, rock art, mythology, etc. On the other hand, this subject is rather poorly developed in Armenia; there are only individual studies on various related issues (especially many studies related to Anania Shirakatsi) but not coordinated actions to manage this important field of investigation.

Teaching Culture Perception: Documenting and Transforming Institutional Teaching Cultures

Science.gov (United States)

Kustra, Erika; Doci, Florida; Gillard, Kaitlyn; Hondzel, Catharine Dishke; Goff, Lori; Gabay, Danielle; Meadows, Ken N.; Borin, Paola; Wolf, Peter; Ellis, Donna; Eiliat, Hoda; Grose, Jill; Dawson, Debra L.; Hughes, Sandy

2015-01-01

An institutional culture that values teaching is likely to lead to improved student learning. The main focus of this study was to determine faculty, graduate and undergraduate students' perception of the teaching culture at their institution and identify indicators of that teaching culture. Themes included support for teaching development; support…

The impact of indigenous cultural identity and cultural engagement on violent offending.

Science.gov (United States)

Shepherd, Stephane M; Delgado, Rosa Hazel; Sherwood, Juanita; Paradies, Yin

2017-07-24

Possessing a strong cultural identity has been shown to protect against mental health symptoms and buffer distress prompted by discrimination. However, no research to date has explored the protective influences of cultural identity and cultural engagement on violent offending. This paper investigates the relationships between cultural identity/engagement and violent recidivism for a cohort of Australian Indigenous people in custody. A total of 122 adults from 11 prisons in the state of Victoria completed a semi-structured interview comprising cultural identification and cultural engagement material in custody. All official police charges for violent offences were obtained for participants who were released from custody into the community over a period of 2 years. No meaningful relationship between cultural identity and violent recidivism was identified. However a significant association between cultural engagement and violent recidivism was obtained. Further analyses demonstrated that this relationship was significant only for participants with a strong Indigenous cultural identity. Participants with higher levels of cultural engagement took longer to violently re-offend although this association did not reach significance. For Australian Indigenous people in custody, 'cultural engagement' was significantly associated with non-recidivism. The observed protective impact of cultural engagement is a novel finding in a correctional context. Whereas identity alone did not buffer recidivism directly, it may have had an indirect influence given its relationship with cultural engagement. The findings of the study emphasize the importance of culture for Indigenous people in custody and a greater need for correctional institutions to accommodate Indigenous cultural considerations.

The impact of indigenous cultural identity and cultural engagement on violent offending

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stephane M. Shepherd

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Possessing a strong cultural identity has been shown to protect against mental health symptoms and buffer distress prompted by discrimination. However, no research to date has explored the protective influences of cultural identity and cultural engagement on violent offending. This paper investigates the relationships between cultural identity/engagement and violent recidivism for a cohort of Australian Indigenous people in custody. Methods A total of 122 adults from 11 prisons in the state of Victoria completed a semi-structured interview comprising cultural identification and cultural engagement material in custody. All official police charges for violent offences were obtained for participants who were released from custody into the community over a period of 2 years. Results No meaningful relationship between cultural identity and violent recidivism was identified. However a significant association between cultural engagement and violent recidivism was obtained. Further analyses demonstrated that this relationship was significant only for participants with a strong Indigenous cultural identity. Participants with higher levels of cultural engagement took longer to violently re-offend although this association did not reach significance. Conclusions For Australian Indigenous people in custody, ‘cultural engagement’ was significantly associated with non-recidivism. The observed protective impact of cultural engagement is a novel finding in a correctional context. Whereas identity alone did not buffer recidivism directly, it may have had an indirect influence given its relationship with cultural engagement. The findings of the study emphasize the importance of culture for Indigenous people in custody and a greater need for correctional institutions to accommodate Indigenous cultural considerations.

Reflections on Culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Fox, Lisette

1999-01-01

Examines aspects of cross-cultural studies, delineates a concept of culture, explores the interplay of culture and ethics, and analyzes the shifting cultural and economic values as issues that either the economists or the humanists will deal with under the banner of the future global village. (Author/VWL)

Intersubjective Culture: The Role of Intersubjective Perceptions in Cross-Cultural Research.

Science.gov (United States)

Chiu, Chi-Yue; Gelfand, Michele J; Yamagishi, Toshio; Shteynberg, Garriy; Wan, Ching

2010-07-01

Intersubjective perceptions refer to shared perceptions of the psychological characteristics that are widespread within a culture. In this article, we propose the intersubjective approach as a new approach to understanding the role that culture plays in human behavior. In this approach, intersubjective perceptions, which are distinct from personal values and beliefs, mediate the effect of the ecology on individuals' responses and adaptations. We review evidence that attests to the validity and utility of the intersubjective approach in explicating culture's influence on human behaviors and discuss the implications of this approach for understanding the interaction between the individual, ecology, and culture; the nature of cultural competence; management of multicultural identities; cultural change; and measurement of culture. © The Author(s) 2010.

Between Culture and Cultural Heritage: Curriculum Historical Preconditions as Constitutive for Cultural Relations--The Swedish Case

Science.gov (United States)

Brantefors, Lotta

2015-01-01

The aim here is to describe and discuss how different cultural meanings, offered in education, can contribute to unjust cultural relations such as othering and xenophobia. By analysing the cultural and discursive content in curricula using a (neo)pragmatic curriculum theory research method, dominating ideas, values and discourses between 1948 and…

Internet culture

CERN Document Server

Porter, David

2013-01-01

The internet has recently grown from a fringe cultural phenomenon to a significant site of cultural production and transformation. Internet Culture maps this new domain of language, politics and identity, locating it within the histories of communication and the public sphere. Internet Culture offers a critical interrogation of the sustaining myths of the virtual world and of the implications of the current mass migration onto the electronic frontier. Among the topics discussed in Internet Culture are the virtual spaces and places created by the citizens of the Net and their claims to the hotly contested notion of "virtual community"; the virtual bodies that occupy such spaces; and the desires that animate these bodies. The contributors also examine the communication medium behind theworlds of the Net, analyzing the rhetorical conventions governing online discussion, literary antecedents,and potential pedagogical applications.

Culture and Local Development: the Interaction of Cultural Heritage and Creative Industries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Valery Gordin

2011-10-01

Full Text Available The aim of the study is to examine the various forms of interaction between cultural heritage and creative industries to support the development of various types of cultural clusters in St. Petersburg. The study was based on a model, which provides several types of partnership cultural heritage (CH could have with the creative industries (CI: CH as a “decoration” for the CI, as “content”, as a “brand”, as the creator of the needs. Authors’ classification of cultural clusters in St. Petersburg is described, including clusters of cultural heritage, ethnic cultural clusters, the mass-cultural (consumer-oriented cultural clusters, art - incubators. One of the main findings is the low willingness of many public cultural institutions to have any form of interaction with the creative industries. The second group of findings concerned the ability to attract creative industries to provide services for residents of St. Petersburg in cooperation with public institutions of culture. 

Culture, Cross-Role Consistency, and Adjustment: Testing Trait and Cultural Psychology Perspectives

OpenAIRE

Church, A. Timothy; Anderson-Harumi, Cheryl A.; del Prado, Alicia M.; Curtis, Guy J.; Tanaka-Matsumi, Junko; Valdez Medina, José L.; Mastor, Khairul A.; White, Fiona A.; Miramontes, Lilia A.; Katigbak, Marcia S.

2008-01-01

Trait and cultural psychology perspectives on cross-role consistency and its relation to adjustment were examined in two individualistic cultures, the United States (N = 231) and Australia (N = 195), and four collectivistic cultures, Mexico (N = 199), Philippines (N = 195), Malaysia (N = 217), and Japan (N = 180). Cross-role consistency in trait ratings was evident in all cultures, supporting trait perspectives. Cultural comparisons of mean consistency provided support for cultural psychology...

Cultural influences on personality.

Science.gov (United States)

Triandis, Harry C; Suh, Eunkook M

2002-01-01

Ecologies shape cultures; cultures influence the development of personalities. There are both universal and culture-specific aspects of variation in personality. Some culture-specific aspects correspond to cultural syndromes such as complexity, tightness, individualism, and collectivism. A large body of literature suggests that the Big Five personality factors emerge in various cultures. However, caution is required in arguing for such universality, because most studies have not included emic (culture-specific) traits and have not studied samples that are extremely different in culture from Western samples.

Cultural Capital in Context: Heterogeneous Returns to Cultural Capital Across Schooling Environments

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Ida Gran; Jæger, Mads Meier

2015-01-01

This paper tests two competing explanations of differences in returns to cultural capital across schooling environments: Cultural reproduction (cultural capital yields a higher returns in high-achieving environments than in low-achieving ones) and cultural mobility (cultural capital yields higher...... returns in low-achieving environments). Using multilevel mixture models, empirical results from analyses based on PISA data from three countries (Canada, Germany, and Sweden) show that returns to cultural capital tend to be higher in low-achieving schooling environments than in high-achieving ones....... These results principally support the cultural mobility explanation and suggest that research should pay explicit attention to the institutional contexts in which cultural capital is converted into educational success....

Cultural Interchangeability? Culture-Specific Items in Translation

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Ajtony Zsuzsanna

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This paper summarizes the results of the translation work carried out within an international project aiming to develop the language skills of staff working in hotel and catering services. As the topics touched upon in the English source texts are related to several European cultures, these cultural differences bring about several challenges related to the translation of realia, or culture-specific items (CSIs. In the first part of the paper, a series of translation strategies for rendering source-language CSIs into the target language are enlisted, while the second part presents the main strategies employed in the prepared translations.

Mechanical properties and chemical composition of beech wood exposed for 30 and 120 days to white-rot fungi

Science.gov (United States)

Ehsan Bari; Hamid Reza Taghiyari; Behbood Mohebby; Carol A. Clausen; Olaf Schmidt; Mohammad Ali Tajick Ghanbary; Mohammad Javad Vaseghi

2015-01-01

The effects of exposing specimens of Oriental beech [Fagus sylvatica subsp. orientalis (Lipsky) Greuter and Burdet] to the white-rot fungi Pleurotus ostreatus (Jacq.: Fr.) Kummer and Trametes versicolor (L.: Fr.) Pilát strain 325 have been studied concerning the mechanical properties and...

Multiple Reaction Monitoring for quantitative laccase kinetics by LC-MS

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Perna, Valentina; Agger, Jane W.; Holck, Jesper

2018-01-01

as substrates to assess enzyme kinetics by HPLC-MS on two fungal laccases Trametes versicolor laccase, Tv and Ganoderma lucidum laccase, Gl. The method allowed accurate kinetic measurements and detailed insight into the product profiles of both laccases. Both Tv and Gl laccase are active...

DIAGNOSIS OF CULTURAL ORGANIZATIONS

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ALBU MĂDĂLINA

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Cultural institution management is to direct the organization to a specific cultural profile purpose, namely production values esthetic sense, artistic, moral, spiritual, distribution, promotion of these values, protection and circulation of cultural heritage. In this regard, an analysis in the diagnosis cultural organizations aims to determine the main strengths and weaknesses, assess the potential and making recommendations focused on the root causes of failures and positive aspects. This paper presents considerations diligence activity Culture House "IL Caragiale "in Ploiesti. The mission of this organization is to contribute to the cultural development of the community by initiating projects and cultural programs, offer development programs and services to meet cultural needs, increase public access to diverse cultural life, providing a constant presence institution circuit local, national, European and international level. Conclusions drawn from the analysis shows that in a world of economic globalization, information and culture in a company in constant change, in a competitive market where there is information readily available means and leisure, but not cultural consistency in a social environment where interest in culture of people is declining, the situation of the population is impaired, the remuneration of staff working in the field of cultural education is demotivating, the funds allocated to culture have grown lately effectively lead a cultural institution is a challenge.

Think Global, Act Local : Cultural Policies of Dundee from World Cultural Perspective

OpenAIRE

Hietala, Verneri

2017-01-01

Despite growing interest in neo-institutionalism and world culture theory in recent years, few studies have researched urban cultural policies from this perspective. By far the most research on urban cultural policy-making relies on rational choice and structural theoretical perspectives. The purpose of this thesis is to acquire new knowledge on urban cultural policies by examining the main justifications of cultural policies in Dundee from world cultural theoretical perspective. This th...

Cultural Mega-Events as an International, Cultural, and Political Tool

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Julia Nikolaeva

2017-12-01

Full Text Available This article is an attempt to offer a conceptual understanding of various kinds of mega-events and to determine their significance as an instrument of the official international cultural policy. The article examines scientific approaches to understanding and classification of mega-events. The case studies focus on such mega-events as international cross-cultural years and cultural forums. The fact that the official foreign policy of¬ten defines and shapes the goals of mega-events proves their value in establishing and promoting a positive international image of the country. Recent Russian experience in organizing cross-cultural years is examined to discuss positive and negative socio-cultural impact.

Cultural Capital in Context:

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Ida Gran; Jæger, Mads Meier

This paper analyzes the extent to which the effect of cultural capital on academic achievement varies across high- and low-achieving schooling environments. We distinguish three competing theoretical models: Cultural reproduction (cultural capital yields higher returns in high-achieving schooling...... to be higher in low-achieving schooling environments than in high-achieving ones. These results support the cultural mobility explanation and are in line with previous research suggesting that children from low-SES families benefit more from cultural capital than children from high-SES families....... environments than in low-achieving ones), cultural mobility (cultural capital yields higher returns in low-achieving environments), and cultural resources (cultural capital yields the same returns in different environments). We analyze PISA data from six countries and find that returns to cultural capital tend...

The Concept of Culture and CulturalTransformation: Views of Malik Bennabi

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Abdulaziz Berghout

2001-06-01

Full Text Available This article aims at contributing to an integrated understanding of Malik Bennabi's view of culture and cultural transformation. An attempt is made to analyze Bennabi's concepts and ideas that constitute the core of his study of culture and its dynamic civilizing function. The paper introduces Bennabi's understanding of culture as a project with a pivotal educational value. His cultural envisioning shows that ethics, aesthetics, practical reasoning and technical skills form the nucleus of any civilizational change. The paper highlights Bennabi's view that culture is an important social and educational agent of change that can restore the sense of efficacy and creativity to the Islamic society.

Congruence between Culturally Competent Treatment and Cultural Needs of Older Latinos

Science.gov (United States)

Costantino, Giuseppe; Malgady, Robert G.; Primavera, Louis H.

2009-01-01

This study investigated a new 2-factor construct, termed "cultural congruence", which is related to cultural competence in the delivery of mental health services to ethnic minority clients. Cultural congruence was defined as the distance between the cultural competence characteristics of the health care organization and the clients' perception of…

Cultural Adaptations: A Complex Interplay between Clinical and Cultural Issues

OpenAIRE

Hwang, Wei-Chin

2011-01-01

Psychotherapy is a Western method of treating mental illness. Culturally adapting psychotherapy to better meet the needs of ethnic minorities is an important endeavor. Hall et al. (2011) did an excellent job of reviewing the intersection and divergence between Asian culture and mindfulness and acceptance-based therapies. They also point out that some therapies can be naturally syntonic with Asian American cultural values and belief systems. This is especially important given cultural differen...

Cultural capital in context: heterogeneous returns to cultural capital across schooling environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Andersen, Ida Gran; Jæger, Mads Meier

2015-03-01

This paper tests two competing explanations of differences in returns to cultural capital across schooling environments: Cultural reproduction (cultural capital yields a higher returns in high-achieving environments than in low-achieving ones) and cultural mobility (cultural capital yields higher returns in low-achieving environments). Using multilevel mixture models, empirical results from analyses based on PISA data from three countries (Canada, Germany, and Sweden) show that returns to cultural capital tend to be higher in low-achieving schooling environments than in high-achieving ones. These results principally support the cultural mobility explanation and suggest that research should pay explicit attention to the institutional contexts in which cultural capital is converted into educational success. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

AccessCulture

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Valtysson, Bjarki

of the European Union, and how its cultural policy responds to the changes that the digital paradigm has brought upon the field. The self-publishing features of various Web 2.0 platforms, along with the interactive and distributional potentials that the Internet offers, have given rise to what is referred to here...... in cultural production and consumption. The first part of this works looks at how these changes respond to the field of cultural policy, as well as suggesting a possible culturepolitical reaction in a model which I refer to as access culture. In terms of theoretical approach, the notion of digital cultural...... of YouTube, MySpace, Facebook and Flickr, along with lesser known platforms such as the animated short film Elephants Dream, the BBC's Creative Archive, various Internet artworks and the Internet Archive. I furthermore introduce the copyright system Creative Commons in order to suggest legal, widely...

Cultures of choice: towards a sociology of choice as a cultural phenomenon.

Science.gov (United States)

Schwarz, Ori

2017-09-07

The article explores different ways to conceptualize the relationship between choice and culture. These two notions are often constructed as opposites: while sociologies of modernization (such as Giddens') portray a shift from cultural traditions to culturally disembedded choice, dispositional sociologies (such as Bourdieu's) uncover cultural determination as the hidden truth behind apparent choice. However, choice may be real and cultural simultaneously. Culture moulds choice not only by inculcating dispositions or shaping repertoires of alternatives, but also by offering culturally specific choice practices, ways of choosing embedded in meaning, normativity, and materiality; and by shaping attributions of choice in everyday life. By bringing together insights from rival schools, I portray an outline for a comparative cultural sociology of choice, and demonstrate its purchase while discussing the digitalization of choice; and cultural logics that shape choice attribution in ways opposing neoliberal trends. © London School of Economics and Political Science 2017.

“What Cultural Policies?” Explicit and Implicit Cultural Policies in Lebanon

OpenAIRE

Nadia von Maltzahn

2017-01-01

Cultural policies define a vision for culture, and provide frameworks for institutional practice to translate this vision on the ground. A 1981 study on Lebanese cultural policy reached the conclusion that one cannot speak of cultural policies in Lebanon if one refers to state laws, regulations and plans. However, if cultural policy was understood as the method of a state to give its citizens the space to develop themselves in a way that they could create culture, one could certainly speak of...

Cultural values predict coping using culture as an individual difference variable in multi-cultural samples.

OpenAIRE

Bardi, Anat; Guerra, V. M.

2011-01-01

Three studies establish the relations between cultural values and coping using multicultural samples of international students. Study 1 established the cross-cultural measurement invariance of subscales of the Cope inventory (Carver, Scheier, & Weintraub, 1989) used in the paper. The cultural value dimensions of embeddedness vs. autonomy and hierarchy vs. egalitarianism predicted how international students from 28 (Study 2) and 38 (Study 3) countries coped with adapting to living in a new cou...

Family law and national culture
Arguing against the cultural constraints argument

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Masha Antokolskaia

2008-06-01

Full Text Available The ‘cultural constraints argument’, submits that family laws are embedded in unique national cultures, that this cultural and historical diversity is unbridgeable and therefore family laws are not spontaneously converging and cannot be deliberately harmonised. This article argues against the core assumption of the cultural constraints argument – the alleged embedment of family laws in unique and unchangeable national cultures. History shows that in the field of family ideology and law one cannot really talk of unique national cultures, but rather of a pan-European culture, which is not homogeneous but an amalgamation of pan-European ‘conservative’ and pan-European ‘progressive’ cultures. The relative influence of these two opposing family ‘cultures’ varies from country to country and from time to time. Examinations of history of family law suggest that there are the differences in the balance of political power between ‘progressive’ and ‘conservative’ forces, rather than national culture that determines the differences in the pertinent national family laws.

Cerebrospinal fluid culture

Science.gov (United States)

... Alternative Names Culture - CSF; Spinal fluid culture; CSF culture Images Pneumococci organism References Karcher DS, McPherson RA. Cerebrospinal, synovial, serous body fluids, and alternative specimens. In: McPherson RA, Pincus ...

Cultural Saga: Does Pakhtun Culture Impede Women Employment ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Cultural Saga: Does Pakhtun Culture Impede Women Employment? ... undue religious injunctions serve as barrier to women paid jobs and women employment. Less number of women to men at household composition with fallacies based on ...

Une maison de culture (A Culture Center).

Science.gov (United States)

Mourlevat, Alain

1980-01-01

Describes the "Culture Center" designed by Le Corbusier and located in Firminy, France. The role of the center in arousing intellectual curiosity in people living in a technological age is discussed. The audience of this culture center, young people, and the types of activities directed toward them are described. (AMH)

Efficient Cultures: Exploring the Relationship between Culture and Organizational Performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Wilkins, Alan L.; Ouchi, William G.

1983-01-01

Arguing from a transaction costs perspective, this paper contends that local organizational cultures distinct from shared background cultures exist relatively infrequently. The relationship between local organizational culture and organizational efficiency is discussed, and it is concluded that changing organizations are more adaptive than is…

Resolving conflicting safety cultures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Slider, J.E.; Patterson, M.

1993-01-01

Several nuclear power plant sites have been wounded in the crossfire between two distinct corporate cultures. The traditional utility culture lies on one side and that of the nuclear navy on the other. The two corporate cultures lead to different perceptions of open-quotes safety culture.close quotes This clash of safety cultures obscures a very important point about nuclear plant operations: Safety depends on organizational learning. Organizational learning provides the foundation for a perception of safety culture that transcends the conflict between utility and nuclear navy cultures. Corporate culture may be defined as the knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs shared by employees of a given company. Safety culture is the part of corporate culture concerning shared attitudes and beliefs affecting individual or public safety. If the safety culture promotes behaviors that lead to greater safety, employees will tend to open-quotes do the right thingclose quotes even when circumstances and formal guidance alone do not ensure that actions will be correct. Safety culture has become particularly important to nuclear plant owners and regulators as they have sought to establish and maintain a high level of safety in today's plants

Cultural Education and the Voluntary Provision of Cultural Goods: An Experimental Study

OpenAIRE

Massimo Finocchiaro Castro

2004-01-01

We study the effect that the possibility of investing in cultural education has on the voluntary contributions to a cultural good. This is done in a two-stage public-good experiment. We also provide treatments with different context in order to control for a possible framing effect. Our results show the absence of an effect of cultural education on the contributions to the cultural good and a slight increase in the allocations of subjectsÂendowments to the cultural good when the cultural cont...

Cultural contrast

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

周志

2016-01-01

Chinese cultural contains a great number of styles;culture differentiation does not depend on region differentiation.This research would interpret what difference between Hong Kong and Shenzhen.1.Food culture in china Traditional Chinese medicine suggests eating local seasonal fruit and vegetables,as they are most suitable for the body during a particular season.It is also divided food into 3 characteristics:cooling foods,warming foods and balance or

Cultural Context and Translation

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

张敏

2009-01-01

cultural context plays an important role in translation. Because translation is a cross-culture activity, the culture context that influ-ences translating is consisted of both the culture contexts of source language and target language. This article firstly analyzes the concept of context and cultural context, then according to the procedure of translating classifies cultural context into two stages and talks about how they respectively influence translating.

Interaction between cultural/creative tourism and tourism/cultural heritage industries

OpenAIRE

Jurėnienė, Virginija

2016-01-01

The chapter presents a review of the conceptions of cultural and creative tourism, their resources, objectives and their benefit and damage to the nature and the society. It is very important in the postmodern society to not only develop cultural tourism that is one of the most rapidly growing branches of economy, but also to employ cultural heritage and does not always develop the common heritage and tourism industry. This is an especially sore point because the common cultural heritage and ...

Culture and rural health.

Science.gov (United States)

Farmer, Jane; Bourke, Lisa; Taylor, Judy; Marley, Julia V; Reid, John; Bracksley, Stacey; Johnson, Nicole

2012-10-01

This paper considers the role of culture in rural health, suggesting that the concept and its impacts are insufficiently understood and studied. It reviews some of the ways that culture has been considered in (rural) health, and states that culture is either used ambiguously and broadly - for example, suggesting that there is a rural culture, or narrowly - indeed perhaps interchangeably with ethnicity, for example Aboriginal culture as a unity. The paper notes that, although culture is a dynamic social concept, it has been adopted into a biomedical research paradigm as though it is fixed. Culture is often treated as though it is something that can be addressed simplistically, for example, through cultural sensitivity education. Authors suggest that culture is an unaddressed 'elephant in the room' in rural health, and that exploring cultural differences and beliefs and facing up to cultural differences are vital in understanding and addressing rural health and health system challenges. © 2012 The Authors. Australian Journal of Rural Health © National Rural Health Alliance Inc.

Characterizing European cultural landscapes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tieskens, Koen F.; Schulp, Catharina J E; Levers, Christian

2017-01-01

intensification and land abandonment. To prevent the loss of cultural landscapes, knowledge on the location of different types of cultural landscapes is needed. In this paper, we present a characterization of European cultural landscapes based on the prevalence of three key dimensions of cultural landscapes......Almost all rural areas in Europe have been shaped or altered by humans and can be considered cultural landscapes, many of which now are considered to entail valuable cultural heritage. Current dynamics in land management have put cultural landscapes under a huge pressure of agricultural...... the three dimensions into a continuous “cultural landscape index” that allows for a characterization of Europe's rural landscapes. The characterization identifies hotspots of cultural landscapes, where all three dimensions are present, such as in the Mediterranean. On the other hand, Eastern and Northern...

CULTURAL PHENOMENA AND PROCESSES IN CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY – DETERMINANTS OF CULTURAL POLICIES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

ANDREEA MIHAELA NITA

2012-05-01

Full Text Available Cultural phenomena and processes in the contemporary society, influenced by the social development models and by the fact that the constitutive elements of the culture have become the decisive factors of social change, are the determinants of the cultural policies. They are centered on the active process of cultural globalization that emphasizes besides the assimilation of the European principles, also the preservation of the cultural dialog without identity loss. Contemporary culture cannot be appreciated unless we know the main processes and phenomena that lately have generated impressive changes in the area of technology and means of communication. Due to these transformations we witness a change of the cultural paradigms, a mutation of values.

Culture and Negotiation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bülow, Anne Marie; Kumar, Rajesh

2011-01-01

The literature on cross-cultural negotiation has expanded considerably over the past few decades, but the findings are often ambiguous and sometimes even contradictory. This introduction highlights the critical areas where objections are commonly raised about the relevance of national culture......, the applicability of typologies that treat cultures as static, and the problem of ambiguous terminology. It may not be surprising that studies contradict each other given the ambiguity of the national cultural construct and variations in the context of the negotiating situations that are studied. The articles...... in this issue contribute to deepening our understanding about cross-cultural negotiation processes....

Lymph node culture

Science.gov (United States)

Culture - lymph node ... or viruses grow. This process is called a culture. Sometimes, special stains are also used to identify specific cells or microorganisms before culture results are available. If needle aspiration does not ...

Product Safety Culture: A New Variant of Safety Culture?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suhanyiova, L.; Flin, R.; Irwin, A.

2016-01-01

Product safety culture is a new research area which concerns user safety rather than worker or process safety. The concept appears to have emerged after the investigation into the Nimrod aircraft accident (Haddon-Cave, 2009) which echoed aspects of NASA’s Challenger and Columbia crashes. In these cases, through a blend of human and organizational failures, the culture deteriorated to the extent of damaging product integrity, resulting in user fatalities. Haddon-Cave noted that it was due to a failure in leadership and organizational safety culture that accidents such as the Nimrod happened, where the aircraft exploded due to several serious technical failures, preceded by deficiencies in the safety case. Now some organizations are starting to measure product safety culture. This is important in day-to-day life as well, where a product failure as a result of poor organizational safety culture, can cause user harm or death, as in the case of Takata airbags scandal in 2015. Eight people have lost their lives and many were injured. According to investigation reports this was due to the company’s safety malpractices of fixing faulty airbags and proceeding to install them in vehicles, as well as secretly conducting tests to assess the integrity of their product and then deleting the data and denying safety issues as a result of the company’s cost-cutting policies. As such, organizational culture, specifically the applications of safety culture, can have far-reaching consequences beyond the workplace of an organization.

Effect of enzyme extracts isolated from white-rot fungi on chemical composition and in vitro digestibility of wheat straw

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rodrigues, M.A.M.; Pinto, P.; Bezerra, R.M.F.; Dias, A.A.; Guedes, C.M.; Cone, J.W.

2008-01-01

A series of in vitro experiments were completed to evaluate the potential of enzyme extracts, obtained from the white-rot fungi Trametes versicolor (TV1, TV2), Bjerkandera adusta (BA) and Fomes fomentarius (FF), to increase degradation of cell wall components of wheat straw. The studies were

Laccase-Functionalized Graphene Oxide Assemblies as Efficient Nanobiocatalysts for Oxidation Reactions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Patila, Michaela; Kouloumpis, Antonios; Gournis, Dimitrios; Rudolf, Petra; Stamatis, Haralambos

Multi-layer graphene oxide-enzyme nanoassemblies were prepared through the multi-point covalent immobilization of laccase from Trametes versicolor (TvL) on functionalized graphene oxide (fGO). The catalytic properties of the fGO-TvL nanoassemblies were found to depend on the number of the graphene

Lignocellulose degradation, enzyme production and protein ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Microbial conversion of corn stover by white rot fungi has the potential to increase its ligninolysis and nutritional value, thereby transforming it into protein-enriched animal feed. Response surface methodology was applied to optimize conditions for the production of lignocellulolytic enzymes by Trametes versicolor during ...

Cross-cultural awareness

OpenAIRE

БУРЯК Н.Ю.

2016-01-01

The article deals with the importance of cultural awareness for businesspeople when they go abroad. It also gives some cultural advice and factors which are thought to be the most important in creating a culture.

The Politics of the Omnivores: Elite Culture, Popular Culture, and Libertarianism

NARCIS (Netherlands)

D. Houtman (Dick); P.H.J. Achterberg (Peter)

2004-01-01

textabstractPaper prepared for the workshop Collapsing Cultural Canons: Elite Culture, Popular Culture, and Politics in Late Modernity Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales, Marseille, France, October 28-29, 2004

Socio-cultural animation in hospitals and the right to access culture

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dušana Findeisen

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Socio-cultural animation has a long tradition in French hospitals. It started in most probability with a theatre performance staged by Marquis de Sade between 1800-1810, while he was patient of a Parisian hospital. The theatrical performance was attended by ”le Tout Paris” – all notables of the city. In 1999, a convention of ”Culture and Health” was signed and culture has been moving to hospitals ever since, transforming them into open institutions, with patients and staff having acquired a different perspective on body and culture. Moreover, Slovenian Third Age University has been educating and training cultural mediators (its students for transmitting culture and knowledge gained at the U3A to patients, patients’ relatives and staff within the University Clinical Centre Ljubljana. In this article, author sets a frame of mind for examining the importance and implications of a fundamental universal right – the right to culture.

Cultural diversity among nursing students: reanalysis of the cultural awareness scale.

Science.gov (United States)

Rew, Lynn; Becker, Heather; Chontichachalalauk, Jiraporn; Lee, H Y

2014-02-01

Nurses are educated to provide culturally competent care. Cultural competence begins with cultural awareness, a concept previously measured with the Cultural Awareness Scale (CAS). The purpose of this study was to reanalyze the CAS to determine construct validity and differences in cultural awareness among students of varying educational levels and experiences. The sample consisted of 150 nursing students (92% female, 33.6% racial minorities). Confirmatory factor analysis yielded three factors (CFI = 0.868, TLI = 0.854, RMSEA = 0.065, and SRMR = 0.086). Cronbach's alpha ranged from 0.70 to 0.89. There were significant differences among educational levels, with lower division BSN students generally scoring higher than upper division and master's of science in nursing students. Students who had taken courses on cultural diversity or global health generally outscored those who had not taken such courses. Findings support the validity of the CAS and its applicability to research studies of cultural awareness in nursing. Copyright 2014, SLACK Incorporated.

Cultural diversity, democracy and the prospects of cosmopolitanism: a theory of cultural encounters.

Science.gov (United States)

Delanty, Gerard

2011-12-01

The most appropriate way of theorizing cultural diversity is to situate it in the context of a broader relational theory of culture in which the key dynamic is cultural encounters. The relational conception of culture places the emphasis on the relations between social actors and the processes by which some of these relations generate enduring cultural regularities and forms. This has important implications for political community and in particular for cosmopolitanism. It is in relationships that cultural phenomena are generated and become the basis of different kinds of political community. The paper outlines a typology of six kinds of cultural encounters and discusses four major cultural trends that variously emerge from these encounters. This approach with its emphasis on cultural encounters is the broad sociological context in which questions about cultural change and the prospects of cosmopolitanism should be discussed. © London School of Economics and Political Science 2011.

Routine sputum culture

Science.gov (United States)

Sputum culture ... There, it is placed in a special dish (culture). It is then watched to see if bacteria ... Elsevier; 2018:chap 36. Chernecky CC, Berger BJ. Culture, routine. In: Chernecky CC, Berger BJ, eds. Laboratory ...

The MACBA and the CCCB. From cultural regeneration to cultural government

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joaquim Rius

2006-05-01

Full Text Available Twenty-five years on from the idea to open cultural institutions in Barcelona's Raval district, and ten years since they opened their doors, it is now time to take stock of the MACBA (Barcelona's Museum of Contemporary Art and the CCCB (Barcelona's Contemporary Culture Centre.Why were two important cultural institutions, the MACBA and the CCCB, opened in the Raval, a district in the old town with serious social problems? How did a vague idea based on traditional models for art museums and multidisciplinary centres become two unique models and points of reference both locally and internationally? The explanation that we have is that it went from a project based on cultural regeneration to models for unique cultural institutions that are the launch pad for what we call cultural government.This article is the result of research into the cultural policy system in Catalonia and the transformation of the Raval district, which has led to the PhD thesis entitled "A new paradigm for cultural policy. The case study of Barcelona" under the supervision of Arturo Rodríguez Morató (UB and Pierre-Michel Menger (EHESS.

Organizing Cultural Projects Through Legitimising as Cultural Entrepreneurship

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lindkvist, Lars; Hjorth, Daniel

2015-01-01

Purpose This paper is a study of creating organization in the case of cultural projects; cultural entrepreneurship. This includes taking advantage of opportunities and using ones social capital through networks. It is a case study of Vandalorum which is an Swedish international art- and design...... and Design Centre. Findings The case of Vandalorum shows that organizing a cultural project like Vandalorum is characterized by no well-defined starting and stopping point, but – quite typically for entrepreneurship as an organization-creation process – builds momentum and legitimacy narratively. Originality...

Culture-Laden Imports: International Market Entry and Cultural Taboos

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Brice William David

2016-06-01

Full Text Available This empirical study investigates American market responses to a Spanish product that is strongly culture-laden and may violate cultural taboos. Surveys were conducted in two contrasting US universities in Arkansas and California. Contrasting student majors were also chosen: Art and Business. The product is a life-sized baby doll, designed to be breast-fed rather than bottle-fed, which highlights the benefits and normality of breast-feeding babies. Although this product is popular in its original European market, US media accounts suggested strongly negative morality-based American reactions. This study found a strong overall non-acceptance of this product in all groups, but with significant differences between groups. Results quantify the market reaction and illuminate its cultural basis by comparing responses between two culturally different regions, two contrasting college majors, different genders, and different ethnicities. In doing so, this study helps to break new ground in the international marketing of culture-laden products.

Influence of Cultural Cognition, Social Aspect of Culture, and Personality on Trust. Annotation

Science.gov (United States)

2011-12-13

world through a different lens). BIV-2_Leroux, J. (1994). Cognition. In D. Matsumoto (Ed.), People: Psychology from a Cultural Perspective...interactions. A-2 Human behavior in global perspective: An introduction to cross- cultural psychology . A-3 The analysis of subjective culture A-4...Hofstede – Culturally questionable? A-5 Through an Arab cultural lens. A-6 Bringing culture to basic psychological theory–beyond individualism

Cultural Self-Awareness as a Crucial Component of Military Cross-Cultural Competence

Science.gov (United States)

2013-04-08

the interpersonal skills to interact appropriately with individuals from other cultures and then when presented unfamiliar cultural cues adapt their...Maribel, Liv Egholm Feldt, and Michael Jakobsen. "If Only Cultural Chameleons Could Fly Too: A Critical Discussion of the Concept of Cultural

On Managing Cultural Integration and Cultural Change Processes in Mergers and Acquisitions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bijlsma-Frankema, K.M.

2001-01-01

This article discusses success factors of cultural integration and cultural change processes in mergers and acquisitions. The focus of the project is on the effects of frictions between structure and cultures, and frictions between different cultures, on the functioning of the organisation. The

Role of Cultural Inspiration with Different Types in Cultural Product Design Activities

Science.gov (United States)

Luo, Shi-Jian; Dong, Ye-Nan

2017-01-01

Inspiration plays an important role in the design activities and design education. This paper describes "ancient cultural artefacts" as "cultural inspiration," consisting of two types called "cultural-pictorial inspiration" (CPI) and "cultural-textual inspiration" (CTI). This study aims to test the important…

Urine culture - catheterized specimen

Science.gov (United States)

Culture - urine - catheterized specimen; Urine culture - catheterization; Catheterized urine specimen culture ... urinary tract infections may be found in the culture. This is called a contaminant. You may not ...

Printing of polymer microcapsules for enzyme immobilization on paper substrate.

Science.gov (United States)

Savolainen, Anne; Zhang, Yufen; Rochefort, Dominic; Holopainen, Ulla; Erho, Tomi; Virtanen, Jouko; Smolander, Maria

2011-06-13

Poly(ethyleneimine) (PEI) microcapsules containing laccase from Trametes hirsuta (ThL) and Trametes versicolor (TvL) were printed onto paper substrate by three different methods: screen printing, rod coating, and flexo printing. Microcapsules were fabricated via interfacial polycondensation of PEI with the cross-linker sebacoyl chloride, incorporated into an ink, and printed or coated on the paper substrate. The same ink components were used for three printing methods, and it was found that laccase microcapsules were compatible with the ink. Enzymatic activity of microencapsulated TvL was maintained constant in polymer-based ink for at least eight weeks. Thick layers with high enzymatic activity were obtained when laccase-containing microcapsules were screen printed on paper substrate. Flexo printed bioactive paper showed very low activity, since by using this printing method the paper surface was not fully covered by enzyme microcapsules. Finally, screen printing provided a bioactive paper with high water-resistance and the highest enzyme lifetime.

Sequential low and medium frequency ultrasound assists biodegradation of wheat chaff by white rot fungal enzymes.

Science.gov (United States)

Oliver, Christine M; Mawson, Raymond; Melton, Laurence D; Dumsday, Geoff; Welch, Jessica; Sanguansri, Peerasak; Singh, Tanoj K; Augustin, Mary Ann

2014-10-13

The consequences of ultrasonic pre-treatment using low (40 kHz) and medium (270 kHz) frequency (40 kHz followed by 270 kHz) on the degradation of wheat chaff (8 g 100ml(-1) acetate buffer, pH 5) were evaluated. In addition, the effects of the ultrasonic pre-treatment on the degradation of the wheat chaff when subsequently exposed to enzyme extracts from two white rot fungi (Phanerochaete chrysosporium and Trametes sp.) were investigated. Pre-treatment by sequential low and medium frequency ultrasound had a disruptive effect on the lignocellulosic matrix. Analysis of the phenolic-derived volatiles after enzymatic hydrolysis showed that biodegradation with the enzyme extract obtained from P. chrysosporium was more pronounced compared to that of the Trametes sp. The efficacy of the ultrasonic pre-treatment was attributed to increased enzyme accessibility of the cellulose fibrils due to sonication-induced disruption of the plant surface structure, as shown by changes in the microstructure. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A Comparative Study between Chinese and Western Food Culture in Cross-cultural Communication

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

焦体霞

2014-01-01

The differences of food culture play an important role in cross-cultural communication. Learn the cultural rooted causes of food culture between Chinese and Western countries, will promote mutual understanding between people and enjoy different feelings different foods brings, enhance cultural exchange, complement and integration.

Cultures Around the World: A Unique Approach to Youth Cultural Diversity Education

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Justen O. Smith

2007-09-01

Full Text Available Increasingly diverse cultural trends have significant implications for the educational needs of American youth. Learning about and valuing diverse cultures will help prepare youth to become better citizens in an ever-changing society. Cultures Around the World was developed to meet the educational needs of youth in the area of cultural diversity. The Cultures Around the World program brings to life exciting cultures and customs from countries all over the world. Countries are presented in a unique format by teaching youth (ages 10 to 18 a specific country’s history, culture, food, music, dance, language, religion, and current issues. The Cultures Around the World program can be used by any youth educator. The program comes in a ready to use CD containing presentations, handicraft instructions, language guides, and resource guides for nine different countries (Armenia, Australia, Ecuador, Egypt, England, France, Ghana, Slovakia and Mexico.

How culture shapes the body: cultural consonance and body mass in urban Brazil.

Science.gov (United States)

Dressler, William W; Oths, Kathryn S; Balieiro, Mauro C; Ribeiro, Rosane P; Dos Santos, José Ernesto

2012-01-01

The aim of this article is to develop a model of how culture shapes the body, based on two studies conducted in urban Brazil. Research was conducted in 1991 and 2001 in four socioeconomically distinct neighborhoods. First, cultural domain analyses were conducted with samples of key informants. The cultural domains investigated included lifestyle, social support, family life, national identity, and food. Cultural consensus analysis was used to confirm shared knowledge in each domain and to derive measures of cultural consonance. Cultural consonance assesses how closely an individual matches the cultural consensus model for each domain. Second, body composition, cultural consonance, and related variables were assessed in community surveys. Multiple regression analysis was used to examine the association of cultural consonance and body composition, controlling for standard covariates and competing explanatory variables. In 1991, in a survey of 260 individuals, cultural consonance had a curvilinear association with the body mass index that differed for men and women, controlling for sociodemographic and dietary variables. In 2001, in a survey of 267 individuals, cultural consonance had a linear association with abdominal circumference that differed for men and women, controlling for sociodemographic and dietary variables. In general, as cultural consonance increases, body mass index and abdominal circumference decline, more strongly for women than men. As individuals, in their own beliefs and behaviors, more closely approximate shared cultural models in socially salient domains, body composition also more closely approximates the cultural prototype of the body. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Morality, Culture and the Dialogic Self: Taking Cultural Pluralism Seriously

Science.gov (United States)

Haste, Helen; Abrahams, Salie

2008-01-01

This paper explores moral reasoning within the framework of contemporary cultural theory, in which moral functioning is action mediated by tools (such as socially available discourses) within a social and cultural context. This cultural model of a "dialogic moral self" challenges many of the assumptions inherent in the individualistic Kantian…

The Influence of Cross-Cultural Experiences & Location on Teachers' Perceptions of Cultural Competence

Science.gov (United States)

Lopes-Murphy, Solange A.; Murphy, Christopher G.

2016-01-01

The increasing cultural and linguistic diversity in academic settings necessitates greater cultural competence on the part of teachers, and enhancing the cultural competence of teachers requires a greater understanding of both the level of cultural competence among teachers and the experiences that enhance cultural competence. Teacher educators…

Family Perspectives: Using a Cultural Prism to Understand Families from Asian Cultural Backgrounds

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Suk-Hyang; Turnbull, Ann P.; Zan, Fei

2009-01-01

Educators can better serve students who come from diverse cultural backgrounds by understanding the differing cultural values of these students and their families. This article explores different cultural perspectives using a cultural prism approach, focused most specifically on the Korean and Chinese cultures. (Contains 2 tables.)

Nuclear Safeguards Culture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Findlay, T.

2015-01-01

The paper will consider safeguards culture both at the IAEA and among member states. It will do so through the lens of organizational culture theory and taking into account developments in safeguards since the Iraq case of the early 1990s. The study will seek to identify the current characteristics of safeguards culture and how it has evolved since the 93+2 programme was initiated, as well as considering the roles of the most important purveyors of such culture, including member states and their national safeguards authorities, the General Conference and Board of Governors, the Director General, the Secretariat as a whole, the Safeguards Department and the inspectorate. The question of what might be an optimal safeguards culture at the Agency and among member states will be investigated, along with the issue of how such a culture might be engendered or encouraged. (author)

Cultural Learning Redux.

Science.gov (United States)

Tomasello, Michael

2016-05-01

M. Tomasello, A. Kruger, and H. Ratner (1993) proposed a theory of cultural learning comprising imitative learning, instructed learning, and collaborative learning. Empirical and theoretical advances in the past 20 years suggest modifications to the theory; for example, children do not just imitate but overimitate in order to identify and affiliate with others in their cultural group, children learn from pedagogy not just episodic facts but the generic structure of their cultural worlds, and children collaboratively co-construct with those in their culture normative rules for doing things. In all, human children do not just culturally learn useful instrumental activities and information, they conform to the normative expectations of the cultural group and even contribute themselves to the creation of such normative expectations. © 2016 The Author. Child Development © 2016 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

Intertextuality as A Cultural Interaction Mechanism and Socio-Cultural Phenomenon

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E P Shiniev

2010-03-01

Full Text Available The article focuses on intertextuality as a concept associated with the tradition of postmodernism textology and a phenomenon of text interaction with the semiotic cultural environment. The concept of intertextuality emerges as an essential condition for the construction of meaning which includes the dialogical characteristics of the polylogue culture field. The author examines the evolution of intertextuality since M.M. Bakhtin up to contemporary theoreticians of postmodernism. The concept of intertextuality is the prominent characteristics of the contemporary «post» culture and the major channel of inter-cultural diffusion.

Previous International Experience, Cross-Cultural Training, and Expatriates' Cross-Cultural Adjustment: Effects of Cultural Intelligence and Goal Orientation

Science.gov (United States)

Koo Moon, Hyoung; Kwon Choi, Byoung; Shik Jung, Jae

2012-01-01

Although various antecedents of expatriates' cross-cultural adjustment have been addressed, previous international experience, predeparture cross-cultural training, and cultural intelligence (CQ) have been most frequently examined. However, there are few attempts that explore the effects of these antecedents simultaneously or consider the possible…

Universals and cultural variations in 22 emotional expressions across five cultures.

Science.gov (United States)

Cordaro, Daniel T; Sun, Rui; Keltner, Dacher; Kamble, Shanmukh; Huddar, Niranjan; McNeil, Galen

2018-02-01

We collected and Facial Action Coding System (FACS) coded over 2,600 free-response facial and body displays of 22 emotions in China, India, Japan, Korea, and the United States to test 5 hypotheses concerning universals and cultural variants in emotional expression. New techniques enabled us to identify cross-cultural core patterns of expressive behaviors for each of the 22 emotions. We also documented systematic cultural variations of expressive behaviors within each culture that were shaped by the cultural resemblance in values, and identified a gradient of universality for the 22 emotions. Our discussion focused on the science of new expressions and how the evidence from this investigation identifies the extent to which emotional displays vary across cultures. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Culture, Liberty and Happiness

OpenAIRE

Ura, Karma

2007-01-01

The author's intention here is to explore mainly the relationship between culture and globalization, and also to a limited extent the ties and differences, if any, between cultural liberty and happiness. This paper attempts to relate the concept of cultural liberty to the idea of Gross National Happiness. The author underlines strongly that the culture discussed is not about the particular culture of Bhutan; it is about culture in general and in abstract. Likewise happiness referred to here i...

Doing Cultural Studies

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

du Gay, Paul; Hall, Stuart; Janes, Linda

What does the Walkman have to do with the 21st century? The long-awaited second edition of this classic textbook takes students on a journey between past and present, giving them the skills do to cultural analysis along the way. Through the notion of the 'circuit of culture', this book teaches st......' for cultural studies. It is an essential classic, reworked for today's students in cultural studies, media studies and sociology....

Peritoneal fluid culture

Science.gov (United States)

Culture - peritoneal fluid ... sent to the laboratory for Gram stain and culture. The sample is checked to see if bacteria ... The peritoneal fluid culture may be negative, even if you have ... diagnosis of peritonitis is based on other factors, in addition ...

Cultural Economy. The economic impact of the cultural sector from a European perspective

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alba Colombo

2006-05-01

Full Text Available Culture is playing an increasingly important role in the economic development of industrialised countries. Thus, the management of large cultural events and the relationship between cultural management and cultural policies will be key elements in the development of the so-called cultural economy. This article looks at the concept of cultural economy, in terms of the appearance of the idea and the different European methodological positions. The case of the Berlin International Film Festival is taken as an example to show the importance of cultural management with regard to economic development of the sector. This case study also allows for the analysis of the increasingly complex forms of cultural management adopted, as well as their effects on the regulation of the cultural market and their links to other basic economic sectors in urban development.

Cultural Studies Methodologies and Narrative Family Therapy: Therapeutic Conversations About Pop Culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Tilsen, Julie; Nylund, David

2016-06-01

Therapists recognize that popular media culture is an influential force that shapes identities and relationships in contemporary society. Indeed, people have serious relationships with the commodities and practices that emerge from pop culture. However, they often lack the conceptual and conversational resources to engage meaningfully with clients about pop culture's influence in their lives. Cultural studies is introduced as an interdisciplinary approach that provides frameworks for both theory and practice that position therapists and clients to critically examine the role of pop culture in their lives. Cultural studies and narrative therapy are discussed as praxis allies that share a populist political intention and counter-hegemonic discursive practices. The integration of cultural studies methodologies into narrative therapy practice with a parent and her teenage daughter is illustrated through a case vignette. © 2016 Family Process Institute.

How culture affects management?

OpenAIRE

Billi, Lorena

2012-01-01

The study is about how culture affects management. Culture can have many different meanings. Management has also many different ways to be approached. While doing research about cultures, the study will try to analyze how the culture affects the management. The study starts with a full explanation of the meaning of culture. Some previous analysis and studies are added to illustrate my study on the subject. The effect culture has on management is studied at different levels. The study does not...

Advice on cultural policy matters: changing times for the Council for Culture

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lelieveldt, Philomeen; Minnaert, Toine

The central question is the changing role of advisory councils in Dutch cultural policy and the subsequent change in discourse on culture and the arts within cultural policy. Our working hypothesis is that the role of the Council for Culture (Raad voor Cultuur), the formal advisory council, is

The influence of cultural differences between China and Western countries on cross-cultural communication

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

次仁德吉

2017-01-01

Cross-cultural communication refers to the communication between peoples of different cultural backgrounds. To solve and avoid the cultural conflicts and blocks, it is high time to enhance the actual skills of cross-cultural communication. This paper gives a comparative analysis of the concrete representations of differences between Chinese and western culture in cross-cultural communication. And it gives some communication principles on the cross-cultural communication.

Cultura Organizacional na Perspectiva Cultural Regional BrasileiraOrganizational Culture under the Perspective of the Brazilian Regional CultureCultura Organizacional en la Perspectiva Cultural Regional Brasileña

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

MUZZIO, Henrique

2010-12-01

Full Text Available RESUMOEsse ensaio tem como objetivo analisar o contexto cultural brasileiro e a sua influência no universo organizacional a partir de uma perspectiva cultural regional que não se limite à visão funcionalista e avance por meio de conceitos contemporâneos como os fluxos culturais e os códigos culturais locais. Do ponto de vista internacional, os estudos comparativos que trabalham com a perspectiva de adaptação cultural já apresentam um volume significativo de pesquisas que enfatizam as distinções entre regiões ou nações. Mas, quando se trata dessa perspectiva dentro de países culturalmente diversos, parece ainda não haver no campo a mesma expressão. Em países em que é reconhecida a diversidade cultural, como o Brasil, análises que levem em conta as influências dessa variável podem contribuir para a eficiência das relações internas e externas da organização. Arguimos a necessidade das organizações contemplarem em suas ações o que chamamos de legitimidade cultural local, quando as organizações atuam em distintos contextos respeitando os valores e as práticas culturais locais. As diferentes culturas regionais encontradas no Brasil se refletem nos hábitos dos consumidores, no comportamento social e nas atitudes e desempenho das pessoas no trabalho, o que requer efetivamente diferentes e variadas práticas de gestão.ABSTRACTThis essay has the objective of analyzing the Brazilian cultural context and its influence on the organizations universe from a cultural regional perspective that goes beyond the functionalist paradigm and advances through contemporary concepts, like cultural flows and the local cultural codes. In an international perspective, in studies that consider the perspective of cultural adaptation, it is possible finding a significant volume of research that emphasizes the distinctions between regions or nations. On the other hand, when it these studies deal with this perspective inside each culturally

Culture and social class.

Science.gov (United States)

Miyamoto, Yuri

2017-12-01

A large body of research in Western cultures has demonstrated the psychological and health effects of social class. This review outlines a cultural psychological approach to social stratification by comparing psychological and health manifestations of social class across Western and East Asian cultures. These comparisons suggest that cultural meaning systems shape how people make meaning and respond to material/structural conditions associated with social class, thereby leading to culturally divergent manifestations of social class. Specifically, unlike their counterparts in Western cultures, individuals of high social class in East Asian cultures tend to show high conformity and other-orientated psychological attributes. In addition, cultures differ in how social class impacts health (i.e. on which bases, through which pathways, and to what extent). Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Athletes’ careers across cultures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ryba, Tatiana; Stambulova, Natalia

This symposium will introduce a project developed under the auspices of the International Society of Sport Psychology (ISSP) in an effort to inspire and support the development of culturally sensitive theoretical frameworks and research methodologies in career studies and career assistance services...... around the world. The cultural approach to the theory and practice of sport psychological research has been recently articulated in two edited books, Cultural Sport Psychology (Schinke & Hanrahan, 2009) and The Cultural Turn in Sport Psychology (Ryba, Schinke, & Tenenbaum, 2010). The presenters...... in this symposium continue the initiated dialogue of the relevance of culture and cultural issues in their analyses of how social and cultural discourses shape career development and career transitions of athletes in different countries. Opening the foundations of sport psychological knowledge to culturally diverse...

An evolutionary explanation model on the transformation of culture by cultural genes*

OpenAIRE

Lee, Han

2009-01-01

This article seeks to explain how cultural transformation takes place through the evolution of cultural genes. This explanation posits that just as the evolution of an organism takes place at the genetic level, so also does the transformation of culture. As such, this paper must answer the four following questions: 1) Are there cultural genes that correspond to biological genes? 2) How can we prove that the fundamental characteristic of such cultural genes is to replicate themselves? 3) Will ...

Insect Cell Culture

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Oers, van M.M.; Lynn, D.E.

2010-01-01

Insect cell cultures are widely used in studies on insect cell physiology, developmental biology and microbial pathology. In particular, insect cell culture is an indispensable tool for the study of insect viruses. The first continuously growing insect cell cultures were established from

Selling cultural heritage?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Groot, B.M.

2017-01-01

This thesis explores the value of cultural and archaeological heritage through a focus on multinational corporations (MNCs) across industries and their involvement with cultural heritage. Research to date has focused mainly on industries where MNCs have a direct impact on cultural or archaeological

Cross-cultural organizational behavior.

Science.gov (United States)

Gelfand, Michele J; Erez, Miriam; Aycan, Zeynep

2007-01-01

This article reviews research on cross-cultural organizational behavior (OB). After a brief review of the history of cross-cultural OB, we review research on work motivation, or the factors that energize, direct, and sustain effort across cultures. We next consider the relationship between the individual and the organization, and review research on culture and organizational commitment, psychological contracts, justice, citizenship behavior, and person-environment fit. Thereafter, we consider how individuals manage their interdependence in organizations, and review research on culture and negotiation and disputing, teams, and leadership, followed by research on managing across borders and expatriation. The review shows that developmentally, cross-cultural research in OB is coming of age. Yet we also highlight critical challenges for future research, including moving beyond values to explain cultural differences, attending to levels of analysis issues, incorporating social and organizational context factors into cross-cultural research, taking indigenous perspectives seriously, and moving beyond intracultural comparisons to understand the dynamics of cross-cultural interfaces.

Managing culture in IJVs

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dao, Li

2012-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to extend a cultural sense-making perspective to the context of international joint ventures. The dominant literature on cultural issues in this inter-firm setting has been criticized for relying on a narrow view of culture mainly as a country-level construct. The pap...... through individual sense-making and mutual learning and adjustment as key to the process of cultural negotiation.......The purpose of this paper is to extend a cultural sense-making perspective to the context of international joint ventures. The dominant literature on cultural issues in this inter-firm setting has been criticized for relying on a narrow view of culture mainly as a country-level construct. The paper...... argues that dynamic aspects of culture as enacted by key individual actors and constructed in a given context are far more relevant and critical for the joint venture’s managerial process. With evidence from four Danish – Vietnamese joint ventures, the paper proposes a way of managing culture in IJVs...

Culture and math.

Science.gov (United States)

Tcheang, Lili

2014-01-01

Cultural differences have been shown across a number of different cognitive domains from vision, language, and music. Mathematical cognition is another domain that is an integral part of modern society and because there are a fixed number of ways in which many math operations can be performed, it is also an apposite tool for cultural comparisons. This discussion examines the literature on mathematical processing in accordance with culture, summarizing the brain regions involved across various mathematical tasks. In doing so, we provide a clear picture of the anatomical similarities and differences between cultures when performing different math tasks. This information is useful to explore the possibility of enhancement of mathematical skills, where different strategies may be applicable in accordance with culture. It also contributes to the evolutionary development of different math skills and the growing theory that anatomical and behavioral studies must account for the cultural identity of their sample.

Metacogonitive and Motivational Cultural Intelligence: Superpowers for Creativity an a Culturally Diverse Environment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sabina Bogilović

2016-01-01

Full Text Available We propose that employees who are highly motivated for cultural interactions (motivational cultural intelligence and can modify their thinking about cultural differences (metacognitive cultural intelligence are more likely to be creative in culturally diverse environments. Based on the social categorization theory, we propose that metacognitive and motivational cultural intelligence will be positively related to individual creativity. Moreover, we predict that metacognitive and motivational cultural intelligence can decrease the negative aspects of the social categorization process and, in turn, be positively related to creativity. A quantitative analysis of 787 employees in 20 SME multicultural companies in the Adriatic region shows that metacognitive and motivational cultural intelligence are in fact positively related to individual creativity. We discuss the implications for practice and future research.

Cultural resource management and the necessity of cultural and natural resource collaboration

Science.gov (United States)

Roderick Kevin Donald; Kara Kusche; Collin Gaines

2005-01-01

Cultural Resource Specialists function as interpreters of past and present human behavior through the analysis of cultural/natural resources vital to human ecological sustainability. When developing short and long-term preservation strategies for cultural resources, it is more current and innovative for Cultural Resource Specialists to think of past human populations...

Cultural theory revised: Only five cultures or more?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Heffen, O.; Klok, Pieter J.

2003-01-01

This article deals with cultural theory in the version of Thompson, Ellis and Wildavsky. Cultural theory is important for research in the area of political and policy science because this theory has the pretension of pinning down endogenous preference formation. Using Durkheim's dimensions, 'social

Socio-cultural dimensions to sharpen designer's cultural eyeglasses

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Van Boeijen, A.G.C.

2013-01-01

This paper answers the question, how the dimensions that have been developed by anthropologists to typify cultures, can support designers in user-centred design processes. An analysis and evaluation of the use of cultural dimensions in design projects was performed. Although many of the dimensions

The relationship between DIY culture and cultural institutions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Roued-Cunliffe, Henriette

in different ways and three categories in particular are of interest in connection with cultural institutions. These are volunteering, amateur activity and hacking. The motivation and value for these three categories of DIY activity are different and cultural institutions must take this into account when...

Culture evolves

OpenAIRE

Whiten, Andrew; Hinde, Robert A.; Laland, Kevin N.; Stringer, Christopher B.

2011-01-01

Culture pervades human lives and has allowed our species to create niches all around the world and its oceans, in ways quite unlike any other primate. Indeed, our cultural nature appears so distinctive that it is often thought to separate humanity from the rest of nature and the Darwinian forces that shape it. A contrary view arises through the recent discoveries of a diverse range of disciplines, here brought together to illustrate the scope of a burgeoning field of cultural evolution and to...

Safety Culture Monitoring: How to Assess Safety Culture in Real Time?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zronek, B.; Maryska, J.; Treslova, L.

2016-01-01

Do you know what is current level of safety culture in your company? Are you able to follow trend changes? Do you know what your recent issues are? Since safety culture is understood as vital part of nuclear industry daily life, it is crucial to know what the current level is. It is common to perform safety culture survey or ad hoc assessment. This contribution shares Temelin NPP, CEZ approach how to assess safety culture level permanently. Using behavioral related outputs of gap solving system, observation program, dedicated surveys, regulatory assessment, etc., allows creating real time safety culture monitoring without the need to perform any other activities. (author)

On the Eastern and Western Cultures as Reflected in Differences in Food Culture

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

黄卓; 张海南

2015-01-01

When talking about differences between Eastern and Western culture,we should first think of the eating cultural differences.There are many differences in Eastern and Western food cultures,in this paper it will introduce the different food concepts,the different eating goals,the different eating habits,etc.A comparison study of Chinese and Western food culture still makes sense through the analysis of cultural differences between Chinese and Western food,we can understand their own cultural traditions in China and the West.At the same time it is able to carry out improvement and innovation of Chinese culture.Throughout the comparisons,coupled with the differences of the concept of Western food culture,objects,methods,ownership and nature,it studies these differences,identifies areas for mastery of the place,promotes cultural exchange.Thus it enables China to the world,and to make the world know China better.

On the Eastern and Western Cultures as Reflected in Differences in Food Culture

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

黄卓; 张海南

2015-01-01

When talking about differences between Eastern and Western culture,we should first think of the eating cultural differences.There are many differences in Eastern and Western food cultures,in this paper it will introduce the different food concepts,the different eating goals,the different eating habits,etc. A comparison study of Chinese and Western food culture still makes sense through the analysis of cultural differences between Chinese and Western food,we can understand their own cultural traditions in China and the West.At the same time it is able to carry out improvement and innovation of Chinese culture. Throughout the comparisons,coupled with the differences of the concept of Western food culture,objects,methods,ownership and nature,it studies these differences,identifies areas for mastery of the place,promotes cultural exchange.Thus it enables China to the world,and to make the world know China better.

Teaching Culture Through Films

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

徐婷

2016-01-01

Cultural teaching is an issue which is associated with complexity and paradox and also it is a big challenge for faculty. Teaching culture through films has become an important way of cross-cultural teaching This paper focuses on the reasons for teaching culture through films, the value and how it works. And finally it leads out the prospects of cultural teaching through films.

Culture Wars in Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ørum, Tania

2016-01-01

In the 1960s high and low culture were brought into sharp conflict i Denmark. In 1961 a Ministry of Culture was established for the first time. The first minister of culture, the social democrat Julius Bomholt, saw art and culture as an important part of education for democracy that should be made...... available to everyone. The general public, however, raised demands for more popular and relaxing entertainment. The confrontation between the cultural elite and popular opinion escalated to a series of veritable culture wars....

Unity through Culture

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2011-01-01

Ethnographic film, Moesgård Film, Royal Anthropological Institute (59 min, 2011) Soanin Kilangit is determined to unite the people and attract international tourism through the revival of culture on Baluan Island in the South Pacific. He organizes the largest cultural festival ever held on the is......Ethnographic film, Moesgård Film, Royal Anthropological Institute (59 min, 2011) Soanin Kilangit is determined to unite the people and attract international tourism through the revival of culture on Baluan Island in the South Pacific. He organizes the largest cultural festival ever held......, performance, identity, cultural politics, exchange, and the impact of the West on traditional societies.”  — Karen Stevenson, American Anthropologist, September 2012...

Culture and Development

NARCIS (Netherlands)

D.R. Gasper (Des)

2006-01-01

textabstractDiscourses on culture and development vary according to their conceptions of culture and of development and according to their standpoint. The ‘culture and development’ problematic has typically: (1) arisen from a conception of ‘culture’ as a relatively fixed, homogeneous set of mental

Cultural hegemony? Educators? perspectives on facilitating cross-cultural dialogue

OpenAIRE

Zaidi, Zareen; Verstegen, Dani?lle; Vyas, Rashmi; Hamed, Omayma; Dornan, Tim; Morahan, Page

2016-01-01

Background: We live in an age when education is being internationalized. This can confront students with ‘cultural hegemony’ that can result from the unequal distribution of power and privilege in global society. The name that is given to awareness of social inequality is ‘critical consciousness’. Cross-cultural dialogue provides an opportunity for learners to develop critical consciousness to counter cultural hegemony. The purpose of this research was to understand how learners engage with c...

Can cultural differences lead to accidents? Team cultural differences and sociotechnical system operations.

Science.gov (United States)

Strauch, Barry

2010-04-01

I discuss cultural factors and how they may influence sociotechnical system operations. Investigations of several major transportation accidents suggest that cultural factors may have played a role in the causes of the accidents. However, research has not fully addressed how cultural factors can influence sociotechnical systems. I review literature on cultural differences in general and cultural factors in sociotechnical systems and discuss how these differences can affect team performance in sociotechnical systems. Cultural differences have been observed in social and interpersonal dimensions and in cognitive and perceptual styles; these differences can affect multioperator team performance. Cultural factors may account for team errors in sociotechnical systems, most likely during high-workload, high-stress operational phases. However, much of the research on cultural factors has methodological and interpretive shortcomings that limit their applicability to sociotechnical systems. Although some research has been conducted on the role of cultural differences on team performance in sociotechnical system operations, considerable work remains to be done before the effects of these differences can be fully understood. I propose a model that illustrates how culture can interact with sociotechnical system operations and suggest avenues of future research. Given methodological challenges in measuring cultural differences and team performance in sociotechnical system operations, research in these systems should use a variety of methodologies to better understand how culture can affect multioperator team performance in these systems.

Purification and characterization of three laccase isozymes from the ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2012-04-17

Apr 17, 2012 ... improve wine quality by removing fermentation inhibitors so as to increase yield of ethanol (Baldrian, 2006). They have also been used .... Summary of purification of laccase isozymes from Trametes sp. HS-03a. Purification .... and kinetics of a thermostable laccase from Pycnoporus sanguineus. (SCC 108).

Mutual interactions of Pleurotus ostreatus with bacteria of activated sludge in solid-bed bioreactors

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Svobodová, Kateřina; Petráčková, Denisa; Kozická, Barbora; Halada, Petr; Novotný, Čeněk

2016-01-01

Roč. 32, č. 6 (2016), s. 94 ISSN 0959-3993 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GA15-02328S; GA MŠk LO1509 Institutional support: RVO:61388971 Keywords : TRAMETES-VERSICOLOR * WASTE-WATER * BIOFILM FORMATION Subject RIV: EI - Biotechnology ; Bionics Impact factor: 1.658, year: 2016

Biotransformation of indigo carmine to isatin sulfonic acid by ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Indigo carmine (IC) was biotrasformed to 5-isatinsulfonic acid using intracellular and associated enzymes from Trametes versicolor lyophilized mycelia; even when extracellular enzymes were absent, in high concentration solutions of IC (4 000 mg L-1) and non-sterile condition. T. versicolor was grown in wheat strew and ...

Culturing Protozoa.

Science.gov (United States)

Stevenson, Paul

1980-01-01

Compares various nutrient media, growth conditions, and stock solutions used in culturing protozoa. A hay infusion in Chalkey's solution maintained at a stable temperature is recommended for producing the most dense and diverse cultures. (WB)

Culture and psychiatric diagnosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Lewis-Fernández, Roberto; Aggarwal, Neil Krishan

2013-01-01

Since the publication of DSM-IV in 1994, neurobiologists and anthropologists have criticized the rigidity of its diagnostic criteria that appear to exclude whole classes of alternate illness presentations, as well as the lack of attention in contemporary psychiatric nosology to the role of contextual factors in the emergence and characteristics of psychopathology. Experts in culture and mental health have responded to these criticisms by revising the very process of diagnosis for DSM-5. Specifically, the DSM-5 Cultural Issues Subgroup has recommended that concepts of culture be included more prominently in several areas: an introductory chapter on Cultural Aspects of Psychiatric Diagnosis - composed of a conceptual introduction, a revised Outline for Cultural Formulation, a Cultural Formulation Interview that operationalizes this Outline, and a glossary on cultural concepts of distress - as well as material directly related to culture that is incorporated into the description of each disorder. This chapter surveys these recommendations to demonstrate how culture and context interact with psychiatric diagnosis at multiple levels. A greater appreciation of the interplay between culture, context, and biology can help clinicians improve diagnostic and treatment planning. Copyright © 2013 APA*

Experiencing Global Culture in Vatel

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kampf, Constance Elizabeth; Broillet, Alexandra; John, Claudette

2015-01-01

To explore the meaning of “global culture” in a professional communication context, this paper explores the “unsettled” global culture of Vatel, a private business school educating students from nearly 50 different countries for the hospitality industry. This paper explores the role of knowledge...... management in understanding global culture, arguing that the notion of “unsettled” cultures demonstrates how ideologies function in global settings and draw on national “settled” cultural resources. In unpacking different aspects of Vatel's culture this paper questions assumptions built into cultural frames...... of reference by offering a global culture frame, drawing on cultural resources from country based “settled” cultural contexts, and reflects on how global cultural contexts can benefit from a knowledge management approach to this dynamic between “settled” cultural contexts and “unsettled” cultural ideologies...

Cultural Consumption of the Overseas Chinese Garden in the Process of Cross-cultural Communication

Science.gov (United States)

Zhai, L.

2015-08-01

When referring to the tangible cultural heritage, people tend to concern more about the conservation and research of the entity of the tangible heritage than the cross-cultural communication of the cultural heritage which is also one of the most important components of the preservation of the cultural heritage. As an exotic new born of the cultural heritage, the entity born from the cross-cultural communication inherits the properties of the cultural heritage on the one hand, and on the other hand generates diversities as a result of the differences based on social, cultural and environment. And the business model is one of the most important reasons for the production of diversities. There's no doubt that a good form of business model makes great significance to the cross-cultural communication. Therefore, the study of the business model of cultural heritage in the process of cross-cultural communication will not only contributes to the deeper understanding towards the phenomenon of the cultural heritage's cross-cultural communication, but also leads to the introspection to the tangible cultural heritage itself. In this way, a new kind of conservative notion could take form, and the goal of protecting cultural heritage could be achieved. Thus the Chinese Garden is a typical representation of the cultural heritage which makes great sense in the cross-cultural communication. As a kind of tangible cultural heritage, the Chinese gardens are well preserved in different regions in China. While the spirits of the Chinese garden carry forward through the construction of the Chinese gardens abroad during the cross-cultural communication. As a new kind of form of the cross-cultural communication of the cultural heritage, on the one hand, the Chinese gardens overseas built ever since China's Reform and Opening express creatively of the materialist and the spirituality of the traditional Chinese Garden, and on the other hand, those Chinese gardens overseas face all kinds of

The Cultural Socialization Scale: Assessing Family and Peer Socialization toward Heritage and Mainstream Cultures

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yijie; Benner, Aprile D.; Kim, Su Yeong

2015-01-01

In a culturally diverse society, youth learn about multiple cultures from a variety of sources, yet the existing assessment of cultural socialization has been limited to parents' efforts to teach youth about their heritage culture. The current study adapted and extended an existing cultural socialization measure (Umaña-Taylor & Fine, 2004) to assess four types of socialization practices encountered specifically during adolescence: cultural socialization by families and peers toward both one's heritage culture and the mainstream culture. In a pilot study, we developed the cultural socialization scale based on retrospective reports from 208 young adults, maximizing young adults' ability to reason and reflect their adolescent experiences with various socialization practices. In the primary study, we examined the psychometric properties of the scale using reports from 252 adolescents. Cultural socialization occurred from both socialization agents toward both cultures. Our cultural socialization scale demonstrated stable factor structures and high reliabilities. We observed strong factorial invariance across the four subscales (six items). MIMIC models also demonstrated invariance for each subscale across adolescents' demographic characteristics (i.e., gender, race/ethnicity, nativity, SES, language of assessment). The implications of the cultural socialization scale are discussed. PMID:25961139

Cultural Capital. On the Right to Cultural Identity

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Maris, C.

2012-01-01

According to article 1 of the UN International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights of 1966, All peoples have the right of self-determination. By virtue of that right they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development. This

Associations between Cultural Stressors, Cultural Values, and Latina/o College Students' Mental Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Corona, Rosalie; Rodríguez, Vivian M; McDonald, Shelby E; Velazquez, Efren; Rodríguez, Adriana; Fuentes, Vanessa E

2017-01-01

Latina/o college students experience cultural stressors that negatively impact their mental health, which places them at risk for academic problems. We explored whether cultural values buffer the negative effect of cultural stressors on mental health symptoms in a sample of 198 Latina/o college students (70 % female; 43 % first generation college students). Bivariate results revealed significant positive associations between cultural stressors (i.e., acculturative stress, discrimination) and mental health symptoms (i.e., anxiety, depressive, psychological stress), and negative associations between cultural values of familismo, respeto, and religiosity and mental health symptoms. Several cultural values moderated the influence of cultural stressors on mental health symptoms. The findings highlight the importance of helping Latina/o college students remain connected to their families and cultural values as a way of promoting their mental health.

Divergent Cumulative Cultural Evolution

OpenAIRE

Marriott, Chris; Chebib, Jobran

2016-01-01

Divergent cumulative cultural evolution occurs when the cultural evolutionary trajectory diverges from the biological evolutionary trajectory. We consider the conditions under which divergent cumulative cultural evolution can occur. We hypothesize that two conditions are necessary. First that genetic and cultural information are stored separately in the agent. Second cultural information must be transferred horizontally between agents of different generations. We implement a model with these ...

Extending Cultural Literacy.

Science.gov (United States)

Riecken, Ted J.; Court, Deborah

1992-01-01

Advocates defining cultural literacy to recognize the mass media's role in transmitting and maintaining cultural stereotypes and shaping values and beliefs. Distinguishes between ideational and material aspects of culture. Advocates teaching critical thinking and respect for persons in light of questionable moral perspectives in certain media…

TESOL and Culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Atkinson, Dwight

1999-01-01

Looks at the question of how culture is understood in the Teaching English as a Second/Other-Language (TESOL) profession. Examines the perspectives toward culture implicitly or explicitly expressed in recent "TESOL Quarterly" articles, and concludes that different views of culture exist in the field. (Author/VWL)

Translation Strategy of Chinese Culture-loaded Lexes and the Dissemina-tion of Chinese Culture

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

WU Li-li

2016-01-01

Lexes are the most important and basic element of a language. Chinese culture-loaded lexes are those words or expres-sions that are greatly rich in Chinese culture. They can reflect the characteristics of Chinese culture and Chinese nation. There-fore, it is of great significance to pay attention to the translation of Chinese culture-loaded lexes as they play a decisive role in disseminating Chinese culture. It can help promote Chinese culture worldwide, improve China’s cultural exchanges and commu-nication with other nations and strengthen China’s status in the world. This paper focuses on the Chinese culture-loaded words and proposes some possible means of translation with the purpose of spreading Chinese culture.

Epileptogenesis in organotypic hippocampal cultures has limited dependence on culture medium composition.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jing Liu

Full Text Available Rodent organotypic hippocampal cultures spontaneously develop epileptiform activity after approximately 2 weeks in vitro and are increasingly used as a model of chronic post-traumatic epilepsy. However, organotypic cultures are maintained in an artificial environment (culture medium, which contains electrolytes, glucose, amino acids and other components that are not present at the same concentrations in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF. Therefore, it is possible that epileptogenesis in organotypic cultures is driven by these components. We examined the influence of medium composition on epileptogenesis. Epileptogenesis was evaluated by measurements of lactate and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH levels (biomarkers of ictal activity and cell death, respectively in spent culture media, immunohistochemistry and automated 3-D cell counts, and extracellular recordings from CA3 regions. Changes in culture medium components moderately influenced lactate and LDH levels as well as electrographic seizure burden and cell death. However, epileptogenesis occurred in any culture medium that was capable of supporting neural survival. We conclude that medium composition is unlikely to be the cause of epileptogenesis in the organotypic hippocampal culture model of chronic post-traumatic epilepsy.

Epileptogenesis in organotypic hippocampal cultures has limited dependence on culture medium composition.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Jing; Saponjian, Yero; Mahoney, Mark M; Staley, Kevin J; Berdichevsky, Yevgeny

2017-01-01

Rodent organotypic hippocampal cultures spontaneously develop epileptiform activity after approximately 2 weeks in vitro and are increasingly used as a model of chronic post-traumatic epilepsy. However, organotypic cultures are maintained in an artificial environment (culture medium), which contains electrolytes, glucose, amino acids and other components that are not present at the same concentrations in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Therefore, it is possible that epileptogenesis in organotypic cultures is driven by these components. We examined the influence of medium composition on epileptogenesis. Epileptogenesis was evaluated by measurements of lactate and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels (biomarkers of ictal activity and cell death, respectively) in spent culture media, immunohistochemistry and automated 3-D cell counts, and extracellular recordings from CA3 regions. Changes in culture medium components moderately influenced lactate and LDH levels as well as electrographic seizure burden and cell death. However, epileptogenesis occurred in any culture medium that was capable of supporting neural survival. We conclude that medium composition is unlikely to be the cause of epileptogenesis in the organotypic hippocampal culture model of chronic post-traumatic epilepsy.

Nature/culture/seawater.

Science.gov (United States)

Helmreich, Stefan

2011-01-01

Seawater has occupied an ambiguous place in anthropological categories of "nature" and "culture." Seawater as nature appears as potentiality of form and uncontainable flux; it moves faster than culture - with culture frequently figured through land-based metaphors - even as culture seeks to channel water's (nature's) flow. Seawater as culture manifests as a medium of pleasure, sustenance, travel, disaster. I argue that, although seawater's qualities in early anthropology were portrayed impressionistically, today technical, scientific descriptions of water's form prevail. For example, processes of globalization - which may also be called "oceanization" - are often described as "currents," "flows," and "circulations." Examining sea-set ethnography, maritime anthropologies, and contemporary social theory, I propose that seawater has operated as a “theory machine” for generating insights about human cultural organization. I develop this argument with ethnography from the Sargasso Sea and in the Sea Islands. I conclude with a critique of appeals to water's form in social theory.

The Influences of Western Food Culture on Contemporary Chinese Food Culture

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

张林

2017-01-01

Food, an essential prerequisite for existence, plays an irreplaceable role in the development of society and in the progress of human beings. Chinese food culture has a long and bril iant history, but under the huge impacts of the western civilization, it has been greatly influenced. From these study, the positive influences of the western food culture on the contemporary Chinese food culture can be clearly seen, which also have promoted the diverse developments of Chinese dietary culture.

Cultural diversity in hospitality management : how to improve cultural diversity workforce

OpenAIRE

Korjala, Veera

2013-01-01

The bachelor´s thesis investigates cultural diversity in the hospitality management. It aims at presenting effective ways to improve cultural diversity in a workplace. This study was commissioned by JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa in Texas, USA and three hotels in Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA: Atherton Hotel, Hampton Inn & Suites and Residence Inn. The bachelor´s thesis incorporates culture theories and their applications to the workplace. Additionally, it focuses on cultural d...

ECONOMIC IMPACT OF CULTURAL TOURISM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zrinka Zadel

2013-12-01

Full Text Available The subject of analysis in the paper is economic impact of cultural tourism and identification of the main factors which directly affect cultural tourism revenues. Most countries do not have a statistical system of monitoring and analysing individual factors of cultural tourism such as the number of arrivals of cultural tourists and consumption of cultural tourists. Therefore, it is hard to assess the economic impact of cultural tourism. In cultural tourism, cultural assets are prepared and placed on the tourist market, i.e. cultural resources are transformed into cultural tourism products. The main objective is fulfilling tourists' needs, and achieving positive effects which includes economic effects. Identification of the economic impact of cultural tourism is important because cultural resources have an inestimable value for the local community. Tourism valorisation should be used in order to achieve the necessary maximum effects with minimum negative impacts which tourism may leave on cultural resources. The objective of the paper is to identify the economic contribution of cultural tourism in the Republic of Croatia and to propose a model of identification of economic impact of cultural tourism.

CHALLENGES IN CROSS CULTURAL ADVERTISING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yuni Retnowati

2016-04-01

Full Text Available At first, marketing practitioners and academics consider standardized approaches to marketing and advertising strategies in globalization, and then some studies proved that the standardization of advertising across culture is not valid. Therefore, cross cultural advertising takes local culture into account when conveying messages in advertisements. Cross cultural understanding is very important in order to produce successful localized advertising that would reflect the cultural values and norms of intended audience. Challenge in cross cultural advertising is the problem of communicating to people of diverse cultural background. Cross cultural solutions are applied in areas such as language, communication style, images and cultural values. Cross cultural advertising is simply about using common sense and analyzing how the different elements of an advertising campaign are impacted by culture and modifying them to best speak to the target audience. Other challenges are determining between standardization and adaptation of cultural values content of advertising when facing different people from diverse cultures. In academic side, the challenge is preparing students to design advertisements that communicate effectively to diverse cultures.

Cultural Descriptions as Political Cultural Acts: An Exploration

Science.gov (United States)

Holliday, Adrian

2010-01-01

Interculturality may be something normal which everyone possesses to a degree. However, dominant neo-essentialist theories of culture give the impression that we are too different to easily cross-cultural boundaries. These theories support the development of academic disciplines and the need for professional certainty in intercultural training.…

Culture Differences and English Teaching

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Jin

2011-01-01

Language is a part of culture, and plays a very important role in the development of the culture. Some sociologists consider it as the keystone of culture. They believe, without language, culture would not be available. At the same time, language is influenced and shaped by culture, it reflects culture. Therefore, culture plays a very important…

The implications of culture in business and the Cultural dimensions of Finland and India : A study of cultural Dimensions

OpenAIRE

Lindholm, Kristian

2013-01-01

The purpose of the thesis is to examine the implications of culture in business. The thesis makes use of the most popular theoretical frameworks in the field, namely the cultural dimensions where data has been chiefly collected through the efforts of Geert Hofstede and Fons Trompenaars. In theory, the application of cultural knowledge as professed through the cultural dimensions into managerial practices can be applied. The validity of these theories has proven impossible to quantify and ...

Culture and teams.

Science.gov (United States)

Kirkman, Bradley L; Shapiro, Debra L; Lu, Shuye; McGurrin, Daniel P

2016-04-01

We first review research on culture effects in teams, illustrating that mean levels of team cultural values have main (i.e. direct) effects, indirect effects (i.e. mediated by intervening variables), and moderating influences on team processes and outcomes. Variance in team cultural values or on country of origin (i.e. nationality diversity) also has main effects on team functioning, and we highlight contextual variables that strengthen or weaken these main effects. We next review research examining the effect of variance in team cultural values on global virtual teams, specifically. Finally, we review research on how cultural values shape employees' receptivity to empowering leadership behavior in teams. We conclude by discussing critical areas for future research. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Conceptions of ‘culture' in international communication - Limits to cultural explanations?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Froholdt, Lisa Loloma; Knudsen, Fabienne

2008-01-01

The paper addresses a critical approach to static, objective and context-independent concept of culture. Conceiving of another culture as objective, persistent, and evenly shared features within a nation may bring some basic order while facing an unknown culture, but it may also have unintentional...

The Use of Culture Portfolio Project in a Korean Culture Classroom: Evaluating Stereotypes and Enhancing Cross-Cultural Awareness

Science.gov (United States)

Byon, Andrew Sangpil

2007-01-01

This paper investigates a case of designing, implementing, and evaluating a semester-long culture portfolio project in a Korean culture class in an American university setting. The paper addresses the following four issues: (1) How does the project help the students gain insights into a particular aspect of Korean culture and encourage them to…

Absorbing the Culture Shock

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

无

2006-01-01

Participants at a forum on communication between cultures generate ideas on how China can deal with its growing cultural deficit Five months ago, Ding Wei, Assistant Minister of Culture, described China's deficit in international cultural trade as "huge" at a press conference held by the State Council Information Office. "Our statistics years ago showed that the ratio of imports of cultural products to exports was 10 to 1," he

Safety culture in nuclear installations. Guidance for the use in enhancement of safety culture

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2002-12-01

This guidance has been developed for use in the IAEA Safety Culture Services, which provides support to Member States in their efforts to develop a sound safety culture of their organizations. It will be of particular use in seminars and training workshops that are part of these services. Much of the information in this publication reflects the approach the IAEA has adopted to assist nuclear organizations in Member States in improving their safety culture. This guidance covers topics such as: what is culture, and in particular what is safety culture; what are the stages of development of safety culture, and how you can assess its development using employee surveys; what practices can be used to develop safety culture, and what indicators will help monitor progress. The symptoms of a weakening safety culture are described, as well as the lessons learned from organizations who have experienced safety culture problems. This guide also contains information on how to undertake the process of transforming the existing safety culture, and develop a learning culture in an organization that is based on continuous improvement. The relationship between quality and safety is discussed. The safety culture services offered by the IAEA are also described. The IAEA perspective of safety culture has expanded with time as its understanding of the complexities of the concept developed. The concept of safety culture was first introduced by the International Nuclear Safety Advisory Group formed by the IAEA. In their report (INSAG-4, 1991) they maintained that the establishment of a safety culture within an organization is one of the fundamental management principles necessary for the safe operation of a nuclear facility. The definition recognized that safety culture is both structural and attitudinal in nature and relates to the organization and its style, as well as to attitudes, approaches and the commitment of individuals at all levels in the organization. In the framework of the

Safety culture in nuclear installations. Guidance for the use in enhancement of safety culture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2002-12-01

This guidance has been developed for use in the IAEA Safety Culture Services, which provides support to Member States in their efforts to develop a sound safety culture of their organizations. It will be of particular use in seminars and training workshops that are part of these services. Much of the information in this publication reflects the approach the IAEA has adopted to assist nuclear organizations in Member States in improving their safety culture. This guidance covers topics such as: what is culture, and in particular what is safety culture; what are the stages of development of safety culture, and how you can assess its development using employee surveys; what practices can be used to develop safety culture, and what indicators will help monitor progress. The symptoms of a weakening safety culture are described, as well as the lessons learned from organizations who have experienced safety culture problems. This guide also contains information on how to undertake the process of transforming the existing safety culture, and develop a learning culture in an organization that is based on continuous improvement. The relationship between quality and safety is discussed. The safety culture services offered by the IAEA are also described. The IAEA perspective of safety culture has expanded with time as its understanding of the complexities of the concept developed. The concept of safety culture was first introduced by the International Nuclear Safety Advisory Group formed by the IAEA. In their report (INSAG-4, 1991) they maintained that the establishment of a safety culture within an organization is one of the fundamental management principles necessary for the safe operation of a nuclear facility. The definition recognized that safety culture is both structural and attitudinal in nature and relates to the organization and its style, as well as to attitudes, approaches and the commitment of individuals at all levels in the organization. In the framework of the

Cultural effects on mindreading.

Science.gov (United States)

Perez-Zapata, Daniel; Slaughter, Virginia; Henry, Julie D

2016-01-01

People from other cultural backgrounds sometimes seem inscrutable. We identified a potential cause of this phenomenon in two experiments demonstrating that adults' mental state inferences are influenced by the cultural identity of the target. We adapted White, Hill, Happé, and Frith's (2009) Strange Stories to create matched intra-cultural and cross-cultural mindreading and control conditions. Experiment 1 showed that Australian participants were faster to respond and received higher scores in the intra-cultural mindreading condition relative to the cross-cultural mindreading condition, but performance in the control conditions was equivalent. Experiment 2 replicated this pattern in independent samples of Australian and Chilean participants. These findings have important implications for cross-cultural communication and understanding. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Corporate culture and the culture of the labor collective: the methodology of distinguishing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Y. Dmytrenko

2014-07-01

The author points out the content and characteristics of corporate culture and the culture of the staff. The culture of the staff in the Late Modern constellations as well as corporate culture has both similarities and differences. Their common features are due to the influence of mass culture, subculture of the information society, organizational culture. Their differences are primarily of historical and anthropological nature. Corporate culture is defined as the essence of material, spiritual and social values created by the employees of the companies in the course of their activities and which reflect the uniqueness and individuality of this company. The author grounds the statement about the importance of working out methodological criteria for their differentiation.

Culture's building blocks: investigating cultural evolution in a LEGO construction task.

Science.gov (United States)

McGraw, John J; Wallot, Sebastian; Mitkidis, Panagiotis; Roepstorff, Andreas

2014-01-01

ONE OF THE MOST ESSENTIAL BUT THEORETICALLY VEXING ISSUES REGARDING THE NOTION OF CULTURE IS THAT OF CULTURAL EVOLUTION AND TRANSMISSION: how a group's accumulated solutions to invariant challenges develop and persevere over time. But at the moment, the notion of applying evolutionary theory to culture remains little more than a suggestive trope. Whereas the modern synthesis of evolutionary theory has provided an encompassing scientific framework for the selection and transmission of biological adaptations, a convincing theory of cultural evolution has yet to emerge. One of the greatest challenges for theorists is identifying the appropriate time scales and units of analysis in order to reduce the intractably large and complex phenomenon of "culture" into its component "building blocks." In this paper, we present a model for scientifically investigating cultural processes by analyzing the ways people develop conventions in a series of LEGO construction tasks. The data revealed a surprising pattern in the selection of building bricks as well as features of car design across consecutive building sessions. Our findings support a novel methodology for studying the development and transmission of culture through the microcosm of interactive LEGO design and assembly.

Economic impact of cultural tourism

OpenAIRE

Zadel, Zrinka; Bogdan, Sinisa

2013-01-01

The subject of analysis in the paper is economic impact of cultural tourism and identification of the main factors which directly affect cultural tourism revenues. Most countries do not have a statistical system of monitoring and analysing individual factors of cultural tourism such as the number of arrivals of cultural tourists and consumption of cultural tourists. Therefore, it is hard to assess the economic impact of cultural tourism. In cultural tourism, cultural assets are prepared and p...

Communication and Cultural Memory in Contemporary Tourism Media Products: Culture-specific and Cross-cultural Perspectives

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aleksandra Salamurović

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Communication practices which are a part of the contemporary media-culture are intrinsically tied to the processes of (recreating collective identities. One of the possible strategies in the frame of the mediated communication practice is to connect traditional ele-ments of cultural memory with new ones, which are declared as preferable and acceptable. In that way the collective identity remains, on the one hand, “homoge-neous”, offering stability to the members of communica-tion community, on the other hand, it is subject to change and dynamics, always “ready” to be reshaped in order to achieve wider acceptance. The tourism media products, especially tourism promotion videos, are the best examples for this mediated communication prac-tice. The visual images, combined with text messages, i.e. slogans, are not only some of the most important narrative mechanisms in the presentation of certain tourist destination, they are also the key elements of the mediated collective cultural memory and identity of the respective country presented in the tourism promotion videos. The main goal of this article is to examine the represen-tation and composition forms of some of the tourism promotion videos both from the Balkan countries as well as from other regions worldwide related especially to the elements of the cultural memory in order to de-fine culture-specific and cross-cultural strategies rele-vant to the creation of the collective identity. The analy-sis is based on the Critical Discourse Analysis, respec-tively the analytical framework of the “Grammar of Vis-ual Design” by Kress/van Leeuwen.

Cross-Cultural Communication.

Science.gov (United States)

Tannen, Deborah

A two-part presentation on cross-cultural communication consists of a discussion of cultural differences in interpersonal communication and an article from a Greek English-language publication concerning telephone use skills in a foreign country. Cultural differences in communication are divided into eight types and illustrated: (1) when to talk;…

EU-Russia Cultural Relations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elena Sidorova

2014-05-01

Full Text Available This article analyzes the link between culture and diplomacy between Russia and the European Union, and shows the importance of cultural relations. It examines the common space of science, education and culture introduced at the 2003 EU-Russia Summit in St. Petersburg and the application of the principles of this concept that were established at the 2005 EU-Russia Summit in Moscow. It then considers EU-Russia collaboration on humanitarian action and the challenges that both parties face in this sphere. It also explains the formation of EU domestic and foreign cultural policy, and the role of European institutions and states in cultural affairs and diplomacy, as well as key elements and mechanisms of contemporary Russian foreign cultural policy. In addition, the article focuses on the European side of post-Soviet EU-Russia cultural relations. This cultural collaboration is defined as a competitive neighbourhood. EU and Russian interests collide: while Europeans try to promote their values, norms and standards within the framework of the European Neighbourhood Policy, Russia seeks to culturally influence and engage in this region for geostrategic and historical reasons. Finally, the article assesses the prospects for the EU-Russia cultural relations and emphasizes the role of ideology in improving such relations.

Cultural Leadership: The Culture of Excellence in Education.

Science.gov (United States)

Cunningham, William G.; Gresso, Donn W.

Changing the system of rules, roles, and relationships that determine how the components of school redesign are addressed is the challenge that confronts administrators who seek to create a culture of excellence in schools. This book examines the role of effective leadership in achieving significant educational improvement, arguing that culture,…

Culture in Sustainability--Defining Cultural Sustainability in Education

Science.gov (United States)

Laine, Marja

2016-01-01

The definition of cultural sustainability in education is explored in this article by looking into conceptions of cultural sustainability collected through expert queries and focus group engagement. These conceptions are compared with the scientific and especially pedagogical discourse on the matter as well as Soini and Birkeland's theory of story…

Perceptions of aging across 26 cultures and their culture-level associates.

Science.gov (United States)

Löckenhoff, Corinna E; De Fruyt, Filip; Terracciano, Antonio; McCrae, Robert R; De Bolle, Marleen; Costa, Paul T; Aguilar-Vafaie, Maria E; Ahn, Chang-kyu; Ahn, Hyun-nie; Alcalay, Lidia; Allik, Juri; Avdeyeva, Tatyana V; Barbaranelli, Claudio; Benet-Martinez, Veronica; Blatný, Marek; Bratko, Denis; Cain, Thomas R; Crawford, Jarret T; Lima, Margarida P; Ficková, Emília; Gheorghiu, Mirona; Halberstadt, Jamin; Hrebícková, Martina; Jussim, Lee; Klinkosz, Waldemar; Knezević, Goran; de Figueroa, Nora Leibovich; Martin, Thomas A; Marusić, Iris; Mastor, Khairul Anwar; Miramontez, Daniel R; Nakazato, Katsuharu; Nansubuga, Florence; Pramila, V S; Realo, Anu; Rolland, Jean-Pierre; Rossier, Jerome; Schmidt, Vanina; Sekowski, Andrzej; Shakespeare-Finch, Jane; Shimonaka, Yoshiko; Simonetti, Franco; Siuta, Jerzy; Smith, Peter B; Szmigielska, Barbara; Wang, Lei; Yamaguchi, Mami; Yik, Michelle

2009-12-01

College students (N=3,435) in 26 cultures reported their perceptions of age-related changes in physical, cognitive, and socioemotional areas of functioning and rated societal views of aging within their culture. There was widespread cross-cultural consensus regarding the expected direction of aging trajectories with (a) perceived declines in societal views of aging, physical attractiveness, the ability to perform everyday tasks, and new learning; (b) perceived increases in wisdom, knowledge, and received respect; and (c) perceived stability in family authority and life satisfaction. Cross-cultural variations in aging perceptions were associated with culture-level indicators of population aging, education levels, values, and national character stereotypes. These associations were stronger for societal views on aging and perceptions of socioemotional changes than for perceptions of physical and cognitive changes. A consideration of culture-level variables also suggested that previously reported differences in aging perceptions between Asian and Western countries may be related to differences in population structure. PsycINFO Database Record Copyright (c) 2009 APA, all rights reserved

Wild Cultures: A Comparison between Chimpanzee and Human Cultures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Diana Rocío Carvajal Contreras

2013-07-01

Full Text Available Review of Wild Cultures: A Comparison between Chimpanzee and Human Cultures. Christophe Boesch. 2012. Cambridge University Press. Pp. 276, 68 b & w illustrations, 11 tables. £60 (hardback. ISBN 9781109025370.

KEEPING CULTURAL GENES ALIVE

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Bai Shi

2012-01-01

China's contemporary culture and the protection of its diverse cultural heritage have become some of the most talked about issues today.Cultural prosperity was put forward as an important objective of the Central Government's national development strategy last year.However,the industrialization and commercialization of China's culture have been both criticized and celebrated.Many scholars believe industrialization and enormous government investment may not be the best means to protect intangible cultural heritage (ICH).

Religion and Culture

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sabih, Joshua

group breaks totally with the existing Arabic Bible translations that they were in the habit of using. In this translation, the previously strenuous relationship between culture and religion is flattened in a binary sets of oppositions between an unaltered Devine message preserved in ancient Bible...... translation of the Holy Scriptures, and address how an originally-American Christian group re-constructs the relationship of religion –universality of one truth and its embodiment in one community of faith – and culture; and specifically, Arabic culture. Culture, in its manifold forms -Jehovah’s witnesses...

Korean Screen Cultures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Screen Cultures sets out to redress this imbalance with a broad selection of essays spanning both North and South as well as different methodological approaches, from ethnographic and audience studies to cultural materialist readings. The first section of the book, «The South», highlights popular media...... new approaches to Korean popular culture beyond national borders and includes work on K-pop and Korean television drama. This book is a vital addition to existing scholarship on Korean popular culture, offering a unique view by providing an imaginary unification of the two Koreas negotiated through...

Doing Culture, Doing Race: Everyday Discourses of "Culture" and "Cultural Difference" in the English as a Second Language Classroom

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Ena

2015-01-01

While current conceptualisations of the inextricable connection between language and culture in English language education are largely informed by complex sociocultural theories that view culture as constructed in and through social practices among people, classroom practices continue to be influenced by mainstream discourses of culture that…

Cross-cultural training as critical factor of cultural intelligence in the hospitality industry

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kotsaga, Effrosyni

2015-01-01

This study analyses cultural awareness in the workplace. It is important for employees to be cultural aware because they may have to interact with people from other countries. Cultural Intelligence (CQ) examines individuals' abilities to interact with people with different cultural backgrounds.

Many Forms of Culture

Science.gov (United States)

Cohen, Adam B.

2009-01-01

Psychologists interested in culture have focused primarily on East-West differences in individualism-collectivism, or independent-interdependent self-construal. As important as this dimension is, there are many other forms of culture with many dimensions of cultural variability. Selecting from among the many understudied cultures in psychology,…

Culture as Capital

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kacunko, Slavko

A collection of essays 2011-2014 By following, and reproducing, the cultural turn, the rhetoric of cultural mix and hybridism is disseminated today primarily in its crossing of trade barriers. Cultures reduced to their exchange value function as capital - an accumulative, speculative and...... essays, Slavko Kacunko discusses the process art by crossing the disciplines of art history and comparative media-, visual- and -cultural studies. As a first approximation, several historiographical remarks on closed-circuit video installations underline their importance as a core category of process art....... In the second part, the problems of process art, seen as a threshold of art history, are further examined in another retroanalytical step, in which concepts and objects related to `mirror', `frame' and `immediacy' are analyzed as the triple delimitation of visual culture studies. In the third part, previously...

Culture as Capital

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kacunko, Slavko

essays, Slavko Kacunko discusses the process art by crossing the disciplines of art history and comparative media-, visual- and -cultural studies. As a first approximation, several historiographical remarks on closed-circuit video installations underline their importance as a core category of process art......A collection of essays 2011-2014 By following, and reproducing, the cultural turn, the rhetoric of cultural mix and hybridism is disseminated today primarily in its crossing of trade barriers. Cultures reduced to their exchange value function as capital - an accumulative, speculative and....... In the second part, the problems of process art, seen as a threshold of art history, are further examined in another retroanalytical step, in which concepts and objects related to `mirror', `frame' and `immediacy' are analyzed as the triple delimitation of visual culture studies. In the third part, previously...

Information and Culture: Cultural Differences in the Perception and Recall of Information from Advertisements

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Ji-Hyun

2012-01-01

Information in general is congruent with cultural values because a culture consists of transmitted social knowledge. Cross-cultural research demonstrates that audiences who are fostered by different cultures may have different understandings of information. This research represents a comprehensive cross-cultural study using an experimental method,…

A Cross-Cultural Analysis of Advertisements from High-Context Cultures and Low-Context Cultures

Science.gov (United States)

Bai, He

2016-01-01

With the development of economy and the change of social culture, advertisements have penetrated our life slowly and done a lot to the commercial markets. Advertisements have often been analyzed in a stylistic way for its unique language style. But language is an important part, as well as a carrier, of culture. Advertising language, as other…

Comparative assessment of the impact of national culture dimensions on traits of organization culture

OpenAIRE

Štreimikienė, Dalia; Mikalauskienė, Asta

2012-01-01

The paper deals with national culture and organizational culture assessment methods and applies the Denison Organization Culture Survey to measure organizational culture in Lithuanian SME in Kaunas region. The paper aims to define the impact of national culture dimensions on organizational culture dimensions by applying comparative analysis for Taiwan, Mexico and Lithuania. The comparative analysis revealed that power distance is positively related to involvement, but negatively related to th...

Comparative assessment of the impact of national culture dimensions on traits of organization culture

OpenAIRE

Štreimikienė, Dalia; Mikalauskienė, Asta

2013-01-01

The paper deals with national culture and organizational culture assessment methods and applies the Denison Organization Culture Survey to measure organizational culture in Lithuanian SME in Kaunas region. The paper aims to define the impact of national culture dimensions on organizational culture dimensions by applying comparative analysis for Taiwan, Mexico and Lithuania. The comparative analysis revealed that power distance is positively related to involvement, but negatively related to th...

Is «cultural tourism» actually «cultural»?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

David Senabre López

2007-09-01

Full Text Available The epithet of cultural has been used as an adulterated attraction for a kind of leisure activity dressed up in all its finery: the type of tourism that is linked to the historic heritage. The tourism client sets off for an apparent happiness by means of a manipulated, abridged or smoothen by-product of a civilisation’s real historic essence, without paying any attention to –or passively assumin– the mercantilist machinery that it is part of. The label of «cultural» is often distorted by the superficial made of it.Should other forms of tourism that do not involve heritage –such as beach holi- days, rural tourism or mountain holidays– be considered as ‘a-cultural’? Can anybody acquire any culture just by travelling or culture is something that must be carried on by the traveller so as to properly value what he sees? Surveys on cultural tourism so far have concentrated on boosting its efficiency from a business point of view –which is a wrong approach– instead of analysing the phenomenon from a humanistic perspective. Key words: Tourism, Cultura, Leisure, Heritage.

Cultural assimilation, cultural diffusion and the origin of the wealth of nations

OpenAIRE

Ashraf, Quamrul; Galor, Oded

2007-01-01

This research argues that variations in the interplay between cultural assimilation and cultural diffusion have played a significant role in giving rise to differential patterns of economic development across the globe. Societies that were geographically less vulnerable to cultural diffusion, benefited from enhanced assimilation, lower cultural diversity and, thus, more intense accumulation of society-specific human capital, enabling them to flourish in the technological paradigm that charact...

Cultural Ecosystem of Creative Place: Creative Class, Creative Networks and Participation in Culture

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anders-Morawska Justyna

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The scope of this paper is to conceptualise a data-based research framework for the role of creative networks in cultural exchange. Participation in culture measured as audience per 1000 residents and expenditures on culture-related activities were analysed in relation to such territorial assets as accessibility to creative infrastructure, the economic status of residents, the governance networks of civil society, and cultural capital. The results indicate how accessibility, governance networks, and cultural capital contribute to participation measured via audience indicators while a low poverty rate has explanatory value with respect to expenditures on culture.

Conceptualizing the Research Culture in Postgraduate Medical Education: Implications for Leading Culture Change.

Science.gov (United States)

O'Brien, Jennifer M

2015-12-01

By recognizing symbols of research culture in postgraduate medical education, educators and trainees can gain a deeper understanding of the existing culture and mechanisms for its transformation. First, I identify symbolic manifestations of the research culture through a case narrative of a single anesthesia residency program, and I offer a visual conceptualization of the research culture. In the second part, I theorize the application of Senge's (1994) disciplines of a learning organization and discuss leverage for enhancing research culture. This narrative account is offered to inform the work of enhancing the broader research culture in postgraduate medical education.

Cultural Attitudes as WTP Determinants: A Revised Cultural Worldview Scale

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andy S. Choi

2016-06-01

Full Text Available There has been little attention paid to the systematic measurement issue of general attitudes toward human-culture relationships. This paper applied the Cultural Worldview (CW scale that was developed by Choi et al. in 2007 (published in the Journal of Cultural Economics, and investigated its dimensionality and relationship with willingness to pay (WTP for cultural heritage protection through a sequential integration between latent variables and valuation models. A case study of 997 Korean respondents was employed to examine conservation values of cultural heritage sites using discrete choice models. Confirmatory factor analyses demonstrated that this scale can be used either as a single second-order factor or four correlated factors. A more parsimonious version of the CW scale with twelve items is endorsed in this paper and the results also confirm that it is valid for use with non-Western nations. The findings support a significant attitude–WTP relationship; there was a significant role of the CW scale that reveals unobserved factors in valuation models.

The Impact of National Culture on the Organizational Culture

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

ALICIA FLORENCIA URTEAGA

2010-03-01

Full Text Available The relationships between national culture and organizational culture were analysed in 16 Argentinean companies. Sample was integrated by 429 employees (292 male, and 184 female, mean age 35 years old. Subjects completed, in their own work places, a socio-demographic questionnaire,a scale of national culture, and a scale of organizational practices. Results indicated that organizations adopt practices that, on average, reflect the cultural values of their country of origin. Multiple regression analysis showedthat Argentinean national companies are characterized by practices closely associated with collectivism, high power distance, and high uncertainty avoidance. In contrast, Argentinean privatized companies adopted practices most linked to individualism, low power distance, low uncertainty avoidance,low paternalism, and low fatalism. The results are discussed in light of its strengths and weaknesses, and a new agenda for future research is suggested.

African Journal of Biotechnology - Vol 15, No 20 (2016)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The use of Amazon fungus (Trametes sp.) in the production of cellulase and xylanase · EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT. Salony Aquino Pereira, Rafael Lopes e Oliveira, Sergio Duvoisin Jr, Leonor Alves de Oliveira da Silva, Patrícia Melchionna ...

Biodecolorization of Reactive Black 5 by laccasemediator system ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Reactive azo dyes are widely used as textile colorants, typically for cotton dyeing, due to their variety of color shades, and minimal energy consumption. In the present study, commercial laccase from Trametes versicolor was used for the biodecolorization of Reactive Black 5 (RB-5) dye using different redox mediators viz, ...

A novel approach for application of white rot fungi in wastewater treatment under non-sterile conditions : immobilization of fungi on sorghum

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Zahmatkesh, M.; Spanjers, H.L.F.M.; van Lier, J.B.

2017-01-01

In this study, we tested a new approach to facilitate the application of white rot fungi (WRF) under non-sterile conditions, by introducing grain sorghum as carrier and sole carbon and nutrient source for WRF. To this end, Trametes versicolor was immobilized on sorghum, and its ability to remove

Introduction and evaluation of the wood preservative potentials of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The ability of Sternbergia candida (SB Candidum Mathew.) extract to suppress attack by Postia placenta (Fries) M. Larsen et Lombard (Mad 698), (a brown-rot) and Trametes versicolor (L.ex Fr.) Quel. (a white-rot) was investigated. The extract was dissolved from Sterinbergia Candidum's bulb and leaves in 96% ethyl ...

Culture and emotion regulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Ford, Brett Q; Mauss, Iris B

2015-06-01

While anthropological research has long emphasized cultural differences in whether emotions are viewed as beneficial versus harmful, psychological science has only recently begun to systematically examine those differences and their implications for emotion regulation and well-being. Underscoring the pervasive role of culture in people's emotions, we summarize research that has examined links between culture, emotion regulation, and well-being. Specifically, we focus on two questions. First, how does culture lead individuals to regulate their emotions? And second, how does culture modulate the link between emotion regulation and well-being? We finish by suggesting directions for future research to advance the study of culture and emotion regulation.

Integrated Safety Culture Model and Application

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

汪磊; 孙瑞山; 刘汉辉

2009-01-01

A new safety culture model is constructed and is applied to analyze the correlations between safety culture and SMS. On the basis of previous typical definitions, models and theories of safety culture, an in-depth analysis on safety culture's structure, composing elements and their correlations was conducted. A new definition of safety culture was proposed from the perspective of sub-cuhure. 7 types of safety sub-culture, which are safety priority culture, standardizing culture, flexible culture, learning culture, teamwork culture, reporting culture and justice culture were defined later. Then integrated safety culture model (ISCM) was put forward based on the definition. The model divided safety culture into intrinsic latency level and extrinsic indication level and explained the potential relationship between safety sub-culture and all safety culture dimensions. Finally in the analyzing of safety culture and SMS, it concluded that positive safety culture is the basis of im-plementing SMS effectively and an advanced SMS will improve safety culture from all around.

Modular Approach to Designing Computer Cultural Systems: Culture as a Thermodynamic Machine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Leland Gilsen

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Culture is a complex non-linear system. In order to design computer simulations of cultural systems, it is necessary to break the system down into sub-systems. Human culture is modular. It consists of sets of people that belong to economic units. Access to, and control over matter, energy and information is postulated as the key to development of cultural simulations. Because resources in the real world are patchy, access to and control over resources is expressed in two related arenas: economics (direct control and politics (non-direct control. The best way to create models for cultural ecology/economics lies in an energy-information-economic paradigm based on general systems theory and an understanding of the "thermodynamics" of ecology, or culture as a thermodynamic machine.

Research on Lahu’s traditional sports culture from the perspective of cultural ecology

OpenAIRE

Wang Youfeng

2016-01-01

This paper mainly researches Lahu’s traditional sports culture from the perspective of cultural ecology and analyzes the characteristics of Lahu’s traditional sports culture, and analyzes the characteristics of Lahu’s traditional sports culture from three aspects: natural ecological environment, social ecological environment and spiritual ecology. What’ more, Lahu’ traditional sports culture is not only a concrete expression of Lahu’s production form and life style or a symbol of Lahu’s relig...

Optimization and radiation protection culture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jeon, In Young; Shin, Hyeong Ki; Lee, Chan Mi

2013-01-01

Safety culture or radiation protection culture is based in common on the term, 'culture'. Culture is defined as the learned, shared set of symbols and patterns of basic assumptions, which is invented, discovered, or developed by a given group as it learns to cope with its problem of external adaptation and internal integration. Safety culture generally refers to the attitude and behaviors affecting safety performance. The concept of 'Safety Culture' was introduced after the Chernobyl accident in 1986. For the accident, nuclear society reached the conclusion that the cause was the wrong management attitude of the NPP, that is, deficient 'Safety Culture'. Recently, 'Radiation Protection Culture' was introduced as the core concept of nuclear safety culture. There have been many efforts to establish definition and develop assessment tool for radiation protection culture in international level such as ICRP and IRPA as well as NRC. In the same context with the safety culture, radiation protection culture is defined as 'the core values and behaviors resulting from a collective commitment by leaders and individual's to emphasize safety over competing goals to ensure protection of people and the environment.' It is worthwhile to recognize that regulatory enforcement in establishing healthy radiation protection culture of operators should be minimized because culture is not in the domain of regulatory enforcement. However, as 'ALARA', the most important concept in radiation protection, may be successfully achieved only in well established radiation protection culture, the least regulatory intervention would be needed in promoting and nurturing radiation protection culture in licensee. In addition, the concept of radiation protection culture should be addressed in plant operational policy to achieve the goals of ALARA. The pre-condition of the successful radiation protection culture is a healthy organizational

Optimization and radiation protection culture

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jeon, In Young; Shin, Hyeong Ki; Lee, Chan Mi [Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2013-04-15

Safety culture or radiation protection culture is based in common on the term, 'culture'. Culture is defined as the learned, shared set of symbols and patterns of basic assumptions, which is invented, discovered, or developed by a given group as it learns to cope with its problem of external adaptation and internal integration. Safety culture generally refers to the attitude and behaviors affecting safety performance. The concept of 'Safety Culture' was introduced after the Chernobyl accident in 1986. For the accident, nuclear society reached the conclusion that the cause was the wrong management attitude of the NPP, that is, deficient 'Safety Culture'. Recently, 'Radiation Protection Culture' was introduced as the core concept of nuclear safety culture. There have been many efforts to establish definition and develop assessment tool for radiation protection culture in international level such as ICRP and IRPA as well as NRC. In the same context with the safety culture, radiation protection culture is defined as 'the core values and behaviors resulting from a collective commitment by leaders and individual's to emphasize safety over competing goals to ensure protection of people and the environment.' It is worthwhile to recognize that regulatory enforcement in establishing healthy radiation protection culture of operators should be minimized because culture is not in the domain of regulatory enforcement. However, as 'ALARA', the most important concept in radiation protection, may be successfully achieved only in well established radiation protection culture, the least regulatory intervention would be needed in promoting and nurturing radiation protection culture in licensee. In addition, the concept of radiation protection culture should be addressed in plant operational policy to achieve the goals of ALARA. The pre-condition of the successful radiation protection culture is a healthy organizational

The University Culture

Science.gov (United States)

Simplicio, Joseph

2012-01-01

In this article the author discusses the role university culture can play on a campus and how it can impact policy and practice. The article explores how a university's history, values, and vision form its culture and how this culture in turn affects its stability and continuity. The article discusses how newcomers within the university are…

Culture in Development

OpenAIRE

Shankha Chakraborty; Jon C. Thompson; Etienne B. Yehoue

2015-01-01

An anti-capitalist cultural bias, through directed within-family human capital transmission, adversely affects the supply of entrepreneurial talent and risk-taking. This limits economic progress if aggregate productivity is low. When productivity is high, economic incentives can overcome cultural inertia. Though the income level depends on culture, the growth rate in this case does not.

An assessment of cultural values and resident-centered culture change in U.S. nursing facilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Banaszak-Holl, Jane; Castle, Nicholas G; Lin, Michael; Spreitzer, Gretchen

2013-01-01

Culture change initiatives propose to improve care by addressing the lack of managerial supports and prevalent stressful work environments in the industry; however, little is known about how culture change facilities differ from facilities in the industry that have not chosen to affiliate with the resident-centered care movements. The aim of this study was to evaluate representation of organizational culture values within a random sample of U.S. nursing home facilities using the competing values framework and to determine whether organizational values are related to membership in resident-centered culture change initiatives. We collected reports of cultural values using a well-established competing values framework instrument in a random survey of facility administrators and directors of nursing within all states. We received responses from 57% of the facilities that were mailed the survey. Directors of nursing and administrators did not differ significantly in their reports of culture and facility measures combined their responses. Nursing facilities favored market-focused cultural values on average, and developmental values, key to innovation, were the least common across all nursing homes. Approximately 17% of the facilities reported that all cultural values were strong within their facilities. Only high developmental cultural values were linked to participation in culture change initiatives. Culture change facilities were not different from non-culture change facilities in the promotion of employee focus as organizational culture, as emphasized in group culture values. Likewise, culture change facilities were also not more likely to have hierarchical or market foci than non-culture change facilities. Our results counter the argument that culture change facilities have a stronger internal employee focus than facilities more generally but do show that culture change facilities report stronger developmental cultures than non-culture change facilities, which

Transforming Cultural Competence into Cross-cultural Efficacy in Women's Health Education.

Science.gov (United States)

Nunez, Ana E.

2000-01-01

Discusses the importance of changing cross cultural competence to cross cultural efficacy in the context of addressing health care needs, including those of women. Explores why cross cultural education needs to expand the objectives of women's health education to go beyond traditional values and emphasizes the importance of training for real-world…

Promoting Cultural Relativism in Counselors through the Cultural De-Centering Model

Science.gov (United States)

McAuliffe, Garrett J.; Milliken, Tammi F.

2009-01-01

Counselors who are culturally encapsulated are likely to create client mistrust and to misinterpret clients' cultural norms. This article presents the Cultural De-Centering Model (CDCM) as a constructive-developmental method for helping future counselors to be less ethnocentric in their work. The goal of the CDCM is to increase counselors'…

Culture in Foreign Language Teaching

Science.gov (United States)

Kramsch, Claire

2013-01-01

In foreign language education, the teaching of culture remains a hotly debated issue. What is culture? What is its relation to language? Which and whose culture should be taught? What role should the learners' culture play in the acquisition of knowledge of the target culture? How can we avoid essentializing cultures and teaching stereotypes? And…

Cultural Aspects of Suicide

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hari D. Maharajh

2005-01-01

Full Text Available Undefined cultural factors cannot be dismissed and significantly contribute to the worldwide incidence of death by suicide. Culture is an all embracing term and defines the relationship of an individual to his environment. This study seeks to investigate the effect of culture on suicide both regionally and internationally. Culture-bound syndrome with suicidal behaviours specific to a particular culture or geographical region are discussed. Opinions are divided as to the status of religious martyrs. The law itself is silent on many aspects of suicidal behaviour and despite decriminalization of suicide as self-murder, the latter remains on the statutes of many developing countries. The Caribbean region is of concern due to its steady rise in mean suicide rate, especially in Trinidad and Tobago where socio-cultural factors are instrumental in influencing suicidal behaviour. These include transgenerational cultural conflicts, psycho-social problems, media exposure, unemployment, social distress, religion and family structure. The methods used are attributed to accessibility and lethality. Ingestion of poisonous substances is most popular followed by hanging. The gender differences seen with regard to suicidality can also be attributed to gender related psychopathology and psychosocial differences in help-seeking behaviour. These are influenced by the cultural environment to which the individual is exposed. Culture provides coping strategies to individuals; as civilization advances many of these coping mechanisms are lost unclothing the genetic predisposition of vulnerable groups. In the management of suicidal behaviour, a system of therapeutic re-culturation is needed with an emphasis on relevant culture- based therapies.

Connecting Culture

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Haugegaard, Rikke; Mynster Christensen, Maya

2017-01-01

The understanding of cultural dynamics in the area of operations is essential in to the accomplishment of military missions in international operations. The aim of this handbook is to introduce a tool enabling the use of culture as part of the military operational planning process....

Safety culture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Drukraroff, C.

2010-01-01

The concept of Safety Culture was defined after Chernobyl's nuclear accident in 1986. It has not been exempt from discussion interpretations, adding riders, etc..., over the last 24 years because it has to do with human behavior and performance in the organizations. Safety Culture is not an easy task to define, assess and monitor. The proof of it is that today we still discussing and writing about it. How has been the evolution of Safety Culture at the Juzbado Factory since 1985 to today?. What is the strategy that we will be following in the future. (Author)

Should we learn culture in chemistry classroom? Integration ethnochemistry in culturally responsive teaching

Science.gov (United States)

Rahmawati, Yuli; Ridwan, Achmad; Nurbaity

2017-08-01

The papers report the first year of two-year longitudinal study of ethnochemistry integration in culturally responsive teaching in chemistry classrooms. The teaching approach is focusing on exploring the culture and indigenous knowledge in Indonesia from chemistry perspectives. Ethnochemistry looks at the culture from chemistry perspectives integrated into culturally responsive teaching has developed students' cultural identity and students' engagement in chemistry learning. There are limited research and data in exploring Indonesia culture, which has around 300 ethics, from chemistry perspectives. Students come to the chemistry classrooms from a different background; however, their chemistry learning disconnected with their background which leads to students' disengagement in chemistry learning. Therefore this approach focused on students' engagement within their differences. This research was conducted with year 10 and 11 from four classrooms in two secondary schools through qualitative methodology with observation, interviews, and reflective journals as data collection. The results showed that the integration of ethnochemistry in culturally responsive teaching approach can be implemented by involving 5 principles which are content integration, facilitating knowledge construction, prejudice reduction, social justice, and academic development. The culturally responsive teaching has engaged students in their chemistry learning and developed their cultural identity and soft skills. Students found that the learning experiences has helped to develop their chemistry knowledge and understand the culture from chemistry perspectives. The students developed the ability to work together, responsibility, curiosity, social awareness, creativity, empathy communication, and self-confidence which categorized into collaboration skills, student engagement, social and cultural awareness, and high order thinking skills. The ethnochemistry has helped them to develop the critical self

Cultural Image of Animal Words

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

邓海燕

2017-01-01

This paper,after introducing the definition and forms of cultural image,focuses on the detailed comparison and analysis of cultural image of animal words both in English and in Chinese from four aspects,that is,same animal word,same cultural image;same animal word,different cultural images;different animal words,same cultural image;different animal words,different cultural images.

Quantitative and qualitative research across cultures and languages: cultural metrics and their application.

Science.gov (United States)

Wagner, Wolfgang; Hansen, Karolina; Kronberger, Nicole

2014-12-01

Growing globalisation of the world draws attention to cultural differences between people from different countries or from different cultures within the countries. Notwithstanding the diversity of people's worldviews, current cross-cultural research still faces the challenge of how to avoid ethnocentrism; comparing Western-driven phenomena with like variables across countries without checking their conceptual equivalence clearly is highly problematic. In the present article we argue that simple comparison of measurements (in the quantitative domain) or of semantic interpretations (in the qualitative domain) across cultures easily leads to inadequate results. Questionnaire items or text produced in interviews or via open-ended questions have culturally laden meanings and cannot be mapped onto the same semantic metric. We call the culture-specific space and relationship between variables or meanings a 'cultural metric', that is a set of notions that are inter-related and that mutually specify each other's meaning. We illustrate the problems and their possible solutions with examples from quantitative and qualitative research. The suggested methods allow to respect the semantic space of notions in cultures and language groups and the resulting similarities or differences between cultures can be better understood and interpreted.

Introduction to Asian Culture(s) and Globalization

OpenAIRE

Wang, I-Chun; Guo, Li

2013-01-01

Marshall McLuhan coined the term "the global village" associating globalized human experiences in an electronic age (4). Although transnational relations existed for many centuries, McLuhan predicted in the 1960s that new technologies not only facilitate the growth of international interconnectedness, cross-border exchanges, as well as trans-cultural phenomena, but also help foster cultural transactions. Referring to the dramatic and unprecedented break between the past and the present, tradi...

A Socio-Cultural Model Based on Empirical Data of Cultural and Social Relationship

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lipi, Afia Akhter; Nakano, Yukiko; Rehm, Matthias

2010-01-01

The goal of this paper is to integrate culture and social relationship as a computational term in an embodied conversational agent system by employing empirical and theoretical approach. We propose a parameter-based model that predicts nonverbal expressions appropriate for specific cultures...... in different social relationship. So, first, we introduce the theories of social and cultural characteristics. Then, we did corpus analysis of human interaction of two cultures in two different social situations and extracted empirical data and finally, by integrating socio-cultural characteristics...... with empirical data, we establish a parameterized network model that generates culture specific non-verbal expressions in different social relationships....

Measuring culture outside the head: a meta-analysis of individualism-collectivism in cultural products.

Science.gov (United States)

Morling, Beth; Lamoreaux, Marika

2008-08-01

Although cultural psychology is the study of how sociocultural environments and psychological processes coconstruct each other, the field has traditionally emphasized measures of the psychological over the sociocultural. Here, the authors call attention to a growing trend of measuring the sociocultural environment. They present a quantitative review of studies that measure cultural differences in "cultural products": tangible, public representations of culture such as advertising or popular texts. They found that cultural products that come from Western cultures (mostly the United States) are more individualistic, and less collectivistic, than cultural products that come from collectivistic cultures (including Korea, Japan, China, and Mexico). The effect sizes for cultural products were larger than self-report effect sizes for this dimension (reported in Oyserman, Coon, & Kemmelmeier, 2002). In addition to presenting this evidence, the authors highlight the importance of studying the dynamic relationships between sociocultural environments and psyches.

Learner Cultures and Corporate Cultural Differences in E-Learning Behaviors in the IT Business

Science.gov (United States)

Swierczek, Fredric William; Bechter, Clemens; Chankiew, Jeerawan

2012-01-01

Corporate cultural values have a major influence on learning. For learning to be effective it must be adapted to the cultural context in which it takes place. E-learning neither eliminates cultural differences nor is it culture free. This study focuses on two major Indian IT companies with different Corporate Cultures sharing the same expected…

Leveraging organisational cultural capital

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R Scheel

2007-10-01

Full Text Available Organisational culture discourse mandates a linear approach of diagnosis, measurement and gap analysis as standard practice in relation to most culture change initiatives. Therefore, a problem solving framework geared toward “fixing�? and/or realigning an organisation’s culture is usually prescribed. The traditional problem solving model seeks to identify gaps between current and desired organisational cultural states, inhibiting the discovery of an organisation’s unique values and strengths, namely its cultural capital. In pursuit of discovering and leveraging organisational cultural capital, a descriptive case study is used to show how an Appreciative Inquiry process can rejuvenate the spirit of an organisation as a system-wide inquiry mobilises a workforce toward a shared vision.

Post-Industrial Cultural Criticism

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kammer, Aske

2015-01-01

hierarchies within journalism. The article maps which Danish websites conduct arts and culture reviews, asks what features these websites have that facilitate public discourse, and measures the actual discussion on the websites. While academic diagnoses of the state of the online public sphere have generally......Integrating perspectives from research into cultural and post-industrial journalism, this article presents a pilot study of websites with reviews of arts and culture conducted by amateurs. Such websites constitute a popular space for cultural criticism, and one that challenges traditional...... reviewers have highly specialized knowledge of culture and, on that basis, argues that the emergence of this type of critic might represent a qualitative strengthening of cultural criticism....

'I still believe...' Reconstructing spirituality, culture and mental health across cultural divides.

Science.gov (United States)

Mayer, Claude-Hélène; Viviers, Rian

2014-06-01

Whilst striving to create a balanced and healthy life, individuals experience challenges across their life span. Spirituality can contribute to mental health and well-being, as can cultural constructs. In South Africa, apartheid categories are still vivid, which affect spiritual, cultural and racial mental constructs and impact on the mental health of individuals across cultural groups. This article focuses on the long-term development of spiritual and cultural concepts within a selected individual in Cape Town, South Africa, during 11 years of field work. It also explores the impact of spirituality and culture on the researcher-researched relationship. A mixed-method approach was used, including various qualitative methods of data collection as well as content analysis to analyse the data and intersubjective validation to interpret them. Findings show a strong intrapersonal interlinkage of spirituality, culture and mental health and the researcher-researched relationship having a strong impact on spiritual, cultural and mental health constructions. We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience. (Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, 1976).

The transmission and stability of cultural life scripts: a cross-cultural study.

Science.gov (United States)

Janssen, Steve M J; Haque, Shamsul

2018-01-01

Cultural life scripts are shared knowledge about the timing of important life events. In the present study, we examined whether cultural life scripts are transmitted through traditions and whether there are additional ways through which they can be attained by asking Australian and Malaysian participants which information sources they had used to generate the life script of their culture. Participants hardly reported that they had used cultural and religious traditions. They more often reported that they had used their own experiences and experiences of relatives and friends. They also reported the use of comments of relatives and friends and the use of newspapers, books, movies and television programmes. Furthermore, we examined the stability of life scripts and similarities and differences across cultures. We found that life scripts are stable cognitive structures and that there are, besides cross-cultural differences in the content, small cross-cultural differences in the valence and distribution of life script events, with the Australian life script containing more positive events and more events expected to occur before the age of 16.

KHNP Safety Culture Framework based on Global Standard, and Lessons learned from Safety Culture Evaluation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Younggab; Hur, Nam Young; Jeong, Hyeon Jong

2015-01-01

In order to eliminate the vague fears of the people about the nuclear power and operate continuously NPPs, a strong safety culture of NPPs should be demonstrated. Strong safety culture awareness of workers can overcome social distrust about NPPs. KHNP has been a variety efforts to improve and establish safety culture of NPPs. Safety culture framework applying global standards was set up and safety culture assessment has been carried out periodically to enhance safety culture of workers. In addition, KHNP developed various safety culture contents and they are being used in NPPs by workers. As a result of these efforts, safety culture awareness of workers is changed positively and the safety environment of NPPs is expected to be improved. KHNP makes an effort to solve areas for improvement derived from safety culture assessment. However, there are some areas to take a long time in completing the work. Therefore, these actions are necessary to be carried out consistently and continuously. KHNP also developed recently safety culture enhancement system based on web. All information related to safety culture in KHNP will be shared through this web system and this system will be used to safety culture assessment. In addition to, KHNP plans to develop safety culture indicators for monitoring the symptoms of safety culture weakening

KHNP Safety Culture Framework based on Global Standard, and Lessons learned from Safety Culture Evaluation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Younggab; Hur, Nam Young; Jeong, Hyeon Jong [KHNP Central Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2015-05-15

In order to eliminate the vague fears of the people about the nuclear power and operate continuously NPPs, a strong safety culture of NPPs should be demonstrated. Strong safety culture awareness of workers can overcome social distrust about NPPs. KHNP has been a variety efforts to improve and establish safety culture of NPPs. Safety culture framework applying global standards was set up and safety culture assessment has been carried out periodically to enhance safety culture of workers. In addition, KHNP developed various safety culture contents and they are being used in NPPs by workers. As a result of these efforts, safety culture awareness of workers is changed positively and the safety environment of NPPs is expected to be improved. KHNP makes an effort to solve areas for improvement derived from safety culture assessment. However, there are some areas to take a long time in completing the work. Therefore, these actions are necessary to be carried out consistently and continuously. KHNP also developed recently safety culture enhancement system based on web. All information related to safety culture in KHNP will be shared through this web system and this system will be used to safety culture assessment. In addition to, KHNP plans to develop safety culture indicators for monitoring the symptoms of safety culture weakening.

La arquitectura cultural. / Cultural architecture.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lobos, Jorge

2004-12-01

Full Text Available Este artículo releva la Arquitectura Cultural, que es plural y diversa en términos estéticos y conceptuales. Sugiere la apertura a otras dinámicas de comprensión de lo arquitectónico, a otras lógicas de construcción de las ciudades. Para aclarar el concepto se expone un breve ejemplo práctico./This article points out the "cultural architecture", which is plural and diverse in concept and aesthetic terms. It suggests the opening to other dinamics of comprehention of the architectural issue and the building of cities. The article presents a brief empirical example that clarifies the conceptual approach.

Stool Culture

Science.gov (United States)

... infections and may be identified with a stool culture. Some important examples include: Escherichia coli 0157:H7 and other toxin- ... the toxin-producing C. difficile will be performed. Examples of other less common causes include: ... of stool cultures that are reported as negative usually reflect the ...

Culture-specific familiarity equally mediates action representations across cultures.

Science.gov (United States)

Umla-Runge, Katja; Fu, Xiaolan; Wang, Lamei; Zimmer, Hubert D

2014-01-01

Previous studies have shown that we need to distinguish between means and end information about actions. It is unclear how these two subtypes of action information relate to each other with theoretical accounts postulating the superiority of end over means information and others linking separate means and end routes of processing to actions of differential meaningfulness. Action meaningfulness or familiarity differs between cultures. In a cross-cultural setting, we investigated how action familiarity influences recognition memory for means and end information. Object directed actions of differential familiarity were presented to Chinese and German participants. Action familiarity modulated the representation of means and end information in both cultures in the same way, although the effects were based on different stimulus sets. Our results suggest that, in the representation of actions in memory, end information is superordinate to means information. This effect is independent of culture whereas action familiarity is not.

Arab and Japanese Universities : The "Culture-bound" vs. the "Culture-free" Position

OpenAIRE

Dedoussis, Vagelis; Czerkawski, Chris J.; Vagelis, Dedoussis; Chris J., Czerkawski

2004-01-01

Aspects of the organizational culture of four universities, two in Japan and one each in Saudi Arabia and Lebanon, are discussed and compared. The paper argues that organizations established in countries sharing similarities in national cultures are likely to be characterized by similar values, beliefs, and assumptions, in short, that similarities in national cultures are likely to nurture similarities in organizational cultures. Japan and Arab countries are similar with respect to several cu...

The consequences of "Culture's consequences"

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Knudsen, Fabienne; Froholdt, Lisa Loloma

2009-01-01

  In this article, it is claimed that research on cross-cultural crews is dominated by one specific understanding of the concept of culture, which is static, evenly distributed and context-independent. Such a conception of culture may bring some basic order while facing an unknown culture...... review of the theory of Geert Hofstede, the most renowned representative of this theoretical approach. The practical consequences of using such a concept of culture is then analysed by means of a critical review of an article applying Hofstede to cross-cultural crews in seafaring. Finally, alternative...... views on culture are presented. The aim of the article is, rather than to promote any specific theory, to reflect about diverse perspectives of cultural sense-making in cross-cultural encounters. Udgivelsesdato: Oktober...

Cultural competency training in psychiatry.

Science.gov (United States)

Qureshi, A; Collazos, F; Ramos, M; Casas, M

2008-01-01

Recent reports indicate that the quality of care provided to immigrant and ethnic minority patients is not at the same level as that provided to majority group patients. Although the European Board of Medical Specialists recognizes awareness of cultural issues as a core component of the psychiatry specialization, few medical schools provide training in cultural issues. Cultural competence represents a comprehensive response to the mental health care needs of immigrant and ethnic minority patients. Cultural competence training involves the development of knowledge, skills, and attitudes that can improve the effectiveness of psychiatric treatment. Cognitive cultural competence involves awareness of the various ways in which culture, immigration status, and race impact psychosocial development, psychopathology, and therapeutic transactions. Technical cultural competence involves the application of cognitive cultural competence, and requires proficiency in intercultural communication, the capacity to develop a therapeutic relationship with a culturally different patient, and the ability to adapt diagnosis and treatment in response to cultural difference. Perhaps the greatest challenge in cultural competence training involves the development of attitudinal competence inasmuch as it requires exploration of cultural and racial preconceptions. Although research is in its infancy, there are increasing indications that cultural competence can improve key aspects of the psychiatric treatment of immigrant and minority group patients.

Negative Cultural Transfer in Cross-Cultural Communication for Inter-national Business

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

夏秋颖

2015-01-01

With the depth development of economic globalization,the multi-culture conflict,communication and integration are strengthened.Meanwhile,series of problems about cross-cultural communication for international business have happened.One of the core problem is negative cultural transfer.This paper gives the analysis about its causes and effects.At last,the way to solve it have been found.

TOURISM AND CULTURAL REVIVAL

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

George NICULESCU

2009-12-01

Full Text Available This paper examines the tourism and the cultural revival. Cultural change is a recurrent concern in tourism studies. Host societies frequently remodel their culture following the creation of a tourist resort. But, that does not necessarily imply an acculturating process, since what actually takes place is pragmatic cultural production work in response to the touristic demands that offer consolidated economic alternatives and livelihood. Culture change has been a concern in tourism anthropology studies ever since this field of research established itself, particularly concerning the changes host societies undergo. But that does not necessarily imply the phenomenon is to be analyzed exclusively under the focus of the acculturation paradigm, since researchers often come across the production of new cultural elements of a traditional character among host populations in their attempt to occupy new spaces from which to address the world. in fact, that applies to various social situations where local actors seek to display certain lifestyles and cultural traits in order to draw attention to their ethnic, regional, or national features. Therefore, the object of study no longer focuses on the gradual loss of local and cultural (or ethnic substance, but rather on the relative ethnicity triggered by and among translocal flows that may lead to the deliberate turnaround of different cultural aspects of the host populations. Based on those premises, this article deals with the investigation of a cultural change process, making use of the historic perspective that includes an analysis of the “strategies of cultural mobilization” activated by the social subjects that are constantly recreating themselves in the tourism areas.

Leadership and Organizational Culture

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

宋丽娜

2015-01-01

This essay attempts to explore the relationship between leaders, organizational culture, and national culture. Leaders cre⁃ate“climate of the organization”with six mechanisms. Furthermore, leaders style of management is considerably influenced by their national culture based on Hofstede’s organizational culture theory. Varieties of examples and cases are analyzed to illustrate that leadership beliefs and practices have direct relationship with organizational culture and shape their individualistic communica⁃tion styles and goals that influence to a significant degree in establishing shared values, beliefs and practices among employees within an organization.