Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Social Isolation and Spousal Violence: Comparing Female Marriage Migrants with Local Women.

This research examined the impact of network participation, social support, and social control on the violence victimization of female marriage migrants by a spouse. Data were from a household survey of 492 cross-border and 379 local married couples in Hong Kong in 2007. The findings indicated that female marriage migrants were more vulnerable to spousal violence and more socially isolated, compared with local women. Husbands of marriage migrants were also more socially isolated compared with men who married locally. The network participation of both husband and wife was associated positively with spousal violence against women, whereas their perceived social control was associated negatively with violence. Female marriage migrants' greater vulnerability to spousal physical assault was a result of their younger age compared with local women, but their greater vulnerability to spousal psychological aggression and sexual coercion was related, in part, to their own and their husbands' network participation as well as their level of social control.
Integrative Neuroscience Review Article Neuronal Extracellular Signal-regulated Kinase (erk) Activity as Marker and Mediator of Alcohol and Opioid Dependence

Early pioneering work in the field of biochemistry identified phosphorylation as a crucial post-translational modification of proteins with the ability to both indicate and arbitrate complex physiological processes. More recent investigations have functionally linked phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) to a variety of neurophysiological mechanisms ranging from acute neurotransmitter action to long-term gene expression. ERK phosphorylation serves as an intracellular bridging mechanism that facilitates neuronal communication and plasticity. Drugs of abuse, including alcohol and opioids, act as artificial yet powerful rewards that impinge upon natural reinforcement processes critical for survival. The graded progression from initial exposure to addiction (or substance dependence) is believed to result from drug-and drug context-induced adaptations in neuronal signaling processes across brain reward and stress circuits following excessive drug use. In this regard, commonly abused drugs as well as drug-associated experiences are capable of modifying the phosphorylation of ERK within central reinforcement systems. In addition, chronic drug and alcohol exposure may drive ERK-regulated epigenetic and structural alterations that underlie a long-term propensity for escalating drug use. Under the influence of such a neurobiological vulnerability, encountering drug-associated cues and contexts can produce subsequent alterations in ERK signaling that drive relapse to drug and alcohol seeking. Current studies are determining precisely which molecular and regional ERK phosphorylation-associated events contribute to the addiction process, as well as which neuroadaptations need to be targeted in order to return dependent individuals to a healthy state.
Between ‘class project’ and individualization: The stratification of Europeans’ transnational activities

In sociological transnationalization research, it is conventional wisdom that the upper strata are more involved in cross-border activities than the lower ones. However, proponents of the individualization/death-of-class thesis have argued that the significance of class (and of inequalities in general) for people’s actions is declining in affluent societies. Using these theories as a point of departure, this article investigates the influence of class and inequalities, more generally, on transnational activity. Using Eurobarometer 73.3 data from 27 European countries, this article examines (a) the extent to which class determines, by itself, in conjunction with other inequalities, and relative to heterogeneities, transnational practices within countries; and (b) how much the social gradient of transnational activity produced by class and inequalities varies across countries, and whether socioeconomic development tends to decrease or increase this gradient. The findings show that, in most countries, heterogeneities explain more variance in transnational activity than class, but not more variance than inequalities as more generally conceived. Further, social gradients in transnational activity are systematically larger in more affluent European countries.
Stress in teaching and teacher effectiveness: a study of teachers across mainstream and special education

Summary This study is based on an interactive model of stress, examining the contribution of personal, organizational and wider social factors to experiences of stress and the limits this places on the effectiveness of the teacher and of the school. The data collected was based on a questionnaire survey, a series of interviews with individual teachers and case studies of three schools over the course of an academic year.
The Experience of Living with Violence for Preadolescent Children of Battered Women

Based on in-depth interviews with preadolescents and their mothers, a detailed description is provided of the experience of children who were exposed to violence at home. Findings are organized into five semichronological phases: (a) living with ordinary fights, (b) witnessing violent events, (c) being challenged by mothers' public confrontations of the violence, (d) adjusting to new realities in the long-term aftermath of violence, and (e) living with violence as a history. Discussion centers on the meanings of secret, witnessing, and exposure. Results indicate potential directions for understanding, studying, and intervening with children exposed to women-battering.
GENERALIZATION OF MERE EXPOSURE EFFECTS TO AVERAGED COMPOSITE FACES

Abstract Exposure increases positive affective responses to stimuli (the mere exposure effect). In nonsocial stimuli, this increased positive affect can generalize to a prototype or average of those stimuli. We investigated whether increased positive affect for previously seen faces generalizes to averaged composites of those faces. In two experiments, exposure to individual faces increased liking ratings of averaged composites (not seen previously) of those faces, in addition to the faces themselves. Attractiveness ratings of averaged composites also increased after exposure to component faces in Experiment 1 but not in Experiment 2. These results raised the possibility that a generalized mere exposure affect contributes to the appeal of average faces, although the evidence was stronger for generalization of liking than attractiveness.
Physical Limitation and Anger

Is there a relationship between physical limitation and anger proneness? And, if so, is this relationship conditioned by associated differences in stress exposure and the availability of psychosocial coping resources? We explore these questions using data from a two-wave panel study including a representative sample of persons with and without physical limitations (N = 1,473). Results of longitudinal change analysis demonstrate that physical limitation is associated with an increased tendency to both experience and express anger. Findings also reveal that this association is largely accounted for by variations in the experience of discrimination and differences in the psychosocial coping resources of mastery and self-esteem
Investigative Interviewers' Perceptions of Their Difficulty in Adhering to Open-Ended Questions with Child Witnesses

Best practice guidelines for conducting investigative interviews of children emphasise the importance of obtaining free narrative accounts with the use of open-ended questions. However, research indicates that most investigative interviewers underutilise open-ended questions, even following intensive training in their use. The aim of the current study was to explore investigative interviewers' perceptions of their difficulty in asking open-ended questions. During a training course on how to use open-ended questions, eight child abuse investigators were individually interviewed about why they had asked specific questions in a 10-minute mock interview conducted immediately earlier with a school child. Overall, three reasons were identified. These related to: 1. the specificity of the information required from children; 2. the unfamiliar nature of the open-ended discourse style; and 3. the complex distinction between open-ended versus specific questions. Each of these themes is discussed, along with the implications for trainers and researchers in child investigative interviewing.
Salivary gland protection by amifostine in high-dose radioiodine treatment: results of a double-blind placebo-controlled study.

PURPOSE Salivary gland impairment is a well-recognized side effect following high-dose radioiodine treatment (HD-RIT). Since differentiated thyroid cancer has a good prognosis, reduction of long-term side effects is important. Therefore, the effect of amifostine was studied in HD-RIT. PATIENTS AND METHODS Parenchymal function was assessed by quantitative salivary gland scintigraphy performed prospectively in 50 patients with differentiated thyroid cancer before and 3 months after HD-RIT with either 3 GBq iodine ((131)I) (n=21) or 6 GBq (131)I (n=29) in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Twenty-five patients were treated with 500 mg/m2 amifostine intravenously before HD-RIT and 25 patients served as controls, who received physiologic saline solution. Xerostomia was graded according to World Health Organization (WHO) criteria. RESULTS Before HD-RIT in 25 control patients, uptake of technetium-99m (99mTc)-pertechnetate was 0.45%+/-0.16% and 0.42%+/-0.16% in parotid and submandibular glands, respectively. Three months after HD-RIT, parenchymal function was significantly (P < .001) reduced by 40.2%+/-14.1% and 39.9%+/-15.3% in parotid and submandibular glands, respectively. Nine control patients developed grade I and two grade II xerostomia. In 25 amifostine-treated patients, uptake of 99mTc-pertechnetate was 0.46%+/-0.16% and 0.43%+/-0.17% in parotid and submandibular glands, respectively. Three months after HD-RIT, parenchymal function of salivary glands was not significantly altered (P=.691) and xerostomia did not occur in any of these patients. CONCLUSION Parenchymal damage in salivary glands caused by HD-RIT can significantly be reduced by amifostine, which may improve the quality of life of patients with differentiated thyroid cancer.
Comparing Varve Counting And 14C-Ams Chronologies In The Sediments Of Lake Żabińskie, Northeastern Poland: Implications For Accurate 14C Dating Of Lake Sediments

Abstract Varved lake sediments from Lake Zabihskie (northeastern Poland) provide a high- resolution calendar-year chronology which allows validation of 14C dating results. Microscopic analysis of the varve microfacies revealed that laminations found in Lake Zabihskie were biogenic (calcite) varves. Three independent counts indicated a good preservation quality of laminae in the 348 cm long sediment profile which contained 1000+12/-24 varves. The varve chronology was validated with the 137Cs activity peaks, the tephra horizon from the Askja eruption at AD 1875 and with the timing of major land-use changes of known age inferred from pollen analysis. 32 AMS 14C dates of terrestrial macrofossils distributed along the profile were compared with the varve chronology. After identification of outliers, the free-shape model performed with 21 14C dates provided the best possible fit with the varve chronology. We observed almost ideal consistency between both chronologies from the present until AD 1250 while in the lower part (AD 1000-1250) the difference increases to ca. 25 years. We demonstrate that this offset can be explained by too old radiocarbon ages of plant remains transported to the lake by the inflowing creek. Results of this study highlight that careful interpretation of radiocarbon age-depth models is necessary, especially in lakes where no annual laminations are observed and no independent method are used for cross-validation.
Spatially Coupled Split-Component Codes With Iterative Algebraic Decoding

We analyze a class of high performance, low decoding-data-flow error-correcting codes suitable for high bit-rate optical-fiber communication systems. A spatially coupled split-component ensemble is defined, generalizing from the most important codes of this class, staircase codes and braided block codes, and preserving a deterministic partitioning of component-code bits over code blocks. Our analysis focuses on low-complexity iterative algebraic decoding, which, for the binary erasure channel, is equivalent to a generalization of the peeling decoder. Using the differential equation method, we derive a vector recursion that tracks the expected residual graph evolution throughout the decoding process. The threshold of the recursion, for asymptotically long component codes, is found using potential function analysis. We generalize the analysis to mixture ensembles consisting of more than one type of component code. We give an example of a mixture ensemble consisting of two component codes, which has better performance than spatially-coupled split-component ensembles consisting of only one component code. The analysis extends to the binary symmetric channel by assuming miscorrection-free component-code decoding. Simple upper bounds on the number of errors correctable by the ensemble are derived. Finally, we analyze the threshold of spatially coupled split-component ensembles under beyond bounded-distance component decoding.
In-Place Sketching for content authoring in Augmented Reality games

Sketching leverages human skills for various purposes. In-Place Augmented Reality Sketching experiences build on the intuitiveness and flexibility of hand sketching for tasks like content creation. In this paper we explore the design space of In-Place Augmented Reality Sketching, with particular attention to content authoring in games. We propose a contextual model that offers a framework for the exploration of this design space by the research community. We describe a sketch-based AR racing game we developed to demonstrate the proposed model. The game is developed on top of our shape recognition and 3D registration library for mobile AR.
Blended Delivery Strategies for Competency-Based Training

With employees located across a wide geographical area, the ability of organizations to provide equitable training programs is costly. Travel funds, enabling employees to attend on-site training events, can be severely limited or even nonexistent. Compounding the problem is the simple fact that travel to a central training location frequently results in longer workdays for employees, causing increased compensation expenses to cover the training associated over time. These factors, coupled with the organizational need to provide just-in-time or skill-based training can impose challenges for the human resource development practitioner. Thus, practitioners are turning to blended learning strategies as a way to overcome these obstacles. This solution, however, is not without its problems. This article describes blended learning within the context of learning theories and provides recommendations for best practice.
Transgenic poplar overexpressing the endogenous transcription factor ERF76 gene improves salinity tolerance.

The ethylene response factor (ERF) family is one of the largest plant-specific transcription factor families, playing an important role in plant development and response to stresses. The ERF76 gene is a member of the poplar ERF transcription factor gene family. First, we validated that the ERF76 gene expressed in leaf and root tissues is responsive to salinity stress. We then successfully cloned the ERF76 cDNA fragment containing an open reading frame from di-haploid Populus simonii × Populus nigra and proved that ERF76 protein is targeted to the nucleus. Finally, we transferred the gene into the same poplar clone by the Agrobacterium-mediated leaf disc method. Using both RNA-Seq and reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction, we validated that expression level of ERF76 is significantly higher in transgenic plants than that in the nontransgenic control. Using RNA-Seq data, we have identified 375 genes that are differentially expressed between the transgenic plants and the control under salt treatment. Among the differentially expressed genes, 16 are transcription factor genes and 45 are stress-related genes, both of which are upregulated significantly in transgenic plants, compared with the control. Under salt stress, the transgenic plants showed significant increases in plant height, root length, fresh weight, and abscisic acid (ABA) and gibberellin (GA) concentration compared with the control, suggesting that overexpression of ERF76 in transgenic poplar upregulated the expression of stress-related genes and increased the ability of ABA and GA biosynthesis, which resulted in stronger tolerance to salt stress.
The role of reentrant processes in feature binding: Evidence from neuropsychology and TMS on late onset illusory conjunctions

We report data on illusory conjunctions (ICs) in a colour/letter identification task from a patient with simultanagnosia following bilateral parietal lesions and from a study using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) with normal participants. We show that, even though target conjunctions were reported well above chance across a range of exposure durations, ICs were only generated at longer display exposures while feature errors decreased across time. With normal participants we found that TMS to the right posterior parietal cortex but not to occipital cortex increased the number of ICs. Moreover, ICs tended to occur after delayed stimulation, with the critical time window for stimulation being later for ICs than for feature errors. The data provide support for the critical role of posterior parietal cortex in a late process of feature binding.
The Implicit Motives of Terrorist Groups: How the Needs for Affiliation and Power Translate into Death and Destruction

This study explored the dynamics of terrorism through a quantitative content analysis of documents issued by terrorist groups and nonterrorist comparison groups. Thirteen terrorist groups were matched with comparison groups that shared the same ideologies, and their documents were coded for ingroup affiliation, outgroup affiliation, and power motive imagery. As hypothesized, compared with nonterrorist groups, terrorist groups were significantly higher in ingroup affiliation motive imagery and significantly lower in outgroup affiliation motive imagery in the full sample of documents and in an indicator sample that included only terrorist groups' preterrorism documents. Terrorist groups were significantly higher than comparison groups in power motive imagery in the full sample and marginally significantly higher in power motive imagery in the indicator sample. These results highlight the important role that group dynamics play in terrorist groups.
Sensitivity of results to different data quality meta-data criteria in the sample selection of projects from the ISBSG dataset

Background: Most prediction models, e.g. effort estimation, require preprocessing of data. Some datasets, such as ISBSG, contain data quality meta-data which can be used to filter out low quality cases from the analysis. However, an agreement has not been reached yet between researchers about these data quality selection criteria. Aims: This paper aims to analyze the influence of data quality meta-data criteria in the number of selected projects, which can have influence in the models obtained. For this, a case study has been selected to gain a more complete understanding of what might be important to focus in future research. Method: Data quality meta-data selection criteria of some works based on ISBSG dataset which propose prediction models were reviewed first. Considerable attention has been paid to two data quality meta-data variables in ISBSG dataset Release 11 which are Data Quality Rating and Unadjusted Function Point Rating. Secondly, this paper considers data from 830 projects which have been collected from the ISBSG dataset after a preliminary screening. This first screening leads mainly to a subset of projects with comparable definitions in size and effort. Then data quality meta-data criteria are applied in order to infer their influence. Results: Overall, it seems that data selection criteria, regardless data quality meta-data concerns, involve an important reduction in sample size. From 5052 projects, only 830 are really considered. Then 262 projects remain for analysis if the maximum quality rate is applied for both data quality meta-data variables. But, since the initial data preparation focuses the problem of missingness for a certain purpose, data quality criteria seem not to be the clue for the analysis results. However, some variability has been observed. Conclusions: Whilst this analysis is supported by a case study, it is hoped that it contributes to a better understanding of the subject. In fact, results found suggest that in those studies where the selection criteria of projects are not very strictly applied, these data quality criteria must be carefully taken into account.
Language Awareness in language learning and teaching: A research agenda

Following on from my state-of-the-art article on Language Awareness and language learning (Svalberg 2007), in this paper I will discuss specific research tasks which are centrally concerned with different aspects of language awareness (LA): ‘explicit knowledge about language, and conscious perception and sensitivity in language learning, language teaching and language use’. The overall argument is that research is needed into how LA is constructed by language learners and teachers through engagement with language (Svalberg 2007; 2009). I will sometimes refer specifically to awareness of grammar (form-meaning) but hope the paper will stimulate ideas for research into other LA aspects of language learning and teaching. The absence of other issues and areas (such as LA and multilingualism, intercultural LA, critical LA, LA and language policy) is a function of the personal nature of the paper and the limitations of space.
Narrating the good life – children in shelters for abused women talk about the future

The aim of this article is to study children living with their mothers in shelters for abused women and their narratives about the future. Voices of five children and adolescents (11–17 years old) and their hopes and concerns about the future are analyzed using narrative analysis. The analysis shows that the children narrate ‘the good life’, which can be understood as narrating ‘ordinary life’, for example, everyday life with school, a safe home and friends. The article proposes that ‘the good life narrative’ is part of a master narrative at the shelter. Although the children do not narrate past events, their stories are positioned against their lives both prior to and during their shelter stay. These narratives can be understood as narratives of solutions and, as such, provide important knowledge about children living in shelters for abused women and their hopes for the future.