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  Resisting division along ethnic lines: a case study of two communities who challenged discourses of war during the Yugoslav conflict 1991-1995

  Abi-Ezzi, Karen; Whitman, Jim R.; Otmacic, Valentina

  There is a generalized perception on the 1991-1995 war in the former Yugoslavia as an ethnic conflict caused by longstanding antagonisms among homogenous ethnic groups inhabiting its territory. In such a worldview, which became part of the dominant discourse, inter-ethnic violence in Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina was inevitable and the division of the population along ethnic lines was needed to stop the violence. In this thesis I problematize the dominant discourse on the ethnic nature and inevitability of violence, as well as on the ethnic fracturing as a solution, by exposing the experiences of two largest communities that remained ethnically mixed and preserved communal peace throughout wartime – the community of the region of Gorski kotar in Croatia and the community of the city of Tuzla in Bosnia-Herzegovina. By documenting and analysing their discourses and practices, and by contrasting them with the dominant discourses of war in these two countries, I provide evidence that these two communities were oases of peace which developed a counter-discourse and resisted violence by preserving their multi-ethnic character, promoting multiple identities, cherishing inter-ethnic cooperation and ensuring equality and good governance for all their citizens. Their narratives challenge the well-established «truths» about the war in the former Yugoslavia and add to the complexity of collective memories of its peoples.
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  The ADR / CR Divide: An Autoethnographic Interrogation of its Impact on the Theory and Practice of Mediation

  Woodhouse, Thomas; Hughes, Caroline; Whitman, Jim R.; Phillips, Isabel A.

  There is a divide between the fields of Conflict Resolution (CR) and Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) that impacts on the transfer of knowledge and skills. This is the central hypothesis investigated and confirmed through analysis of the literatures of the two fields, the responses to a questionnaire to practitioners, and autoethnographic interrogation. A generational analysis of authors is combined with the results of a (N=28) questionnaire with practitioners from both fields. This delineates the divide in the theory and literature as well as how those operating in each field identify, conceptualise mediation and what they read. The autoethnography explores the fundamental impact of on conflict role definitions generally and the mediator specifically. It then looks at the impact of crossing the ADR/CR divide on mediation practice, highlighting the necessity for practitioners of a ‘both and’ approach to skills/ knowledge and attitude/qualities. This leads to the consideration of a framework for mediator competence across the ADR/CR divide. The interaction of the mediators’ normative project and the ability of parties to self-determine is explored practically and ethically. This highlights a range of issues with expectations mediation and mediators and foregrounds the impact on the mediator of the mediator role. It ends with a call for further research using innovative methodologies, such as autoethnography, that illuminate mediation as a relational process.
• A Runtime Safety Analysis Concept for Open Adaptive Systems

  Kabir, Sohag; Sorokos, I.; Aslansefat, K.; Papadopoulos, Y.; Gheraibia, Y.; Reich, J.; Saimler, M.; Wei, R. (2019)

  In the automotive industry, modern cyber-physical systems feature cooperation and autonomy. Such systems share information to enable collaborative functions, allowing dynamic component integration and architecture reconfiguration. Given the safety-critical nature of the applications involved, an approach for addressing safety in the context of reconfiguration impacting functional and non-functional properties at runtime is needed. In this paper, we introduce a concept for runtime safety analysis and decision input for open adaptive systems. We combine static safety analysis and evidence collected during operation to analyse, reason and provide online recommendations to minimize deviation from a system’s safe states. We illustrate our concept via an abstract vehicle platooning system use case.
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  Psoriasis activation of cells important in cardiovascular disease

  Bridgewood, Charles D.

  Psoriasis is an immune mediated inflammatory disease which affects 2-3% of the world’s population. Over the last decade, psoriasis has been acknowledged as an independent risk factor for atherosclerosis. The precise mechanism or mechanisms of the heightened risk is widely speculated. Endothelial cells and macrophages are central players in the immunopathological development of both diseases. Interleukin-36 cytokines (IL-36) have been heavily implicated in psoriasis immunopathology. Significant upregulation of epidermal IL-36 is a recognised characteristic of psoriatic skin inflammation. IL-36 induces inflammatory responses in dendritic cells, fibroblasts and epithelial cells. While vascular alterations are a hallmark of psoriatic lesions and dermal endothelial cells are well known to play a critical role in dermal inflammation, the effects of IL-36 on endothelial cells have not been defined. We report that endothelial cells including dermal microvascular cells express a functionally active IL-36 receptor. Adhesion molecules VCAM-1 and ICAM-1 are upregulated following IL-36γ stimulation, and this is reversed in the presence of the endogenous IL-36 receptor antagonist. IL-36γ-stimulated endothelial cells secrete the proinflammatory chemokines IL-8, CCL2 and CCL20. Chemotaxis assays showed increased migration of T-cells following IL-36γ stimulation of endothelial cells. Both resident and infiltrating inflammatory myeloid cells contribute to the immunopathology of psoriasis by promoting the IL-23/IL-17 axis. We show that IL-36γ induces the production of psoriasis-associated cytokines from macrophages (IL-23, TNFα) and that this response is enhanced in macrophages from psoriasis patients. This effect is specific for IL-36γ and could not be mimicked by other IL-1 family cytokines such as IL-1α. Furthermore, IL-36γ stimulated macrophages potently activated endothelial cells as illustrated by ICAM-1(CD54) upregulation, and led to increased adherence of monocytes, effects that were markedly more pronounced for psoriatic macrophages. Interestingly, regardless of stimulus, monocytes isolated from psoriasis patients showed increased adherence to both the stimulated and unstimulated endothelium when compared to monocytes from healthy individuals. Collectively, these findings add to the growing evidence for IL-36γ having roles in psoriatic responses, by enhancing endothelium directed leukocyte infiltration into the skin and strengthening the IL-23/IL-17 pathway. Our findings also point to a cellular response which could potentially support cardiovascular comorbidities in psoriasis.
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  From ‘fixed dose combinations’ to ‘a dynamic dose combiner’: 3D printed bi-layer antihypertensive tablets

  Sadia, M.; Isreb, Abdullah; Abbadi, I.; Isreb, Mohammad; Aziz, D.; Selo, A.; Timmins, P.; Alhnan, M.A. (2018-10)

  There is an increased evidence for treating hypertension by a combination of two or more drugs. Increasing the number of daily intake of tablets has been reported to negatively affect the compliance of patients. Therefore, numerous fixed dose combinations (FDCs) have been introduced to the market. However, the inherent rigid nature of FDCs does not allow the titration of the dose of each single component for an individual patient's needs. In this work, flexible dose combinations of two anti-hypertensive drugs in a single bilayer tablet with a range of doses were fabricated using dual fused deposition modelling (FDM) 3D printer. Enalapril maleate (EM) and hydrochlorothiazide (HCT) loaded filaments were produced via hot-melt extrusion (HME). Computer software was utilised to design sets of oval bi-layer tablets of individualised doses. Thermal analysis and x-ray diffractometer (XRD) indicated that HCT remained crystalline in the polymeric matrix whilst EM appeared to be in an amorphous form. The interaction between anionic EM and cationic methacrylate polymer may have contributed to a drop in the glass transition temperature (Tg) of the filament and obviated the need for a plasticiser. Across all tablet sets, the methacrylate polymeric matrix provided immediate drug release profiles. This dynamic dosing system maintained the advantages of FDCs while providing a superior flexibility of dosing range, hence offering an optimal clinical solution to hypertension therapy in a patient-centric healthcare service.

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