Rural tourism, which offers authentic cultural and nature-based experiences, is increasingly recognized as a vital tool for sustainable development. Ethiopia, with its rich rural landscapes and cultural heritage, holds immense potential for rural tourism, but the sector remains underdeveloped. This study assesses the facilitating conditions and challenges of rural tourism in Ethiopia using a mixed-methods approach. Results indicate that Ethiopia’s economic growth, improved rural infrastructure, large rural population, higher ethnic and religious diversity index, and 11 UNESCO World Heritage Sites provide strong foundations for rural tourism. However, significant challenges such as inadequate infrastructure, limited marketing, restricted access to financing, ethnic conflicts, environmental degradation, and insufficient stakeholder cooperation hinder its growth. To address these barriers, the study proposes a model encompassing strategic investments in infrastructure, enhancing marketing and promotion, access to finance initiatives, conflict resolution strategies, sustainable tourism practices, enhancing stakeholder coordination, and supportive policy frameworks. By employing these strategies, Ethiopia can harness the full potential of its rural tourism sector, contributing to economic development and community well-being while promoting cultural preservation and environmental sustainability. Also, the proposed model is highly applicable to other developing economies that share similar contexts. Besides, given the importance of the seven fundamental pillars of the model, it remains relevant across tourism types like coastal destinations.
This article delves into the controversial practice of utilizing a student’s first language (L1) as a teaching resource in second language (L2) learning environments. Initially, strategies such as code-switching/code-mixing and translanguaging were considered signs of poor linguistic ability. There was a strong push towards using only the target language in foreign language education, aiming to limit the first language’s interference and foster a deeper immersion in the new language. However, later research has shown the benefits of incorporating the first language in bilingual education and language learning processes. It’s argued that a student’s knowledge in their native language can actually support their comprehension of a second language, suggesting that transferring certain linguistic or conceptual knowledge from L1 to L2 can be advantageous. This perspective encourages the strategic use of this knowledge transfer in teaching methods. Moreover, the text points to positive results from various studies on the positive impact of L1 usage in L2 classrooms. These insights pave the way for further exploration into the application of the first language in adult English as a Second Language (ESL)/English as a Foreign Language (EFL) education, particularly regarding providing corrective feedback.
Introduction: Given the heterogeneous nature and inherent complexity of forensic medical expertise, the expert (medical professional or related areas) must make the best use of the technical and technological tools at his disposal. Imaging, referring to the set of techniques that allow obtaining images of the human body for clinical or scientific purposes, in any of its techniques, is a powerful support tool for establishing facts or technical evidence in the legal field. Objective: To analyze the use of magnetic resonance and computed tomography in postmortem diagnosis. Methodology: information was searched in the databases PubMed, Science Direct, Springer Journal and in the search engine Google Scholar, using the terms “X-Ray Computed Tomography”, “Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy”, “Autopsy” and “Forensic Medicine” published in the period 2008–2015. Results: MRI is useful for the detailed study of soft tissues and organs, while computed tomography allows the identification of fractures, calcifications, implants and trauma. Conclusions: In the reports found in the literature search, regarding the use of nuclear magnetic resonance and computed tomography in postmortem cases, named by the genesis of the trauma, correlation was found between the use of imaging and the correct expert diagnosis at autopsy.
Objective: Standardizing image acquisition protocols and image quality across cameras is an important need in imaging, in particular in multi-center clinical trials and the use of image analysis and machine learning algorithms. The objective of this study was to examine the effect of ordered subset expectation maximization (OSEM) reconstruction parameters on the quantitative image quality of cardiac perfusion SPECT images in different typical SPECT cameras and therefore assess the need to change the parameter values across cameras. Methods: The analysis was carried out by comparing the defect contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) at 12 OSEM subset-iteration combinations. Eight frames were reconstructed using the SIMIND Monte Carlo Simulation package. An activity of 370 MBq (10mCi) and projection acquisition interval of 20 seconds per projection were used. Attenuation (AC) and scatter corrections (SC) were performed in this study for all images. Results: The 16-2 subset-iteration combination yielded the highest CNR and defect contrast values for both cameras. The difference between CNR values for two cameras was found to be close to 5%. Conclusions: Monte Carlo simulations can be useful to investigate how quantitative image quality behaves with respect to reconstruction parameters and correction algorithms in a controlled environment. In this study, the use of different camera brands did not seem to significantly affect the lesion detectability. Further simulations with more extended range of parameters and camera brands may be conducted in the future to quantify further the variability between different brands of cameras.
Today it is obvious that corporate social responsibility (CSR) is more than just a volunteer activity, it is also related to the operation of the firms and to competitive advantages. Many factors influence CSR and CSR-competitiveness relations; firm size could be the most crucial one. Originally CSR is related to large companies, although smaller firms can be active in CSR mainly in different ways with different background. Based on this idea the paper aims to explore the correlation between small and medium-sized enterprises’ (SMEs) corporate social responsibility (CSR) and competitive advantages. An interview research was conducted among thirty SMEs in a Hungarian city of Győr in 2021/22 to reveal how owner-managers interpret CSR, competitiveness and their relations. As SMEs cannot provide exact data on this topic the personal perception method was used to explore the CSR-competitiveness relation. A moderate relation was observed between CSR and competitiveness and the research revealed that different methodologies have to be applied for SMEs than large companies which results from the fact that SMEs’ CSR is less formal and lacks exact data.
Colorectal cancer is the fourth leading cause of death worldwide and the fifth leading cause of cancer death in Colombia. Magnetic resonance imaging is the ideal modality for the evaluation of colorectal cancer, since it allows staging by determining invasion beyond the muscularis propria, extension towards adjacent organs, identification of patients who are candidates for chemotherapy or pre-surgical radiotherapy and planning of the surgical procedure. The key point is based on the differentiation between T2 and T3 stages through the use of sequences with high-resolution T2 information. In addition to this, it allows the assessment of the size and morphology of the lymph nodes, and considerably increases the specificity for the detection of lymph node involvement. MRI is a technique with high specificity and high reproducibility.
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