bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Investigation of Rater Effects Using Social Network Analysis and Exponential Random Graph Models
Authors: Lamprianou Iasonas
Published: February 2017

It is common practice for assessment programs to organize qualifying sessions during which the raters (often known as “markers” or “judges”) demonstrate their consistency before operational rating commences. Because of the high-stakes nature of many rating activities, the research community tends to continuously explore new methods to analyze rating data. We used simulated and empirical data from two high-stakes language assessments, to propose a new approach, based on social network analysis and exponential graph models, to evaluate the readiness of a group of raters for operational rating. The results of this innovative approach are compared with the results of a Rasch analysis, which is a well-established approach for the analysis of such data. We also demonstrate how the new approach can be practically used to investigate important research questions such as whether rater severity is stable across rating tasks. The merits of the new approach, and the consequences for practice are discussed.
Academics and practitioners: the challenge of collaboration an example from social work and social services in Israel
Authors: Lahat Lihi
Published: February 2017

Although the need to integrate research into the practice world has always been a desire of researchers and practitioners alike, recently there has been growing interest in this collaboration. While studies have explored various aspects of this connection, few have investigated the ‘black box’ of social relations between academics and practitioners. Based on a qualitative study, the current article examines how practitioners and academics perceive this connection. Using Foucault’s perspective and the causes typology of Stone, the findings reveal three meta themes: the descriptive, emotional and functional stories, and identify more nuanced features of the connection between academics and practitioners.

Points for practitioners

Managers should be aware that the connection between academics and practitioners involves functional, descriptive and emotional perceptions. Managers can diminish the relationship between power and knowledge by promoting formal mechanisms that acknowledge the common interests of academics and practitioners. Boundary spanners can be used to create more equal and productive relationships.
“I’ll explain what I can”: A conversation with Avaes Mohammad
Authors: Ahmed Rehana
Published: February 2017

Since the 2001 race riots in Bradford, Burnley, and Oldham and the terror attacks of 11 September 2001, British Muslims have been subjected to increased levels of suspicion and hostility. In particular, the spotlight has shone on working-class South Asian Muslim communities in the north of England, which have been accused of “self-segregation” and constructed as alienated from and posing a threat to “Britishness”. Racial divisions and tensions have been problematically blamed on the “failure” of multiculturalism; commentators from the left and right of the political spectrum have claimed multiculturalist practice and policies have encouraged too much diversity, thereby obstructing integration, while social factors such as poverty, disenfranchisement, racism, and “white flight” have been obscured or at best downplayed.1 As news stories of young British Muslim men joining extremist organizations at home or abroad continue to circulate, the communities’ male youth remain particularly susceptible to Islamophobic stereotyping and profiling. In this interview, performance poet and playwright Avaes Mohammad discusses the ways his work engages with this fraught political context. Our conversation begins by considering his experience of growing up in a racially divided northern English town in the 1980s and 1990s, before turning to the impact of the events of 2001 on his life and art. We discuss the role art can play in politics, and the part faith can play in art, before focusing on specific representations in his plays of young British Muslims held at Guantánamo Bay, divided working-class communities in the north of England, and young men — both Muslim and white — drawn to different kinds of extremism. Finally, we explore the racial and social exclusions of the creative arts, and the reception of Mohammad’s work.
Countermemories of desire: Female homosexuality, “coming out” narratives, and British multiculturalism in Shamim Sarif’s I Can’t Think Straight
Authors: Fernández Carbajal Alberto
Published: February 2017

This article examines Shamim Sarif’s novel I Can’t Think Straight (2008), with occasional reference to the film of the same title, and in light of intersecting issues of ethnicity, religion, and sexuality in multicultural Britain. It argues that Sarif’s narratives, which depict the burgeoning romantic relationship between a British woman of Muslim heritage and a Christian Arab woman with ethnic links to Palestine, challenge the Western stereotypes of Muslim and Arab women as submissive and of their male counterparts as uniformly patriarchal, which have become all the more prevalent since 9/11. It also examines the collusion in British and cosmopolitan contexts, as evidenced in Sarif’s texts, of religious and Western medical discourses about homosexuality that denounce it as a disease. The article assesses these qualms as cultural values more closely aligned to social status and religious practice than to strict religious dogma. It also surmises that, despite Sarif’s configuration of same-sex desire in relation to the Western cultural model of “coming out”, which is shown as potentially homonormative, and in spite of the limited vistas offered by her narrow class perspective, her deployment of queer bodies helps to forge a clandestine countermemory challenging the contemporary Islamist erasure of female homosexuality. The article demonstrates that Sarif’s queer narratives act as a welcome antidote to the routine omission of the dissident perspectives of non-normative women of Muslim and Arabic ethnic heritage in dominant LGBTIQ discourses in the West, as well as in contemporary debates about British multiculturalism.
Black Victorians, British television drama, and the 1978 adaptation of David Garnett’s The Sailor’s Return
Authors: Carroll Rachel
Published: February 2017

The under-representation of Black British history in British film and television drama has attracted significant public debate in recent years. In this context, this article revisits a critically overlooked British film adaptation featuring a woman of African origin as a protagonist in a drama set in Victorian England. The Sailor’s Return (1978), directed by Jack Gold, is an adaptation of a historical fiction written by David Garnett and first published in 1925. This article aims to situate the novel and its adaptation in three important contexts: set in rural Dorset in 1858, the narrative can be considered in the context of Victorian attitudes to people of African origin; written by a member of the Bloomsbury circle, the novel is informed by modernist perspectives on the legacies of the Victorian era; broadcast to a popular audience in the late 1970s, the film can be located in a politically progressive tradition of British television drama. Approached in this way, this multiply mediated cultural representation serves to generate insights into the treatment of racism in liberal left cultural production, from early twentieth century modernist milieus to the anti-racism of the British left in the 1970s. These contexts will inform close textual analysis of two motifs — the depiction of the countryside, and the role of costume — which have proved central to ongoing debates about racialized constructions of national identity in British historical film genres. This article will argue that the 1978 film adaptation of The Sailors Return presents a significant precedent when considering what Stephen Bourne has termed the “invisibility” of Black British history in British historical film.
Analytical and experimental study of high-velocity impact on ceramic/nanocomposite targets
Authors: Shanazari H , Liaghat GH , Feli S , Hadavinia H
Published: February 2017

In this paper, an analytical model has been developed for modeling high-velocity impact on ceramic/nanocomposite targets. In this model, the penetration resistance of the ceramic is determined based on the cavity expansion analysis. Also semi-angle of the ceramic conoid is modified. For modeling the back-up composite laminate, the kinetic and strain energy of yarns and shear plugging have been determined. Also the effect of nano-zirconia particles dispersed in the matrix of back-up composite, based on the ballistic performance of the ceramic/nanocomposite target, is investigated. Ballistic impact tests were performed to validate analytical predictions. Experimental results revealed an improvement in the ballistic performance of samples with nano-zirconia particles. The analytical predictions of ballistic limit velocity and residual velocity of projectile are found to be in good agreement with the experimental results.
The Christian Witness in an Emerging “other-Directed” Culture
Authors: Herberg Will
Published: February 2017

The problem of a Christian witness to changing America is the subject of Dr. Herberg's remarks. We are very conscious of the changes in our material life in the United States, but there are far more subtle and significant changes occurring in our ways of evaluating life, men, and events. The motives which drove our founding fathers are not our motives to the same degree. Dr. Herberg does not like some of the trends, and he feels that the Christian witness must come to grips with them. “Preachers are always too prone to preach yesterday's sermon to today's people.” Once more the Christian's answer lies in being at once in the world, and at the same time over against it.
A Franco-African Cross-Cultural Clash
Authors: Blaschke Robert C.
Published: February 2017

French colonial policy and Administrators' lack of knowledge of the prerequisites for leadership in the Sabu tribe of Central Africa led to a clash between clans. Mr. Blaschke, who knew of the bitterness which had been built up between the groups, found out what had led up to it and here tells the story. Most interesting of all is the way in which the puppet chief appointed by the administration sought to defy the traditions of his fathers and acquire the real chiefly power which was in the control of the land.
Minimizing Religious Syncretism among the Chols
Authors: Beekman John
Published: February 2017

Syncretism is the tendency for new culture patterns to be combined and intermingled with existing patterns when they are adopted into a society. In one sense syncretism is an inevitable characteristic of any profound culture change, because change does not take place in a vacuum, but is developed on, or out from, or in contrast to an existing way of life. In this article John Beekman discusses some of the dangers of syncretism where the resulting behavior is out of keeping with the gospel. He also discusses the “reorientation” of Chol values and practices in the light of the gospel. This reorientation places the gospel in a framework which seems relevant to the Chol people. In a sense it is a syncretism in which pertinent elements in Chol culture are used to point toward the gospel, or are selected for the way in which they highlight the gospel to the Chol mind. At the same time they avoid the kind of mixture which points essentially toward paganism rather than toward Christ.
My Contacts with Christians in Thailand
Authors: Tirabutana Prajuab
Published: February 2017

The narrative below is excerpted from a brief but most poignant autobiography, The Simple One: The Story of a Siamese Girlhood.1 The autobiography, written in connection with an English course, is largely unedited, idiom, choice of words, and even grammar having been left pretty much as Miss Tirabutana wrote it. The account of her girlhood, her instruction in her own culture, her feelings about her culture and her people, her increasing contacts with Westerners (including the missionaries mentioned below), her reflections on the inconsistencies within our culture and differences between hers and ours, all these elements are woven together simply, directly, and movingly. We recommend the whole paper to every reader of Practical Anthropology.
“Anglo” and Spanish-Speaking Americans: Contrasts and Similarities
Authors: Saunders Lyle
Published: February 2017

To some extent people behave as they do because they are members of groups. Some of us speak Spanish before we speak English; this happens because some of us are born into families and larger groups that use Spanish for communication and then, as we grow and move beyond our home and neighborhood, we find that our Spanish-speaking friends and relatives are part of a larger group that talks and writes in English. And so we learn English too.

Most of us regard a nice, thick, juicy steak, as one of the finest foods we can think of; millions upon millions of the people of India would be horrified at the thought of eating beef. We Christians characteristically sing in our religious ceremonies; other peoples dance or slaughter animals. In our medicine we make diagnoses by examining the sick person; some other peoples make diagnoses by rolling out stones to see the patterns into which they fall or by examining the entrails of a bird.

In this paper our task is to consider two large, poorly defined, intermingled populations — Anglos (people of English-speaking background) and Spanish-speakers in the American Southwest — and to ask what behaviors, if any, result from membership in or identification with one of these populations or another. Phrased another way, the question is, What does it mean to be an Anglo or a Spanish-speaking American? What does it mean for the way one regards himself and other people? For the way one goes about solving the innumerable problems of living? For the attitudes and the values that one develops and lives by?
Urbanization: The Challenge of Latin America in Transition
Authors: Wonderly William L.
Published: February 2017

What is life really like for the people whom we are seeking to reach with the gospel? What are the basic anxieties, problems, distresses and frustrations to which the gospel must speak if it is to effectively reach the masses who crowd our mushrooming cities and who are caught in the rapid cultural change that is characteristic of the smaller towns and villages throughout the world? Why does the Christian religion, both Catholic and Protestant, so often fail to adequately meet the needs of these people? Oscar Lewis's book Five Families, of which this article is a review, has no cut-and-dried answers, but it does provide highly significant data for the study of these and a host of other questions which the Christian church must ask it if is to meet its commitments in a modern world. The setting of this book is in Mexico, but its implications reach throughout Latin America and into the other continents as well.
Respect for Cultural Differences
Authors: Paul Benjamin D.
Published: February 2017

Dr. Paul discusses a theme which is a familiar one to Practical Anthropology readers, but he does so in a way which is most pertinent, and which may bring new insights. Our rationalistic bias leads us to classify people as “reasonable” or “unreasonable.” But people are neither reasonable nor unreasonable in the abstract. By their own cultural standards their behavior and beliefs are reasonable. By the standards of others they are unreasonable. To alter their point of view it is necessary to understand their point of view.
Indian Work and Church-Mission Integration
Authors: Wonderly William L.
Published: February 2017

The current trend toward “indigenization,” or transferral of responsibility from the missions to the national churches and from missionaries to nationals, is represented in a number of areas today by the plan for “integration” of the mission with the national church. In this plan the mission as such is dissolved and the missionaries become “fraternal workers” under the administrative responsibility of the church in the country where they are serving. The writer of the present article discusses the danger that, for Indian work in Latin America, this integration may lead to a greater degree of paternalism toward the Indian churches, or even in some cases to curtailment of the Indian work; and suggests certain measures for the missions of the sending churches to consider as a means to offset this danger and to help the national churches develop the full potential which their Indian constituency represents. The implications of this article apply just as well to other areas where there are minority populations with different languages and cultures from the national group.
Church Discipline in Africa
Authors: Trobisch Walter A.
Published: February 2017

In this review article Trobisch approaches critically what he feels may be the first significant heresy to emerge from the African churches. He feels that the reasons for African attitudes about church discipline come from African values which have never been truly faced by church leaders to a point where a real theology of marriage for Africa could emerge. The end result of the long periods of contact between missionaries and Africans has been almost nil in a common understanding of sex life and marriage. A legalistic, non-Biblical pattern of church life is emerging as a result.
Stimulating and Resisting Change
Authors: Pike Kenneth L.
Published: February 2017

The purpose of this article is to classify some of the conditions under which change is lively to be successfully stimulated (or successfully resisted) and to imply some kinds of steps which may be fruitfully taken if one wishes to stimulate the occurrence of change. The technique of discussion is to set up a “model” which is a systematic way of viewing the problem. The prescribed model implies that certain consequences may follow if the conditions can be met. The discussion is therefore a theoretical one, and some of the argument is based on linguistic change. Some readers will find it easier to read first the sections entitled “Stimulating Change” and “Resisting Change,” in order to see the practical implications of the model before going back to read the whole article.
A Christian Movement in Mexico
Authors: Cowan Marion M.
Published: February 2017

The study of how Christian movements get started in specific cases, how they grow or decline, and the social forces involved is one of the prime purposes of this periodical. Miss Cowan has provided us with an interesting and valuable case study which no reader should overlook simply because it deals with a remote Mexican group. We could well use more such studies from the peasant villages or the cities of Asia, Africa, and other parts of the world.
The Filipino Family in its Cultural Setting
Authors: Reynolds Harriet R.
Published: February 2017

There is no unit of social structure more important in determining behavior, outlook, values, and the general tone of life in a society than the family, however that is defined in the particular case. Family structure is a stable part of society, but it can and does change. With these changes may come modern values of individual freedom, privacy, elevation of the status of women and of youth, but the losses may be as great or greater. Gone may be the security of belonging to an established, closely knit group, the understanding of one's place and role in society, sanctions for morality, and religious roots. In this paper the author outlines some of the patterns of family structure which are nearly universal in the Philippines, and pictures some of the changes taking place with their implications for the church.
Indigenous Hymnody of the Ivory Coast
Authors: King Louis L.
Published: February 2017

Here is an example, drawn from West Africa, of the use of local musical traditions for Christian worship and Christian witness. The significance of this example lies in the fact that it developed rather spontaneously, without appreciable missionary stimulation.
Some Old Patterns for New in Missions
Authors: Jackson Herbert C.
Published: February 2017

This is a controversial and stimulating paper in which Dr. Jackson asks some hard questions about missionary strategy. The “old patterns” which he advocates have not all fallen into disuse or disrepute among all missionary groups. But most readers familiar with the patterns of Protestant missionary activity, or one branch of it, will be jolted at one point or another. Dr. Jackson's suggestions are not all of the kind that could be implemented over night. They are too fundamental. We hope that they will stimulate some long second thoughts, some earnest study, some sharp discussion, and some humble prayer for God's strategy for the spread of the church in this generation. It is obvious we do not have it now. We hope also that they will stimulate a new sense of dedication to Obedience.
Black and White Children's Racial Identification and Preference
Authors: Mahan Juneau
Published: February 2017

Clark's and Clark's (1941) study on racial identification and preference in children was partially replicated and included a white group of children. Black and white children ranging in age from three to seven were asked to answer questions pertaining to a black doll and a white doll placed in front of them. The questions dealt with their racial identification and preference. It was found that white and Black children held a positive image of themselves and of their race. This was especially true for those Black children who own black dolls.
Does Length of Relationship or Gender Predict Response to Behavioral Diabetes Intervention?
Authors: Sandberg Jonathan , Yorgason Jeremy B. , Fisher Lawrence , Weinstock Ruth S. , Hessler Danielle , Dimmock Jacqueline , Trief Paula M.
Published: February 2017

Purpose

The purpose of the study was to determine, through secondary analysis, whether the length of a couple’s relationship and the participants’ gender are associated with glycemic response to a type 2 diabetes (T2D) behavioral couples-based intervention.

Methods

A randomized trial was conducted to test the impact of a couples-level, telephone-based behavioral intervention on hemoglobin A1C in patients with T2D. One hundred and four patients and partners participated in the couples intervention arm, and 94 individuals participated in the individual arm. A1C levels were measured at baseline and 1-year follow-up.

Results

Results of the regression analysis showed that for men with T2D (n = 35) in the couples intervention group, longer length of relationship was associated with lower A1C at 1-year follow-up, after controlling for baseline A1C, diabetes duration, and income. Length of relationship was not significantly related to follow-up glycemic measures for women or men with T2D in the individual intervention.

Conclusions

Study findings suggests that for men with T2D in a couples-based intervention, those in longer relationships may be more likely to benefit from the intervention. More research is needed to better understand factors that contribute to successful couples-based behavioral approaches to help adults with T2D improve their glycemic control.
Firm-driven path creation in arctic peripheries
Authors: Nilsen Trond
Published: February 2017

In this paper, the author argues that path creation in regions could be connected to extra-regional firms, networks, and knowledge . However, since the 1990s, the field of evolutionary economic geography has emphasized the importance of endogenous factors in explaining mechanisms of growth and decline. In the debate on path development, there has been strong trust in internal regional processes, where regional innovation systems, related variety, and regional branching have been important sources of new growth patterns. Consequently, the anchoring of multinational corporations in regions as new sources of regional growth and firms’ strategic behavior has received less attention in the evolutionary economic geography discourse. There is less understanding of path creation as “outside-in” transplantation and of the role of extra-regional sources of knowledge and new path development. Accordingly, as peripheral regions often lack notions of relatedness within economic sectors, they depend on exogenous sources of new path development. By applying a set of quantitative and qualitative data from the buildup of a new offshore cluster in the petroleum sector off the coast of Finnmark in Northern Norway, the author suggests that firm behavior within a multiscalar network of actors plays a dominant strategic role in the development of new paths in the periphery. He argues that exogenous development impulses in the form of a combination of multinational corporations, state policies of local content, and the inflow of new knowledge through the inward transplantation of firms from outside can initiate new industrial paths. Thus, the author raises fundamental questions about the applicability of models of endogenous path creation in peripheral regions and suggests a new analytical framework for understanding how the entry of strategic firms connects with different regional paths.
Vision and hearing impairment and occupational therapy education: Needs and current practice
Authors: Wittich Walter , Jarry Jonathan , Barstow Elizabeth , Thomas Aliki
Published: February 2017

Introduction

It is unclear what sensory impairment screening content should be included in the core-educational process for occupational therapists. The purpose of this study was to identify what content is currently being taught with regard to screening for vision and hearing loss, and to gather recommendations from specialists in this field of practice in order to formulate recommendations to improve professional entry-level occupational therapy curriculum content.

Method

Using a mixed-methods design, the two-phase study investigated the perceptions of five curriculum chairs, as well as 10 occupational therapists specializing in sensory rehabilitation.

Results

Curriculum chairs reported minimal course content with regard to training in the sensory domain, a dearth that was corroborated by specialists working with individuals affected by sensory loss. While vision-related topics were well covered, hearing-related information was sparser, and dual sensory impairment was mostly absent.

Conclusion

Occupational therapists are well positioned to play an essential role with the population living with sensory loss. However, most clinicians are not adequately prepared to practice with this clientele, and most expertise is gained after graduation. There is a need for stakeholders to discuss the minimal acceptable curriculum content needed to ensure that graduates are prepared to work in this growing area
CGRP receptor antagonist activity of olcegepant depends on the signalling pathway measured
Authors: Walker Christopher S , Raddant Ann C , Woolley Michael J , Russo Andrew F , Hay Debbie L
Published: February 2017

Background

Calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) is a neuropeptide that acts in the trigeminovascular system and is believed to play an important role in migraine. CGRP activates two receptors that are both present in the trigeminovascular system; the CGRP receptor and the amylin 1 (AMY1) receptor. CGRP receptor antagonists, including olcegepant (BIBN4096BS) and telcagepant (MK-0974), can treat migraine. This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of these antagonists at blocking CGRP receptor signalling in trigeminal ganglia (TG) neurons and transfected CGRP and AMY1 receptors in Cos7 cells, to better understand their mechanism of action.

Methods

CGRP stimulation of four intracellular signalling molecules relevant to pain (cAMP, CREB, p38 and ERK) were examined in rat TG neurons and compared to transfected CGRP and AMY1 receptors in Cos7 cells.

Results

In TG neurons, olcegepant displayed signal-specific differences in antagonism of CGRP responses. This effect was also evident in transfected Cos7 cells, where olcegepant blocked CREB phosphorylation more potently than expected at the AMY1 receptor, suggesting that the affinity of this antagonist can be dependent on the signalling pathway activated.

Conclusions

CGRP receptor antagonist activity appears to be assay-dependent. Thus, these molecules may not be as selective for the CGRP receptor as commonly reported.
Managing research data at an academic library in a developing country
Authors: Renwick Shamin , Winter Marsha , Gill Michelle
Published: February 2017

Managing research data has become an issue for many universities. In the Caribbean, the St Augustine Campus Libraries at the University of the West Indies are keenly aware of the need to support researchers in this regard. The objectives of this study were to identify current practices in managing research data on the campus and to determine a possible role for the Campus Libraries. A pilot study of 100 researchers on the campus was conducted. Analysis of the 65 valid responses revealed that while researchers owned data sets they had little knowledge or experience in managing such. This low level of awareness is instructive and validates a role for the Campus Libraries to play in supporting researchers on campus. The Campus Libraries need to sensitize researchers about what data planning and managing research data entail as well as provide technical assistance with actual data storage.
Factors That Contribute to College Success for Students With Learning Disabilities
Authors: Showers Anne H. , Kinsman Jeremy W.
Published: February 2017

Using structural equation modeling, the study tested a theoretical model linking family background, student attributes, and college success. The sample consisted of 346 students with learning disabilities (LDs) who enrolled in college between 2004 and 2012. The data were taken from the public files of the Education Longitudinal Study: 2002. The results indicated that family background has a strong significant direct effect on the students’ attributes, which then has a direct effect on college success. Students with LDs from higher socioeconomic status (SES) families, who have higher educational expectations, coupled with a strong academic background, have the best chance at succeeding in college. However, these factors only explain 13% of the variance, which calls into question what other variables may also be important predictors of college success for these students.
When Extrinsic Rewards Become “Sour Grapes”: An Experimental Study of Adjustments in Intrinsic and Prosocial Motivation
Authors: Kroll Alexander , Porumbescu Gregory A.
Published: February 2017

This article challenges conventional wisdom put forward by the motivational crowding literature by examining whether hypothetical changes to incentive structures can cause variation in employee motivation. It links such motivational adjustments to theories of cognitive dissonance and self-rationalization, and thereby offers a more nuanced perspective on government reforms in the area of human resource management. The article puts forward the idea that expectations of few extrinsic rewards can raise employees’ levels of intrinsic and prosocial motivation; this response is seen as a cognitive coping mechanism to self-justify the value of one’s work. A randomized experiment with 129 public administration students provides partial evidence for the hypothesized effect. Students who were confronted with media information suggesting that few extrinsic rewards can be expected in a public-sector career reported higher scores of intrinsic motivation than the group whose vignette suggested the opposite. No effect was found with regard to students’ public service motivation.
Augmented Reality Game-Based Learning: Enriching Students’ Experience During Reading Comprehension Activities
Authors: Tobar-Muñoz Hendrys , Baldiris Silvia , Fabregat Ramon
Published: February 2017

Program for International Student Assessment results indicate that while reading comprehension needs to be promoted, teachers are struggling to find ways to motivate students to do reading comprehension activities and although technology-enhanced learning approaches are entering the classroom, researchers are still experimenting with them to determine their benefits and implications. Among such technology-enhanced learning approaches, we find augmented reality and game-based learning, both of which have proven to be useful in educational settings; nonetheless, few studies have observed them being used jointly. Some open questions to be asked are as follows: Does the use of augmented reality games in the classroom benefit students in terms of performance and motivation? Is the reading activity experience enriched when we use them to promote reading comprehension? In this study, and with the help of teachers, we devised an augmented reality game using a design-based research approach. We then tested it in a real classroom and carried out both quantitative and qualitative observations. Our results show that while results in reading comprehension using the game show no difference to results from the more traditional approaches, children do display greater motivation and interest in the activity and the activity is enriched as it promotes problem solving, exploration, and socialization behavior.
Of terrorism and revenue: Why foreign aid exacerbates terrorism in personalist regimes
Authors: Boutton Andrew
Published: February 2017

States hosting terrorist groups often receive foreign aid from donors who have an interest in reducing the level of terrorism in these countries. However, existing work is inconclusive on the question of whether such aid is effective at bringing about favorable counterterrorism outcomes. Aid scholars argue that the political structure of the recipient regime is an important determinant of development aid effectiveness. I apply this logic to the topic of counterterrorism aid and argue that the effects of foreign aid on terrorism will be conditional on recipient political incentives. In particular, personalist dictatorships are unique in their reliance upon external sources of revenue with which to keep their regimes afloat. Thus, rents from foreign aid encourage these regimes to become counterterrorism “racketeers”, offering their services in exchange for a fee. But rather than fixing the problem, they perpetuate it, as their survival is conditional upon a perpetual security threat. Using a variety of data on regime type, terrorist attacks, and terrorist group duration, I find that in personalist regimes, US aid significantly increases levels of terrorist activity. This paper contributes to the literature linking foreign aid and terrorism by considering domestic politics as an important determinant of counterterrorism aid effectiveness.
Chest ultrasonography in health surveillance of asbestos-related lung diseases
Authors: Smargiassi Andrea , Pasciuto Giuliana , Pedicelli Ilaria , Lo Greco Erminia , Calvello Mariarosaria , Inchingolo Riccardo , Schifino Gioacchino , Capoluongo Patrizio , Patriciello Pasquale , Manno Maurizio , Cirillo Alfonso , Corbo Giuseppe Maria , Soldati Gino , Iavicoli Ivo
Published: February 2017

Objectives:

Exposure to asbestos fibers can lead to different lung diseases, such as pleural thickening and effusion, asbestosis, mesothelioma, and lung cancer. These diseases are expected to peak in the next few years. The aim of the study was to validate ultrasonography (US) as a diagnostic tool in the management of lung diseases in subjects with a history of occupational exposure to asbestos.

Methods:

Fifty-nine retired male workers previously exposed to asbestos were enrolled in the study. Chest US was performed in all the subjects. The US operator was blinded to earlier performed computed tomography (CT) scan reports and images. The sonographic pathological findings were pleural thickening (with or without calcifications), peripheral lung consolidation, and focal sonographic interstitial syndrome and diffuse pneumogenic sonographic interstitial syndrome (pulmonary asbestosis). Significant US findings were recorded, stored, and subsequently compared with CT scans.

Results:

With some patients falling into more than one category, on CT scan, pleural thickening was reported in 33 cases (56%, 26 with calcifications), focal interstitial peripheral alterations in 23 (39%), asbestosis in 6 (10%), and peripheral lung consolidation in 13 cases (22%). Comparing each pathological condition to CT scan reports, US findings had high levels of sensitivity, specificity, positive, and negative predictive values. US did not prove effective for the detection of central lung nodules or diaphragmatic pleural thickenings. Chest US was considered to be the best technique to detect minimal pleural effusions (six subjects, 10%).

Conclusions:

Chest US might be considered an additional tool to follow up subjects occupationally exposed to asbestos who have already undergone CT scan examination and whose pathology is detectable by US as well.
Attitudes Toward Violence and Gender as Predictors of Interpersonal Violence Interventions
Authors: Willis-Esqueda Cynthia , Delgado Rosa Hazel
Published: February 2017

The purpose of the research was to determine whether attitudes toward violence (ATV) and participant sex would influence notions about interpersonal violence (IPV) intervention by university students. It was anticipated those who held stronger cultural and reactive violence attitudes and males would be less in favor of intervention, but it was not certain whether gender or attitudes would be the stronger predictor for intervention approaches. An IPV intervention scale was developed to measure preferred approaches for intervention, which resulted in four approaches (affirmative intervention, no intervention, police intervention, and intervention threshold). A total of 420 university student volunteers completed the IPV intervention questionnaire followed by an ATV scale on an electronic data collection site. Results indicated ATV subtypes were stronger predictors of affirmative intervention than gender, but when considering cultural acceptability of violence, gender was the single predictor for a threshold of intervention. The findings have relevance for university and community intervention programs and public policy makers when attempting to alter the acceptability of violence to promote effective interventions.
Dual Enrollment Programs: Litigation and Equity
Authors: Nelson Steven L. , Waltz Shawn J.
Published: February 2017

Policymakers and practitioners are increasingly guiding K-12 students into dual enrollment programs. Dual enrollment programs have aided in improving the academic, occupational, and social trajectories of minoritized students although the gains of minoritized students in dual enrollment programs often trail the gains of White students in dual enrollment programs. The research on the legal risk of dual enrollment programs for primary/secondary and postsecondary institutions is scant. The article evaluates whether school districts and/or postsecondary institutions may experience increased risk of litigation arising from the negligent protection of minors on postsecondary campuses. This article uses legal research methods to provide scenarios when harm to minor visitors to college campuses has resulted in judgments against postsecondary institutions. The article provides guidance—based on current legal precedent—for the avoidance of legal liability for school districts and postsecondary institutions participating in dual enrollment programs.
Circumstances of Falls With Fractured Femur in Residents of Australian Nursing Homes: An Analysis of Falls Reports
Authors: Mackenzie Lynette A. , Byles Julie E.
Published: February 2017

Objective: This study aimed to explore the circumstances and characteristics of falls with fractured femur reported in nursing homes. Method: Mixed methods were used. There were reports on 401 eligible falls from 88 residential care facilities in the Hunter region of Australia. A falls report form was developed for the study and was completed by nursing staff. Information was collected about the circumstances of falls with fractured femur and resident data. Descriptive and qualitative analyses were used. Results: Falls with fractured neck of femur were associated with being ambulant, having dementia, increasing age, and a high falls risk assessment. Themes from the falls report data were resident-related factors, organizational or environmental issues, and activities at the time of the fall. Discussion: Falls in residential care settings are very complex and difficult to prevent. Attention should be given to the needs of recently admitted residents and management of the facility environment.
Welding speed effect on joint properties in air and immersed friction stir welding of AA2014
Authors: Ghetiya Nilesh D , Patel Kaushik M
Published: February 2017

In immersed friction stir welding, the workpiece is fully immersed in the water during welding. This work illustrates the effect of welding speed on mechanical properties and microstructure. Friction stir welding joints were produced using AA2014-T6 at different welding speeds ranging from 80 to 125 mm/min with constant rotational speed of 1000 r/min in air and immersed water conditions. Results revealed that with an increase in welding speed, the tensile strength of joint increased, this is due to a reduction in heat input while using both air and immersed friction stir welding, which in turn reduces the dissolution of strengthening precipitates. Microstructure result showed that grain size decreased with an increase in welding speed due to less heat input at increased welding speed. The dissolution of strengthening precipitates weakened with an increase in welding speed in both air and immersed friction stir welding, leading to an increase in hardness value at the nugget zone. Maximum tensile strength was obtained at a welding speed of 100 mm/min in immersed friction stir welding and was around 17% higher compared with a maximum tensile strength obtained using air friction stir welding.
Improvement in the brake disc design for heavy vehicles by parametric evaluation
Authors: Le Gigan Gaël
Published: February 2017

Design of the brake disc geometry for a given brake disc material provides an opportunity for improvement in the fatigue life of the brake disc. High thermomechanical loads at braking lead to substantial local plastification and also induce tensile residual stresses in certain areas of the brake disc. This contributes to shortening of the fatigue life of the brake disc by possible initiation and growth of cracks. In the present paper, a simulation approach for evaluation of brake disc designs with respect to thermomechanical performance is developed and applied. Brake disc performance is analysed using commercial finite element software by employing a constitutive model for grey cast iron implemented in a Fortran subroutine. The thermal loading consists of consecutive severe braking cycles at a constant brake power and a constant speed, with cooling between the brake cycles. Based on a previous experimental study, three different assumptions are made regarding the spatial distribution of the thermal load at braking. A standard commercial brake disc made from grey cast iron having straight vanes is used as the reference case. Geometrical modifications are introduced in the ventilation arrangement using a design-of-experiments approach, studying both straight cooling vanes and different pillar layouts. A preliminary assessment of the fatigue life of the brake discs is carried out. The results indicate that the introduction of different pillar arrangements instead of straight vanes make it possible to decrease the mass of the brake disc by up to 13% or to increase the fatigue life of the brake disc by about 50%.
Development of a residuum/socket interface simulator for lower limb prosthetics
Authors: McGrath Michael Paul , Gao Jianliang , Tang Jinghua , Laszczak Piotr , Jiang Liudi , Bader Dan , Moser David , Zahedi Saeed
Published: February 2017

Mechanical coupling at the interface between lower limb residua and prosthetic sockets plays an important role in assessing socket fitting and tissue health. However, most research lab–based lower limb prosthetic simulators to-date have implemented a rigid socket coupling. This study describes the fabrication and implementation of a lower limb residuum/socket interface simulator, designed to reproduce the forces and moments present during the key loading phases of amputee walking. An artificial residuum made with model bones encased in silicone was used, mimicking the compliant mechanical loading of a real residuum/socket interface. A 6-degree-of-freedom load cell measured the overall kinetics, having previously been incorporated into an amputee’s prosthesis to collect reference data. The developed simulator was compared to a setup where a rigid pylon replaced the artificial residuum. A maximum uniaxial load of 850 N was applied, comparable to the peak vertical ground reaction force component during amputee walking. Load cell outputs from both pylon and residuum setups were compared. During weight acceptance, when including the artificial residuum, compression decreased by 10%, while during push off, sagittal bending and anterior–posterior shear showed a 25% increase and 34% decrease, respectively. Such notable difference by including a compliant residuum further highlighted the need for such an interface simulator. Subsequently, the simulator was adjusted to produce key load cell outputs briefly aligning with those from amputee walking. Force sensing resistors were deployed at load bearing anatomic locations on the residuum/socket interface to measure pressures and were compared to those cited in the literature for similar locations. The development of such a novel simulator provides an objective adjunct, using commonly available mechanical test machines. It could potentially be used to provide further insight into socket design, fit and the complex load transfer mechanics at the residuum/socket interface, as well as to evaluate the structural performance of prostheses.
‘Can we have a child exchange?’ Constructing and subverting the ‘good mother’ through play in Mumsnet Talk
Authors: Mackenzie Jai
Published: February 2017

This article uses a feminist poststructuralist approach to explore how contributors to a single thread from the discussion forum of a popular British parenting website, Mumsnet Talk, position themselves as ‘good mothers’. The qualitative analysis that is presented here, which draws on both the concept of indexicality and Goffman’s ‘frame analysis’, shows that Mumsnet users are able to negotiate the discursive forces that merge to produce the good mother subject position in innovative ways. They are able to position themselves as good mothers in a way that is both normative and transformative – to both legitimise and subvert the discourses that work to position them in this way. This exploration leads me to suggest that the Mumsnet Talk forum can be seen as a space in which dominant discourses continue to position individuals in restricted gendered subjectivities, but is also a fruitful site for the negotiation, resistance and subversion of cultural norms.