bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Overcoming of the Attacks on Freedom of Speech Through Qualitative Research
Authors: Zapata-Sepulveda Pamela
Published: December 2020

In this essay, I reflect on the work of publishing contemporary qualitative research articles in academic journals in Spanish that are easily accessible to the communities that are being researched. Specifically, I reflect on the possibilities of doing qualitative research in a “successful” way, meeting the demands of productivity of Chilean universities (paper published in WoS journals, quartiles, etc.), which is necessary to maintain and develop a research career in the academy. Taking as standpoint the Chilean social context understood from the consequences of the dictatorship in the country and the boom of the immigrants of Latin American origin at present, this essay revolves around the attacks on freedom of expression through qualitative research in the Spanish-speaking context. The question that arises is: do the barriers and difficulties have to do with the methodology, the language, the characteristics and training of the researcher, or the traditions that predominate in the Latin American countries?
Evaluation of a pharmacist-driven rapid infusion rituximab conversion protocol at a multisite cancer center
Authors: Moore Donald C , Gebru Tsion , Plesca Dragos
Published: December 2020

Introduction

Infusion-related reactions (IRR) are a common adverse event associated with rituximab, an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody indicated for the treatment of B-cell lymphomas. IRR risk is highest with the first infusion, which is given by a slow titration over an average of 3.5 hours. Subsequent administrations can be given over an accelerated, rapid 90-minute infusion if patients meet specific criteria. To improve rapid infusion rituximab utilization, we developed and implemented a pharmacist-driven protocol which allows pharmacists to change the administration instructions to rapid infusion.

Methods

A retrospective chart review was conducted to evaluate patients age ≥18 years with B-cell lymphomas who were eligible to receive rapid infusion rituximab following protocol implementation. The primary outcome was the prevalence of the use of rapid infusion rituximab for eligible patients. Secondary outcomes included the frequency of pharmacist-initiated conversions to rapid infusion rituximab and incidence of IRR with rapid infusions.

Results

A total of 180 patients were included in this study; 89 patients in the pre-protocol group and 91 patients in the post-protocol group. Fifteen patients and 66 patients in the pre-protocol and post-protocol groups, respectively, received rapid infusion rituximab (17% vs. 73%, p < 0.00001). The pharmacist-driven protocol was used to convert 49 patients (54%) to rapid infusion. No IRR occurred in patients receiving rapid infusion rituximab.

Conclusion

The implementation of a pharmacist-driven protocol led to a significant improvement in the use of rapid infusion rituximab and optimized chair time utilization at our institution.
Implicit Hari–Zimmermann algorithm for the generalized SVD on the GPUs
Authors: Novaković Vedran , Singer Sanja
Published: December 2020

A parallel, blocked, one-sided Hari–Zimmermann algorithm for the generalized singular value decomposition (GSVD) of a real or a complex matrix pair [Formula: see text] is here proposed, where F and G have the same number of columns, and are both of the full column rank. The algorithm targets either a single graphics processing unit (GPU), or a cluster of those, performs all non-trivial computation exclusively on the GPUs, requires the minimal amount of memory to be reasonably expected, scales acceptably with the increase of the number of GPUs available, and guarantees the reproducible, bitwise identical output of the runs repeated over the same input and with the same number of GPUs.
Diversity in Education and Organization: From Political Aims to Practice in the Norwegian Police Service
Authors: Bjørkelo Brita , Bye Hege H. , Leirvik Mariann S. , Egge Marit , Ganapathy Jaishankar
Published: December 2020

Police agencies implement a variety of strategies for recruiting, promoting and retaining police officers with diverse backgrounds. Changes have however been difficult to attain. We expand research on representative bureaucracy by investigating diversity perspectives in a case study of the Norwegian Police Service (NPS). Using mixed-methods we investigate the diversity perspectives of ethnic minority and majority students and employees in the NPS, focusing on the interplay between educational and work experiences, recruitment practices and diversity policies. We found that ethnic minorities were still underrepresented, and their cultural competence was not fully recognized by other students, teachers, colleagues and leaders. Interview and field-work findings were corroborated by surveys among NPS employees documenting that competence development was perceived as the least emphasized justification for diversity management. Despite focusing on a single case, the NPS, we argue that the processes we describe may be operating also in other multicultural societies.
Incision site fat thickness and 90-day complications for direct anterior and posterior approach total hip arthroplasty
Authors: Sprowls Gregory R. , Allen Bryce C , Lundquist Kathleen F , Sager Lauren N , Barnett Clint D
Published: December 2020

Background:

Defining the distribution of subcutaneous fat around the hip in relation to different approaches for total hip arthroplasty (THA) may lead to a better understanding of the relationship between obesity and complications. The purpose of this study was to: (1) describe the intraoperative thickness of subcutaneous fat at the incision site for direct anterior (DAA) and posterior approaches (PA) for THA; and (2) examine the relationship between fat thickness and 90-day postoperative complications.

Methods:

Intraoperative fat measurements were obtained at the anterior incision site (AT-IS) of the DAA ( n = 60) and the lateral incision site (LT-IS) of the PA ( n = 64). Lateral hip fat thickness was measured from preoperative anteroposterior pelvis radiographs (LT-XR). Body mass index (BMI), sex, age, and 90-day complications were collected retrospectively.

Results:

Patients within the same demographic groupings had significantly more fat laterally than anteriorly, between 9.6 mm and 17.96 mm. Return to the OR was significantly associated with BMI, AT-IS, and LT-IS. Wound complications were significantly associated with AT-IS. Periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) was significantly associated with BMI and LT-IS. No outcome variables were associated with LT-XR, approach, sex, or age. LT-XR was strongly correlated with AT-IS and LT-IS.

Conclusions:

Regardless of BMI, sex, or age more soft tissue was encountered with a PA compared to a DAA. General adiposity was associated with return to the OR. Excess incisional fat was associated with wound complications following a DAA and PJI after a PA. LT-XR and clinical examination near the proposed incision, may provide helpful data in making preoperative risk assessments.
The influence of anterior and posterior knot placement on hip function after total hip arthroplasty using a modified Dall’s approach: a prospective non-randomised comparative study
Authors: Hara Hiroaki , Fujita Hiroshi , Okutani Yuki , Kataoka Masanao , Harada Hideto , Murotani Yoshiki
Published: December 2020

Background:

The direct lateral modified Dall’s approach for total hip arthroplasty (THA) provides an excellent vision of the hip joint by osteotomising the greater trochanter (GT). A robust method for the reattachment of osteotomised fragments is essential to prevent complications around the GT. Ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene cables are reported to be useful for reattachment; but the optimal suture method of these cables is unknown. The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of the knot position on hip function after primary THA.

Methods:

In a prospective non-randomised study 216 primary THA were included, being scheduled for an operation with a modified Dall’s approach. They were divided into 2 groups, anterior (A) and posterior (P) according to the knot position for the GT. Hip function was assessed using the Japanese Orthopaedic Association Hip Disease Evaluation Questionnaire (JHEQ), pain visual analogue scale (VAS), satisfaction VAS and Merle d’Aubigne-Postel hip score at 3 and 6 months postoperatively. A logistic regression analysis was used to investigate factors influenced by the knot position.

Results:

Patient demographics were comparable between the 2 groups. Differences of the knot position did not affect the radiological failure rate of GT reattachment. Regression analysis showed a significantly positive impact on pain VAS and flexion range at 6 months postoperatively for posterior knot position.

Conclusions:

For the reattachment of osteotomised fragments, the posterior knot may be superior to the anterior knot.
Indigenous ancestral lands and Elders epistemologies in a time of pandemic
Authors: Neeganagwedgin Erica
Published: December 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic has introduced a worldwide shift in daily life. However, Indigenous people have a long history relating to introduced pandemics. Responding to these different forms of destruction, Indigenous people have generated multiple ways to draw on their own ancestral systems. This report provides a short history of those pandemics, the impact of the current COVID-19 pandemic, and the ways in which Indigenous people have responded by drawing on their ancestral Land and practices, and through the guidance and knowledge of Elders.
Neutrophil Swarms Are More Than the Accumulation of Cells
Authors: Irimia Daniel
Published: December 2020

Neutrophils move from the blood into tissues, migrate under the guidance of chemical gradients, and accumulate at sites of infection, where they phagocytose and kill microbes within minutes. These processes have been considered the keystone of innate immune responses for more than five decades. However, it appears that these processes accurately describe only the situation when neutrophils encounter small numbers of disparate microbes. Recent observations revealed that when neutrophils encounter large fungi or clusters of bacteria that are too large for individual neutrophils to kill, one more process, known as swarming, is needed. During this process, the first neutrophils that reach the microbial target release leukotrienes and other molecules that stimulate more neutrophils in the vicinity to converge on the same target. A chain reaction ensues between the leukotrienes guiding the neutrophils toward the swarm and the attracted neutrophils releasing more leukotrienes. This chain reaction empowers multiple neutrophils to coordinate their activities, drives the explosively-fast accumulation of neutrophils, and enables neutrophils to neutralize large microbes and clusters of microbes, which would otherwise be outside the neutrophils reach. The molecular and cellular details of this chain reaction and the mechanisms that stop the chain reaction from damaging healthy tissues are just beginning to emerge, enabled by innovative, engineered tools.
Cardiovascular Issues Among Homeless People: An Issue that Needs Attention
Authors: Maqsood Muhammad Haisum , Kamal Omer , Charytan David
Published: December 2020

Cardiovascular disease is one of the most common causes of death with social factors increasingly recognized as determinants of cardiovascular prognosis. Homelessness, transient or chronic, may be one of the factors which predict treatment access and eventual outcomes as socially and economically disadvantaged group has high prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors such as smoking, and delayed diagnosis and poor control of other risk factors such as diabetes and hypertension. This perspective article aims to discuss the issues associated with cardiovascular disease treatment, outcomes and future directions for homeless patients.
Inclusion of a music learner with ASD through play-full intersubjectivity
Authors: Hogle Lauri A
Published: December 2020

Through a case study of Jad (pseudonym), a music learner with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), I sought to understand his experiences as he engaged in peer scaffolding activities of a choral ensemble. The study illuminated the role of intersubjectivity (or shared understanding) in socially mediated music learning within an environment of inclusion. Through inclusive, play-full, intersubjective attunement of younger children to Jad, he increasingly took on a role as an empathetic teacher-helper, initially with his younger sister, then with other young children, then with the entire ensemble. Jad also increasingly displayed musical agency through physical movement during music-making, contributing to others’ understanding and musical agency. The findings describe intersections of play with intersubjectivity, focusing on learner attunement to affect and emotion in fostering an inclusive music education experience. Making space for peer scaffolding and playfulness within this music learning environment fostered shared understanding and empathy among all learners, including one with ASD.
Tribological performance of nanolubricants dispersed with graphene oxide and detonation nanodiamond
Authors: Javeed Abdulhakeem , John Bibin
Published: December 2020

Different compositions of graphene oxide (GO) and detonation nanodiamond (DND) nanoparticles with API CH-4 engine oil were tested on a reciprocating wear tester at high contact pressure. Significant reductions in friction and wear were observed. Wear surfaces were characterized by a 3D profiler, scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy to determine the surface topography, film build-up composition, mechanism of nanoadditive-assisted friction reduction and wear reduction characteristics. The wear tests indicated that the original engine liner segments containing surface texture with oil retention potential significantly lose their micropeaks and valleys during the test. Even though the surface texture got disturbed, the presence of nanoadditives in the lubricant led to a reduction in the coefficient of friction. Considerable reduction in the roughness level of the wear track associated with the use of a nanolubricant was also explored through the 3D profiler analysis. The surface roughness of the wear track produced while using a nanolubricant with 0.5 mg/l of detonation nanodiamond nanoparticles was 66% lower than the roughness of the wear track obtained with the base oil. The nanolubricant suspended with 1 mg/l detonation nanodiamond nanoparticles achieved a lower coefficient of friction earlier and a combination of detonation nanodiamond and GO at 0.5 mg/l concentration achieved the lowest coefficient of friction and wear at the end of the test duration.
Multi-body simulation and validation of fault vibrations from rolling-element bearings
Authors: Strömbergsson Daniel , Marklund Pär , Berglund Kim
Published: December 2020

Dynamic simulations are often used to evaluate the vibrational response of rolling-element bearings experiencing defects. Previously, the optimal accelerometer position has been found to be as close as possible to the bearing. However, further details about the influence of rotational symmetry have not been closely investigated. This paper presents a dynamic simulation model of a radially loaded complete spherical roller bearing with a defect in the inner ring and placed in a housing with 72 equally spaced accelerometer positions around the circumference. Surface accelerations have been extracted and transformed into the frequency domain. Thereafter, the vibrational components indicating the defect have been evaluated around the circumference. The results show an optimal position as close as possible to the primary loaded zone and validation test rig experiments show a reasonable qualitative agreement.
Assessing the economic contribution of sports tourism events: A regional social accounting matrix analysis approach
Authors: Pedauga Luis E , Pardo-Fanjul Ana , Redondo Juan C , Izquierdo José M
Published: December 2020

In the context of tourism, sports are one of the major attractions countries offer. There cannot be the slightest doubt about the relevance of sports activities for the economy. Previous studies assessing the economic impact of sporting events have usually been partial equilibrium studies. This article contributes to the emerging body of literature by explicitly incorporating four categories of sports tourism events (competitions, championships, tournaments, and leagues), so as to study the effects of sports tourism demand on the economic system in terms of income and added value. It further examines their relative, rather than individual, impact on the regional economy of Castile and Leon through a fixed price multiplier model based on the regional social accounting matrix. The results reveal that sports tourism events represent 3.1% of the regional gross domestic product, highlighting the importance of this sector for its economy.
‘Maybe Life Can Become Easier Because of My Good Grades’: Children’s Conflicting Repertoires on Aspirations and Life Chances
Authors: Kostet Imane , Clycq Noel , Verschraegen Gert
Published: December 2020

In this article, we draw on interviews with pupils aged 11–13 years, to analyse children’s aspirations, expectations of the future, and reasonings about social inequality in the context of an early tracking education system. We highlight the conflicting yet creative ways in which children make sense of inequality in relation to life chances. Although our child-respondents prefer structural explanations for inequality, they strategically draw on repertoires of individual social mobility to express their faith in personal agency and meritocracy. In doing so, these children use narratives of upwards mobility that have arisen in very different socio-economic and political contexts to make sense of inequality in their own locality.
Managing unpleasant moods: Affective discipline in Facebook discussions
Authors: Rantasila Anna
Published: December 2020

The article explores how affect is circulated and managed in comment discussions on networked online platforms, such as Facebook. A mixed-methods analysis is conducted of comments on news about the triple disaster of an earthquake, a tsunami and a meltdown of three reactors at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in March 2011 on public Facebook pages of seven Finnish mainstream news media. The article examines how affect sticks and circulates in these discussions, and how the commenters direct and sustain the mode and mood of Facebook discussions. The main findings of the article concern how online discussions are structured by what the author calls affective discipline, in which participants the discussion manage the mood of the discussion through various means. The results open up an important way to study the internal, affective dynamics of contemporary online discussions. In particular, the study helps us understand how flows of affect are shaped and steered in online discussions, and how the same discussions may simultaneously sustain multiple affective dynamics. These dynamics may, in turn contribute to how publics respond to news and official information in crises.
Ethnographic photobomb: The materiality of decolonial image manipulation
Authors: Miner Joshua D.
Published: December 2020

Indigenous photobomb memes emerged on social networks as a media practice alongside contemporary activist campaigns, where artists insert pop culture content into digitized ethnographic photographs already in use as mainstream meme fodder. This article takes a materialist approach to such memes to explore how the technical processes of digital image editing function ideologically. Meme series by Kiowa-Choctaw artist Steven Paul Judd and others illustrate how compositing methods like cloning and healing tools may disrupt ethnographic photographs’ claims to history, interrogating the aesthetic systems that underwrite settler-colonial media. As these algorithmic processes remediate the digitized image and re-situate it relative to other photoshopping practices, they bear a trace of settler digitality that allows such memes to intervene in current cultural debates and aesthetic trends. Circulation via social media generates a web of twice-remediated memes, which always refer back to their prior analog and digital iterations.
Tertium datur: Multi-attribute reference points and integration choices between the European Union and Eurasian Economic Union
Authors: Buscaneanu Sergiu
Published: December 2020

The article imports insights from prospect theory into the study of integration choices of ruling elites from Eastern Partnership countries. It introduces the notion of multi-attribute reference points and provides an example of identifying their coordinates, against which ruling elites from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine are expected to consider distinct integration choices: the European Union or Eurasian Economic Union. The research finds that ruling elites from Eastern Partnership countries with the lowest levels of affluence, with medium to high intensity conflicts with Russia and with lower, but still non-trivial costs of domestic transformation have tended to be risk-seeking and opted for the European Union as an integration choice. However, ruling elites from Eastern Partnership countries with low and medium levels of affluence, with no conflict with Russia and with medium to high costs of domestic transformation have tended to be risk-averse and selected the Eurasian Economic Union as an integration option.
Line-finite-element implementation for driven steel H-piles in layered sands considering post-driving residual stresses
Authors: Ouyang Weihang , Wan Jianhong , Liu Si-Wei , Li Xueyou
Published: December 2020

Driven Steel H-piles are commonly used in the deep foundation of being cost-effective and easy in workmanship. The post-driving residual stresses acting on the pile could be large when being driven in cohesionless sands, significantly affecting its compressive strength. Current design methods, mostly based on the empirical assumptions of using safety factors, are unable to consider the post-driving residual stresses on piles accurately and usually very conservative in practical applications. Such consideration is further complicated when the pile is embedded in layered sands. Moreover, the soil-structure interaction (SSI) between pile and ground medium is usually complicated in the analysis and should be appropriately considered in a successful design. This paper proposes a line-finite-element implementation method, based on the Euler-Bernoulli pile element formulations, for robustly and efficiently analyzing the driven steel H-piles in layered sands with explicitly modelling the SSI. The effects resulting from the post-driving residual stresses are considered in the total potential energy equation for generating the secant relations. The derivation procedure is elaborated with details. Consequentially, verification examples are given for validating the accuracy of the proposed method. This work would be helpful for improving the numerical efficiency and accuracy for designing the steel H-piles in layered sands.
Evaluating the efficacy of topical vancomycin powder in the treatment of open lower extremity fractures
Authors: Vaida Justin , Conti Alexander DB , Ray Justin J , Bravin Daniel A , Bramer Michelle A
Published: December 2020

Introduction

Optimal management of lower extremity fractures includes early antibiotics administration, thorough irrigation and debridement, consideration of soft tissue injury, and definitive skeletal management. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of topical vancomycin powder in the treatment of open lower extremity fractures.

Methods

This was a retrospective case control study in which open lower extremity fractures at our institution were reviewed for development of infection (including species and sensitivity if present) and the development of unanticipated wound complications requiring intervention. Patients from 2010-2015 were treated with standard of care consistent with evidence-based literature (IV antibiotics with external fixator, intramedullary nail, etc.). Patients from 2016–18 were additionally treated with vancomycin powder applied directly to the wound before closure. All patients were monitored per the treating surgeon’s standard follow-up protocol and had follow-up of at least two months.

Results

This retrospective case control study comprised 434 patients. The historical control group (n = 388 patients) and treatment group (n = 46 patients) were similar for age, sex, BMI (body mass index), diabetes, smoking status, and Injury Severity Score (ISS). There were 36 infections (9.28%) in the control group compared to four infections (8.70%) in the vancomycin powder group (p = 0.901). No significant difference was seen after adjusting for age, sex, BMI, diabetes, smoking status, and ISS. The vancomycin powder group experienced significantly more wound complications (15.2%) compared to the control group (6.4%; p = 0.039), which remained significant when adjusting for multiple covariates.

Conclusions

Topical vancomycin powder did not reduce the infection rate when applied in the surgical site of open lower extremity fractures. Instead, the addition of topical vancomycin powder resulted in significantly more wound complications in patients with open lower extremity fractures.
Quasi-static hot deformation behavior of a novel third-generation Ni-based powder metallurgy superalloy
Authors: Wang YL , Li Y , Zhang H , Yang JL , Ma XD , Chen Q , Guo JZ
Published: December 2020

Quasi-static hot deformation behavior of a novel third-generation Ni-based powder metallurgy superalloy A3 was investigated by hot compression tests and microscopy. The activation energy for hot working of the experimental alloy was about 867 kJ/mol. An instability domain existed in the processing map when the strain was 0.2, implying a plastic instability at the temperature range of 1080–1100°C and the strain rate range of 0.016–0.1 s−1. The power dissipation efficiency in processing maps indicated that optimum parameters for large deformation could be controlled at the temperature range of 1000–1030°C and the strain rate range of 0.001–0.01 s−1. It provided a reliable suggestion for hot processing during the manufacturing of such superalloy.
Numerical simulation of surface topography and residual stress after abrasive water jet sequential peening
Authors: He Zhanshu , Cui Beibei , Zhao Shusen , Liu Zhihua , Yu Jinlong , Li Chao , Yu Huixin , Chen Lei
Published: December 2020

In this paper, the theoretical models of the surface topography and residual stress (RS) were proposed, and the abrasive water jet sequential peening (AWJSP) finite element models were established by using ABAQUS. Then, the formation mechanism of the surface topography in multiple passes AWJSP process and the coupling mechanism of RS in a single and multiple passes AWJSP process were analyzed. After that, the influence of the number of shots (i.e. N), the distance between the center of adjacent shots Dc, shot velocity v, and shot radius R on the surface topography and residual stress field (RSF) of the target were investigated. Results show that successive dimples were formed by single-pass AWJSP, the RSF formed by the impact of each shot will influence the previous RSF, and that will be coupled with it. In multiple passes AWJSP process, decreasing Dc can decrease the surface roughness, the surface smoothness of the target material will gradually become better, and the RSF will also be uniform. Under full coverage condition, the surface roughness Rt and mean width of the profile Rsm will gradually decrease with the decrease of Dc, while the change of Dc has little influence on the RSF. Increasing the v can increase Rt and Rsm, and it is beneficial to induce a large and deep compressive RS layer. Increasing the R can decrease Rt, Rsm remains unchanged, and it is beneficial to induce a deep compressive RS layer.
Describing chronic kidney disease of unknown origin: anthropological noticing and the ‘residual’ category
Authors: Kierans Ciara , Padilla-Altamira Cesar
Published: December 2020

Focusing on ‘chronic kidney disease of unknown origin’ (CKDu), this paper revisits ethnographic preoccupations with ‘thin’ and ‘thick’ descriptions in the context of the unexplained emergence of this unruly disease. CKDu has recently emerged in impoverished sites across the Global South as a ‘medical enigma’ that defies easy description. Despite growing research efforts from various quarters, however, the search for specific causes using conventional forms of analysis has made little progress. Taking CKDu as a residual category and a contemporary case of society–environment–body entanglements (Latimer and Gomez, 2019; Latour, 2018), we engage Heather Love’s descriptive turn as a provocation to examine what it is that is encountered in encounters with ‘the enigma of CKDu’. In doing so, we highlight the role of thick and thin descriptions (cf. Love, 2013) in terms of the political relations they make differently visible. We argue both are critical to the ‘art of noticing’ (Tsing, 2015).
Sociology and the problem of description
Authors: Vitellone Nicole
Published: December 2020

Howard Becker’s practice of description has been debated, critiqued and reclaimed in a range of fields including sociology, anthropology, cultural studies, Science & Technology Studies, critical drug studies and more recently Heather Love’s (2015) appraisal of deviance studies. Much of this debate concerns the uses of social research methods and their political effects. Taking up these issues with the construction of social scientific knowledge in Becker’s work, this article returns to the methodological problem of description in Becker’s research on drug use. Focusing on the legacy of Becker’s empirical studies of deviance and the critiques of his research methods, it addresses the problem of description in the research process. In reviewing the methodological relevance of Becker’s problem of description as a tool for thinking sociologically, the paper evaluates the contribution of descriptive methods for contemporary sociology and knowledge production. In so doing, it demonstrates how description is transformative of objects, problems and disciplinary practices.
Just what are we doing when we’re describing AI? Harvey Sacks, the commentator machine, and the descriptive politics of the new artificial intelligence
Authors: Mair Michael , Brooker Phillip , Dutton William , Sormani Philippe
Published: December 2020

In dialogue with the work of Heather Love and colleagues, this article makes use of a peculiar ‘descriptive assemblage’ proposed by Harvey Sacks (1963) – that of the ‘commentator machine’ – to open up issues of ‘descriptive politics’ in the field of contemporary Artificial Intelligence (AI). We do so by reviewing the gameplay of Google DeepMind’s AlphaGo – an algorithm designed to outperform human players at the game of Go – with a focus on the incongruities of the much discussed, indeed (in)famous ‘move 37’ in a human-versus-machine challenge match in 2016 (e.g. Silver et al., 2017). Looking at move 37 in conjunction with the various layers of commentary that came to be woven around it, we explore the kinds of descriptive work involved in characterising the move, the troubles that work reveals and what we can learn about the practices and politics of description from encounters with ‘New AI’ applications like AlphaGo.
Unsettling descriptions: attending to the potential of things that threaten to undermine care
Authors: Lindén Lisa , Singleton Vicky
Published: December 2020

This article explores the potential of describing things at the periphery of our attention. It discusses how our practices of ‘describing collaboratively’ shifted what we attended to in observations of participants in a Swedish gynaecological cancer patient organisation. We show how the care the organisation aims to promote is troubled and seemingly undermined by attending to palliative care. Our aim is to explore the ethico-political potential of describing things that ‘unsettle’ care practices. Building on Feminist Technoscience Studies, arguing that researchers should attend to ‘neglected things’ in order to care for them, we focus on affects, atmospheres and fleeting moments that are overlooked, or threaten to undermine, participants’ practices of care. We show how our descriptions that zoom in on things at the periphery and attend to the elusive, restage what gets to count as care and could support care practices that are more liveable for those concerned.
Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2, the complement system, the kallikrein-kinin system, type-2 diabetes, interleukin-6, and their interactions regarding the complex COVID-19 pathophysiological crossroads
Authors: Hoevenaar Martijn , Goossens Dolf , Roorda Janne
Published: December 2020

Because of the current COVID-19-pandemic, the world is currently being held hostage in various lockdowns. ACE2 facilitates SARS-CoV-2 cell-entry, and is at the very center of several pathophysiological pathways regarding the RAAS, CS, KKS, T2DM, and IL-6. Their interactions with severe COVID-19 complications (e.g. ARDS and thrombosis), and potential therapeutic targets for pharmacological intervention, will be reviewed.
Introduction: touch, click and motion: archaeologies of fashion film after digital culture
Authors: Evans Caroline , Parikka Jussi
Published: December 2020

This article functions as the introduction to the Themed Issue on Archaeologies of Fashion Film. The text introduces fashion film as a genre and as an historically dynamic form of audiovisual expression that we approach through fashion history, media archaeology and new film history. While introducing key concepts and approaches, the authors propose a form of ‘parallax historiography’, a term emerging from Thomas Elsaesser’s work, that links different time periods from early cinema to recent digital platforms, even ‘post-cinema’. The introduction makes references to the contributions in this issue that address historical conditions of emergence, marginal voices in the historical record and unexcavated archival materials; and the issue shows how they all contain feedback loops or recursive traits that resonate in contemporary practice where infrastructures of platforms and data frame the moving image.
Engaging persons with dementia in advance care planning: Challenges and opportunities
Authors: Sussman Tamara , Pimienta Rebecca , Hayward April
Published: December 2020

This study reports findings from a series of focus groups with persons with dementia and family caregivers intended to explore: (1) perceptions of and experiences with advance care planning (ACP); (2) concerns related to future care including, but not limited to, end-of-life care; and (3) practices that may support positive engagement with ACP. A total of 18 participants including 10 persons with dementia and eight family caregivers participated in five focus groups held in two urban cities in Canada. All focus group deliberations were audio recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed in five stages using a semantic thematic approach. All participants expressed some form of engagement in ACP, but understandings were limited and divergence was expressed regarding the timing of more expansive conversations about future care. Although some persons with dementia were ready to engage in future care discussions, most preferred focusing on the present and suggested their families did not require direction. This placed families in the complex dilemma of protecting their loved ones while compromising their own needs for dialogue. Although individually focused models of ACP engagement hold promise for those persons with dementia ready to engage in future planning, our findings suggest that early engagement of families in the reflective process may go a long way in supporting ACP activation. Our findings further suggest that persons with dementia who do not have close family/friends may require extensive ACP encouragement and support from service providers.
Health promotion initiative: A dementia-friendly local community in Sweden
Authors: Odzakovic Elzana , Hellström Ingrid , Nedlund Ann-Charlotte , Kullberg Agneta
Published: December 2020

Dementia is a great public health concern worldwide. Despite this, little is known from a health-promoting perspective about dementia in general as a public health issue, in dialog with people living with dementia, applicable at individual, group, and societal levels with regard to policies and practice. This study therefore aims to explore the experiences related to living with dementia in the local community by advancing a health-promoting perspective. Semi-structured individual and group interviews were conducted with participants ( n = 22) with lived, professional, and personal experiences of dementia living in a medium-sized municipality in Sweden. Transcripts were analyzed by thematic analysis. Four themes emerged: health promotion through knowledge and public awareness, health promotion through opportunities to be active, health promotion through meaningful meeting places, and health promotion through improvements in the welfare system. We found that more knowledge and public awareness about dementia are needed to advance a health-promoting perspective and increase the prominence of dementia as a public health issue. Further research and policy need to focus more on how professionals in dementia care practice could be involved in promoting health and well-being for people with dementia.
The Crypto-Wars myth: The reality of state access to encrypted communications
Authors: Murphy Cian C
Published: December 2020

This article draws on four state studies to address a myth of the contemporary debate on internet communications: that, in the face of an internet ‘going dark’, states face a choice between absolute privacy and unfettered access to data. The legal powers which already exist suggest that certain states have a range of possible means of access to encrypted data. The lack of awareness over these powers may be because, despite public debate, democratic oversight remains deficient, while judiciaries and other institutions play useful but limited roles. The cross-territorial nature of the internet presents regulatory challenges and opportunities for reform—albeit in an environment in which the myth of Crypto-Wars is far from useful.
Essential workers and the cultural politics of appreciation: sonic, visual and mediated geographies of public gratitude in the time of COVID-19
Authors: Catungal John Paul
Published: December 2020

What do sonic, visual, and mediated forms of public gratitude for essential workers during the COVID-19 pandemic tell us about the cultural politics of the category “essential worker”? What racial, gender, and class structures and processes shape the content, form, and composition of these collective practices of appreciation? In this paper, I draw on my participation in a nightly ritual of collective applause in Vancouver, Canada, my encounters with homemade banners in my neighborhood, and my own familial histories and relationships to essential workers to examine cultural practices of gratitude. I observe that collective and public expressions of gratitude are shaped by existing structures and discourses of material inequalities, which manifest in hierarchical valuations of differently positioned essential workers. Cultural practices of gratitude, I show, can inadvertently serve to obscure the existence and continuation of these hierarchies by flattening or narrowly circumscribing who counts as an “essential worker” during the COVID-19 pandemic and, thus, limiting just whom public and collective expressions of appreciation are for. As cultural geographical doings, such landscape markers and spatial performances of gratitude serve to emplace and, thus, reinforce existing social hierarchies, suggesting the need for other more socially just spatial enactments of gratitude.
On the aesthetic significance of imprecision in computational design: Exploring expressive features of imprecision in four digital fabrication approaches
Authors: Zboinska Malgorzata A , Dumitrescu Delia
Published: December 2020

Precision of materialized designs is the conventional goal of digital fabrication in architecture. Recently, however, an alternative concept has emerged which refashions the imprecisions of digital processes into creative opportunities. While the computational design community has embraced this idea, its novelty results in a yet incomplete understanding. Prompted by the challenge of the still missing knowledge, this study explored imprecision in four digital fabrication approaches to establish how it influences the aesthetic attributes of materialized designs. Imprecision occurrences for four different digitally aided materialization processes were characterized. The aesthetic features emerging from these imprecisions were also identified and the possibilities of tampering with them for design exploration purposes were discussed. By considering the aesthetic potentials of deliberate imprecision, the study has sought to challenge the canon of high fidelity in contemporary computational design and to argue for imprecision in computation that shapes a new generation of designs featuring the new aesthetic of computational imperfection.
One ring to rule them all? Locating discourse in Aotearoa New Zealand early childhood education curriculum
Authors: Westbrook Fiona , White Jayne
Published: December 2020

Early childhood scholars in New Zealand have long lamented a rising dominance of neoliberalism. Correspondingly they suggest that there has been a lessening of socialist ideals and principles of Te Ao Māori after years of a right-wing government. With the ‘refresh’ of New Zealand’s national early childhood curriculum, Te Whāriki under the Fifth National Government we sought to investigate the location of these discourses in Te Whāriki. Borrowing from Tolkien this paper draws on the metaphor of a ruling, in this case neoliberal, discourse as ‘one ring to rule them all’. We investigate the governmentality of the Fifth National Government through their Four Year Plan 2016–2020 and its permeation of the revised curriculum. Seeking to better understand the location and dominance of neoliberalism within the updated Te Whāriki, the paper analyses both the 1996 curriculum and the 2017 revision for socialist, neoliberal and Te Ao Māori discourses, and their status within the document. A post-structuralist conceptual framework is employed for this study, bringing to bear Michel Foucault and Julia Kristeva in conversation. Analysis across both Te Whāriki and the Four Year Plan found that while neoliberalism was certainly a pervasive discourse, it was, in fact, accompanied by discourses of socialism, neoliberalism and Te Ao Māori. The paper concludes by suggesting that, while neoliberalism may appear to dominate texts, there are complex interanimations between a number of discourses. This multitude potentially ameliorates any one discourse’s domination or, conversely, compromises others. With these findings come important implications concerning the pervasive discourse of neoliberalism and its shaping potential. However, there are also concerns for a new form of colonisation within early childhood curriculum and policy reform.
Risk factors for kidney disorders in patients with type 2 diabetes at high cardiovascular risk: An exploratory analysis (DEVOTE 12)
Authors: Amod Aslam , Buse John B , McGuire Darren K , Pieber Thomas R , Pop-Busui Rodica , Pratley Richard E , Zinman Bernard , Hansen Marco Bo , Jia Ting , Mark Thomas , Poulter Neil R ,   on behalf of the DEVOTE Study Group
Published: December 2020

Aim:

To investigate risk factors associated with kidney disorders in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) at high cardiovascular (CV) risk.

Methods:

In DEVOTE, a cardiovascular outcomes trial, 7637 patients were randomised to insulin degludec (degludec) or insulin glargine 100 units/mL (glargine U100), with standard of care. In these exploratory post hoc analyses, serious adverse event reports were searched using Standardised MedDRA® Queries related to chronic kidney disease (CKD) or acute kidney injury (AKI). Baseline predictors of CKD, AKI and change in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) were identified using stepwise selection and Cox or linear regression.

Results:

Over 2 years, eGFR (mL/min/1.73 m2) decline was small and similar between treatments (degludec: 2.70; glargine U100: 2.92). Overall, 97 and 208 patients experienced CKD and AKI events, respectively. A history of heart failure was a risk factor for CKD (hazard ratio [HR] 1.97 [95% confidence interval [CI] 1.41; 2.75]) and AKI (HR 2.28 [95% CI 1.64; 3.17]). A history of hepatic impairment was a significant predictor of CKD (HR 3.28 [95% CI 2.12; 5.07]) and change in eGFR (estimate: −8.59 [95% CI −10.20; −7.00]).

Conclusion:

Our findings indicate that traditional, non-modifiable risk factors for kidney disorders apply to insulin-treated patients with T2D at high CV risk.

Trial registration:

NCT01959529 (ClinicalTrials.gov).
Attributions of Blame in Stranger and Acquaintance Rape: A Multilevel Meta-Analysis and Systematic Review
Authors: Persson Sofia , Dhingra Katie
Published: December 2020

Background:

Victim blame, particularly in cases of acquaintance rape, presents an obstacle to criminal justice. Past research indicates that acquaintance rape results in more blame than stranger rape. However, there are inconsistencies in these findings (e.g., whether there is a linear relationship between victim blame and relationship closeness), partly due to methodological variation.

Objectives:

To examine the effect of victim–perpetrator relationship on victim blame, how this effect is impacted by rape myth acceptance (RMA) and ambivalent sexism (AS), and to establish what the methodological quality is of studies.

Synthesis method:

Studies were synthesized through a multilevel meta-analysis using the Metafor package in R (version 2.4-0), synthesizing findings from 47 individual studies. Studies compared victim blame between stranger and acquaintance rape, in isolation or in conjunction with RMA and AS, and were identified through a database search.

Results:

The review found higher levels of blame in acquaintance as compared to stranger rape, with a medium effect size. This effect was not moderated by RMA. AS was not included as a moderator in the meta-analysis, but the review indicated that benevolent sexism may be a particularly relevant variable.

Implications:

Future research should examine the relationship between AS and victim blame. The current review contributes to the evidence base on victim blame in rape cases by suggesting that methodological limitations can account for some of the past mixed findings in this area, particularly in a lack of consistency in vignette details. It is recommended that future sexual assault research uses rigorous methodology and increases transparency of research processes.
Three is a Magic Number: Evidence on the Effects of the Application of the Three-Point Rule in Italy’s Serie A
Authors: Alfano Vincenzo , Cicatiello Lorenzo , Gaeta Giuseppe Lucio , Gallo Michele , Rotondo Francesca
Published: December 2020

This paper contributes to the expanding literature that investigates the effects of the introduction of a three-points-for-a-win rule in football. To this end, it provides empirical evidence of the effect of the rule on Italy’s most prestigious football league. Our analysis uses data collected over a long period of time and relies on pooled regressions and a regression discontinuity design. The findings provide evidence that in the case of the Italian league the rule worked as expected, unlike what previous contributions have found when looking at other national football leagues.