Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Educational Effectiveness of an HIV Pretest Video for Adolescents: A Randomized Controlled Trial

OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study was to compare the effectiveness of a youth-friendly HIV video with in-person counseling in conveying HIV knowledge and obtaining consent for HIV testing among adolescent patients of an urban emergency department. METHODS: A 2-armed, randomized controlled trial was conducted on a convenience sample of 200 stable, sexually active people aged 15 to 21 years in an urban emergency department. Participants in both the in-person counseling group and the video intervention group completed preintervention and postintervention HIV knowledge measures. HIV knowledge was the primary outcome measure, and consent for HIV testing was the secondary outcome. Characteristics associated with voluntary HIV testing were identified. RESULTS: Of 333 eligible people, 200 agreed to participate. There was no difference in preintervention HIV knowledge scores between groups. Mean postintervention knowledge scores differed significantly between the video (78.5% correct) and the counselor (66.3% correct) (P < 0.01) groups. Overall, 51% of the video group accepted HIV testing compared with 22% in the control group (P < .01). Watching the video (OR: 3.6 [95% CI: 1.8–7.2]), being female (OR: 2.1 [95% CI: 1.0–4.2]), engaging in oral sex (OR: 2.8 [95% CI: 1.4–5.9]), and being older than 18 years (OR: 3.8 [95% CI: 1.8–7.8]) were all positively associated with testing. CONCLUSIONS: A youth-friendly HIV educational video improved adolescents' HIV knowledge and increased their participation in HIV testing more than in-person counseling. video-based HIV counseling can perform as well or better than in-person counseling for adolescents in the ED.
Effect of the COVID-19 Epidemic on Body Mass Index: Findings from a Large Survey during Wuhan Lockdown

This study aimed to explore the effect of the Wuhan lockdown on body mass index (BMI) among Wuhan residents as well as factors including food habits affected and changes in physical activity mediating the association. As a survey of the Wuhan lockdown, a random digit dialing method was used to sample residents aged 18 years and older. A computer-aided telephone interview was applied to survey 11,223 residents in Wuhan City in July 2020. Ordinary least squares (OLS) regression and mediation analysis were used to analyze the influence of the Wuhan lockdown on BMI. Demographic characteristics, lifestyle characteristics, and health status differed statistically significantly between residents living in and those who left Wuhan during the lockdown (mean BMI, 23.05 ± 0.04 kg/m2 and 22.34 ± 0.06 kg/m2, respectively). The mean BMI among residents living in Wuhan was 0.42 kg/m2 higher ( P < 0.001) than that of residents who left Wuhan during the lockdown, as determined by multivariate OLS regression analysis. Residents living in Wuhan during the lockdown had higher BMI among those aged 18–29 and 30–44 years ( P < 0.001), with no difference among those aged 45+ years. The association between living in Wuhan and increased BMI was the strongest among residents who were overweight/obese. The mediation analysis results showed an indirect effect path with living in Wuhan (through decreased physical activity and increasing BMI) and the direct effect of living in Wuhan during the lockdown. The lack of association between living in Wuhan and increased BMI among residents aged 45+ years was due to the indirect influence of living in Wuhan affecting food habits. The findings indicated that the lockdown in Wuhan city increased residents’ BMI, especially among those who were young or overweight/obese, partly because of decreased physical activity.
The Social Construction of Grievance and Everyday Responses to Violent Conflict: Insights from the Maoist Conflict in West Bengal, India

ABSTRACT While in the civil wars literature grievance is often considered as a cause of violent conflict, this paper investigates how grievances are meaningful to the people who experience violence, and how these meanings are expressed in everyday actions. Through the case of the Maoist conflict in India, in this paper I explore how grievance is socially constructed and related to action according to local people’s own narratives. This study reveals that perceptions of grievance are related not only to violent actions, but also to everyday strategies to resist violence and achieve durable peace and social change at the local level.
The Ultra Lord of the Ukraine Special Operations’ Agricultural Division: How memetic artifacts provides a foundation for the historical archiving of conflicts

Abstract This case study examines how social media accounts use memes and on-the-ground content to create a “real-time” and historical record of the events happening in Ukraine during the 2022 invasion of their country by Russian forces and their allies. Artifacts from the Ukrainian Memes Forces’ Twitter account (among others) provides the memetic artifacts of examination. The grounding of this case study is based on Stuart Hall’s “Readings” to assess how audiences would interpret these messages the memetic artifacts via Twitter and TikTok and using an analysis of the layers within the memes that pro-Russian and pro-Ukrainian content creators are producing. The general theme is that pro-Russian content creators are focusing their content on an internal audience under a theme of nationalistic pride, while pro-Ukraine content creators are focusing their content on external audiences under the themes of satire of Russian propaganda and global awareness of the war.
LEARNING FROM URBAN FORESTRY PROGRAMMES IN SOUTH EAST ASIA

Summary Three examples of urban forestry programmes in Hong Kong, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur have been discussed in previous issues of the journal as part of a Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) study into urban forestry. They provide a number of lessons which may help other cities to promote an urban forestry programme and which may have contributed to the success of the urban forestry initiatives carried out in these cities. These lessons include the validity of urban forestry as a concept, the importance of a ‘city greening’ initiative at the highest level of government and which is supported by effective policy, the necessity of coordination among the departments concerned, the benefits of public participation and the need to clearly identify the benefits of the urban forest, and the implications of exactly who might benefit from the urban forest. These, and other issues, are discussed below.
Comparative risk of self-harm hospitalization amongst depressive disorder patients using different antidepressants: a population-based cohort study in Taiwan

Background The aim of the study was to evaluate the comparative risk of self-harm associated with the use of different antidepressants. Method A cohort study was conducted using data from Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database from 2001 to 2012. A total of 751 606 new antidepressant users with depressive disorders were included. The study outcome was hospitalization due to self-harm (International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification codes: E950–E958 and E980–E988). Cox proportional hazards models with stratification of the propensity score deciles were used to estimate the hazard ratios of self-harm hospitalization during the first year following the initiation of antidepressant treatment. Results There were 1038 hospitalization episodes due to self-harm that occurred during the follow-up of 149 796 person-years, with an overall incidence rate of 6.9 [95% confidence interval (CI) 6.5–7.4] per 1000. Compared with fluoxetine, the risk of self-harm hospitalization was higher for maprotiline [adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) = 3.00, 95% CI 1.40–6.45], milnacipran (aHR = 2.34, 95% CI 1.24–4.43) and mirtazapine (aHR = 1.40, 95% CI 1.06–1.86), lower for bupropion (aHR = 0.51, 95% CI 0.30–0.86), and similar level of risk was found for other selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (citalopram, escitalopram, fluvoxamine, paroxetine and sertraline). Conclusions The risk of self-harm may vary across different antidepressant drugs. It would be of importance to conduct further research to investigate the influence of antidepressant use on self-harm behaviors.
Ground Motion Characterization for the BC Hydro SSHAC Level 3 Study

The seismic source characterization (SSC) team identified active crustal, stable continental, volcanic and subduction zone (interface and intraplate) sources in the study region which included British Columbia, western Alberta, parts of the Yukon and northwestern USA. The objective of the ground motion characterization (GMC) team was to use the SSHAC Level 3 guidelines to evaluate ground motion prediction equations (GMPE) and develop associated logic trees for computing site specific seismic ground motions (horizontal and vertical) resulting from earthquakes generated by the identified sources. Additionally the computed ground motions, which were based on a reference ground condition with a Vs30 (average shear wave velocity in the upper 30 m) = 760 m/s, were to be subsequently adjusted for the site-specific hard rock conditions at the various dam sites. Associated with each of the recommended GMPEs, the GMC team also included a tradiational aleatory sigma model and a single-station sigma model for use in the PSHA study. For sources in the active crustal region (ACR), the 2008 NGA GMPEs were evaluated and four of the five models were recommended for inclusion in the logic tree. The GMC team evaluated several GMPEs for stable continental regions and selected a set of four models comprising a finite fault stochastic, single corner variable stress drop point source, hybrid empirical and a reference empirical model. Three of the four SCR models were based on a reference Vs30 of 2800 m/s and adjustment factors were developed to scale the computed ground motion to the reference Vs30 of760 m/s. The existing subduction zone GMPEs were found to yield significantly different results and a new model was developed. This new model was based on the datasets used in previous published models with a significant addition of global subduction zone earthquake data from Japan and Taiwan. This new model is applicable for both shallow interface and deeper intraslab events and contains a non-linear site response model defined as a function of Vs30 and a PGA value for Vs30=1100 m/s. Following the development of the subduction model, two large interface earthquakes (2010 Maule Chile M8.8 and 2011 Tohoku Japan M9.0) occurred. Based on an analysis of residuals of the data from these two earthquakes, an adjustment to the magnitude scaling of the subduction GMPE was made for better consistency with the empirical data. Due to a general lack of GMPEs for volcanic regions, ground motion models for active crustal sources were used in lieu inspite of the differences between the two tectonic regimes. This paper is a summary of the SSHAC Level 3 process used to evaluate and develop ground motion models that captured the center, body and range of the informed technical community.
Efficacy of a theory-based abstinence-only intervention over 24 months: a randomized controlled trial with young adolescents.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the efficacy of an abstinence-only intervention in preventing sexual involvement in young adolescents. DESIGN Randomized controlled trial. SETTING Urban public schools. PARTICIPANTS A total of 662 African American students in grades 6 and 7. INTERVENTIONS An 8-hour abstinence-only intervention targeted reduced sexual intercourse; an 8-hour safer sex-only intervention targeted increased condom use; 8-hour and 12-hour comprehensive interventions targeted sexual intercourse and condom use; and an 8-hour health-promotion control intervention targeted health issues unrelated to sexual behavior. Participants also were randomized to receive or not receive an intervention maintenance program to extend intervention efficacy. OUTCOME MEASURES The primary outcome was self-report of ever having sexual intercourse by the 24-month follow-up. Secondary outcomes were other sexual behaviors. RESULTS The participants' mean age was 12.2 years; 53.5% were girls; and 84.4% were still enrolled at 24 months. Abstinence-only intervention reduced sexual initiation (risk ratio [RR], 0.67; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.48-0.96). The model-estimated probability of ever having sexual intercourse by the 24-month follow-up was 33.5% in the abstinence-only intervention and 48.5% in the control group. Fewer abstinence-only intervention participants (20.6%) than control participants (29.0%) reported having coitus in the previous 3 months during the follow-up period (RR, 0.94; 95% CI, 0.90-0.99). Abstinence-only intervention did not affect condom use. The 8-hour (RR, 0.96; 95% CI, 0.92-1.00) and 12-hour comprehensive (RR, 0.95; 95% CI, 0.91-0.99) interventions reduced reports of having multiple partners compared with the control group. No other differences between interventions and controls were significant. CONCLUSION Theory-based abstinence-only interventions may have an important role in preventing adolescent sexual involvement. TRIAL REGISTRATION clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00640653.
Making Space for the Maid

Chinese television dramas over the past decades have seen the rise and decline of various narratives, but no other narratives speak to the emerging urban middle class's fear and anxiety more palpably than the stories of the maid. However, despite the growing popularity of the maid stories among urban viewers, most of these stories do not resonate with domestic workers themselves. How do we make sense of the growing popularity of the maid stories among urban viewers? And how do we account for the differentiated capacity to resonate and identify with the characters among viewers? These are important questions to consider if one is to understand the new cultural politics of power and social formations in post-Mao China. In this paper, I explore some of the crucial ways in which a controlling gaze is facilitated and naturalised by the visualisation of place and space in these dramas. Then, through both critical analyses and engaged ethnography, I demonstrate how two sets of controlling gaze—everyday and televisual—reinforce and justify each other. Finally, I advance the concept of “peripheral vision,” which, I show, denies the modernist “master” narrative of the city and, instead, empowers the subaltern figure with an epistemological position of “eye-witness” and anthropologist of the city.
“The Beginning of a World Empire”? Contesting the Discourse of Chinese Copper Mining in Zambia

A discourse fostered by Western politicians and media of Chinese copper mining in Zambia has been central to global discussions of China-in-Africa since the mid-2000s. Based in the West’s putative strategic rivalry with China, the discourse also invokes racial stereotypes about Chinese cruelty and disregard for human life. Focusing on Human Rights Watch’s 2011 attempt to prove China’s firms to be Zambian copper mining’s “worst employers,” we show that the discourse is highly inaccurate: methodological mistakes compound elementary empirical errors, even as the politics of the discourse serve up a synecdoche for the global rise of a monolithic China.
Construction of discursive illusions in the ‘Umbrella Movement’

Using the Umbrella Movement in Hong Kong as an example, this article explores the construction of discursive illusions in the South China Morning Post’s (SCMP) coverage of the event under discussion. More specifically, the article investigates how a multi-perspective analytical approach, namely that of the discourse of illusion, can allow a closer look at how and to what extent abstract constructs with significant social implications are discursively formed. In this respect, the framework draws on three interrelated components: historicity (habitus as key to the creation of discursive illusions, dealing as it does with the growth and change of perceptions over time), linguistic and semiotic action (subjective conceptualisations of the world give rise to certain linguistic and semiotic actions, often through metaphorical and dominant rhetoric) and the degree of social impact (as language and actions of individuals and groups engender many categories and stereotypes). The analysis reveals the use of various linguistic and rhetorical tools, including insinuation, temporal referencing, metaphor, recontextualisation and (re)framing by the SCMP, the most prominent English newspaper in Hong Kong, in its creation of multiple identity categories.
Autonomy in the Southern Borderland of Nepal: A Formula for Security or Cause of Conflict?

Abstract Autonomous movements in southern Nepal have added a new layer of conflict to a volatile political situation. The Maoist armed uprising and pro-democracy movement that abolished the monarchy and initiated a republic unleashed sub-national aspirations for autonomy in the southern borderland region of Nepal. In this article, Madhesi autonomous sentiment in Nepal's southern borderland region is explored within the context of ethno-federalist concepts of the role of core ethnic identities and state stability as articulated by Hale and others. This inquiry is undertaken against the backdrop of Nepal's Constituent Assembly's (CA) failed efforts to draft a new constitution. Several key disagreements between the main political parties continue to be contentious and could undermine efforts to elect a new CA and restart efforts to draft a new constitution. Among the areas of contention are proposals to redraw internal political boundaries along ethnic lines and proposals to integrate proportional representation into Nepal's democratic system. Both of these proposals have significant implications for the power balance between the Madhesi of the Terai and the centre in Kathmandu. The article also explores post conflict concessions by the new democratic government and the role that they have played in both diffusing and exacerbating conflict in the Terai. The Terai borderland's role in Nepal's geopolitical position relative to India and China is also considered.
The Influence of Individualism Collectivism, Self-Monitoring, and Predicted-Outcome Value on Communication in Ingroup and Outgroup Relationships

This study examined the influence of individualism-collectivism on communication in ingroup and outgroup relationships. Differences were predicted in ingroup and outgroup communication in collectivistic cultures. It was also hypothesized that self-monitoring and predicted-outcome value (POV) of the relationships also affect communication processes in these relationships. Data were collected in Hong Kong and Japan (collectivistic) and in Australia and the United States (individualistic). Results supported the prediction regarding the influence of cultural variability on ingroup and outgroup communication, as well as those regarding the influence of self-monitoring and POV.
HIV/AIDS Knowledge and Sexual Behavior Among Junior Secondary School Students in South Africa

The aim of the study was to assess HIV/AIDS knowledge and sexual behaviour among jun- ior Secondary School students in South Africa using a cross-sectional survey design. The sample con- sisted of 3150 students, with 44.1% were male and 55.9% female students. Their mean age was 15.75 yrs (SD=1.61) ranging from 13 to 24 years chosen from 150 schools in South Africa. Results indicate that 46% of the 16 year-old males and 20% of the 15.5 year-old females had already been sexually ac- tive. At first sex 63.8% of the male and 78.7% of the female students indicated that they had used a condom, but almost half (44%) of those who had had sex before had not used a condom at last sex. One quarter of the students (25.6%) indicated that they had had sex with someone much older than them (above 30 yrs), which was significantly higher among female (31.2%) than male students (22.9%) and significantly higher among non-urban (28.4%) than urban (17.2%) students. Twenty- seven percent of the students reported that they had sex for the exchange of gifts. At an average age of 15.75 years the number of self-reported lifetime sex partners was for more than half of respondents, more than one partner. Further, the study found that knowledge of HIV/AIDS was poor in some areas and more satisfactory in other areas, but generally was not satisfactory enough to sustain adequate HIV/AIDS response in a context of high and widespread HIV/AIDS prevalence. Gender, tendency to use condoms and being sexually active had no significant relationship to levels of knowledge. HIV/AIDS knowledge was significantly higher in urban than in non-urban schools.
Ambivalent Versus Univalent Voters: Perceived Media Influences and Third-Person Perceptions

By differentiating “ambivalent” from “univalent” voters, this study argues that ambivalent voters need information to reach a decision, which implies they are more open to persuasion through media coverage than are univalent voters. In turn, they may infer that election coverage exerts a greater influence on them, resulting in smaller self–other perceptual discrepancies in terms of their coverage susceptibility. Conversely, univalent voters have made their voting choices early during the campaign; for them, only when the intended influence seems desirable does the perceived influence of campaign news on them increase, leading to a smaller self–other perceptual gap. In other words, ambivalent voters engage in motivated inferences to reduce their ambivalence-aroused discomfort, whereas univalent voters engage in motivated inferences to avoid dissonance. The results of a survey conducted during the official campaign for the 2012 Taiwanese presidential election support these predictions, demonstrating the utility of categorizing voters as ambivalent or univalent when examining the perceived effects of election campaign news.
Gender and Corruption

From a cultural approach and a feminist perspective, this article analyzes a gendered narrative of official corruption in China through news reports of “keeping a second wife. ” Moreover, it engages the lived experiences and perceptions of the message receivers. Drawing upon feminist discourse analysis, interviews, and digital ethnography, this study shows that a cultural script derived from the Chinese storytelling tradition of “women are a source of trouble” serves as a contemporary narrative of corruption in the state media. Nevertheless, the media narrative has generated a vigorous audience counternarrative, which disconnects the media linkage between “second wives” and corruption.