Search Results (827)

Urban informality is a defining feature of Latin American urbanisation, with estimates suggesting that up to 80% of the urban landscape has been informally built. Despite its centrality in urban development, its integration into architectural education remains limited, revealing a gap between the realities of city-making and the professional training offered by universities. This study examines how architecture programmes in Chile, Peru, and Ecuador address urban informality and the extent to which they prepare future professionals to engage with the dominant modes of urban production in the region. Using a qualitative and comparative methodology, the curricula, course descriptions, and academic lines of 50 universities were analysed across three dimensions: (1) the thematic presence of concepts related to informality, (2) the degree of curricular integration—core, transversal, or tangential—and (3) pedagogical orientation, classified as technical–normative, social–critical, or interdisciplinary. The results reveal a fragmented and uneven incorporation of urban informality. Chile shows the highest relative presence, though often embedded indirectly within broader themes such as inequality or sustainability and framed through technical–normative approaches. Peru and Ecuador display even more limited integration, generally confined to isolated courses or electives. The study argues that this marginal incorporation weakens the preparation of professionals working in contexts where informality is a structural urban condition and calls for an “informal turn” in built-environment education. Full article

The present study seeks to synthesize the scientific evidence from the last decade (2015–2025) regarding the transition from inequality in technological access toward social stratification mediated by automated decision-making systems. Following PRISMA 2020 guidelines and the SPIDER model, a corpus of 74 high-impact records from Scopus, Web of Science, ProQuest, and PsycINFO was examined. The results reveal an exponential growth in scientific production since 2018, marking a shift from infrastructure-based inequality toward a systemic stratification mediated by algorithmic opacity. Three critical sectors of exclusion are categorized: the socio-health nexus, the labor market, and the educational ecosystem. Methodologically, quantitative algorithmic auditing predominates (58%), although mixed sociotechnical approaches have increased by 25% since 2021 to capture experiences of intersectional vulnerability. The study concludes that AI acts as an active agent of social reproduction, necessitating a transition toward “Algorithmic Justice” and “Human-Centric Governance.” Finally, a “Reinstating AI” framework is proposed to democratize technological development and mitigate systemic biases, offering a roadmap for researchers and policymakers in the pursuit of technological sovereignty. Full article

Let $\left({\mathfrak{H}}_{\Theta },⟨·,·⟩\right)$ be a reproducing kernel Hilbert space over a non-empty set $\Theta$, and let $\mathrm{A}$ be a non-zero positive operator on ${\mathfrak{H}}_{\Theta }$. This operator induces a semi-inner product given by ${⟨\xi ,\eta ⟩}_{\mathrm{A}}=⟨\mathrm{A}\xi ,\eta ⟩$ for all $\xi ,\eta \in {\mathfrak{H}}_{\Theta }$, with the associated seminorm ${\parallel \xi \parallel }_{\mathrm{A}}=\sqrt{{⟨\xi ,\xi ⟩}_{\mathrm{A}}}$. The $\mathrm{A}$-normalized Berezin number and the $\mathrm{A}$-normalized Berezin norm of an $\mathrm{A}$-bounded linear operator $\mathrm{C}$ on ${\mathfrak{H}}_{\Theta }$ are defined by ${\displaystyle {\mathbf{b}}_{\mathrm{A}}\left(\mathrm{C}\right)=\underset{\gamma \in {\Theta }_{\mathrm{A}}}{sup}\left|{⟨\mathrm{C}{\widehat{\mathrm{x}}}_{\gamma }^{\mathrm{A}},{\widehat{\mathrm{x}}}_{\gamma }^{\mathrm{A}}⟩}_{\mathrm{A}}\right|}$ and ${\displaystyle {\parallel \mathrm{C}\parallel }_{{\mathbf{b}}_{\mathrm{A}}}=\underset{\gamma ,\delta \in {\Theta }_{\mathrm{A}}}{sup}\left|{⟨\mathrm{C}{\widehat{\mathrm{x}}}_{\gamma }^{\mathrm{A}},{\widehat{\mathrm{x}}}_{\delta }^{\mathrm{A}}⟩}_{\mathrm{A}}\right|}$, where ${\widehat{\mathrm{x}}}_{\gamma }^{\mathrm{A}}={\displaystyle \frac{{\mathrm{x}}_{\gamma }}{\parallel {\mathrm{x}}_{\gamma }{\parallel }_{\mathrm{A}}}}$ and ${\Theta }_{\mathrm{A}}=\{\gamma \in \Theta :\parallel {\mathrm{x}}_{\gamma }{\parallel }_{\mathrm{A}}\ne 0\}$. The primary aim of this paper is to establish new sharp bounds and inequalities involving these two quantities and related operator-theoretic notions. In doing so, we propose a novel method to address the challenges of operator bounds. Furthermore, we revisit recent results on generalized Berezin norms, in particular those of Huban’s work in 2022. We show that some of these results rely on the incorrect assumption that the $\mathrm{A}$-Berezin number coincides with the $\mathrm{A}$-Berezin norm for $\mathrm{A}$-selfadjoint operators. By providing corrected arguments and employing tools such as the $\mathrm{A}$-Cartesian decomposition and the generalized Buzano inequality, we develop a consistent and rigorous framework for the study of generalized Berezin symbols in semi-Hilbertian spaces. Full article

We introduce a local phase-field framework for spin-entanglement correlations. In this framework, the relevant hidden variable is an internal scalar phase associated with each fermion and derived from two underlying real fields. The fields are assumed to evolve locally in ordinary spacetime. When a particle pair is produced at a common spacetime event, the pair acquires a shared phase-locking condition at creation; after separation, the two internal phases evolve independently and no nonlocal interaction is introduced. Spin measurements by Stern–Gerlach analyzers are modeled as local filtering operations. Each local response depends only on the internal phase carried by the particle and on the orientation of the local analyzer. The local response function A(α,λ) = cos(λ − 2α) is derived from the spinorial transformation law of the underlying real field pair and the projection geometry of the detector interaction; it is not a phenomenological ansatz. From these deterministic local responses we derive an analog correlator. The raw product moment of the continuous detector outputs evaluates to ⟨AB⟩ = −½ cos 2(α − β), which satisfies classical Clauser-Horne-Shimony-Holt (CHSH) bounds. After Pearson normalization—the operationally appropriate correlation measure for continuous analog detector outputs, justified by channel-contrast physics and scale invariance—the normalized correlator yields E(α,β) = −cos 2(α − β), matching the quantum singlet correlator in functional form. When this normalized correlator is inserted into the CHSH expression, it yields the numerical value 2√2. This result is a structural consequence of the reduced marginal variance of continuous response functions relative to the unit-variance dichotomic observables assumed in Bell’s derivation; it does not constitute a violation of Bell’s inequality. The model does not reproduce quantum singlet statistics at the level of binary detector outcomes, where the correlator takes a triangular rather than cosine form. The contribution is therefore ontological and conceptual rather than predictive. The framework preserves parameter independence and no-signaling throughout. It provides a concrete real-field ontology for spin correlations based on internal phase structure, and it demonstrates that the functional form of the quantum singlet correlation can be obtained from a strictly local deterministic description, provided that the detector responses are treated as continuous analog quantities and normalized accordingly. We compare the model with earlier phase-based approaches and discuss experimental configurations—including time-resolved and multi-stage Stern–Gerlach measurements—that could in principle probe the proposed internal-phase dynamics at the pre-registration level. Full article

Spatial inequality in productivity, closely related to the spatial discontinuity of regional markets, presents a constraint on sustainable development. This study proposes an analytical framework of structural market segmentation, based on the process of urban agglomeration development and the heterogeneity of regional integration in both time and space, offering a novel perspective for understanding the intricate relationship between the spatial distribution of productivity and the spatial structure of regional markets. Applying city and firm-level data, this study utilizes a fixed-effects model and instrumental variables method to reveal how structural market segmentations contribute to spatial inequalities in productivity. The results indicate that structural commodity market segmentation negatively impacts productivity growth, and structural labor market segmentation exerts both growth and distributional effects on productivity, providing a reasonable explanation for spatial inequalities in productivity. And it is further amplified by associated scale effects, agglomeration economies, and the spatial distribution of industries. The government should evaluate potential side effects of policies to establish a regional development pattern of mutual benefit and win-win outcomes. Full article

Pneumocystis jirovecii is an opportunistic fungal pathogen responsible for Pneumocystis pneumonia (PCP), a severe infection that remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality among immunocompromised patients, particularly in non-HIV immunosuppressed populations. Despite its recognized clinical relevance and inclusion in the World Health Organization’s Fungal Priority Pathogens List, important gaps persist in its diagnosis, epidemiology, and therapeutic management. This study provides a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of global scientific production on P. jirovecii using Scopus as the primary data source. Publications were evaluated for temporal trends, document types, authorship patterns, institutional productivity, collaboration networks, funding sources, thematic evolution, and journal distribution, with additional comparison against other major pneumonia-associated pathogens. A total of 27,396 articles published between 1916 and 2025 were identified. Over the last 50 years, scientific output increased from 10,382 publications in 1975–2000 to 16,496 in 2001–2025, representing an overall growth of 58.9%. Early research expansion was strongly shaped by the HIV/AIDS epidemic, whereas the post-2000 period reflected advances in molecular diagnostics, taxonomic clarification, and broader attention to non-HIV immunosuppressed populations. Although the field has become more diversified and clinically integrated, persistent structural inequities and underinvestment continue to limit progress, particularly in low- and middle-income settings. Full article

This narrative conceptual review aims to examine how veterinary science intertwines with the different ontologies of resilience. As resilience has increasingly become an influential yet conceptually diverse framework, its different ontologies shape and are shaped by veterinary science thinking. This paper will begin with a brief overview of the origins of the resilience concept and its three major ontologies: engineering, psychological, and ecological resilience. Following these different ontologies, the paper then explores animal-level resilience, where engineering framings emphasise disease response and production stability, while welfare-oriented perspectives frame resilience in terms of the affective experience and the lived realities of animals. It then considers veterinary professional resilience, highlighting how emotional labour, workload pressures and structural constraints shape wellbeing across the profession. Finally, it analyses how veterinary science contributes to socio-ecological resilience through One Health approaches in public health, food systems and climate adaptation. Across these domains, resilience is often framed as a desirable attribute, yet it remains a value-laden concept that can obscure inequities or normalise preventable harms. This paper calls for critical, justice-oriented engagement with resilience to ensure it supports ethically grounded veterinary practice and promotes healthier, happier animals, more equitable systems, and sustainable professional environments. Full article

Background: Gender discrimination in sport remains a persistent global issue, reflected in women’s limited participation, leadership representation, media visibility, salary equity, and personal safety. These forms of discrimination also negatively affect athletes’ psychological well-being, mental health, and overall sports experience. Despite growing scholarly attention over the past three decades, a comprehensive quantitative synthesis of this research area has been lacking. Methodology: A bibliometric analysis of 397 peer-reviewed documents published between 1995 and 2026 was conducted using the Scopus database. Data were analysed through the Bibliometric R package 4.2.1 and Biblioshiny interface. Science-mapping techniques including keyword co-occurrence, thematic clustering, thematic evolution, and collaboration network analysis were combined with performance indicators such as annual publication output, leading sources, author productivity, and citation impact. Results: Scientific production increased markedly after the mid-2010s, involving 187 sources and 1106 authors, with rising collaboration and citation influence. Core research themes included gender inequality, leadership exclusion, media representation, harassment and abuse, and structural discrimination in sports systems. Importantly, many of these themes are directly linked to reduced athlete well-being, including increased stress, anxiety, and decreased participation. Recent thematic developments highlighted intersectionality, safeguarding, inclusion, governance, and athlete welfare. Conclusion: Research on discrimination against women in sport has evolved into a multidisciplinary, policy-relevant field. Addressing gender discrimination is essential not only to achieving equity but also to improving athletes’ subjective well-being and long-term participation in sport. However, significant gaps remain, particularly in Global South contexts and intervention-based studies, indicating the need for stronger evidence-driven strategies to advance gender equity, inclusion, and ethical governance in sport. Full article

We extend the classical Euler-type integral representations for the Appell functions $F_1$, $F_2$, and $F_3$, to the appropriate Kampé de Fériet functions by using integration against the Meijer–Nørlund G-function. In particular, these representations provide analytic continuation of the corresponding Kampé de Fériet functions. We further focus on the following two applications. First, we obtain sufficient conditions for complete monotonicity on the positive quadrant for three families of the Kampé de Fériet functions. These conditions can be expressed directly in terms of parameters and imply, among other things, joint log-convexity and related inequalities for partial derivatives of the Kampé de Fériet functions. Second, we show how known reduction and transformation formulas for the Appell and the generalized hypergeometric functions can be lifted to Kampé de Fériet functions by concatenating parameter arrays via the integral representations. This yields several reduction formulas, including extensions of some classical and new product identities. Further combining integration against the Meijer–Nørlund G-function with Slater’s double series transformation we obtain several exotic identities for infinite sums of the generalized hypergeometric functions. Full article

The accelerated advancement of artificial intelligence has triggered new discussions concerning the link between technological progress and the distribution of income. This study frames China’s National New Generation Artificial Intelligence Innovation and Development Pilot Zone (AIIDPZ) policy as a quasi-natural experiment, enabling us to identify the causal effect of AI promotion strategies on the urban–rural income inequality. Drawing on panel data from 257 Chinese cities over the period 2012–2023, we estimate the impacts using a multi-period difference-in-differences (DID) approach. The results demonstrate that the pilot zone policy significantly lowers the urban–rural income inequality index, by roughly 8.41%. The mechanism analysis reveals two primary pathways. First, the policy stimulates innovation in agricultural science and technology, which in turn boosts rural productivity. Second, it deepens the attention that the government directs toward artificial intelligence, contributing to a more balanced allocation of technological dividends between urban and rural areas. Heterogeneity tests further indicate that the inequality-reducing effects are especially notable in eastern regions, as well as in cities characterized by well-developed digital infrastructure and relatively weaker endowments of human capital. By offering empirical insight into how developing countries can reconcile distributional equity with the application of artificial intelligence, this study contributes to advancing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Full article

While agricultural modernization improves productivity, it may worsen rural inequality. Without systematic guidance and institutional rules, it harms inclusive and sustainable rural development. To examine the income distribution effects of two distinct modernization pathways, this study uses an innovative dual-mode framework integrating resource endowment, mechanism, and distribution to compare Land Transfer and Non-farm Employment. Based on a survey of 963 farm households in modern agricultural parks of Sichuan Province, we apply regression, endogeneity correction, mechanism and heterogeneity analysis. The study found that Land Transfer exhibits a significant positive correlation with income growth through economies of scale and labor release effects, yet its benefits primarily flow to local elite groups with superior resource endowments, demonstrating an “elite capture” tendency; Non-farm Employment is closely linked to income growth by raising wage levels, enhancing skill levels, and improving employment stability. Its benefits are more likely to reach ordinary, low-income, and less-educated farmers, reflecting the characteristic of “inclusive growth.” The framework reveals divergent equity outcomes of efficiency-oriented reforms, providing new insights for building fair and sustainable agricultural systems. It also provides micro-level policy references for SDG 10 (reduced inequalities) and SDG 8 (decent work and economic growth). Full article

This article reassesses agrarian expansion in al-Andalus between the tenth and twelfth centuries within the broader context of medieval economic growth in the western Mediterranean. It challenges the idea of a uniform “Islamic Green Revolution” by combining archaeological, archaeobotanical, landscape, and textual evidence to examine three key aspects: the uneven chronology of agrarian change, the social actors involved, and the consequences of commercialization and fiscal intensification. The study shows that agrarian transformation was gradual and not driven by a single group. Peasant communities played a central role in cultivating drylands, managing small-scale irrigation, and developing local exchange networks that strengthened regional markets. Meanwhile, state institutions and urban elites promoted large irrigation systems, invested in market-oriented estates, and integrated rural production into fiscal and commercial structures. These processes stimulated economic growth and increased productivity but also led to land concentration, dispossession, and rising social tensions. By emphasizing the interaction between peasant agency, elite investment, and extractive political systems, the article argues for an integrated interpretation that links growth, inequality, and conflict, offering a more nuanced understanding of Andalusi agrarian landscapes. Full article

Family farming (FF) in Paraguay faces structural challenges related to institutional fragmentation, territorial inequalities, and limited coordination among stakeholders. In this context, the department of Itapúa provides a relevant case for analyzing how the relational structure of actors shapes territorial governance dynamics. This study examines how the network of actors involved in FF is configured and what this structure reveals about coordination processes, using a Social Network Analysis (SNA) approach. Based on 40 surveys conducted between April and May 2024, a directed and weighted network comprising 35 actors was constructed, including institutional, technical, productive, and market-related stakeholders. The analysis focuses on the intensity and structure of relationships shaping flows of information, resources, and territorial organization. The results reveal a relatively cohesive but functionally differentiated network. Technical actors and public institutions—particularly municipalities and the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG)—occupy central and intermediary positions that facilitate coordination and information flows. In contrast, individual producers and market vendors remain in peripheral positions, limiting their influence within the network. The network structure combines elements of bonding and bridging social capital, although the limited presence of weak ties may constrain innovation and the incorporation of new actors. These findings point to a form of distributed territorial governance characterized by interdependence among actors, but also by structural asymmetries and coordination gaps between functional domains. Based on the results, the study highlights the need to strengthen coordination mechanisms, improve the integration of peripheral actors, and promote new connections between less articulated groups. Overall, this study provides empirical evidence on territorial governance in FF systems in Paraguay and demonstrates the value of SNA as a tool for analyzing coordination processes in rural contexts in Latin America. Full article

With a modest estimate of 11 million workers and high greenhouse gas emissions, the Indian brick sector is a relevant study for understanding how low-carbon energy transition impacts justice for the society, environment, and livelihoods. This empirical article provides an analysis of the ongoing policy-driven energy efficiency transition and justice trade-offs and benefits in the brick production sector in the state of Bihar. The transition is explored in a larger framework of power relations and vulnerability to determine whether the policies enable or challenge transformative justice for the labour force, nature and future generations. Present policies focus on regulations and financial incentives relevant for entrepreneurs with pre-existing skills, network and financial resources. Further, present policy narratives lack attention to mechanisms that reproduce the socio-economic inequality of the brick labour force, and implications for balancing different livelihood and environmental objectives. We conclude that the findings emphasise the need for integrating a wider variety of social dimensions and relevant support schemes to overcome inequality barriers and safeguard the environment for future generations. Full article

Climate change poses a significant threat to water resources and agricultural sustainability, particularly in semi-arid and socio-economically vulnerable regions such as South Africa. This review synthesizes empirical, modelling, and policy-based evidence on the impacts of climate change on water availability, crop production, and adaptation strategies in the country, drawing on approximately 162 peer-reviewed studies and institutional reports published between 2010 and 2025. The findings indicate that rising temperatures, shifting rainfall patterns, and an increasing frequency of extreme events, such as droughts and floods, are intensifying water stress and disrupting agricultural systems. Hydrological models consistently project declines in runoff, soil moisture, and streamflow, while crop simulation models predict reductions in the yields of major staple crops, including maize, wheat, and sorghum, particularly under high-emission scenarios. Although localized improvements in water availability and crop productivity may occur, these tend to be limited and highly context-specific. In response, South Africa has implemented a range of adaptation strategies, including climate-smart agriculture, water-efficient irrigation, ecosystem-based approaches, and policy-driven interventions. However, their effectiveness remains constrained by institutional fragmentation, limited financial capacity, and persistent socio-economic inequalities, particularly among smallholder farmers. The review underscores the need for integrated, inclusive, and context-specific adaptation strategies that strengthen governance, enhance the science–policy interface, and improve access to climate finance. The insights provided offer valuable guidance for advancing climate resilience in South Africa and other vulnerable regions across the Global South. Full article