bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
“Are You Married?”: Gender and Faith in Political Ethnographic Research
Authors: Thibault Helene
Published: January 2021

In this article, I look at how political ethnography can contribute to the study of religious dynamics within conservative religious communities. Based on fieldwork conducted in Tajikistan within conservative Muslim circles, I take a reflexive stance by arguing that my informants used my status as a single foreign woman to steer interactions toward those of my religious conversion and need for marriage. Their repeated efforts and our interactions exposed the depth of their religious beliefs and its precedence over other identity markers such as ethnicity and language. This close access also allowed me to witness the exclusion and distrust that conservative Muslims face from the rest of the society as well as state authorities. Ultimately, I argue that political ethnography enables the production of a more nuanced portrait of conservative Muslims communities, which are often represented as hermetic and hostile. Political ethnography can be particularly useful to investigate sensitive issues such as religious identities and their complex relations to structures of power.
High toughness and excellent electrical performance bismaleimide resin modified by hyperbranched unsaturated polyester of flexible aliphatic side chains
Authors: Shi Jiahao , Zhang Xiaorui , Weng Ling , Sun Xue , Zhu Pingwei , Wang Qingye
Published: January 2021

Because of its flawed toughness, the scope of application of bismaleimide resin (BMI) in the field of aeronautics, industry and electricity is greatly restricted. Herein, a novel Hyperbranched unsaturated polymers (HBP) with the flexible chains grafted was incorporated to reinforce BMI resin’s toughness, where the new interpenetrating networks (IPN) structure was formed. The rich unsaturated double bond of HBP polyester could react with the BMI resin for chemical crosslinking and be used for the toughening agent. 13C-NMR and FT-IR were used to characterize HBP’s hyperbranched structure. Consequently, after adding 20 wt.% HBP, the impact strength of BMI modified by HBP increased by 211.1%. In comparison with neat BMI, the flexural strength of BMI modified by HBP was enhanced by 209.3%. It is worth noticing that HBP available in BMI resin significantly improved its electrical performance.
Manufacturing and development of a bolted GFRP flange joint for oil and gas applications
Authors: Aljuboury Muhsin , Rizvi Md Jahir , Grove Stephen , Cullen Richard
Published: January 2021

The goal of this experimental study is to manufacture a bolted GFRP flange connection for composite pipes with high strength and performance. A mould was designed and manufactured, which ensures the quality of the composite materials and controls its surface grade. Based on the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, Section X, this GFRP flange was fabricated using biaxial glass fibre braid and polyester resin in a vacuum infusion process. In addition, many experiments were carried out using another mould made of glass to solve process-related issues. Moreover, an investigation was conducted to compare the drilling of the GFRP flange using two types of tools; an Erbauer diamond tile drill bit and a Brad & Spur K10 drill. Six GFRP flanges were manufactured to reach the final product with acceptable quality and performance. The flange was adhesively bonded to a composite pipe after chamfering the end of the pipe. Another type of commercially-available composite flange was used to close the other end of the pipe. Finally, blind flanges were used to close both ends, making the pressure vessel that will be tested under the range of the bolt load and internal pressure.
Simulated research on large-excavator boom based on hydraulic energy recovery
Authors: Xing Heng-yuan , Zhao Ji-yun , Yin Xiang , Ding Hai-gang , Meng Xian-zhuang , Jian-song Li , Guo-ying Wang
Published: January 2021

According to the working condition characteristics of a company's existing XE series 70-ton-large-scale crawler hydraulic excavator, a new hydraulic type is designed for the purpose of energy saving, which contains an accumulator as a reversible energy storage component and a variable pump/motor as an energy conversion element. This scheme belongs to the excavator boom potential energy regeneration method. When the boom is lowered, the accumulator and the pump/motor function, part of the hydraulic cylinder rodless cavity fluid entering the rod cavity and the other part filling the accumulator with fluid and driving the pump/motor to assist the engine's work. After the boom is lowered, the accumulator continues to supply liquid to the pump/motor which carries on assisting the engine to do work. Then the main hydraulic components of the system are modeled, together with building the simulated system model in LMS Imagine.Lab AMESim(Advanced Modeling Environment for performing Simulation of engineering systems). The result of simulation manifests that this system scheme can achieve the recovery of the potential energy of the boom and realize a better energy saving effect.
Unprecedented times – The state library of Western Australia’s COVID-19 experience
Authors: Allen Margaret
Published: January 2021

The State Library of Western Australia was forced to close to the public under a declared State of Emergency due to the COVID-19 pandemic. During the 56 days of full closure, the Library quickly adapted services to meet restrictions, collected COVID-19 related material, transitioned some staff to working from home and undertook collection-related projects and minor refurbishment works. The Library had maintained a current pandemic plan, but significant decisions about service closure, risks and responses and strategic human resource considerations were made at the highest levels of government. Although not considered essential services enabling them to remain open to the community, the State Library and public libraries in Western Australia were among the first services to reopen within strict protocols under a staged lifting of restrictions. Social media was an essential tool in staying connected with the community, providing advice about service changes, delivering online services and engaging the community to secure donations of COVID-19-related material for the Library’s collections. Difficulties in collecting material efficiently and quickly about the Western Australian experience of an event of global significance were highlighted. Transitioning some staff to working from home arrangements presented policy and technology challenges and highlighted a digital divide for Library staff including their lack of access to appropriate technology at home.

Although the pandemic is ongoing and uncertainty still exists, the COVID-19 experience is informing collection development policy, digital service delivery direction, human resource policies and advocacy.
An effective technique for diabetic retinopathy using hybrid machine learning technique
Authors: Murthy N Satyanarayana , Arunadevi B
Published: January 2021

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) stays as an eye issue that has continuously developed in individuals who experienced diabetes. The complexities in diabetes cause harm to the vein at the back of the retina. In outrageous cases, DR could swift apparition disaster or visual impairment. This genuine impact had the option to charge through convenient treatment and early recognition. As of late, this issue has been spreading quickly, particularly in the working region, which in the end constrained the interest of an analysis of this disease from the most prompt stage. Therefore, that are castoff to protect the progressions of this disorder, revealing of the retinal blood vessels (RBVs) play a foremost role. The growth of an abnormal vessel leads to the development steps of DR, where it can be well known by extracting the RBV. The recognition of the BV for DR by developing an automatic approach is a major aim of our research study. In the proposed method, there are two major steps: one is segmentation and the second one is classification of affected retinal BV. The proposed method uses the Kinetic Gas Molecule Optimization based on centroid initialization used for the Fuzzy C-means Clustering. In the classification step, those segmented images are given as input to hybrid techniques such as a convolution neural network with bidirectional-long short-term memory (CNN with Bi-LSTM). The learning degree of Bi-LSTM is revised by using the self-attention mechanism for refining the classification accuracy. The trial consequences disclosed that the mixture algorithm achieved higher accuracy, specificity, and sensitivity than existing techniques.
Negotiating detention: The radical pragmatism of prison-based resistance in protracted conflicts
Authors: Norman Julie M
Published: January 2021

Critical prison studies have demonstrated how states use imprisonment and detention not only to punish individuals, but also to quell dissent and disrupt opposition movements. In protracted conflicts, however, the use of mass incarceration and unlawful detention often backfires on states as politically motivated prisoners exert their relevance by making imprisonment itself a central issue in the wider conflicts. Rather than retreating to the margins, prisoners have taken back prison spaces as loci of resistance, forcing both state authorities and their own external parties to engage with them seriously as political actors. This subversion of the prison space is not automatic, however; as this article demonstrates, prisoners have exerted the most influence on both authorities and their own factions when they have combined pragmatism and radicalism through multilevel strategies such as establishing praxes for self-education and organizing; using everyday non-compliance to challenge prison administrators; and occasionally, engaging in hunger strikes that exert boomerang pressure from external factions and solidarity networks on state authorities. Drawing from the case studies of Israel–Palestine, Northern Ireland and South Africa, this research shows how these radically pragmatic tactics create a ‘trialectic’ interaction between prisoners, state authorities and external networks, forcing direct and indirect negotiations regarding prisoners’ rights, and, at times, influencing broader conflict dynamics.
Contributing Factors, Attribution, and Coping in Academic Boredom: An Exploratory Case Study of Graduate Students in Education
Authors: Xie Jianling , Xu Jianzhong , Wei Tianlan , Gallo Katarzyna , Giles Mary Everett , Zhan Yan , Zeng Yan , Huang Xiang , Liu Xia
Published: January 2021

This exploratory qualitative case study investigates how graduate students in education experience, attribute, and combat academic boredom. Three areas of concern are addressed: (a) the contributing factors to boredom, (b) how attributional style (internal vs. external) relates to coping with boredom, and (c) the differences between combating class-related boredom and learning-related boredom. Results showed that the onset of boredom was mostly influenced by a lack of interest, lack of utility value, and autonomy frustration. This study extended the existing literature by discovering an interaction between students’ attributional style and their coping strategies for boredom during classroom instruction. Specifically, students who argued that the instructor should hold more responsibility for boredom in class tended to take avoidance coping as their primary strategy (e.g., doodling). By comparison, students who opted to approach the problem positively (e.g., taking notes) are prone to attribute internally. Attribution does not appear to have a mediating effect on the relationship between experience of boredom and coping strategies for learning-related boredom. Implications for graduate and adult education and findings in the context of recent theoretical frameworks are discussed.
COVID-19 Pandemic Impacts on U.S. Hospice Agencies: A National Survey of Hospice Nurses and Physicians
Authors: Rogers Janna E. Baker , Constantine Lori A. , Thompson Jesse M. , Mupamombe Charles T. , Vanin Jennifer M. , Navia R. Osvaldo
Published: January 2021

Background:

Hospice agencies face unique challenges during times of widespread public health emergencies. The pandemic of novel coronavirus disease COVID-19 is widely affecting global healthcare systems.

Aim:

This study assesses effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on U.S. hospice agencies, staff, and patients as reported by hospice agency staff.

Design:

An anonymous electronic survey was developed. Free-text comments were assessed for impacts on hospice agencies, staff, and patients and their families.

Setting/Participants:

The target audience was members of the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine and the Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association who self-identified as being active with hospice agencies in the United States.

Results:

Reported impacts include inadequate supplies of personal protective equipment, changes in hospice services, and decreased access by hospice personnel to patients in long term care facilities. Flow of patients through hospice care settings was impeded. Agencies experienced changes in workforce availability and increased emotional support needs of staff. Patient and families experienced increased bereavement needs. Nearly one-third of respondents reported negative effects on patient outcomes, such as inadequate symptom management and negative psychosocial effects.

Conclusion:

Respondents indicate that the COVID-19 pandemic had negative effects on both hospice patient care and hospice agency functioning. Hospice agencies appear to face challenges unique among U.S. healthcare agencies due to their service delivery model and focus on interdisciplinary care. There is need for further exploration of the effects that the COVID-19 pandemic has on hospice agencies in order to improve care for their patient population during public health emergencies.
Accuracy improvement method for dynamic substructuring models in vehicle systems
Authors: Kim Jun Gu , Park Hansol , Cho Munhwan , Song David P , Kang Yeon June
Published: January 2021

This study proposes an improved dynamic substructuring model using the estimated frequency response function information at coupling points between substructures. An assembled system generally consists of two or more substructures connected by a bolt. Individual substructure evaluation excluding the effects of other components is important in the development stage of a general mechanical system because the vibro-acoustic performance of the system depends on the specific combination of substructures. Therefore, this study predicted the final coupling system performance using information from the initial evaluation of the individual substructures. Accurate measurements of the joint properties are required to accurately estimate the dynamic assembled system characteristics; however, physical constraints typically limit such measurements at actual coupling points. Accordingly, a method that utilizes generalized coupling properties to estimate the dynamic characteristics of a new coupling system based on the characteristics of an original substructure is proposed. Virtual point transformation is then used to estimate accurate frequency response functions at the coupling points of the assembled system based on convenient measurements. The proposed method was validated using a vehicle suspension that was hard mounted in a test jig and onto an actual vehicle body to estimate the vibration characteristics of the assembled system. The findings of this study contribute to the accurate estimation of the dynamic properties of many real-world bolt-assembled systems.
Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy in a patient with occult hypogammaglobulinemia experiencing bilateral visual impairment
Authors: Hettipathirannahelage Sameera , Wijetilleka Sidath , Jewsbury Hugh
Published: January 2021

Introduction:

Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) is a rare, lethal, demyelinating disease classically seen in profoundly immunosuppressed individuals. It is caused by intracerebral infection by John Cunningham polyomavirus (JCV). We report a rare case of PML in a man with presumed immunocompetence at presentation experiencing bilateral painless visual impairment.

Case Description:

A 60-year-old man with a 3-week history of bilateral painless visual impairment attended our ophthalmology department. Unusually, he navigated around the room well and was able to read 4 of 13 Ishihara test plates in spite of a best-corrected visual acuity of counting fingers at 1 m bilaterally. Slit lamp examination, routine blood tests and optical coherence tomography (OCT) of the maculae and discs were unremarkable. Diffuse hyperintense white matter lesions on T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging of the brain and detection of JCV within the parietal lobe tissue obtained by biopsy confirmed PML. Additional investigations identified an underlying hypogammaglobulinaemia, which may have initiated PML. He received intravenous immunoglobulin but passed away 2 months after diagnosis.

Conclusions:

To our knowledge this case is one of only a handful worldwide to describe PML developing in a patient with presumed immunocompetence at presentation – there was no previous history of recurrent, chronic, or atypical infections. There has only been one other report of visual symptoms presenting as the primary complaint. The case illustrates the importance of ruling out organic, central nervous system pathology in patients presenting with visual loss and normal objective visual function tests such as slit lamp examination and OCT.
Quantification of residual ellipsoid zone and its correlation with visual functions in patients with cone-rod dystrophy
Authors: Hara Takumi , Zhou Han Peng , Kitano Marie , Kure Kana , Asaoka Ryo , Inoue Tatsuya , Obata Ryo
Published: January 2021

Cone-rod dystrophy (CORD) is one of the inherited retinal diseases that result in central visual field deterioration and decreased visual acuity (VA). In CORD patients, impaired photoreceptor cells are observed as the disruption of ellipsoid zone (EZ) on optical coherence tomography (OCT) images. In the present study, we calculated the index of residual EZ (rEZ) to quantify the function of photoreceptor cells and investigated the correlation between rEZ index and visual functions. Twenty-six eyes of 13 patients with clinical suspicion of CORD were examined. Visual field was tested with the Humphrey Visual Field Analyzer (HFA 10-2 program). We simultaneously obtained OCT images and calculated the area of decreased EZ intensity (EZa). Using the binarized OCT images, the percentage of the rEZ in a 3 × 3 mm area surrounding the macula was analyzed. To clarify interrator reproducibility, intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was calculated. Moreover, we investigated the association between OCT parameters and VA as well as the mean deviation (MD) value measured with HFA. The mean age of the patients was 48.5 ± 16.9 years. The mean central retinal thickness was 122.7 ± 73.2 μm. The mean EZa and rEZ were 22.2 ± 23.6 μm2 and 0.35 ± 0.31, respectively. The ICC of each rEZ index was 0.91 (95% CI: 0.89 < ICC < 0.93). Multivariate analysis indicated rEZ was significantly related to logMAR VA ( p = 0.05) and rEZ and EZa were associated with the MD value ( p = 0.014 and p = 0.009, linear mixed model). Furthermore, rEZ was also associated with photopic a- and b-wave amplitudes ( p = 0.027 and p = 0.0024, respectively, linear mixed model). Taken together, the current results suggested the usefulness of rEZ quantification for predicting visual functions in CORD patients.
Necrosis of the optic nerve and chiasm with safe radiation doses: Report of two rare cases
Authors: Abri Aghdam Kaveh , Soltan Sanjari Mostafa , Khosravi Farsani Mohsen , Moghadasi Mehdi , Aghajani Ali
Published: January 2021

Introduction:

Radiation-induced optic neuropathy (RION) is still a devastating complication of brain and skull base radiation that has no effective treatment up until today, thus uttermost caution must be taken in treating patients that brain radiotherapy is needed. We present two cases of RION that happened in seemingly safe radiation doses.

Case description:

A 48-year-old female with a history of pleomorphic pituitary adenoma developed bilateral and painless loss of vision 10 months after radiation to the brain; the total radiation dose was 45 Gy in 25 fractions and no other risk factors of RION were found. Magnetic resonance imaging of the brain depicted bilateral prechiasmatic optic nerve enhancement with involvement of the optic chiasm. Treatment with high doses of corticosteroids was unsuccessful. A 62-year-old female with a history of lung adenocarcinoma and brain metastases presented with a 1-month history of decreased vision in both eyes. He had undergone whole-brain radiotherapy with a total dose of 30 Gy over 10 fractions and concurrent chemotherapy with cisplatin and pemetrexed. Brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with contrast showed bilateral intracranial optic nerve enhancement.

Conclusions:

This is the second case report of RION in a patient with a history of brain radiotherapy and concurrent chemotherapy with pemetrexed. History of chiasmal compression, concurrent use of chemotherapeutic agents, and high fraction size (despite the safety of total radiation dose) were possible contributing risk factors to develop RION in our cases. Hence, adjusting the radiation dose according to the presence of these risk factors is recommended.
The effect of insulin pump therapy in retinal vasculature in type 1 diabetic patients
Authors: de Oliveira Loureiro Tomás , Cardoso João Nobre , Lopes Carlos Diogo Pinheiro Lima , Carreira Ana Rita , Rodrigues-Barros Sandra , Vide-Escada Ana , Campos Nuno Patrício
Published: January 2021

Background/objectives:

Continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion (CSII) is a treatment for type 1 diabetes that improves metabolic control and reduces micro and macrovascular complications. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of CSII versus traditional multiple daily injections (MDI) therapy on retinal vasculature.

Methods:

We performed a prospective study with type 1 diabetic patients with no prior history of ocular pathology other than mild diabetic retinopathy. The patients were divided into two groups according to their therapeutic modality (CSII vs MDI). The retinal nerve fiber layers thickness and vascular densities were compared between groups in both macula and optic disc. The correlations between vascular density and clinical features were also determined. Statistical significance was defined as p < 0.05.

Results:

The study included 52 eyes, 28 in the insulin CSII group. The mean age was 36.66 ± 12.97 years, with no difference between groups ( p = 0.49). The mean glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) was found to be lower in the CSII group (7.1% ± 0.7 vs 7.5% ± 0.7 p < 0.01). The parafoveal vascular density was found to be higher in the CSII group (42.5% ± 0.4 vs 37.7% ± 0.6, p < 0.01). We found an inverse correlation between HbA1c value and parafoveal vascular densities ( p < 0.01, r = −0.50).

Conclusion:

We found that CSII provided better metabolic control than MDI and this seemed to result in higher parafoveal vascular density. As lower vascular density is associated with an increased risk of diabetic retinopathy, these results suggest that CSII could be the safest therapeutic option to prevent retinopathy.
Corneal higher-order aberrations after cataract surgery: Manual phacoemulsification versus femtosecond-laser assisted technique
Authors: Pohlmann Dominika , Pilger Daniel , Bertelmann Eckart , von Sonnleithner Christoph
Published: January 2021

Purpose:

To compare and evaluate corneal higher-order aberrations (c-HOA) between conventional manual phacoemulsification (Phaco), femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery (FLACS), and femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery with astigmatic keratotomy (FSAK).

Methods:

In this retrospective single center study, 53 healthy individuals with cataract (73 eyes) underwent phacoemulsification with implantation of an intraocular lens. Three groups were formed: group A, Phaco ( n = 27 eyes of 21 patients); group B, FLACS ( n = 25 eyes of 15 patients); group C, FSAK ( n = 21 eyes of 17 patients). An iTrace aberrometer (Tracey Technologies, Houston, TX, USA) was used to perform aberrometry with a pupil scan size of 5.0 mm. We used ANOVA analysis and the paired sample t-test for statistical analysis.

Results:

There was no difference in total c-HOA between the groups prior to surgery ( F(2,66) = 2.2, p = 0.128), but some evidence for a difference between the groups after surgery (F(2,65) = 3.87, p = 0.025). After surgery, total c-HOA increased in all groups, but the greatest increase occurred FSAK.

Conclusion:

Manual phacoemulsification and femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery seem to have less impact on corneal higher-order aberrations than the combination of femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery with astigmatic keratotomy.
Congenital primary primitive neuroectodermal tumor of the orbit in a newborn
Authors: Kasturi Nirupama , Sarkar Sandip , Gokhale Tanmay , Kaliaperumal Subashini , Ch Toi Pampa , Ramamoorthy Jaikumar Govindaswamy , Peruri Guru Prasad
Published: January 2021

Introduction:

Primitive neuroectodermal tumors arise from the progenitor cells of the neural crest, in the central nervous system or other peripheral locations.

Case presentation:

We report a rare case of a congenital malignant tumor, diagnosed as a primary orbital primitive neuroectodermal tumor on histopathological examination.

Conclusion:

Multidisciplinary management with adjuvant chemotherapy needed for the management of these cases.
Not the ‘from the editors’: On guarding ‘topness’
Authors: Willmott Hugh
Published: January 2021

The paper reflects on the experience of preparing a ‘From the Editors’ (FTE) editorial for The Academy of Management Review that went through a process of editorial evaluation prior to its rejection. It provides a detailed example of an encounter between orthodox and heterodox forms of scholarship, illuminating their distinctive value-orientations and forms of engagement. Its specific focus is upon evaluative criteria applied, accountability of decision-making and the mobilization of scholarly aspirations and ethical principles in the preparation and assessment of the FTE. Its intent is to stimulate debate on what it means to ‘challenge conventional wisdom’ – an aim that is broadly shared by ‘top’ journals in the field of management and organization.
Performance evaluation of different types of micro-textured hydrostatic spindles under the main influencing factors
Authors: Chen Dongju , Zhao You , Zha Chunqing , Pan Ri , Fan Jinwei
Published: January 2021

To improve the performance of a hydrostatic bearing, a method of constructing micro-textures on the inner surface of a bearing is proposed to increase the bearing capacity and reduce the friction coefficient. In this paper, the composite texture is innovatively proposed, and the theoretical models of hydrostatic radial bearings under four situations including non-texture, square, spherical, and composite textures are established. The effect of texture shapes and texture parameters on bearing performance is numerically studied and the influence level of various factors on bearing performance is evaluated innovatively using the cross-correlation analysis. The results show that the presence of a micro-texture can improve the bearing capacity and reduce the friction coefficient of the bearing compared with smooth surface bearings; the composite micro-texture increases the bearing capacity by about 9.5%, the stiffness increases by about 8.2%, and the friction coefficient is reduced by about 10.5%; there is an optimal micro-texture unit area ratio (between 30% and 40%) making the bearing capacity largest and the friction coefficient smallest; finally, the influence level of various factors on the bearing performance is evaluated. The relative depth of the texture has the greatest influence on it, followed by the number of textures, and finally the unit area ratio. The above results will provide a theoretical basis for the design of hydrostatic bearings with micro-textures.
Analysis of nonlinear dynamic characteristic of a planetary gear system considering tooth surface friction
Authors: Wang Jingyue , Liu Ning , Wang Haotian , E Jiaqiang
Published: January 2021

Based on the lumped mass method, a torsional vibration model of the planetary gear system is established considering the nonlinear factors such as friction, time-varying meshing stiffness, backlash, and comprehensive error. The Runge–Kutta numerical method is used to analyze the motion characteristics of the system with various parameters and the influence of tooth friction on the bifurcation and chaos characteristics of the system. The numerical simulation results show that the system has rich bifurcation behavior with the excitation frequency, damping ratio, comprehensive error amplitude, load and backlash, and experiences multiple periodic motion and chaotic motion. Tooth friction makes the bifurcation behavior of the system fuzzy in the high frequency and heavy load areas, makes the chaos of the system restrained in the low-damping ratio and light load areas, advances the bifurcation point of the system in the small comprehensive error amplitude area, and makes the period window of the chaos area larger in the large-backlash area, which makes the bifurcation behavior of the system more complex.
Together or not? Spill-over effects of cultural goods displacement
Authors: Brandano Maria Giovanna , Meleddu Marta
Published: January 2021

The features of some cultural goods allow them to be exhibited in a unified form in one location or separated for display in two or more locations. The aim of the present article is to understand whether the decision to expose a cultural good in two different cities instead of the same location could generate benefits for both. To do so, the case of the Giants of Mont’e Prama is analysed. This recognised heritage complex of archaeological stone statues was found in Sardinia (Italy) in 1974 and first displayed in 2014. Since 2014, interest in these statues has increased among both residents and tourists. Moreover, the location of the exhibition was the subject of a strong discussion among historians and politicians. Historians preferred to display all the statues together in Cabras, where they were found. However, politicians and other authorities decided to divide the statues between Cabras and Cagliari, the regional capital, thus separating the collection into two exhibitions. This analysis is carried out to capture potential spill-over effects in visitors’ behaviour and identify which exposition causes visits to the other. The results indicated that the exposition system is a win–win solution, and the negative effect of overtourism is not observed.
Techniques of futuring: On how imagined futures become socially performative
Authors: Oomen Jeroen , Hoffman Jesse , Hajer Maarten A.
Published: January 2021

The concept of the future is re-emerging as an urgent topic on the academic agenda. In this article, we focus on the ‘politics of the future’: the social processes and practices that allow particular imagined futures to become socially performative. Acknowledging that the performativity of such imagined futures is well-understood, we argue that how particular visions come about and why they become performative is underexplained. Drawing on constructivist sociological theory, this article aims to fill (part of) this gap by exploring the question ‘how do imagined futures become socially performative’? In doing so, the article has three aims to (1) identify the leading social–theoretical work on the future; (2) conceptualize the relationship of the imagination of the future with social practices and the performance of reality; (3) provide a theoretical framework explaining how images of the future become performative, using the concepts ‘techniques of futuring’ and ‘dramaturgical regime’.
Blame it on turnout? Citizens’ participation and polls’ accuracy
Authors: Daoust Jean-François
Published: January 2021

When pre-election polls fail, citizens make choices in an environment where the information is inaccurate. This is bad for democracy. Understanding the conditions under which polls succeed or fail is thus very important for the quality of democracy. Polling firms have often blamed voter turnout when they failed to provide accurate information. There is, however, no systematic test of the impact of voter turnout on polling errors. Using data from 2104 pre-election polls in 206 elections among 33 unique countries from 1942 to 2017, I test whether polling firms have legitimate reason to blame their errors on turnout. Results systematically fail to provide evidence that the quality of pre-election forecasting is a function of voter turnout. This research entails important implications for our understanding of polls’ capacity to predict electoral outcomes and polling firms’ public reactions across time and space.
Deep-colonising narratives and emotional labour: Indigenous tourism in a deeply-colonised place
Authors: Graham Marnie , Dadd Uncle Lexodious
Published: January 2021

Sydney is an Indigenous place – Indigenous Country – infused with Indigenous stories and lore/Law. Yet as the original site of British colonisation in 1788, Sydney today is also a deeply-colonised place. Long-held narratives of Sydney as a colonial city have worked hard to erasure Indigenous peoples’ presences and to silence Indigenous stories of this place (Rey and Harrison, 2018). In recent years, however, Indigenous-led tours on Country are emerging in the Greater Sydney region, whereby Indigenous guides share with visitors stories of place, history, culture, language and connection. We write together as Indigenous and non-Indigenous researchers, in conversation with four Indigenous tour operators in the Greater Sydney region to reflect on their experiences of conducting Indigenous tours in this Indigenous-yet-deeply-colonised place. We document the kinds of ‘deep-colonising’ (Rose, 1996) narratives and assumptions the operators encounter during their tours and within the tourism industry, and highlight how Indigenous tour operators facilitate many non-Indigenous peoples in taking their first steps towards meaningful interactions with Indigenous Sydney-siders. We conclude that Indigenous tour operators undertake incredibly complex, confronting and challenging emotional labours trying to change the pervasive and deep-colonising narratives and assumptions about Indigenous peoples in the Greater Sydney region. In a world where the histories of thousands of cities ‘lie in dispossession and genocide of Indigenous peoples’ (Porter, 2020: 15), we argue for further and careful analytical attention on Indigenous tourism encounters in Indigenous – yet deeply-colonised – places.
Autonomy or loyalty? Community-within-community interactions of a local football fandom group
Authors: Ay Utku , Kaygan Harun
Published: January 2021

Fandom communities adopt diverse consumption practices to cope with an overwhelmingly commodified football. Drawing upon literature on consumer communities, this paper examines a local football fandom community in multifarious relations with its broader fandom through divergent consumption practices, which create tensions and ambivalences in terms of the former’s autonomy from and loyalty to the latter. Based on observations and interviews with community members, the paper describes how the community’s production and consumption of its own products are experienced as matters of autonomy within and difference from broader communities, whilst the consumption of merchandise is regulated and performed as expression of loyalty to broader fandom. Findings demonstrate how a community can use multiple consumption practices to manage, mitigate and sustain its community-within-community tensions.
Unpacking the worlds in our words: Critical discourse analysis and social work inquiry
Authors: Leotti Sandra M , Sugrue Erin P , Winges-Yanez Nichole (Nick)
Published: January 2021

Critical discourse analysis is a rapidly growing, interdisciplinary field of inquiry that combines linguistic analysis and social theory to address the way power and dominance are enacted and reproduced in text. Critical discourse analysis is primarily concerned with the construction of social phenomena and involves a focus on the wider social, political, and historical contexts in which talk and text occur, exploring the way in which theories of reality and relations of power are encoded and enacted in language. Critical discourse analysis moves beyond considering what the text says to examining what the text does. As an interdisciplinary and eclectic field of inquiry, critical discourse analysis has no unifying theoretical perspective, standard formula, or essential methods. As such, there is much confusion around what critical discourse analysis is, what it is not, and the types of projects for which it can be fruitfully employed. This article seeks to provide clarity on critical discourse analysis as an approach to research and to highlight its relevance to social work scholarship, particularly in relation to its vital role in identifying and analyzing how discursive practices establish, maintain, and promote dominance and inequality.
Slow scholarship for social work: A praxis of resistance and creativity
Authors: Wahab Stéphanie , Mehrotra Gita R , Myers Kelly E
Published: January 2021

Expediency, efficiency, and rapid production within compressed time frames represent markers for research and scholarship within the neoliberal academe. Scholars who wish to resist these practices of knowledge production have articulated the need for Slow scholarship—a slower pace to make room for thinking, creativity, and useful knowledge. While these calls are important for drawing attention to the costs and problems of the neoliberal academy, many scholars have moved beyond “slow” as being uniquely referencing pace and duration, by calling for the different conceptualizations of time, space, and knowing. Guided by post-structural feminisms, we engaged in a research project that moved at the pace of trust in the integrity of our ideas and relationships. Our case study aimed to better understand the ways macro forces such as neoliberalism, criminalization and professionalization shape domestic violence work. This article discusses our praxis of Slow scholarship by showcasing four specific key markers of Slow scholarship in our research; time reimagined, a relational ontology, moving inside and towards complexity, and embodiment. We discuss how Slow scholarship complicates how we understand constructs of productivity and knowledge production, as well as map the ways Slow scholarship offers a praxis of resistance for generating power from the epistemic margins within social work and the neoliberal academy.
Human Resource Development Before, During, and After Military Leave
Authors: Sweet Kenneth M. , Black Stephanie L.
Published: January 2021

The Problem

Many organizations are ill-equipped to mitigate the talent management challenges associated with extended leave for military reservists. Today, reservists take more long-term leave from civilian employment than at any point in modern history, due to more frequent and longer periods of active service resulting from persistent conflict. Yet, there is a lack of research on managing the dual careers of military reservists, and limited guidance is available for human resource development (HRD) professionals.

The Solution

We propose that opportunity exists in the effective career management of reservists, who receive extensive military training. This article draws on inclusivity research to provide a model for managing the HRD aspects of extended military leave. Rather than focusing on the compliance aspects of military leave, we believe organizations can increase the performance, commitment, and career progression of reservists to better capitalize on the skills and competencies gained through military service.

The Stakeholders

This article offers practitioners of HRD and HRM insights into building inclusive organizations for military reservists. Implications may also be of interest to scholars of military psychology, military reservists, and military-connected employees.
Fluid–structure interaction analysis of hemodynamics in different degrees of stenoses considering microcirculation function
Authors: He Fan , Hua Lu , Guo Tingting
Published: January 2021

In developed countries, stenosis is the main cause of death. To investigate hemodynamics within different degrees of stenoses, a stenosis model incorporating fluid–structure interaction and microcirculation function is used in this paper. Microcirculation is treated as a seepage outlet boundary condition. Compliant arterial wall is considered. Numerical simulation based on fluid–structure interaction is performed using finite element method. Our results indicate that (i) the increasing degree of stenosis makes the pressure drop increase, and (ii) the wall shear stress and the velocity in the artery zone may be more sensitive than the pressure with the increase of percentage stenosis, and (iii) there are higher wall shear stress and flow velocity in the post-stenosis region of severer stenosis. This work contributes to understand hemodynamics for different degrees of stenoses and it provides detailed information for stenosis and microcirculation function.
Circulating tumor cells: A surrogate to predict the effect of treatment and overall survival in gastric adenocarcinoma
Authors: Zhu Yinxing , Chen Nan , Chen Manman , Cui Xiaowen , Yang Han , Zhu Xuedan , Dai Jiali , Gong Yang , Gu Dongying , Huo Xinying , Huang Huanhuan , Tang Cuiju
Published: January 2021

Background:

Circulating tumor cells and serum tumor markers have been found significant in predicting outcome for several malignancies. However, their role in gastric cancer is not fully clarified. We conducted a retrospective study to explore the prognostic value of circulating tumor cells and their applicability in assessing the treatment efficacy in gastric cancers.

Methods:

From September 2015 to December 2018, 116 patients with newly pathologically diagnosed gastric adenocarcinoma were enrolled. At both baseline and two courses after chemotherapy, the data of circulating tumor cells and serum tumor markers, such as CEA, CA72-4, CA19-9, CA50, and CA242, were collected. The relationships between the change trend of circulating tumor cells and the treatment efficacy were analyzed after chemotherapy, with a paired t-test. Univariate and multivariable analysis were used to find prognostic factors for overall survival (OS).

Results:

We found there is a significant difference between the circulating tumor cells-positive and circulating tumor cells-negative before and after therapy (mOS 12.6 vs. 31.6 months, P<0.001; mOS 12.4 vs. 24.2 months, P=0.002), respectively. Also, differentiation, pre-therapeutic circulating tumor cells and therapeutic response were independent predictors of overall survival. Following two courses of chemotherapy, the number of circulating tumor cells increased obviously in the progressive disease group ( P=0.002), while they decreased in the non-progressive disease group ( P=0.02). Thus, the change in the circulating tumor cells count had a close association with the therapeutic response ( P=0.004).

Conclusion:

Generally, circulating tumor cells provide a novel tool to evaluate the outcomes of gastric cancer patients. Since the change of circulating tumor cells was highly related to treatment response, it may be an auxiliary to assess the effect of chemotherapy, leading an earlier adjustment of following regimens.
I hope, one day, I will have the right to speak
Authors: Creta Sara
Published: January 2021

Situated at the intersection of digital migration studies, social movement studies and critical citizenship studies, this article explores how people on the move (migrants, refugees) in Libya use digital media to raise rights violations and to challenge European Union (EU) policies and UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) practices. To examine how digital media provide a ‘space of appearance’ for people on the move in Libya, the study presents a qualitative thematic analysis of 49 posts and 986 comments published on the official Facebook page of UNHCR Libya between January 2018 and January 2019. Major themes include criticisms of UNHCR services and EU policies as well as the raising of human rights issues surrounding detention and evacuation. The findings contribute to a deeper understanding of how digital media enable people on the move to raise rights claims, contest official narratives and become active narrators of their individual struggles with the system of control and exclusion that is so deeply embedded in the discourse of securitized humanitarian care at Europe’s border. At the same time, it highlights how issues of digital access and communicative capacity influence visibility and self-expression in the digital space of appearances.
Prediction of pre-eclampsia
Authors: Giannakou Konstantinos
Published: January 2021

Pre-eclampsia is a leading cause of neonatal and maternal mortality and morbidity that complicates approximately 2–8% of all pregnancies worldwide. The precise cause of pre-eclampsia is not completely understood, with several environmental, genetic, and maternal factors involved in its pathogenesis and pathophysiology. An accurate predictor of pre-eclampsia will facilitate early recognition, close surveillance according to the individual risk and early intervention, and reduce the negative consequences of the disorder. Current evidence shows that no single test predicts pre-eclampsia with sufficient accuracy to be clinically useful. A combination of markers into multiparametric models may provide a more useful and feasible predictive tool for pre-eclampsia screening in the routine care setting than a test of either component alone. This review presents a summary of the current advances on prediction of pre-eclampsia, highlighting their performance and applicability. Key priorities when conducting research on predicting pre-eclampsia are also analyzed.
Open educational resources and social justice: Potentials and implications for research productivity in higher educational institutions
Authors: Ochieng Vollan O , Gyasi Razak M
Published: January 2021

Research is an essential tool for the creation and advancement of knowledge for socio-economic development. Whilst individuals pursue different kinds of education in order to match international standards, employers are keen to recruit employees with needed skills for a competitive edge. Due to the newly existing educational technologies, individuals have been left with insatiable desire to learn more skills, yet, with limited resources. The advent of Open Education (OE) has led to mass retention, use/re-use, redistribution, revision, and remix of open educational resources (OERs) thereby transforming the learning and research landscape in higher learning institutions. This paper analysed the contribution of OERs and social justice (SJ) on research productivity in higher education institutions. A scoping review was adopted for this study to gather extant literature from relevant available databases with the aim of obtaining as much evidence as possible to make a clearer and succinct conclusion. Existing literature provides evidence that OER and SJ principles positively influence production of research outputs in higher education institutions. The main challenges hindering universality of OERs include economic, technical, legal, social, and infrastructural requirements needed for availing OERs to the beneficiaries including learners, educators, learning institutions and governments. Currently, there are many open and free-to-use resources and websites existing on the internet. There is however, need for attitudinal change towards OERs among students, academics, and scholars among other stakeholders if its optimum uptake is to be realized.