bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A dynamic framework for the study of optimal birth intervals reveals the importance of sibling competition and mortality risks
Authors: Thomas M. G. , Shanley D. P. , Houston A. I. , McNamara J. M. , Mace R. , Kirkwood T. B. L.
Published: March 2015

Human reproductive patterns have been well studied, but the mechanisms by which physiology, ecology and existing kin interact to affect the life history need quantification. Here, we create a model to investigate how age‐specific interbirth intervals adapt to environmental and intrinsic mortality, and how birth patterns can be shaped by competition and help between siblings. The model provides a flexible framework for studying the processes underlying human reproductive scheduling. We developed a state‐based optimality model to determine age‐dependent and family‐dependent sets of reproductive strategies, including the state of the mother and her offspring. We parameterized the model with realistic mortality curves derived from five human populations. Overall, optimal birth intervals increase until the age of 30 after which they remain relatively constant until the end of the reproductive lifespan. Offspring helping each other does not have much effect on birth intervals. Increasing infant and senescent mortality in different populations decreases interbirth intervals. We show that sibling competition and infant mortality interact to lengthen interbirth intervals. In lower‐mortality populations, intense sibling competition pushes births further apart. Varying the adult risk of mortality alone has no effect on birth intervals between populations; competition between offspring drives the differences in birth intervals only when infant mortality is low. These results are relevant to understanding the demographic transition, because our model predicts that sibling competition becomes an important determinant of optimal interbirth intervals only when mortality is low, as in post‐transition societies. We do not predict that these effects alone can select for menopause.
Acanthamoeba castellanii Proteases are Capable of Degrading Iron‐Binding Proteins as a Possible Mechanism of Pathogenicity
Authors: Ramírez‐Rico Gerardo , Martínez‐Castillo Moisés , de la Garza Mireya , Shibayama Mineko , Serrano‐Luna Jesús
Published: March 2015

Acanthamoeba castellanii, a free‐living amoeba, is an amphizoic organism that can behave as an opportunistic pathogen, causing granulomatous amoebic encephalitis in immunocompromised patients or infecting immunocompetent individuals via cutaneous lesions, sinusoidal infections, or amoebic keratitis. Therefore, this amoeba could be in contact with different iron‐binding proteins, such as lactoferrin in tears and mucosa and transferrin and hemoglobin in blood. Iron is a vital and necessary element for host metabolism but also for parasite survival. Accordingly, parasites have developed iron uptake mechanisms, one of which is the utilization of proteases to degrade host iron‐binding proteins. In this work, we performed a partial biochemical characterization of A. castellanii proteases at different pHs and utilizing protease inhibitors with 10% sodium dodecyl sulfate‐polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and copolymerized with different iron‐binding proteins. We describe for the first time the presence of several cysteine proteases in a total A. castellanii crude extract and in conditioned culture medium precipitated with ethanol. These amoebic peptidases degraded human holo‐lactoferrin, holo‐transferrin, hemoglobin, and horse spleen ferritin; some of these proteases were substrate specific, and others degraded multiple substrates. These proteases could be considered virulence factors that promote iron acquisition from the host.
Population origin of Atlantic sturgeon Acipenser oxyrinchus oxyrinchus by‐catch in U.S. Atlantic coast fisheries
Authors: Wirgin I. , Maceda L. , Grunwald C. , King T. L.
Published: March 2015

Microsatellite DNA and mitochondrial DNA control‐region sequence analyses were used to determine the population and distinct population segment (DPS) origin of 173 Atlantic sturgeon Acipenser oxyrinchus oxyrinchus encountered from the Gulf of Maine to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, in NOAA's Northeast Fisheries Observer Program. It was found that the Hudson River was by far the greatest contributor to this coastal by‐catch, with 42·2–46·3% of specimens originating there. Generally, specimens represented the geographic province of the river in which they were spawned, but some specimens, particularly those originating in the South Atlantic DPS, moved to great distances. Genetic mixed‐stock analyses provide an accurate approach to determine the DPS and population origin of A. o. oxyrinchus by‐catch in coastal waters, but most informative management requires that these results be partitioned by locale, season, target fishery and gear type.
Variations in the presence of chloride cells in the gills of lampreys (Petromyzontiformes) and their evolutionary implications
Authors: Bartels H. , Docker M. F. , Krappe M. , White M. M. , Wrede C. , Potter I. C.
Published: March 2015

Although confined to fresh water, non‐parasitic species of lampreys and the landlocked parasitic sea lamprey, all of which were derived relatively recently from anadromous ancestors, still develop chloride cells, whose function in their ancestors was for osmoregulation in marine waters during the adult parasitic phase. In contrast, such cells are not developed by the non‐parasitic least brook lamprey Lampetra aepyptera, which has been separated from its ancestor for >2 million years, nor by the freshwater parasitic species of the genus Ichthyomyzon. The length of time that a non‐parasitic species or landlocked parasitic form or species has spent in fresh water is thus considered the overriding factor determining whether chloride cells are developed by those lampreys.
“Because I Was Sick”: Seriously Ill Veterans' Perspectives on Reason for 30‐Day Readmissions
Authors: Enguidanos Susan , Coulourides Kogan Alexis M. , Schreibeis‐Baum Hannah , Lendon Jessica , Lorenz Karl
Published: March 2015

Objectives

To determine the perspectives of seriously ill individuals on reasons for 30‐day hospital readmission.

Design

A prospective qualitative study was conducted employing individual interviews conducted at bedside.

Setting

Department of Veterans Affairs Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System.

Participants

Seriously ill individuals with heart failure or cancer receiving inpatient palliative care and readmitted to the hospital within 30 days of hospital discharge were recruited to participate. Nine were interviewed.

Measurements

A semistructured interview protocol was used to elicit participant perspectives on readmission causes.

Results

All participants were male and had a mean age of 70.1 ± 9.5. Participants were ethnically diverse (three African Americans, three Caucasians, three Hispanic or mixed ethnic background). Six lived alone, and four did not have caregiver support. Qualitative analysis of transcripts revealed three themes relating to reasons for hospital readmission: lack of caregiver support and motivation to provide self‐care, acceptance of condition and desire for aggressive care, and access to care and poor quality of care.

Conclusion

Participants identified potentially avoidable reasons for hospital readmission as well as causes that require rethinking regarding how community support is targeted and delivered. Participant preference for aggressive care, inability to provide self‐care, and lack of caregiver support suggest the need for new and innovative mechanisms to support seriously ill community‐dwelling individuals.
Awareness and Completion of Advance Directives in Older Korean‐American Adults
Authors: Dobbs Debra , Park Nan Sook , Jang Yuri , Meng Hongdao
Published: March 2015

There has been growing concern about racial and ethnic disparities in completion rates of advance directives (ADs) in community‐dwelling older populations. Although differences in AD completion rates between non‐Hispanic whites and African Americans have been reported, not much is known about the awareness and completion of ADs in other groups of ethnic minorities. Using a sample of community‐dwelling Korean‐American older adults (n = 675) as a target, factors associated with their awareness and completion of ADs were explored. Guided by Andersen's behavioral health model, predisposing (age, sex, marital status, education), need (chronic conditions, functional disability), and enabling (health insurance, acculturation) variables were included in the separate logistic regression models of AD awareness and AD completion. In both models, acculturation was found to be a significant predictor; those who were more acculturated were more likely to be aware of ADs and to have completed ADs. This study contributes to the knowledge about the role of acculturation in explaining AD awareness and completion in Korean‐American older adults and provides recommendations for possible AD educational interventions for this older adult minority population.
Associations Between Sleep‐Disordered Breathing, Nocturnal Hypoxemia, and Subsequent Cognitive Decline in Older Community‐Dwelling Men: The Osteoporotic Fractures in Men Sleep Study
Authors: Blackwell Terri , Yaffe Kristine , Laffan Alison , Redline Susan , Ancoli‐Israel Sonia , Ensrud Kristine E. , Song Yeonsu , Stone Katie L. ,   the Osteoporotic Fractures in Men Study Group
Published: March 2015

Objectives

To determine whether sleep‐disordered breathing (SDB), a group of disorders common in older adults characterized by breathing pauses during sleep often accompanied by hypoxemia, is associated with cognitive decline.

Design

Population‐based longitudinal study.

Setting

Six centers in the United States.

Participants

Community‐dwelling older men (N = 2,636; aged 76.0 ± 5.3) without probable mild cognitive impairment or dementia followed for 3.4 ± 0.5 years.

Measurements

SDB was measured using in‐home polysomnography: nocturnal hypoxemia (≥1% of sleep time with oxygen saturation (SaO2) <90%, oxygen desaturation index (ODI: number of oxygen desaturations of ≥3% per hour of sleep)) and apnea–hypopnea index (AHI, number of apneas and hypopneas at ≥3% desaturation per hour of sleep). Cognitive decline was measured using the Modified Mini‐Mental State Examination (3MS) and the Trail‐Making Test Part B (Trails B) at baseline and two follow‐up points. Associations between predictors and cognitive decline were examined using linear mixed models adjusted for multiple confounders. Models were further adjusted for potential mediators (sleep duration, sleep fragmentation, resting SaO2).

Results

Nocturnal hypoxemia was related to greater decline on the 3MS. Men with 1% or more of sleep time with SaO2 less than 90% had an adjusted annualized decline of 0.43 points, compared with 0.25 for men in the reference group (P = .003). For each 5‐point increase in ODI, there was an average annualized decline of 0.36 points (P = .01). Results were robust to further adjustment for potential mediators. The association between AHI and cognitive decline did not reach significance. No associations were seen with SDB and decline on the Trails B.

Conclusion

In older community‐dwelling men, there was a modest association between nocturnal hypoxemia and global cognitive decline, suggesting the importance of overnight oxygenation for cognitive function.
Estrogen‐related receptor gamma regulates dopaminergic neuronal phenotype by activating GSK3β/NFAT signaling in SH‐SY5Y cells
Authors: Lim Juhee , Choi Hueng‐Sik , Choi Hyun Jin
Published: March 2015

The orphan nuclear receptor estrogen‐related receptor gamma (ERRγ) is highly expressed in the nervous system during embryogenesis and in adult brains, but its physiological role in neuronal development remains unknown. In this study, we evaluated the relevance of ERRγ in regulating dopaminergic (DAergic) phenotype and the corresponding signaling pathway. We used retinoic acid (RA) to differentiate human neuroblastoma SH‐SY5Y cells. RA induced neurite outgrowth of SH‐SY5Y cells with an increase in DAergic neuron‐like properties, including up‐regulation of tyrosine hydroxylase, dopamine transporter, and vesicular monoamine transporter 2. ERRγ, but not ERRα, was up‐regulated by RA, and participated in RA effect on SH‐SY5Y cells. ERRγ over‐expression enhanced mature DAergic neuronal phenotype with neurite outgrowth as with RA treatment; and RA‐induced increase in DAergic phenotype was attenuated by silencing ERRγ expression. ERRγ appears to have a crucial role in morphological and functional regulation of cells that is selective for DAergic neurons. Polo‐like kinase 2 was up‐regulated in ERRγ‐over‐expressing SH‐SY5Y cells, which was involved in phosphorylation of glycogen synthase kinase 3β and resulting downstream activation of nuclear factor of activated T cells. The likely involvement of ERRγ in regulating the DAergic neuronal phenotype makes this orphan nuclear receptor a novel target for understanding DAergic neuronal differentiation.

image

We propose the relevance of estrogen‐related receptor gamma (ERRγ) in regulating dopaminergic neuronal phenotype: ERRγ is up‐regulated by retinoic acid in SH‐SY5Y cells, and enhances dopaminergic phenotypes and induces neurite outgrowth; Polo‐like kinase 2 (PLK2) and glycogen synthase kinase 3 beta/nuclear factor of activated T cells (GSK3β/NFAT) signaling are responsible for the ERRγ effect. Our findings provide the first insights into the role of ERRγ in the brain, as a novel approach toward understanding dopaminergic differentiation.
Co‐existence in a species‐rich grassland: competition, facilitation and niche structure over a soil depth gradient
Authors: Martorell Carlos , Almanza‐Celis Citlali A.I. , Pérez‐García Eduardo A. , Sánchez‐Ken Jorge G.
Published: March 2015

Question

Niche differentiation may promote species co‐existence because it precludes competitive exclusion. However, in stressful environments, facilitation may predominate, and large niche overlaps may result from niche widening and positive spatial associations. We analysed the niche structure of a species‐rich system over a soil depth gradient (a niche axis positively correlated with water availability) and tested for various patterns expected from competition or facilitation.

Location

Semi‐arid grassland, Oaxaca, Mexico.

Methods

We recorded species abundance and soil depth in 1200 0.1 × 0.1 m quadrats from four sites. Community structure was described through correspondence analysis and correlated with soil depth. We measured niche breadth (Levine's index), position (mean depth) and overlap (Hurlbert's index). We used a null model to estimate the expected overlap if interactions play no role in determining community structure. We tested whether overlap changed along the depth gradient. We also analysed if niches become narrow with higher competition.

Results

Data supported three predictions derived from competition: most species’ niches were relatively narrow and differed in their position along the gradient, a pattern reflected in a changing community structure; realized niches became narrower where competition was stronger; and niche overlap was smaller than expected by chance. Facilitation had no support: large niche overlaps expected from stress amelioration were as frequent as predicted by chance. Overlap increased in the most stressful (shallow) soils, as expected if facilitation predominates there, but also in the deepest ones where evidence for competition was strong, suggesting an artifact at the extremes of the gradient.

Conclusions

In this grassland, competition seems to restrict species distribution, abating richness in the deepest soils and relegating poor competitors (succulent and poikilohydric species) to the shallow soils. There, drought tolerance rather than facilitation determined community composition and richness. Our results support the idea that hydrological niches play an important role in maintaining plant diversity because (1) differentiation in hydrological requirements (small niche overlaps over the water‐use axis) reduces competition, and (2) spatial heterogeneity and stress create competition‐free patches. Our results also support the hypothesis that facilitation is rare when stress is caused by resource (in this case, water) scarcity.
The Collection and Exhibition of a Fetal and Child Skeletal Series
Authors: Wilson Emily K.
Published: March 2015

Discussions of repatriation dominate the topic of human remains in museums. For the large portion of remains that are not subject to the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act of 1990, however, concerns regarding how to curate, exhibit, and interpret them are paramount, especially when the remains are those of children. The contents of anthropological collections often reflect a shared past that may be uncomfortable to address, but was formative and valuable to the discipline. Understanding the motivations and circumstances that contributed to bringing human remains into museums, as well as the changing uses and interpretations of those remains over time, is an are important aspect of collections care and public engagement. This article examines a skeletal series of fetuses and children at the National Museum of Health and Medicine as a case study for uncovering and conveying to museum visitors the complex histories behind the acquisition, curation, and display of juvenile human remains. [Army Medical Museum, National Museum of Health and Medicine, juvenile human remains, exhibition, visitor studies, museum collecting, history of anthropology]
The gut microbiome restores intrinsic and extrinsic nerve function in germ‐free mice accompanied by changes in calbindin
Authors: McVey Neufeld K. A. , Perez‐Burgos A. , Mao Y. K. , Bienenstock J. , Kunze W. A.
Published: March 2015

Background

The microbiome is essential for normal myenteric intrinsic primary afferent neuron (IPAN) excitability. These neurons control gut motility and modulate gut–brain signaling by exciting extrinsic afferent fibers innervating the enteric nervous system via an IPAN to extrinsic fiber sensory synapse. We investigated effects of germ‐free (GF) status and conventionalization on extrinsic sensory fiber discharge in the mesenteric nerve bundle and IPAN electrophysiology, and compared these findings with those from specific pathogen‐free (SPF) mice. As we have previously shown that the IPAN calcium‐dependent slow afterhyperpolarization (sAHP) is enhanced in GF mice, we also examined the expression of the calcium‐binding protein calbindin in these neurons in these different animal groups.

Methods

IPAN sAHP and mesenteric nerve multiunit discharge were recorded using ex vivo jejunal gut segments from SPF, GF, or conventionalized (CONV) mice. IPANs were excited by adding 5 μM TRAM‐34 to the serosal superfusate. We probed for calbindin expression using immunohistochemical techniques.

Key Results

SPF mice had a 21% increase in mesenteric nerve multiunit firing rate and CONV mice a 41% increase when IPANs were excited by TRAM‐34. For GF mice, this increase was barely detectable (2%). TRAM‐34 changed sAHP area under the curve by −77 for SPF, +3 for GF, or −54% for CONV animals. Calbindin‐immunopositive neurons per myenteric ganglion were 36% in SPF, 24% in GF, and 52% in CONV animals.

Conclusions & Inferences

The intact microbiome is essential for normal intrinsic and extrinsic nerve function and gut–brain signaling.
LIMITS ON INNOVATIVENESS IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT: EXAMINING CAPACITY, COMPLEXITY, AND DYNAMISM IN ORGANIZATIONAL TASK ENVIRONMENTS
Authors: WALKER RICHARD M. , BERRY FRANCES S. , AVELLANEDA CLAUDIA N.
Published: March 2015

Theory and evidence on the diffusion and antecedents of innovation in public organizations demonstrate that organizations respond to their environment and react by being more or less innovative. However, questions about the limits of responses to organizational task environments remain unexplored: in short, what is the appropriate level of environmental capacity and when does the environment become too complex or dynamic for innovation to occur? This study examines non‐linear capacity, complexity, and dynamic environments in an archival panel of 405 English local governments using primary and secondary data from a number of sources. Findings indicate that non‐linearities effect perceived innovativeness in relation to political and social capacity, and political dynamism in an inverted U shape, and in a U shape for community capacity. The implications of these findings for the study of public service innovation are considered.
Evaluation of androgen receptor and GATA binding protein 3 as immunohistochemical markers in the diagnosis of metastatic breast carcinoma to the lung
Authors: Hattori Yukinori , Yoshida Akihiko , Yoshida Masayuki , Takahashi Masahide , Tsuta Koji
Published: March 2015

Differentiating metastatic breast carcinoma in the lungs from primary lung tumors and mesotheliomas is important for determining prognosis and treatment. We evaluated novel breast specific markers, androgen receptor (AR) and GATA binding protein 3 (GATA3) immunohistostaining, for this differential, and compare to other traditional markers. The specimens comprised 33 metastatic breast carcinomas to the lung, 566 primary lung tumors (170 adenocarcinomas, 157 squamous cell carcinomas, 31 pleomorphic carcinomas, 115 large cell neuroendocrine carcinomas, 43 small cell carcinomas, and 49 typical carcinoids) and 42 malignant mesotheliomas. They were analyzed by immunohistochemistry using antibodies to AR, GATA3, estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PgR), mammaglobin, gross cystic disease fluid protein‐15 (GCDFP‐15). Of the metastatic breast carcinomas, immunohistostaining of AR, GATA3, ER, PgR, mammaglobin, GCDFP‐15 were positive in 27 cases (81.8%), 24 cases (72.7%), 26 cases (78.8%), 13 cases (39.4%), 12 cases (36.4%), 9 cases (27.3%), respectively. Of primary lung tumors and mesotheliomas, staining of AR, GATA3, ER, PgR, mammaglobin, GCDFP‐15 were positive in 18 cases (3%), 3 cases (0.5%), 4 cases (0.7%), 2 cases (0.3%), 0 case (0%), 2 cases (0.3%), respectively. Immunohistochemistry of AR and GATA3 are reliable for differentiating metastatic breast carcinoma from primary lung tumors and mesotheliomas.
Is there a missing link? Effects of root herbivory on plant–pollinator interactions and reproductive output in a monocarpic species
Authors: Ghyselen C. , Bonte D. , Brys R.
Published: March 2015

Herbivores can have a major influence on plant fitness. The direct impact of herbivory on plant reproductive output has long been studied, and recently also indirect effects of herbivory on plant traits and pollinator attraction have received increasing attention. However, the link between these direct and indirect effects has seldom been studied. In this study, we investigated effects of root herbivory on plant and floral traits, pollination success and reproductive outcome in the monocarpic perennial Cynoglossum officinale. We exposed 119 C. officinale plants to a range of root herbivore damage by its specialist herbivore Mogulones cruciger. We assessed the effect of herbivory on several plant traits, pollinator foraging behaviour and reproductive output, and to elucidate the link between these last two we also quantified pollen deposition and pollen tube growth and applied a pollination experiment to test whether seed set was pollen‐limited. Larval root herbivory induced significant changes in plant traits and had a negative impact on pollinator visitation. Infested plants were reduced in size, had fewer flowers and received fewer pollinator visits at plant and flower level than non‐infested plants. Also, seed set was negatively affected by root herbivory, but this could not be attributed to pollen limitation since neither stigmatic pollen loads and pollen tube growth nor the results of the hand‐pollination experiment differed between infested and non‐infested plants. Our observations demonstrate that although herbivory may induce significant changes in flowering behaviour and resulting plant–pollinator interactions, it does not necessarily translate into higher rates of pollen limitation. The observed reductions in reproductive output following infection can mainly be attributed to higher resource limitation compared to non‐infested plants.
Utilizing Hyperlink Network Analysis to Examine Climate Change Supporters and Opponents
Authors: Elgin Dallas J.
Published: March 2015

Hyperlink network analysis, which utilizes the links between websites to map online communication structures, offers an emerging methodology for studying the networks of supporters and opponents of public policies. Reasons for the methodology's appeal include the ability to utilize web crawlers to collect large amounts of data and the ability to apply quantitative and qualitative methods to examine network interactions. While the methodology has been utilized by diverse disciplines it is relatively new to the fields of political science and public policy. Utilizing a mixed‐methods research design, this article examines the applicability of using hyperlink networks to study opposing groups in the Colorado climate and energy policy subsystem while drawing increased attention to the methodology's strengths and weaknesses. The results demonstrate the methodology's considerable potential, but highlight the need for greater adoption of a collection of best practices designed to increase the validity, reliability, and generalizability of hyperlink research.
Interplay between an axial channel belt, slope gullies and overbank deposition in the Puchkirchen Formation in the Molasse Basin, Austria
Authors: Masalimova Larisa U. , Lowe Donald R. , Mchargue Timothy , Derksen Richard
Published: March 2015

Deep‐water sediments in the Molasse Basin, Austria, were deposited in a narrow foreland basin dominated by a large channel belt located between the steep Alpine fold and thrust belt to the south and the gentler northern slope off the Bohemian Massif. Several gas fields occur outside the channel belt, along the outer bend of a large meander. Accumulation of these overbank sediments reflects a complicated interplay between slope accommodation and debris‐flow and turbidity‐flow interaction within the channel. The tectonically oversteepened northern slope of the basin (ca 2 to 3°) developed a regionally important erosional surface, the Northern Slope Unconformity, which can be traced seismically for >100 km in an east–west direction and >20 km from the channel to the north. The slope preserves numerous gullies sourced from the north that eroded into the channel belt. These gullies were ca 20 km long, <1 km wide and ca 200 m deep. As the channel aggraded, largely inactive and empty gullies served as entry points into the overbank area for turbidity currents within the axial channel. Subsequently, debris‐flow mounds, 7 km wide and >15 km long, plugged and forced the main channel to step abruptly ca 7 km to the south. This resulted in development of an abrupt turn in the channel pathway that propagated to the east and probably played a role in forming a sinuous channel later. As debris‐flow topography was healed, flows spread out onto narrow area between the main channel and northern slope forming a broad fine‐grained apron that serves as the main gas reservoir in this area. This model of the overbank splay formation and the resulting stratigraphic architecture within the confined basin could be applied in modern and ancient systems or for subsurface hydrocarbon reservoirs where three‐dimensional seismic‐reflection data is limited. This study elucidates the geomorphology of the oversteepened slope of the under‐riding plate and its effects on the sedimentation.
The Authority Account of Prudential Options
Authors: Horton Keith
Published: March 2015

The Authority Account provides a new explanation why commonsense morality contains prudential options—options that permit agents to perform actions that promote their own wellbeing more than the action they have most reason to do, from the moral point of view. At the core of that explanation are two claims. The first is that moral requirements are traditionally widely taken to have an authoritative status; that is, to be rules that morality (or more specifically some suitable agent or agency, acting on behalf of morality) imposes by right. The second is that in order for moral requirements to have such a status, morality must contain prudential options. If both of these claims are true, then they will create a (rational) pressure to think of morality as containing prudential options. And according to the Authority Account, the fact that commonsense morality contains such options is (at least in significant part) the result of this pressure.
The Moral Value of Envy
Authors: Thomason Krista K.
Published: March 2015

It is common to think that we would be morally better people if we never felt envy. Recently, some philosophers have rejected this conclusion by arguing that envy can often be directed toward unfairness or inequality. As such, they conclude that we should not suppress our feelings of envy. I argue, however, that these defenses only show that envy is sometimes morally permissible. In order to show that we would not be better off without envy, we must show how envy is not merely morally permissible, but morally valuable. Here I provide a defense of envy's moral value. I argue that feelings of envy are integral to the value that moral agents place on the goods and talents that they judge to be central to a worthwhile life.
Empathy and Its Role in Morality
Authors: Masto Meghan
Published: March 2015

In this paper, I will argue, contra Prinz, that empathy is a crucial component of our moral lives. In particular, I argue that empathy is sometimes epistemologically necessary for identifying the right action; that empathy is sometimes psychologically necessary for motivating the agent to perform the right action; and that empathy is sometimes necessary for the agent to be most morally praiseworthy for an action. I begin by explaining what I take empathy to be. I then discuss some alleged problems for empathy and explain why some argue that empathy is unnecessary and sometimes even problematic in the moral domain. Next, I criticize a prominent alternative to an empathy‐based morality. Finally, I argue that that empathy is sometimes epistemologically and psychologically necessary for doing the right thing and is sometimes necessary for moral worth. I conclude with a discussion of the important role of empathy in our everyday lives.
Locke on the Ontology of Persons
Authors: Gordon‐Roth Jessica
Published: March 2015

The importance of John Locke's discussion of persons is undeniable. Locke never explicitly tells us whether he thinks persons are substances or modes, however. We are thus left in the dark about a fundamental aspect of Locke's view. Many commentators have recently claimed that Lockean persons are modes. In this paper I swim against the current tide in the secondary literature and argue that Lockean persons are substances. Specifically I argue that what Locke says about substance, power, and agency commits him to the claim that persons are substances. I consider the passages mode interpreters cite and show why these passages do not imply that Lockean persons are modes. I also respond to two objections anyone who thinks Lockean persons are substances must address. I show that a substance reading of Locke on persons can be sympathetic and viable. I contend that with a clearer understanding of the ontological status of Lockean persons we can gain a firmer grasp of what Locke's picture of persons looks like. Finally, once we are armed with a better understanding of Locke on substance, mode, and personhood, we can pave the way toward a more nuanced description of the early modern debate over personal identity.
Explanations of How Love Crosses Class Lines: Cultural Complements and the Case of Cross‐Class Marriages
Authors: Streib Jessi
Published: March 2015

Sociologists know little about how actors explain their attraction to a partner who grew up in a different social class or why their accounts are likely. This is problematic as one form of social class heterophily is relatively common—heterophily by class origin. Drawing upon data from interviews with college‐educated respondents in heterophilous marriages by class origin (n = 60) as well as interviews with college‐educated respondents in homophilous marriages by class origin (n = 20), this article shows that respondents in heterophilous and homophilous marriages say that they appreciate their spouse for different reasons. Whereas actors in homophilous relationships by class origin explain their appreciation for their spouse in terms of cultural similarities, respondents in heterophilous marriages by class origin explain their appreciation of their spouse in terms of “cultural complements”—the obverse of the dispositions they dislike in themselves and attribute to their own upbringing. The article theorizes that accounts of cultural complements are enabled by the social organization of culture by class.
Safety and Solidarity After the Boston Marathon Bombing: A Comparison of Three Diverse Boston Neighborhoods
Authors: Brenner Philip S. , LeBlanc Jessica L. , Roman Anthony M. , Kwate Naa Oyo A.
Published: March 2015

This article investigates the effect of the Boston Marathon Bombing on city residents— how the tragic incident changed, or did not change, how Bostonians live in and feel about their community and neighborhoods. Unlike prior research that began weeks or months after a terrorist attack and used retrospective reports, this study spans the focal event. An address‐based sample of residents from three neighborhoods, distinct in racial and economic makeup was surveyed by mail using a three‐contact protocol. About two‐thirds of respondents answered a survey of neighborhood sentiments, and health and well‐being in the days before the bombing (N = 581) and slightly over a third answered the survey after the bombing (N = 313).

Assessments of safety, city and neighborhood satisfaction and solidarity, mental health, and other key measures vary greatly between the three neighborhoods, which are diverse in racial and economic composition, but also vary in proximity to the bomb site. Net of neighborhood differences, the bombing had a strong negative effect on neighborhood cohesion and reduced use of public transit. Strong interactions are also found between timing of survey completion (pre and post bombing) and neighborhood for assessments of neighborhood solidarity.
Contesting Dominance and Performing Badness: A Micro‐Sociological Analysis of the Forms, Situational Asymmetry, and Severity of Street Violence
Authors: Weenink Don
Published: March 2015

This article proposes two ideal types of street violence: contesting dominance and performing badness. These ideal types were used as heuristic devices in qualitative analyses of 159 violent interactions among Dutch youth, taken from judicial case files. These analyses revealed that over half of the interactions resembled the contesting dominance type. Here, opponents engage in sequences of challenges and provocations to aggressively establish a domineering self; attackers purposively looked for or arranged confrontations that revolved around the issue of who is superior per se. The performing badness type was found in 30% of the cases. This is one‐sided violence in which attackers humiliate and toy with their victims to display their power and meanness. The relationships between these forms of violence, situational asymmetry (weak victims and supportive groups) and severity of the violence were analyzed statistically. Contesting dominance was associated with more severe violence, resulting from the greater amount of confrontational tension. Situational asymmetry was the rule in both forms of violence. The difference between the size of the attackers’ supportive group and that of the victims turned out to be especially important. The larger the difference, the more severe the violence in general, but especially in contesting dominance.
Strangers, Acquaintances, and Victims: Victimization and Concern About Crime Among Women
Authors: Drakulich Kevin M.
Published: March 2015

Women report greater concerns about the danger posed by strangers despite greater victimization by acquaintances. Using a survey of Seattle residents, this article investigates one understudied dimension of this seeming incongruity: the actual effect of victimization by a stranger or acquaintance on concerns about crime. The results suggest different patterns for different crimes: relationship to the offender does not matter for burglaries while acquaintance sexual assaults and stranger nonsexual assaults, respectively, hold the largest associations with concerns. Implications are discussed for research on fear of crime, acquaintance victimizations, and perceptions of neighborhoods.
Becoming a (Pan)ethnic Attorney: How Asian American and Latino Law Students Manage Dual Identities
Authors: Pan Yung‐Yi Diana
Published: March 2015

Managing professional and personal identities often belabor upwardly mobile racialized individuals. I examine in this article how Asian American and Latino law students negotiate (pan)ethnic identities while learning to become lawyers. I contend that managing dual identities creates (pan)ethnic duty among Asian American and Latino law students. I focus on those planning to work in law firms, at least initially. While there are many career options for law students, most, irrespective of race, pursue initial careers at law firms. What leads them there? How do racialization and expectations play a role in this career aspiration? And how do students negotiate the pressure to give back, or manage the internally/externally imposed duty they feel to serve respective communities? I find that Asian American and Latino law students draw on a repertoire of strategies (marginal panethnicity, tempered altruism, and instrumental ethnicity) that encompass different accounts, identities, and roles enabling creativity and elasticity for professional and personal identities. The findings suggest that panethnicity remains salient for upwardly mobile individuals of color, even those who do not ostensibly appear to be concerned with panethnic communities and causes.
Visions of Public Space: Reproducing and Resisting Social Hierarchies in a Community Garden
Authors: Aptekar Sofya
Published: March 2015

Urban public spaces are sites of struggles over gentrification. In increasingly diverse cities, these public spaces also host interactions among people of different class, race, ethnicity, and immigration status. How do people share public spaces in contexts of diversity and gentrification? I analyze the conflicting ways of imagining shared spaces by drawing on an ethnographic study of a community garden in a diverse and gentrifying neighborhood in New York City, conducted between 2011 and 2013. I examine how conflicts among gardeners about the aesthetics of the garden and norms of conduct reproduce larger gentrification struggles over culture and resources. Those who wanted the garden to be a lush and orderly space drew on their privilege and resources to leverage support from institutional actors and push through a vision that resonated with aesthetic preferences of affluent residents and developers. At the same time, I found that the diversity, combined with several other characteristics, created openings for cultural disruption. Utilizing relationships built across dramatic lines of class, race, and immigration difference, less privileged gardeners were able to destabilize hierarchies and defend their visions of this public space. Conflict and messy deliberation—rather than harmonious community—facilitated engagement with difference.
Teachers' Theory‐of‐mind Coaching and Children's Executive Function Predict the Training Effect of Sociodramatic Play on Children's Theory of Mind
Authors: Qu Li , Shen Pinxiu , Chee Yu Yan , Chen Luxi
Published: March 2015

Theory of mind (ToM), the ability to interpret one's own and others' mental states, is essential for social interaction; thus, it is important to promote the early development of ToM. The current study investigated (1) whether sociodramatic play (SDP) promotes the development of ToM in kindergarten children; (2) whether teachers' ToM coaching, as well as children's individual differences in language and executive function (EF), may influence how children benefit from SDP; and (3) whether SDP improves children's development in language and EF. Seventy‐one kindergarteners (M age = 60.2 months, SD = 5.7) divided into 12 groups were randomly assigned to three conditions: free play, SDP, or SDP + ToM coaching. Each condition included four weekly sessions, 45 min per session. Before and after the training, children's ToM, language and EF were measured. The results showed that after children's individual differences in ToM were considered, (1) SDP positively predicted children's post‐test ToM; (2) teachers' ToM‐related guidance during SDP and children's pretest EF positively predicted the training effect of SDP on children's ToM; (3) teachers' ToM‐related guidance during SDP, but not SDP alone, predicted children's post‐test language; and (4) neither SDP nor teachers' ToM‐related guidance during SDP predicted children's post‐test EF.
Magnetic fabric evolution in ductile shear zones: examples in metagranites of the Aar Massif (Swiss Central Alps)
Authors: Till Jessica L. , Cogné Jean‐Pascal , Marquer Didier , Poilvet Jean‐Charles
Published: March 2015

The Aar Massif forms part of the polycyclic basement of the External Crystalline Massifs in central Switzerland. Strong heterogeneous Alpine deformation produced a network of broad, anastomosing shear zones, with deformation strongly localized in mylonitic domains. This study investigates the combined effects of high‐strain deformation and synkinematic metamorphism on magnetic fabric evolution in Tertiary shear zones of the Aar granite and Grimsel granodiorite. In transects across several mesoscale shear zones with large strain gradients, magnetic fabric orientations are in excellent agreement with principal strain orientations determined from outcrop fabrics and strain markers. However, the magnitude and shape of the magnetic anisotropy do not change systematically with increasing finite strain, likely as a result of recrystallization and metamorphism. The overall pattern of steeply dipping fabrics is consistent with the main shortening stage of regional Alpine kinematics, while some mylonite structures reflect a local component of dextral shearing.
A New Vascular Coupler Design for End-to-End Anastomosis: Fabrication and Proof-of-Concept Evaluation
Authors: Li Huizhong , Gehrke Cody , Gale Bruce K. , Sant Himanshu , Coats Brittany , Agarwal Jay
Published: March 2015

Traditional hand-suturing for vascular connection techniques is time consuming, expensive, and requires highly complex instruments and technical expertise. The aim of this study is to develop a new vascular coupler that can be used in end-to-end anastomosis surgery in an easier and more efficient way for both arteries and veins. The vascular coupler has four rotatable wings and one translatable spike in each wing. Prototypes were manufactured using polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and high-density polyethylene (HDPE). A set of installation tools was designed to facilitate the anastomosis process. Proof-of-concept testing with the vascular coupler using plastic tubes and porcine cadaver vessels showed that the coupler should work as designed. A simplified finite element (FE) model assisted in the evaluation of the tearing likelihood of human vessels during installation of the coupler. Results of tests on the coupler showed that the vascular coupler could be efficiently attached to blood vessels, did not leak after the anastomosis was performed, had sufficient joint strength, and had little impact on flow in the vessel. The entire anastomosis process can be completed in 3 min when using the vascular coupler to join porcine cadaver vessels.
Optimal Gear Ratio Planning for Flywheel-Based Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems in Motor Vehicles
Authors: Dunne J. F. , Ponce Cuspinera L. A.
Published: March 2015

An efficient computational methodology is proposed for optimal gear ratio planning in motor vehicle kinetic energy recovery systems (KERS) using a flywheel and continuously variable transmission (CVT). Initial modeling of a clutch-less KERS, comprising an input wheel, CVT, flywheel, and bearings, shows that the “least effort” or “minimum energy loss” optimal control problem can be formulated in two ways: one being a conventional two-state formulation involving input wheel angular velocity and CVT gear ratio, for which least effort control can be solved in simple cases with Pontryagin's maximum principle. The second formulation involves a single-state CVT gear ratio equation for which the input wheel angular velocity and acceleration appear as unknown time-dependent parameters. A novel multiparameter optimization methodology is proposed using the single-state formulation to find optimal CVT gear ratios by adopting two discrete time scales: one being a small time scale for numerical integration of the model, and the second involving discrete transitions, hundreds of times larger. Using Chebyshev polynomial expansions (CPEs) to initially generate sets of zero-energy-loss least effort kinematics for use as the time-dependent parameters in the CVT gear ratio equation, two solution approaches are developed. The first involves a single large discrete time transition, which only requires discretization of the input wheel angular acceleration at the start and end-of-transition. The second approach involves multiple large-scale discrete time transitions as a generalization of the first, but additionally needing discretization of the input wheel angular velocity, and the CVT gear ratio, plus dynamic programming to find the optimum. Both approaches are tested using the clutchless KERS model by assuming a “super CVT” gear ratio range (but with no restrictions for use with slipping clutches). Comparison with least effort control via Pontryagin's maximum principle shows that the single transition approach is in practice far superior. The single transition approach is then used to compare a minimum energy loss clutchless KERS gear ratio plan, with one obtained using constant input wheel angular acceleration as a benchmark. This comparison, involving power losses throughout the KERS, shows the very clear benefits of adopting an optimal gear ratio plan.