This study investigates the pitching and heaving dynamics of catamaran models, focusing on the impact of geometric parameters, including Length-to-Beam (L/B) ratio, horizontal clearance (C), and hull symmetry. Simulations in FLOW3D revealed that L/B has the greatest influence on resistance and pitching, with optimal results for L/B < 11 and C between 0.45 and 0.55. Asymmetric hulls demonstrated lower resistance. These findings highlight the need for integrated geometric optimization to improve catamaran performance.

In the developed world, a disproportionate amount of energy produced from fossil fuels. Fossil fuel reserves are finite and depleting every day. The existing organic reserves will last only a few decades. Fossil fuel pollutes the environment and contributes to climate change. For these reasons, it is necessary to reduce fossil fuel consumption and replace it with renewable energy sources. One of these sources is wind energy, which is receiving increasing attention and funding. This paper proposes an optimized methodology based on multi-criteria decision-making in order to evaluate the most appropriate solution for the selection of wind power plant foundation types.

This paper presents the results of a systematic literature review and a content document analysis focused on the sustainable development of non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The content document analysis, which involved a detailed evaluation of documents and reports, allowed us to identify and elucidate the specific roles that NGOs play in promoting and achieving sustainable development.

Straipsnyje apžvelgiama Klaipėdos universiteto svetainės kalba. Pradiniu tyrimų etapu išanalizuota maždaug 30 svetainės puslapių teksto, sugrupuotos klaidos bei trūkumai. Aptarus kalbos atmainas nustatytos sąsajos tarp kalbos atmainų ir klaidų kiekio. Pastebėtas akivaizdus kalbos taisyklingumo ryšys su stilistinėmis kalbos atmainomis ir nuolatinio bei laikino teksto pobūdžiu: oficialiojo stiliaus tekstuose, perteikiančiuose ilgalaikę informaciją, klaidų pasitaiko mažiausiai. Priešinga padėtis yra su laikinos informacijos ir ekspresyvesniais, publicistiniais tekstais.

This chapter addresses the ways in which certain social and demographic processes describe the last Lithuanian Soviet generation (born in the late 1960s and 1970s). The primary focus is directed to the analysis of the demographic changes that took place in the life course of this generation during the period of transition to adulthood. It is essential to identify how this period of life was structured after the collapse of the Soviet system and under changing social, economic and ideological conditions, as well as with the development of a new political, social and economic order in the 1990s. The following events of the transitional phase are analysed here: leaving the parental home; completing education, starting work for the first time; first partnerships; and giving birth to the first child. The aim is to reveal the ways in which these specifically changing experiences during the transition to adulthood reflect distinctive formation features of the last Soviet generation and how these experiences delimit this generation from both previous and subsequent generations. The chapter also surveys the ways these experiences reflect transformational processes of the life course in terms of standardisation/de-standardisation and institutionalisation/de-institutionalisation, which took place in the 1990s. The chapter draws on the secondary analysis of demographic data. This chapter draws on the demographic data from the Generations and Gender Survey (Kart ir lyči tyrimas) conducted in 2006–2009 in Lithuania, the data on the period between 1990 and 2011 gained from the Department of Statistics of Lithuania (Statistics Lithuania) and the materials of the survey conducted under the project The Last Soviet Generation in the Changing Contexts of Modernity (Paskutinioji sovietmečio karta kintančios modernybės kontekstuose).

The appearance of the human body and its image in Lithuanian society are currently one of the most relevant health topics. In the media and on the Internet, a lot of attention is paid to the appearance of the human body and the image of the person, certain body appearance standards prevail, the non-compliance of which can have a negative impact on a person's physical and mental health and his social life. Individuals and society perceive and evaluate body image based on shape, weight, girth measurements, other characteristics of physical body appearance and their shortcomings. Lithuanian nutritionists note that there is still a stigma in society that obesity is not a disease but a person's neglect, which is why people with obesity rarely talk openly about the difficulties they fear. The slender body is desirable in Lithuania. However, in contrast to the negative influence of the media on the formation of body image, positive initiatives by formal institutions, influencers, and media are also taking place.

Daugiabučių gyvenamųjų namų valdymas ir administravimas yra sudėtinė valstybės būsto politikos dalis, siekiant gerinti gyventojų gyvenamąją aplinką. Straipsnyje, taikant mokslinės literatūros lyginamosios analizės, sisteminimo ir apibendrinimo metodus, nagrinėjamos daugiabučių namų administravimo teisinio reglamentavimo nuostatos ir daugiabučių namų valdymo formos, identifikuojamos pagrindinės su administravimu susijusios problemos. Daugiabučių namų administravimo situacija Klaipėdos miesto savivaldybėje analizuojama, remiantis viešai prieinamuose šaltiniuose pateikta informacija, siekiant atskleisti savivaldybės, kaip institucijos, vaidmenį, vykdant daugiabučių gyvenamųjų namų valdytojų priežiūrą ir kontrolę. Atliekant kokybinį tyrimą gautų rezultatų pagrindu, taikant iš dalies struktūruoto interviu metodą, apklausus Klaipėdos miesto daugiabučių namų valdytojus, t. y. savivaldybės paskirtus daugiabučių namų administratorius, nustatytos pagrindinės daugiabučių namų administravimo problemos, taikomi gyventojų įtraukimo į daugiabučio namo valdymą (administravimą) būdai ir priemonės bei daugiabučių namų administravimo tobulinimo kryptys.

The perception of gender roles is a topic that has been growing over the past decade. The issue arises as society and culture, in general, and media, in particular, still impact the concepts of masculinity and femininity. The reason is that the function of a media article is not only to inform the reader but also to influence, conveying the ideology through a subjective prism. Distinct ideologies are expressed through language, consequently, the way language is used in media constructs distinct views on how women and men should behave in society. The aim of the article is to investigate linguistic features in online media texts in order to reveal how women and men are portrayed across British and American online media texts. The research is intended to explore distinct representations of gender roles found in media texts, regarding the language used, lexical and grammatical features, in particular, to reflect the images of men and women roles. Hence, the linguistic approach at the micro- and macro level resulted in the identification of 129 linguistic devices, of which modal meanings, emphatic adverbs, idioms were the most found in media texts. The use of distinct linguistic constructions enables writers to convey a wide range viewpoint, shaping or modifying the attitudes of their readers. Nevertheless, the study includes several linguistic levels (grammatical and lexical) and since there is a limited approach in the field, a deeper analysis could be conducted to gain a better understanding in this research area.

Background. Treatment with angiotensin-converting-enzyme (ACE) inhibitors reduces the rate of cardiovascular events among patients with left-ventricular dysfunction and those at high risk of such events. We assessed whether the ACE inhibitor perindopril reduced cardiovascular risk in a low-risk population with stable coronary heart disease and no apparent heart failure. Methods We recruited patients from October, 1997, to June, 2000. 13 655 patients were registered with previous myocardial infarction (64%), angiographic evidence of coronary artery disease (61%), coronary revascularisation (55%), or a positive stress test only (5%). After a run-in period of 4 weeks, in which all patients received perindopril, 12 218 patients were randomly assigned perindopril 8 mg once daily (n=6110), or matching placebo (n=6108). The mean follow-up was 4.2 years, and the primary endpoint was cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or cardiac arrest. Analysis was by intention to treat...

Recent comprehensive data provided through the DAISIE project (www.europe-aliens.org) have facilitated the development of the first pan-European assessment of the impacts of alien plants, vertebrates, and invertebrates – in terrestrial, freshwater, and marine environments – on ecosystem services. There are 1094 species with documented ecological impacts and 1347 with economic impacts. The two taxonomic groups with the most species causing impacts are terrestrial invertebrates and terrestrial plants. The North Sea is the maritime region that suffers the most impacts. Across taxa and regions, ecological and economic impacts are highly correlated. Terrestrial invertebrates create greater economic impacts than ecological impacts, while the reverse is true for terrestrial plants. Alien species from all taxonomic groups affect “supporting”, “provisioning”, “regulating”, and “cultural” services and interfere with human well-being. Terrestrial vertebrates are responsible for the greatest range of impacts, and these are widely distributed across Europe. Here, we present a review of the financial costs, as the first step toward calculating an estimate of the economic consequences of alien species in Europe.

1 Pathways describe the processes that result in the introduction of alien species from one location to another. A framework is proposed to facilitate the comparative analysis of invasion pathways by a wide range of taxa in both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Comparisons with a range of data helped identify existing gaps in current knowledge of pathways and highlight the limitations of existing legislation to manage introductions of alien species. The scheme aims for universality but uses the European Union as a case study for the regulatory perspectives. 2 Alien species may arrive and enter a new region through three broad mechanisms: importation of a commodity, arrival of a transport vector, and/or natural spread from a neighbouring region where the species is itself alien. These three mechanisms result in six principal pathways: release, escape, contaminant, stowaway, corridor and unaided. 3 Alien species transported as commodities may be introduced as a deliberate release or as an escape from captivity. Many species are not intentionally transported but arrive as a contaminant of a commodity, for example pathogens and pests. Stowaways are directly associated with human transport but arrive independently of a specific commodity, for example organisms transported in ballast water, cargo and airfreight. The corridor pathway highlights the role transport infrastructures play in the introduction of alien species. The unaided pathway describes situations where natural spread results in alien species arriving into a new region from a donor region where it is also alien. 4 Vertebrate pathways tend to be characterized as deliberate releases, invertebrates as contaminants and plants as escapes. Pathogenic micro-organisms and fungi are generally introduced as contaminants of their hosts. The corridor and unaided pathways are often ignored in pathway assessments but warrant further detailed consideration. 5 Synthesis and applications. Intentional releases and escapes should be straightforward to monitor and regulate but, in practice, developing legislation has proved difficult. New introductions continue to occur through contaminant, stowaway, corridor and unaided pathways. These pathways represent special challenges for management and legislation. The present framework should enable these trends to be monitored more clearly and hopefully lead to the development of appropriate regulations or codes of practice to stem the number of future introductions.

The accelerating rates of international trade, travel, and transport in the latter half of the twentieth century have led to the progressive mixing of biota from across the world and the number of species introduced to new regions continues to increase. The importance of biogeographic, climatic, economic, and demographic factors as drivers of this trend is increasingly being realized but as yet there is no consensus regarding their relative importance. Whereas little may be done to mitigate the effects of geography and climate on invasions, a wider range of options may exist to moderate the impacts of economic and demographic drivers. Here we use the most recent data available from Europe to partition between macroecological, economic, and demographic variables the variation in alien species richness of bryophytes, fungi, vascular plants, terrestrial insects, aquatic invertebrates, fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. Only national wealth and human population density were statistically significant predictors in the majority of models when analyzed jointly with climate, geography, and land cover. The economic and demographic variables reflect the intensity of human activities and integrate the effect of factors that directly determine the outcome of invasion such as propagule pressure, pathways of introduction, eutrophication, and the intensity of anthropogenic disturbance. The strong influence of economic and demographic variables on the levels of invasion by alien species demonstrates that future solutions to the problem of biological invasions at a national scale lie in mitigating the negative environmental consequences of human activities that generate wealth and by promoting more sustainable population growth.