bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Social Recommendation Template for Presentations Sessions for Scientific Events
Authors: Tramontin Aline , Sohn Ricardo , Oliveira Bruna de , Pereira Roberto , Gasparini Isabela
Published: March 2020

Scientific/Academic events promote the meeting of researchers for the dissemination of their work to the scientific community. These events are dynamic, sessions can happen simultaneously, and in this case participants may have difficulty choosing which sessions attend. Recommender Systems can aid the participant in this choice, as they use information from the sessions, participants and information about the participants' social relationships. The goal of this work is to present the proposal of a Model of Social Recommendation for Scientific Events, which can be applicable to any type of scientific event. The model was partially implemented and was applied for the IHC 2017 event, for this, co-authoring relationships were considered. The instantiated model was evaluated through a questionnaire, where we evaluated users' perceptions about the utility of coauthoring indication to recommend sessions.
Guidelines for the Evaluation of Sustainability in Computational Solutions
Authors: Junior Newton Antonio Galindo , Neris Vânia Paula de Almeida , Rodrigues Kamila Rios da Hora
Published: March 2020

The current information revolution, highlighted by the constant use of smart devices, smartwatches, tablets, among others, has boosted the continuous production of hThe current information revolution, highlighted by the constant use of smart devices, smartwatches, tablets, among others, has boosted the continuous production of hardware and software, with direct operations in the environment, economy and society. What is perceived, however, is that there is no problem with issues related to sustainability in the development of these computational solutions. Inspired by GrandIHCBr's first challenge - "Future, Smart Cities and Sustainability", this paper seeks to provide guidelines that support professionals in this area, and later on the sustainability aspects of their solutions. The work started from a survey of the literature and a consultation to the Computing Community in Brazil. The results allowed to know the state of the art and the tacit knowledge in the subject. One discussion also supported the choice of a reference model that was instantiated with the participation of five system analysts and three Computing researchers. Twenty-one guidelines were formalized and read the professional of industry and the university professor, both researchers, for appreciation. The results suggest that the guidelines raised can be applied to the guiding factors of sustainability for an evaluation of computational solutions.
Crowdfunding: The Case of Italy
Authors: Adamo Rosa , Federico Domenica , Intonti Mariantonietta , Mele Simona , Notte Antonella
Published: March 2020

Crowdfunding is a fundraising process from a large audience to launch a new venture or entrepreneurial project. It is mostly based on the use of Web and represents a unique category of fundraising, with different vehicles, processes and goals. It is very diffused in the global economic landscape and in Italy where a specific discipline for crowdfunding was introduced for the first time in Europe. The chapter, after a summary of the peculiarities, spread and regulation of crowdfunding, intends to analyze the characteristics of a platform operating on the Italian market (Produzioni dal Basso), highlighting its characteristics, strengths and weaknesses. The work also intends to carry out a simulation for the realization of a crowdfunding project by an Italian Foundation operating in the social sector of child and adolescent distress, to be implemented through the use of the same platform.
Low-Latency Strategies for Service Migration in Fog Computing Enabled Cellular Networks
Authors: Li Jun , Shen Xiaoman , Chen Lei , Chen Jiajia
Published: March 2020

This chapter presents a fog computing enabled cellular network (FeCN), in which the high user-mobility feature brings critical challenges for service continuity under stringent service requirements. Service migration is promising to fulfill the service continuity during mobility. However, service migration cannot be completed immediately and may lead to situations where the user-experience degrades. For this, a quality-of-service aware service migration strategy is proposed. The method is based on existing handover procedures with newly introduced distributed fog computing resource management scheme to minimize the potential negative effects induced by service migration. The performance of the proposed schemes is evaluated by a case study, where realistic vehicular mobility pattern in the metropolitan network of Luxembourg is used. Results show that low end-to-end latency for vehicular communication can be achieved. During service migration, both the traffic generated by migration and the other traffic (e.g., control information, video) are transmitted via mobile backhaul networks. To balance the performance of the two kinds of traffic, a delay-aware bandwidth slicing scheme is proposed. Simulation results show that, with the proposed method, migration data can be transmitted successfully within a required time threshold, while the latency and jitter for nonmigration traffic with different priorities can be reduced significantly.
“But, That’s Not Phenomenology!”
Authors: Rosenberger Robert ,   Philosophy Documentation Center
Published: March 2020

A discussion is emerging within the contemporary philosophy of technology over issues of discrimination through design. My suggestion is that a productive way to approach this topic is through a combination of insights from the postphenomenological and critical constructivist perspectives. In particular, I recommend that we build on the postphenomenological notion of “multistability” (i.e., the idea that technologies are always subject to different uses and meanings) and conceive of instances of discrimination through design as a kind of discriminatory “stability,” one possible instantiation of a device that could be usefully contrasted with others. Through the adoption of ideas from critical constructivism and postphenomenology, it is possible to draw out some of the features of discriminatory stabilities, including how systems of bias can go unnoticed, especially by those not targeted by them. These ideas could be of use in the identification of ways that unjust systematic biases become set within dominant culture, designed into technologies, sedimented within individual bodily-perceptual habits, and even constructed into prevailing senses of reason. As a practical contribution to this ongoing discussion, I identify a distinction that can be made between two broad categories of discrimination via technology: 1. that occurring along what could be called “an axis of difference,” and 2. “an axis of usage.” In the former, discriminatory efforts occur as different users are advantaged and disadvantaged by a device, even as they use it for similar purposes. In the latter, discriminatory effects occur as the particular usage of a technology preferred by a vulnerable group is shut down through design choices. Although the various emerging discussions on technology and discrimination each tend to gravitate toward analysis along one of these axes, it will of course be important to keep our eyes on the variety of ways that biases are faced by the vulnerable.
Violence of Values/Values of Violence. The Cultural Struggle of Alt-Right Politics
Authors: Sanchez Madrid Nuria
Published: March 2020

This paper tackles the construction of social and political values that contemporary Alt-Right politics foster. Its aim will be, first, to tackle the values that Alt-Right parties are spreading at a global scale from the last decade. Second, I will focus on how they address the most precarious social groups for increasing their supporters and how they have built a new model of the social order that gainsays human and civil rights. Finally, I will give an account of some reasons that explain the social failure of classical Leftist political parties, also attempting to transform the ways they accost the former ‘working class’. I engage a dialogue with Zeynep Gambetti and Vladimir Safatle, as both authors have centrally addressed the cultural struggle that populist right parties accomplish on a global scale.
The Fast and the Negative: Dialectics and Posthumanism
Authors: Petrushevski Ljubisha
Published: March 2020

The article refers to the way the recent TV drama Brexit: The Uncivil War deconstructs the inherent contradictions of modern capitalism. Historically, both Marx and the avant-garde believed that acceleration or deceleration will aggravate the contradictions to the point of the collapse of the system. British cultural theory further expounds this issue by adding a curious philosophical perspective of the way capital deals with the abstraction of the real in the digital era. Their take on accelerationism subsequently created two competing aesthetic and political concepts: the left wing that endeavours to exploit the dialectical negativity in order to re-purpose the technological speed away from capital’s imaginary, and the right wing that embraces the acceleration of the forces of production to disclose the invasion of posthuman, machinistic Singularity.
Impacts of Feminist Ethics and Gender on the Implementation of CSR Initiatives
Authors: Lu Jintao , Ren Licheng , Zhang Chong , Liang Mengshang , Stasiulis Nerijus , Streimikis Justas
Published: March 2020

Nowadays women often lead teams, hold high positions in top management, plan and make important strategic decisions in firms or groups. However, little attention in scientific literature has been paid to gender difference in implementing CSR practices of firms. Implementing CSR practices successfully in many cases depends on the gender difference of top management. The object of this study is the importance of ‘feminine gaze’ with respect to gender difference in implementing CSR in firms. This study aims at supplementing feminist ethical – and in part, epistemological – concerns with empirical studies considering the role of women in the top management of firms, then the impact of gender on implementation of CSR initiatives was analysed, and the main drivers linked to gender for the implementation of CSR initiatives were assessed in this study based on the comprehensive literature review. The study confirmed the positive impact of woman representation on the development of CSR initiatives in the firm. The number of women in BOD and employee positions from all stakeholders including customers’ perspectives have positive impacts on the penetration of CSR initiatives, and can be considered as an important driver of CSR in the firms.
Ethics in the Environment of Media and Technologies
Authors: Keciorytė Vitalija , Rimkus Edvardas
Published: March 2020

The scientific conference ‘Ethics in the Environment of Media and Technologies’ held at the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences is reviewed in the article. The text represents the course of the conference and the main thoughts of speakers, and some ideas of the participants are discussed in more detail. The topics explored in this scientific event are the following: the meaning of sacrifice, decentered subject in media, the wars of world-views, technical artefacts in the antique philosophy, the problem of nihilism in Heidegger’s philosophy, ethics of representation of vulnerable subjects, paradoxes of media ethics, face in media, evil in communication, ethics of cultural and creative industries, ethics of technology, and various other ethical problems of media, politics and medicine.
Educación STEM en y para el mundo digital
Authors: López Simó Victor , Couso Lagarón Digna , Simarro Rodríguez Cristina
Published: March 2020

Actualmente existe un amplio abanico de herramientas digitales que se pueden usar en la enseñanza de la ciencia, la tecnología, la ingeniería y la matemática (las denominadas disciplinas STEM) durante la escolaridad primaria y secundaria. A partir de las definiciones propuestas por documentos marco de amplio consenso internacional, se discuten los puntos de encuentro entre la educación STEM y las herramientas digitales, y cómo una adecuada simbiosis entre ambas puede servir tanto para mejorar las competencias científicas, matemáticas y tecnológicas de los estudiantes como para mejorar sus competencias digitales necesarias para el desarrollo personal y profesional en la era digital. Pretendemos aportar una perspectiva al uso de herramientas digitales en el aula que trascienda las modas pasajeras, y que se centre en por qué y en el cómo usar cada una de estas herramientas, y para ello nos centramos en señalar tanto las oportunidades que ofrece la enseñanza digital para el aprendizaje STEM como las oportunidades que ofrece la enseñanza STEM para el aprendizaje digital. Con este conjunto de reflexiones y aportaciones provenientes de la investigación en el ámbito proponemos superar el debate sobre “herramientas digitales sí o no”. Teniendo en cuenta los beneficios de las mismas, en particular para un ámbito con tanta relevancia cultural, social y económica como STEM, lo importante sería dedicar más esfuerzos a clarificar “cómo y para qué” usar estas herramientas en la escuela.

Currently there is a wide range of digital tools that can be used in science, technology, engineering and mathematics education (the STEM disciplines) during primary and secondary school. Based on the definitions proposed by international consensus frameworks,we aim to discuss the relationship STEM education and digital tools, focusing on how an adequate symbiosis between both can contribute both to improve the scientific, mathematical and technological students‘ competences, and to improve their digital skills, necessary for their personal and professional development in the digital era. We intend to provide a perspective to the use of digital tools in school, going beyong fashions, and discussing why and how to use each of these tools. More especifically, we propose which opportunities offers the digital-based instruction for STEM learning, and at the same time which opportunities offers the STEM instruction for digital learning. With this research-based discussion, we aim to overcome the debate "digital tools yes or not", but "how and why" to use these tools in school.
MARTYROLOGIER I DET KONGELIGE BIBLIOTEK OG MARTYROLOGIET FRA NYSTED
Authors: Gad Tue
Published: March 2020

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ARILD HUITFELDTS KRØNIKE
Authors: Ilsøe Harald
Published: March 2020

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GREVINDEN KAMMERHERREN MALEREN MINISTEREN
Authors: L. Faaborg N.
Published: March 2020

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D.G. MOLDENHAWERS SAMLINGER TIL EN SPANSK INKVISITIONSHISTORIE
Authors: Henningsen Gustav
Published: March 2020

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EN BILLEDBOG FRA GEORGIAS BARNDOM
Authors: Hvidt Kristian
Published: March 2020

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MAD. M.S.BUCHHOLMS „POESIER"
Authors: Slots Johanne
Published: March 2020

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INGEBORG STUCKENBERGS SIDSTE REJSE
Authors: Kousgård Sørensen John
Published: March 2020

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Present Situation in Finnish Photography
Authors: Tähtinen Ritva
Published: March 2020

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TYCHO BRAHES SIDSTE SYGDOM OG DØD
Authors: Gotfredsen Edv.
Published: March 2020

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NOGEN SKREV ET SAGN OM „AGNETE OG HAVMANDEN" HVEM, HVORNÅR OG HVORFOR?
Authors: Bredsdorff Thomas
Published: March 2020

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ESAIAS PUFENDORFS BOGSAMLING I DET KONGELIGE BIBLIOTEK
Authors: PALLADINI FIAMMETTA
Published: March 2020

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BOGMARKEDETS OG LÆSNINGENS HISTORIE ca. 1500-1700 I NYERE EUROPÆISK FORSKNING
Authors: Appel Charlotte
Published: March 2020

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BOGAUKTIONEN 1749 OVER HANS GRAMS TRYKTE BØGER
Authors: Ballhausen CJ.
Published: March 2020

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TEGNINGER AF HERMANN ERNST FREUND BLANDT N.L. HØYENS PAPIRER
Authors: Johansson Ejner
Published: March 2020

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NYE INKUNABLER I DET KONGELIGE BIBLIOTEK II-III
Authors: Einersen Henning
Published: March 2020

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TO H. C. ANDERSEN-DEDIKATIONER
Authors: Topsøe-Jensen H.
Published: March 2020

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CARL NIELSEN OG SAMFUNDET TIL UDGIVELSE AF DANSK MUSIK 1899-1931
Authors: Bruunshuus petersen Elly
Published: March 2020

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A WITNESS UNTO ITSELF THE INTEGRITY OF THE AUTOGRAPH MANUSCRIPT OF FELIPE GUAMAN POMA DE AYALA'S EL PRIMER NUEVA CORÓNICA Y BUEN GOBIERNO (1615/1616)
Authors: Adorno Rolena
Published: March 2020

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Tilføjelser til nr. 7396-7525: rettelser, anmeldelser og optryk
Authors: Redaktionen -
Published: March 2020

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Morten Petersen: Oplysningens gale hund - Niels Ditlev Riegels. Oprører, kirkehader & kongeskænder 1755-1802. En biografi. Aschehoug 2003. 272 s.
Authors: Horstbøll Henrik
Published: March 2020

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Park in the periphery: Land use and land cover change and forest fragmentation in and around Yangoupokpi Lokchao Wildlife Sanctuary, Manipur, India
Authors: Bungnamei Khangsembou , Saikia Anup
Published: March 2020

This study documents the spatio-temporal land use and land cover dynamics of Yangoupokpi Lokchao Wildlife Sanctuary (YLWLS) in Manipur, India. Landsat imageries at three points of time spanning 38 years (1978, 2000 and 2016) were taken into account. Supervised image classification techniques were employed. Fragstats software was used to derive five landscape metrics, namely, class area (CA), number of patches (NP), largest patch index (LPI), percentage of landscape (PLAND) and mean patch size (MPS), to quantitatively assess the level of landscape fragmentation in the YLWLS. Dense and moderately dense forests decreased markedly during 1978-2000 from 46.5% to 40% and 38% to 28% of the total geographical area, respectively. However, between 2000 and 2016, the sanctuary managed to gain 840 ha of dense forest through various afforestation activities. The overall change in YLWLS during 1978-2016 indicates a substantial transition of dense and moderately dense forests.
Hydrochemical differentiation of selected reservoirs in Carpathian Mts. and Eastern European Lowland
Authors: Kijowska-Strugała Małgorzata , Wiejaczka Łukasz , Grigoryeva Irina , Komissarov Aleksey
Published: March 2020

The aim of the analysis was to compare physicochemical parameters and chemical composition of two groups of artificial reservoirs, mountain and lowland ones, characterised by different parameters and functions. Three mountain artificial reservoirs (Klimkówka, Dobczyce, Czorsztyn) located in the Upper Vistula basin (Carpathian Mountains in Poland) and three lowland reservoirs (Ivankovo, Verhnevolzhskoye, Vyshnevolotzkoye) located in the Upper Volga basin (Eastern European Lowland in Russia) were selected for the study. Data for the summer season in 2009-2013 were used in the analysis. Mountain reservoirs display high water concentrations of sulphates, chlorides and biogenic nitrates, and lower concentrations of ammonium and oxygen indicator in relation to lowland reservoirs. Similar concentrations of phosphates were noticed in both the mountain and the lowland reservoirs. The hydrochemical differentiation between the individual mountain reservoirs was small, and statistically significant differences only occurred for SEC. Greater differentiation of the hydrochemical parameters was found among the lowland reservoirs. Statistically significant differences were demonstrated with regard to SEC, Cl- and NO3-.
Cooperation between the Russian Federation and EAEU with Asian financial institutions: current state and development of strategy for further cooperation
Authors: Arzhaev Fedor Igorevich
Published: March 2020

The Russian Federation and EAEU actively participate in the international financial relations, as well as represent large financial markets. At the same time, economies of the Union are in need for an impulse that would allow them to transition towards sustainable course of long-term development. Such impulse can come from a dialogue with Asian financial institutions (AFI). The goal of this work is to describe the contours of the dialogue and strategies for gaining maximum benefit out of it, as well as discover possible paths for future transformation of Asian financial institutions. The results of this research allow discovering paths for overcoming the key problems of Russian economy – lack of direct foreign investments, as well as lack of diversification of exports – through cooperation with the AFI in the financial sphere and trade. The article determines the main paths for structuring the Asian financial architecture, and make proposals on a strategy for intertwining the EAEU and the AFI with consideration of interest of the EAEU member-states, primarily Russia. The author proposes the model for redistribution of investments within EAEU taking into account the investment position of the country, and conducts analysis of the effects of cooperation with the AFI upon the EAEU countries. Moreover, the research reveals the main advantages of this cooperation for the Asian countries, which allows speaking of bilateral benefits of the cooperation.
National interests as the basis for “revisionism” on the international arena in the context of National Security Strategies of Ukraine, United States, and Russia
Authors: Pankratov Vladimir Nikolaevich
Published: March 2020

The coup d'état in Kiev along with the war in the Southeast of Ukraine became the catalyst for a serious geopolitical conflict between Russia and the United states, as well as justified substantial transformation within the official discourse of all countries involved. The highest echelons pass strategies of national security and military doctrines, in which they put forth strong accusations of aggression and intentional destabilization of international order. This article explores the nature of these accusations, and attempts to analyze them from the perspective of the theory of international relations. The research is based on formal examination and comparison of state legal documents, using the method of qualitative content analysis. The novelty of this work consists in an attempt of explore the main polemical tactics of creating the “image of the enemy” within the official national security doctrines of Ukraine, United States, and Russia through the prism of such key concept of the theory of international relations as “revisionism”. Leaning on the analytical evaluation of the fundamental documents of Ukraine and the United States on ensuring national security, the author concludes that the foreign policy position of Ukraine completely corresponds with the hegemonistic geopolitical course of the United States, suggesting antagonistic relations with Russia. In the dispute between Russia and the United States, the parties use similar formulations, their arguments are mirrored images, the national positions is justified by the appeals to the status quo. The use of normative language by each party of the dispute in defending actual national interests invokes caution, since it complicates rational discussion of issues.
European experience of assessing social justice
Authors: Kormishkina Ludmila Aleksandrovna , Kormishkin Evgenij Danilovich , Koroleva Ludmila Pavlovna , Ermakova Eka Revazievna
Published: March 2020

The goal of this research is a review of the complex indicative systems and indicators used in the European Union, which allow giving a multi-criteria assessment to social justice, in the interests of adaptation of positive European experience in Russia. The information base of this research consists of the data from the European Commission on EU social indicators, materials on social integration monitoring in Europe, and Bertelsmann independent foundation of private law on components of social justice indicator; data of two-year report of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development “Society at a Glance”. To achieve the set goals, the work employs the following general scientific methods of research: scientific abstraction, analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction, comparison. The authors conduct comparative analysis on the most complex system of social indicators used in the European practice; determine their benefits and flaws, as well as the methodological problems of application in the conditions of the current system of statistics in Russia. A proposal is made to adapt and use the methodology of calculating multi-criteria social justice indicator in Russian practice.
Hacker States
Authors: Follis Luca , Fish Adam
Published: March 2020

How hackers and hacking moved from being a target of the state to a key resource for the expression and deployment of state power.

In this book, Luca Follis and Adam Fish examine the entanglements between hackers and the state, showing how hackers and hacking moved from being a target of state law enforcement to a key resource for the expression and deployment of state power. Follis and Fish trace government efforts to control the power of the internet; the prosecution of hackers and leakers (including such well-known cases as Chelsea Manning, Edward Snowden, and Anonymous); and the eventual rehabilitation of hackers who undertake “ethical hacking” for the state. Analyzing the evolution of the state's relationship to hacking, they argue that state-sponsored hacking ultimately corrodes the rule of law and offers unchecked advantage to those in power, clearing the way for more authoritarian rule.

Follis and Fish draw on a range of methodologies and disciplines, including ethnographic and digital archive methods from fields as diverse as anthropology, STS, and criminology. They propose a novel “boundary work” theoretical framework to articulate the relational approach to understanding state and hacker interactions advanced by the book. In the context of Russian bot armies, the rise of fake news, and algorithmic opacity, they describe the political impact of leaks and hacks, hacker partnerships with journalists in pursuit of transparency and accountability, the increasingly prominent use of extradition in hacking-related cases, and the privatization of hackers for hire.
Extraterrestrials
Authors: Roush Wade
Published: March 2020

Are we alone in the universe? If not, where is everybody? An engaging exploration of one of the most important unsolved problems in science.

Everything we know about how planets form and how life arises suggests that human civilization on Earth should not be unique. We ought to see abundant evidence of extraterrestrial activity—but we don't. Where is everybody? In this volume in the MIT Press Essential Knowledge series, science and technology writer Wade Roush examines one of the great unsolved problems in science: is there life, intelligent or otherwise, on other planets?

This paradox (they're bound to be out there; but where are they?), first formulated by the famed physicist Enrico Fermi, has fueled decades of debate, speculation, and, lately, some actual science. Roush lays out the problem in its historical and modern-day context and summarizes the latest thinking among astronomers and astrobiologists. He describes the long history of speculation about aliens (we've been debating the idea for thousands of years); the emergence of SETI (the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) as a scientific discipline in the 1960s, and scientists' use of radio and optical techniques to scan for signals; and developments in astrobiology (the study of how life might arise in non-Earth like environments) and exoplanet research (the discovery of planets outside our solar system). Finally, he discusses possible solutions to the Fermi Paradox and suggests way to refocus SETI work that might increase the chances of resolving the paradox—and finding extraterrestrials.
Carbon Captured
Authors: Mildenberger Matto
Published: March 2020

A comparative examination of domestic climate politics that offers a theory for cross-national differences in domestic climate policymaking.

Climate change threatens the planet, and yet policy responses have varied widely across nations. Some countries have undertaken ambitious programs to stave off climate disaster, others have done little, and still others have passed policies that were later rolled back. In this book, Matto Mildenberger opens the “black box” of domestic climate politics, examining policy making trajectories in several countries and offering a theoretical explanation for national differences in the climate policy process.

Mildenberger introduces the concept of double representation—when carbon polluters enjoy political representation on both the left (through industrial unions fearful of job loss) and the right (through industrial business associations fighting policy costs)—and argues that different climate policy approaches can be explained by the interaction of climate policy preferences and domestic institutions. He illustrates his theory with detailed histories of climate politics in Norway, the United States, and Australia, along with briefer discussions of policies in in Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom, and Canada. He shows that Norway systematically shielded politically connected industrial polluters from costs beginning with its pioneering carbon tax; the United States, after the failure of carbon reduction legislation, finally acted on climate reform through a series of Obama administration executive actions; and Australia's Labor and Green parties enacted an emissions trading scheme, which was subsequently repealed by a conservative Liberal party government. Ultimately, Mildenberger argues for the importance of political considerations in understanding the climate policymaking process and discusses possible future policy directions.
Avoiding Homosexuality: A Critical Perspective of Bangladeshi Readers to English Literature
Authors: Sarkar Dipak Kumar , Rahman Bipasha Sharmin
Published: March 2020

English literature has faced homosexuality in a progressive manner though it has been through a struggling history. That is why a lot of writers of English literature have expressed and enjoyed themselves in their own ways. This paper addresses a few famous writers whose approaches in this regard have been homosexual in type. After looking at the societal love, norms and analysis of Sigmund Freud, this paper approaches Bangladesh and her view in this regard. This paper finds a kind of interdicted move from Bangladesh toward the homosexually important texts and finds the need to have a reciprocal approach. Finally, the outcome of this paper indicates to explain a critical perspective of Bangladeshi readers’ psychology that is how and why they avoid homosexuality as well as literary texts implied with it.
An Investigation of Turkish Language and Turkish Language and Literature Teacher Candidates’ Critical Reading Self-efficacy (The Case of Mehmet Akif Ersoy University)
Authors: BAĞCI Hasan
Published: March 2020

The basic purpose of native language teaching is ensuring that students develop their skills in four basic language skills at an adequate level. For this purpose, Turkish Language and Turkish language and literature teachers who work in different teaching levels, especially classroom teachers, have important duties. Reading, which is among basic language skills, is a comprehension ability for individuals to reach new information and improve themselves. The thing that is important in reading is combining new information with previous information, and making sense of new information through previously learned information. A good reader should be able to make evaluations about text in a critical manner, in other words, s/he should be able to read critically. Turkish Language and Turkish Language and Literature teachers, who have the responsibility of giving students reading skills in formal education institutions, must have improved critical reading skills. In this study, the purpose was to determine the critical reading self-efficacy levels of Turkish Language and Turkish Language and Literature teacher candidates through some variables. The study data were collected by using the “Critical Reading Self-Efficacy Scale”. The SPSS 21.00 Program was used to analyze the data. From the analysis of the data, it was found that Turkish Language and Turkish Language and Literature teacher candidates have moderate critical self-efficacy levels. It was also observed that the critical reading self-efficacy perceptions of teacher candidates do not change according to gender; however, the reading self-efficacy perceptions of Turkish Language teacher candidates were found to be higher than that of the Turkish Language and Literature teacher candidates. It was also concluded that the critical reading self-efficacy perceptions of the teacher candidates, who said that they had reading habits, were higher than the teacher candidates, who said that they did not have reading habits.
Contrastive Analysis of Concessive Conjunctions in Translated and Non-translated Arabic Texts: An Exploratory Study
Authors: Fattah Ashraf , Yahiaoui Rashid
Published: March 2020

This study seeks to contribute to addressing a gap in theory-driven corpus-based research focused on the so-called translation specific features (TSF) in Arabic translated texts. It provides a contrastive Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL)-informed analysis of concessive/contrastive connective markers in a selected comparable corpus made up of translated and non-translated Arabic texts. This area of corpus-based research has been mainly driven by an interest in the linguistic features distinguishing translated from non-translated texts. The characteristic feature of the present study is the fact that it is based on a comparable corpus of translated and non-translated texts written by the same authors in more or less the same genre. Based on a comparison of concordance data, the study will highlight some interesting patterns of difference in the types and frequencies of concessive conjunctions used, as well as ‘explicitating’ and ‘upgrading’ tendencies between the two components of the corpus. Viewed from an SFL perspective, some such differences do not seem to be triggered by the English source texts involved or dictated by contrastive linguistic requirements but rather by the translation process itself.
The Engineers’ Guide to Technical Writing: Insights for Budding Engineers
Authors: Wadood Khan Abdul
Published: March 2020

Engineers, being hands-on experts, need to produce technical documents that are convincing to colleagues, executives, and clients. This study analyzes different technical documents written by engineers and offers instruction on how to approach the task of technical writing. The quantitative part of the study involved gathering statistics on the types of documents most frequently written by engineers and the importance engineers assign to technical writing in their career. The study participants consisted of 60 engineers selected through a snowball sampling method. Data was collected through the use of a questionnaire. The results of the data are presented in frequencies and percentages. An analysis of the data reveals that engineers currently practicing in Saudi Arabia believe writing to be important in their field. In total, 66.7% believe writing to be “very important,” whereas the remaining 33.3% believe it to be “important”; none of the respondents believe writing to be only “slightly important” or “not important.” When asked whether their background education in the engineering field adequately prepared them for writing on the job, only 30 (50%) were confident of their writing abilities following their engineering degrees. The other 30 (50%), although they found their skills in technical writing to be useful, were not confident of its adequacy in the workplace. Given the option of selecting more than one answer, respondents recorded the following frequencies for the type of writing they usually do at work: 40 out of 60 respondents (6.7%) stated that they frequently write interim or progress reports; 30 (50%) stated that they write final or recommendation reports. However, only 10 (16.7%) of the respondents revealed that they often write more focused reports, such laboratory reports. Engineers also write a fair number of non-report documents, including memos, emails, and logbook entries.
The Social Media and Language Use: The Case of Facebook
Authors: Alozie Nwala Michael , Tamunobelema Isaac
Published: March 2020

The social media is now the fastest and easiest means of communication; it is very popular and most of its sites are accessible. The Facebook, one of the popular types of the social media is not just common among youngsters; it is very dynamic, user-friendly and specific. This paper using the descriptive design and Technological Determision (TD) theory, investigates the language of the Facebook and discovers that the platform is awash with a lot of cyberslangs, acronyms, morphological shortenings, initialisms, contractions and neologisms. The paper discovers that the writing style of the Facebook departs from the known conventional ways of writing, a situation where a word can be represented in any form deemed fit by the user. Again, it is observed that the flexibility of the platform, its economic sensitivity or time saving nature and its user friendliness makes the platform attractive. But the negative implication of all these is that it is anti-pedagogy and portends great danger to language learning and usage.
Apology and Linguistic Politeness Strategies in English among Igbo Native Speakers in Nigeria: an Inter-language Study
Authors: Dozie Chinomso P. , Otagburuagu Emeka J.
Published: March 2020

The study sought to explore the conversational English politeness strategies used by Igbo learners of English in Nigeria. Through a purposive sampling process, a total of 3000 copies of questionnaire in the form of Discourse Completion Task (DCT) consisting of 10 different apology discourse situations positing extent of familiarity, hierarchy and degree of infraction were distributed to undergraduates of Igbo extraction at seven universities systematically selected from the South-East and South-South zones in Nigeria. In all, 2748 copies of questionnaire representing 92 percent were duly completed, returned, coded and analysed using the quantitative tool for analysis of production data. Findings demonstrated that the samples used politeness strategies very significantly in apology discourse. Also, the study revealed that apologies are conversational habits of Igbo bilinguals as the offenders willingly made an apology regardless of social differences and context which were also reflected in their choice of strategies as there was obvious transfer of the nuances of the first/native language/mother tongue to their target language production. The study established that apology realisation in an interlanguage context i.e. Igbo speaking learners of English necessarily bears the burden of native language transfer into target language. In conclusion, this study showed that because of the Igbo understanding that in human interactions, there are possibilities of instances of affront or outrage Igbo bilinguals adopted mainly the positive and negative forms of politeness strategies in apology discourse as the case may be to accomplish a conversational demand. The study found evidence to further dispute the universality of politeness and argued that politeness is culture-specific.
The CEFR-TBL in Fostering Thai Pre-service Teachers’ English Speaking Ability Using the Peer Interview Task
Authors: Phaisannan Thatsanaphan , Charttrakul Kanjana , Damnet Anamai
Published: March 2020

This study aims to promote English pre-service teachers’ speaking ability  by integrating task-based learning (TBL) and the CEFR (Council of Europe, 2001) in designing an innovative program (the CEFR-TBL). This presentation discusses the results of an investigation of the pre-service teachers’ speaking ability using peer-interview technique. Also, their perceptions towards the CEFR-TBL Innovative Program were examined. The participants were thirty-six 4th year students in English Education Program at a Rajabhat University in the central part of Thailand. Research method applied in this study was action research and case study approach. Data sources were collected from interview video recordings, and a set of questionnaire. Data analysis employed Grounded theory (Strauss & Corbin, 1999) for qualitative data, and means and S.D for quantitative ones.  Findings from the peer interview task revealed five aspects of students’ English speaking although they were able to successfully communicate in their interview conversation. Also, the results from the questionnaire showed that the students perceived the benefits of the CEFR-TBL Innovative Program and that the program enhanced them in using English in both verbal and non-verbal communication.
“Foreign Language Creation” and “Textless Back Translation”: A Case Study on Turkish Translations of Jason Goodwin’s Ottoman-Themed Works Written in English
Authors: Avşaroğlu Merve , Karadağ Ayşe Banu
Published: March 2020

The aim of this article is to examine the first two books in Jason Goodwin’s detective Yashim series and their Turkish translations in terms of “back translation”. Research subjects are The Janissary Tree (2006) and its Turkish translations by Çiğdem Öztekin dated 2006 and by Fethi Aytuna dated 2016 as well as The Snake Stone (2007) and its Turkish translations by Ali Cevat Akkoyunlu dated 2007 and by Fethi Aytuna dated 2017. The theoretical framework is based on the concepts of “foreign language creation”, a text describing a specific culture in a foreign language, and “textless back translation”, translation of a “foreign language creation” back into the language of that specific culture. Describing the Ottoman culture in English, Goodwin’s books can be considered as “foreign language creation” while their Turkish translations, which bring the culture back into its own land, can be considered as “textless back translation”. Depicting a foreign culture in his own language, thereby acting as a translator, the writer’s decisions are discussed within the choice of translation method in “foreign language creation”. Translating a “foreign language creation” back into Turkish, the translators’ decisions are discussed within the choice of translation method in “textless back translation”. In this respect, Ting Guo’s (2017) article entitled “On Foreign Language Creation and Rootless Back Translation–A Case Study of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan” is taken as the reference point and the categories of translation methods are expanded with regard to textual findings. It is concluded that individual translation decisions of the Turkish translators support the idea that translators from the domestic culture might take the initiative to rearrange the source text information in their target text.
Self-mention Markers and their Rhetorical Functions in Dentistry Research Articles: A Corpus-based Study of Intradisciplinary Variations within Seven Dentistry Subdisciplines
Authors: Suleiman Alyousef Hesham , Emad Q. Alotaibi Najd
Published: March 2020

Research on intradisciplinary variations in self-mention marker use in research articles (RAs) in dentistry subdisciplines is lacking. The present study investigates self-mention markers used in each of the seven dentistry subdisciplines (oral sciences, periodontics, endodontics, pediatrics, prosthodontics, oral and maxillofacial surgery, and orthodontics), sections of RAs that employ more self-mention devices in each of the seven dentistry subdisciplines, and common rhetorical realizations of first-person pronouns in the seven dentistry subdisciplines. The analytical framework was primarily based on Hyland’s (2003) four rhetorical functions of self-mentions in RAs. The findings showed the lack of qualitative and quantitative intradisciplinary variations across six of the seven dentistry subdisciplines. The first-person plural pronouns “we” and “our” were the most frequently employed self-mention devices in the Discussion section of RAs. Authors in the periodontics subdiscipline preferred to retain an objective stance through the use of passive constructions, abiding by the conventional norms of academic writing that restrict them. The findings also revealed that explaining a procedure and stating findings/claims were the most frequent realizations associated with the use of self-mention devices, with the exception of periodontics RAs that employed passive constructions instead. The findings contribute to the fields of discourse and genre studies as well as ESP/EAP courses. They may have implications for dentistry RA writing and teaching. An awareness of more frequently used self-mentions in dentistry RAs and their rhetorical functions can help English dentistry scholars successfully produce RAs in line with the academic writing norms of each subdiscipline.
The L2 Acquisition of Mass Nouns by Arab Leaners of English
Authors: Sabir Mona
Published: March 2020

This study explores how Arab L2 learners of English acquire mass nouns. The mass/count distinction is a morphosyntactically encoded grammatical distinction.  Arabic and English have different morphosyntactic realisations of mass nouns. English mass nouns take the form of bare singular whereas Arabic mass nouns can take the definite singular form or the indefinite singular, but never the bare singular form. Therefore, the study explores how Arab learners interpret English mass nouns in light of the morphosyntactic differences between the two languages. 45 upper- and lower-intermediate Arab English learners were given a context-based acceptability judgment task on English mass nouns. It was hypothesised that Arabic learners would be influenced by their first language (L1), causing them to over accept definite singulars and under accept bare singulars as grammatical in mass noun contexts. The findings are consistent with what was hypothesised, except that Arab learners were found to interpret bare singulars accurately. It is argued that learners’ performance is affected by not only L1transfer but also UG accessibility where learners can structure away from L1 and more towards L2. Consequently, the findings implicate that L2 teachers should not teach grammatical structures that come for free and instead they should focus on grammatical structures that cause L2 acquisition difficulty.
Teachers’ Efficacy, Identity and Motivational Strategies and their Effects on L2 learners’ Achievement
Authors: Karimi Mehrnoosh , Nikbakht Elham
Published: March 2020

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between three teacher-related variables, namely, teaching efficacy, institutional identity and motivational strategy use, with students’ L2 achievement. The study further intended to pinpoint gender differences in each of the aforementioned teacher-related variables. To this end, 120 (60 male and 60 female) EFL teachers took part in the study by completing Teacher Efficacy Scale (Tschannen-Moran & Hoy, 2001), Institutional Identity Scale developed by Azimi (2012), and Motivational Strategy Use Scale developed by Cheng and Dornyei (2007). Furthermore, the final class outcomes of the teachers’ students (n=2045) were collected. The participants were EFL learners and their teachers. The results of Pearson Correlations indicated that there existed significant and positive relationship between the three aforementioned teacher-related variables of EFL teachers and their students’ L2 achievement. The results revealed that EFL teachers’ efficacy, institutional identity and motivational strategy use had a significant and positive relationship with their students’ L2 achievement. A Significant difference was found between the male and female EFL teachers. Also, Motivational strategy use was the strongest predictor of Iranian EFL students’ L2 achievement. Based on the findings of the study, a number of pedagogical implications could be recommended. The findings will provide rational support for proposing that EFL teachers should invest in improving their knowledge of teaching efficacy, institutional identity and motivational strategy use.