bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Insurrection training for post-human politics
Authors: Nold Christian
Published: July 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to articulate an ontological anarchist approach for an engaged post-human politics and present insurrection training as a pragmatic tool for researchers to directly transform the world.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper analyses how post-humanism has been criticised for dissolving political agency. It shows that this is due to the way post-humanism has been framed as sensitising and including non-humans into liberal politics. Instead, the paper examines anarchist-influenced post-humanism and combines this with the notion of multiple ontologies and ontological interventions. The paper presents the notion of insurrection training as offering the possibility for researchers to become emotionally sensitised to ontological difference. A case study of the “Seeds of Hope East Timor Ploughshares action” (1996) is used to illustrate what insurrection training and ontological interventions look like in practice. Finally, the paper makes suggestions as to how post-human researchers can apply this approach in their everyday lives.

Findings

The paper suggests that beyond a liberal framing of post-humanism as inclusion, there is also an ontological anarchist post-humanism that can support transformative impacts in the world. This form of post-humanism offers specificity of intervention and reflexive training practices. Insurrection training can offer new possibilities for post-humanist researchers: experience ontological difference, de-trivialise the everyday, connect to social movements, make post-human politics “doable” and offer “direct” change.

Originality/value

The paper addresses discussions that claim post-humanism is disabling political change. Its contribution is to map an anarchist post-humanism and extend this with concepts of multiple ontologies. It proposes the notion of insurrection training which places attention on the role of the researcher as an active agent that needs to be sensitised to ontological difference to carry out interventions. A case study of direct action illustrates what ontological intervention and insurrection training look like in practice. The case study suggests that insurrection training is an everyday performative practice that integrates and negotiates the personal, material and political. Finally, the paper suggests how researchers can adopt such an approach in their everyday lives.
The sustainability of Swedish fiscal policy: a re-examination
Authors: Ndoricimpa Arcade
Published: July 2020

Purpose

This study reexamines the sustainability of fiscal policy in Sweden.

Design/methodology/approach

To test the sustainability of fiscal policy, two approaches are used; the methodology of Kejriwal and Perron (2010), testing for multiple structural changes in a cointegrated regression model and time-varying cointegration test of Bierens and Martins (2010), and Martins (2015).

Findings

Using the first approach of testing for multiple structural changes in a cointegrated regression model, the results indicate that government spending and revenue are cointegrated with two breaks. An estimation of a two-break long-run model shows that the slope coefficient increases from 0.678 to 0.892 from the first to the second regime, implying that fiscal deficits were weakly sustainable in the first two regimes, from 1800 to 1943, and from 1944 to 1974. Further, results from time-varying cointegration test indicate that cointegration between spending and revenue in Sweden is time-varying. Fiscal deficits were found to be unsustainable for the periods 1801–1811, 1831–1838, 1853–1860 , 1872–1882, 1897–1902, 1929–1940 and 1976–1982 and weakly sustainable over the rest of the study period.

Research limitations/implications

A number of implications arise from this study: (1) Accounting for breaks in cointegration analysis and in the estimation of the level relationship between spending and revenue is very important because ignoring breaks may lead to an overestimated slope coefficient and hence a bias on the magnitude of fiscal deficit sustainability. (2) In testing for cointegration between spending and revenue, assuming a constant cointegrating slope when it is actually time-varying can also be misleading because deficits can be sustainable for a period of time and unsustainable over another period.

Originality/value

The contribution of this study is three-fold; first, the study uses a long series of annual data spanning over a period of two centuries, from 1800 to 2011. Second, because of the importance of structural change in economics, to examine the existence of a level relationship between spending and revenue, the study uses the methodology of Kejriwal and Perron (2010) to test for multiple structural changes in a cointegrated regression model, as well as time-varying cointegration of Bierens and Martins (2010) and Martins (2015).
Organizational commitment and work-related implementation of enterprise social networks (ESNs): the mediating roles of employees' organizational concern and prosocial values
Authors: Olfat Mohammad , Shokouhyar Sajjad , Ahmadi Sadra , Tabarsa Gholam Ali , Sedaghat Atiye
Published: July 2020

Purpose

This study, based on the cognitive dissonance and commitment theories, aims to show that employees with high organizational commitment take more advantage of enterprise social networks (ESNs) due to work-related motivations. Furthermore, this study used the tricomponent attitude model to show that the employees' organizational concern and prosocial values mediate the impact of the organizational commitment on the work-related use of an ESN.

Design/methodology/approach

In all, 361 employees from seven Iranian companies using different ESN software packages were surveyed. The validity of the hypotheses was evaluated using partial least square–structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM).

Findings

The results of this study confirm that the employees' organizational commitment has a positive impact on their work-related use of the relevant ESN directly and through the mediating roles of their organizational concern and prosocial values.

Originality/value

Previous studies have carefully addressed the role of organizational commitment in the implementation of conventional information systems. However, this is among the few studies addressing the role of commitment in the work-related implementation of ESNs. The results of this study shed light on how employees with a high level of commitment toward the organizations for which they work take advantage of ESNs due to a work-related motivation for the accomplishment of their duties, for bringing benefits into the organization and for helping their coworkers.
Employee disability disclosure and managerial prejudices in the return-to-work context
Authors: Lyubykh Zhanna , Turner Nick , Barling Julian , Reich Tara C. , Batten Samantha
Published: July 2020

Purpose

This paper investigates the extent to which disability type contributes to differential evaluation of employees by managers. In particular, the authors examined managerial prejudice against 3 disability diagnoses (i.e. psychiatric, physical disability and pending diagnosis) compared to a control group in a return-to-work scenario.

Design/methodology/approach

Working managers (N = 238) were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 scenarios containing medical documentation for a fictional employee that disclosed either the employee's psychiatric disability, physical disability, or a pending diagnosis. The authors also collected a separate sample (N = 42) as a control group that received a version of the medical documentation but contained no information about the disability diagnosis.

Findings

Compared with employees without stated disabilities, employees with a psychiatric disability were evaluated as more aggressive toward other employees, less trustworthy and less committed to the organization. Compared to employees with either physical disabilities or pending diagnoses, employees with psychiatric disabilities were rated as less committed to the organization. The authors discuss implications for future research and the trade-offs inherent in disability labeling and disclosure.

Originality/value

The current study extends prior research by examining a broader range of outcomes (i.e. perceived aggressiveness, trustworthiness and commitment) and moving beyond performance evaluations of employees with disabilities. The authors also assess the relative status of a “pending diagnosis” category—a type of disclosure often encountered by managers in many jurisdictions as part of accommodating employees returning to work from medical-related absence.
Effect of the factors affecting high-performance p-aramid fibre dyeing and their optimization
Authors: Iqbal Kashif , Azam Farooq , Safdar Faiza , Ashraf Munir , Rehman Abdur , Ullah Tehseen
Published: July 2020

Purpose

This study aims to evaluate the dyeing of the p-aramid fibre with cationic dyes and investigate the effect of dyeing in the protection of the fibre from ultraviolet (UV) light.

Design/methodology/approach

P-aramid fabric has been dyed with cationic dyes using benzyl alcohol as swelling agent to promote the penetration of dye molecules into the fibre. The fabrics were evaluated against colour strength (K/S) value and colour fastness properties after dyed with cationic dyes using full factorial design. This design was used to study the effect of factors that affect the response variables as well as to study the interactions among the factors on response variable. The bursting strength, scanning electron microscopy analysis and X-ray diffraction analysis of undyed and dyed p-aramid fabric were performed before and after exposure to UV light to investigate the changes in mechanical behaviour.

Findings

The results show that the p-aramid fabric dyed with cationic dyes has good K/S values and good fastness properties. The exposure of undyed p-aramid fabric to UV light causes serious loss in strength over short duration i.e. 40 h. Dyeing of p-aramid fabric enhances the resistance to UV light which reduces the loss in strength.

Originality/value

Most of the work is patented and no one has done the process optimization for the industry, so this study offers promising outcomes concerning the dyeing of p-aramid fabric with enhanced shade depth and good colour fastness characteristics.
Malta and the 2019 EP elections – maximising popular engagement with “Europe”
Authors: Cachia Jean Claude , Ellul Fabrizio , Harwood Mark , Sammut Carmen
Published: July 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyse why Malta continues to show the highest level of turnout for European Parliament (EP) elections in a country where voting is not obligatory. By analysing the Maltese EP elections from 2004 to 2019, the paper seeks to understand why the Maltese engage with a second order election to the degree that they do.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper is a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods, first assessing the context of the 2019 elections, the historical trends and then the factors that help explain why the Maltese continue to engage with EP elections.

Findings

The paper finds that the Maltese political system, highly polarised and dominated by two parties, primarily galvanises people to engage with elections, that it is more about party leadership than actual engagement with Europe and that second order elections in Malta are often run as first order elections.

Originality/value

This paper is the only systematic evaluation of the 2019 EP elections in Malta, discusses categorically that EP elections are rarely about Europe while also showing clearly that political parties can make second-order elections appear as first-order elections should the stakes be high enough.
Correcting medical decisions: a study in nurses’ patient advocacy in (Finnish) hospital ward rounds
Authors: Kurhila Salla , Lehtimaja Inkeri , Drew Paul
Published: July 2020

During daily hospital ward rounds, medical teams, led by doctors, assess the progress of an individual patient’s health. It is widely reported in the research literature that nurses play a relatively passive role during these rounds, because although they may have valuable information about the patient’s condition and progress, and indeed their role includes advocacy on behalf of their patients, nurses nevertheless can experience difficulties in participating during case constructions. Here we report an instance from a (gastro‐surgical) ward round in a Finnish hospital, in which nurses played a key role in reversing a consultant’s initial decision to discharge a patient. They did so not by directly challenging the consultant’s opinion, but by employing indirect means to introduce their discrepant perspective: they provide descriptions and ask questions that draw attention to information that results in the doctor coming to a different assessment than theirs of the patient’s condition, and a different decision about what should be done (the patient was not discharged from hospital). The encounter reported here is taken from a corpus of ward round discussions in a Finnish hospital. The method of our study is Conversation Analysis.
The important role of immunization in alcoholic and non‐alcoholic chronic liver disease: A population‐based study
Authors: Nasir Myra , Vinsard Daniela Guerrero , Wakefield Dorothy , Karagozian Raffi
Published: July 2020

Objective

To determine differences in frequencies of vaccine‐preventable diseases between alcoholic liver disease (ALD) and non‐alcoholic liver disease (NALD) patients.

Methods

This population‐based cohort study used USA national inpatient sample ICD‐9 codes from January 2012 to September 2015. Frequencies of admissions for ALD and NALD in patients with pneumococcal pneumonia, influenza, herpes zoster virus, varicella zoster virus, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, human papilloma virus, meningococcal meningitis, diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus were measured. Frequencies and patients’ characteristics were compared for ALD and NALD using χ2 test and multivariate logistic regression analysis.

Results

There was no difference in admissions for hepatitis A and pneumococcal pneumonia between the ALD and NALD groups. There were fewer admissions for hepatitis B (1.17% vs 1.80%, odds ratio [OR] 0.64, P < 0.01), herpes zoster (0.12% vs 0.17%, OR 0.69, P < 0.01), influenza (0.16% vs 0.26%, OR 0.59, P < 0.01) and all others (0.005% vs 0.015%, OR 0.36, P = 0.01) in the ALD group than the NALD group. The extreme all patient refined‐diagnosis related groups mortality risk was 15.24% in ALD and 7.77% in NALD admissions (P < 0.0001).

Conclusions

The most frequent vaccine‐preventable disease in both groups was hepatitis B. Patients with NALD had higher odds of admissions for hepatitis B, herpes zoster virus, influenza and other vaccine‐preventable disease than ALD patients. However, the ALD group had a higher risk of mortality when admitted to hospital with a vaccine‐preventable disease than the NALD group.
The Political Value of Internal Devaluation in the Euro Area Crisis
Authors: Xifré Ramon
Published: July 2020

To overcome the euro area (EA) crisis, the core pushed the periphery to cut labour costs. However, this paper documents that internal devaluation (ID) only mildly improves exports and it can significantly harm firms’ non‐price competitiveness factors. This raises the question of whether ID entered the bail‐out conditionality only for economic reasons or also with political motivations. We argue that the economic crisis reignited a trust‐confidence crisis between the core and periphery countries, with the latter emerging as non‐credible reformers. While some adjustment to regain competitiveness was necessary in the periphery, it is hard to conceive that the policy mix adopted was the outcome of taking all costs into account. Political reasons appear to have exerted a notable influence and this may undermine the effectiveness, ownership and sustainability of present and future reforms.
Phase II study of adjuvant chemotherapy with pemetrexed and cisplatin with a short hydration method for completely resected nonsquamous non‐small cell lung cancer
Authors: Tachihara Motoko , Dokuni Ryota , Okuno Keiko , Tokunaga Shuntaro , Nakata Kyosuke , Katsurada Naoko , Yamamoto Masatsugu , Nagano Tatsuya , Kobayashi Kazuyuki , Tanaka Yugo , Funada Yasuhiro , Maniwa Yoshimasa , Nishimura Yoshihiro
Published: July 2020

Background

Cisplatin (CDDP) and vinorelbine as an adjuvant chemotherapy improve the overall survival of patients with completely resected non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, the treatment completion rate is low due to severe adverse events (AEs). Pemetrexed (PEM) has been used in advanced NSCLC due to its high safety and efficacy. Additionally, the safety of a short hydration method for CDDP administration has been previously reported. Here, we investigated the feasibility of CDDP plus PEM with a short hydration method as adjuvant chemotherapy.

Methods

A total of 21 completely resected nonsquamous NSCLC patients with pathological stage IIA to IIIA disease were enrolled into the study. Adjuvant chemotherapy consisted of four cycles of CDDP (75 mg/m2) plus PEM (500 mg/m2) every three weeks with a short hydration method. The primary endpoint was the treatment completion rate, and the secondary endpoints included toxicity, the two‐year relapse‐free survival (RFS) rate, and the outpatient treatment rate.

Results

A total of 21 patients (median age: 66 years; 12 males) were enrolled in two centers. All cases were adenocarcinoma with PS0 (71.4%) or PS1 (28.6%). A total of 81.0% of the patients received four cycles of therapy as scheduled and the primary endpoint was met. The rate of outpatient chemotherapy completion after the second cycle was 90.5%. The grade 3 or higher toxicities were anorexia (n = 2) and pulmonary thromboembolism (n = 1). No grade 3/4 hematological toxicities or creatinine level elevations were observed. The two‐year RFS rate was 57.3%.

Conclusions

CDDP and PEM with a short hydration is well tolerated in the outpatient setting with limited toxicity.

Key points

Significant findings of the study

CDDP plus PEM adjuvant therapy with a short hydration method is well tolerated in the outpatient setting with limited toxicity.

What this study adds

CDDP plus PEM with a short hydration method has the potential to be one of the options of adjuvant therapy in the future.
Practitioner perceptions of the health of Australian First Nations' Peoples: Preliminary findings
Authors: Crouch Alan , Chew Bonnie , Freeman Gwenda
Published: July 2020

Objective

To probe health practitioner perceptions of Australian First Nations' Peoples' health and to compare these with reported burden of disease, social determinants and culturally safe health systems data.

Design

An online survey tool was used to collect self‐reported responses from health practitioners to answer literature‐derived questions regarding underlying issues in Australian First Nations' Peoples' health.

Setting

Responses to the survey were sought from rural and urban health service locations across all Australian states and territories.

Participants

Allied health, nursing, pharmacy, psychology, social work and related discipline students and practitioners currently working or studying in Australia.

Main outcome measure(s)

Degrees of correspondence between health discipline student and practitioner perceptions on ‘major health issues’ and ‘health systems issues’ and published population health and health systems data. Metrics for ‘connectedness to’ and ‘preparedness to engage with’ Australian First Nations' Peoples were also reported.

Results

Significant differences between practitioner perceptions of ‘major health issues’ and the disease burden/social determinants published evidence, and with the ‘culturally safe health systems’ published evidence, were noted. Positive impacts of social and professional relationships (connectedness) between practitioners and First Nations' Peoples were demonstrated.

Conclusions

The inclusion of basic population health and culturally safe health systems training in curricula for all genres of health practitioners appears to be indicated by these findings. Further, a meaningful role for the intentional nurture of social and professional relationships with Australian First Nations' Peoples across all health disciplines is suggested as part of efforts to address health systems and equity issues.
Time to surgery and transfer‐associated mortality for hip fractures in Western Australia
Authors: Lawless Adam M. , Narula Siddarth , D'Alessandro Peter , Jones Christopher W. , Seymour Hannah , Yates Piers J.
Published: July 2020

Background

Transfer time for patients with fractured hips is a significant problem in Australia. Current guidelines support operative management of hip fractures within 48 h with delays to surgery resulting in worse outcomes. The aim of study is to evaluate transfer times and delays and their effect on outcomes.

Methods

A total of 506 hip fractures undergoing surgical management were reviewed between 2017 and 2018 at a tertiary metropolitan hospital. We examined age, time to surgery, transfer time, delay to surgery, American Society of Anesthesiologists grading and 30‐day and 1‐year mortality. We directly compared outcomes between patients presenting initially to the tertiary hospital and those who were referred from a peripheral site requiring inter‐hospital transfer.

Results

The mean time to surgery was 24.4 h. Ninety‐five percent of patients received their emergency surgery within 48 h with inter‐hospital transfer patients delayed on average only by 12.08 h when compared to primary presenters. Patients who received their surgery in more than 48 h had worse mortality outcomes. Inter‐hospital transfer, regardless of time to surgery, was associated with increased mortality.

Conclusion

Increased time to surgery was associated with increased mortality rates. Transfer delays from a peripheral hospital had a significant bearing on time to surgery. Transfer, regardless of time to surgery, is associated with increased mortality. Early transfer to a referral hospital or bypass of the peripheral hospital is recommended.
Measuring Black Behavior: Examining the Validity of Scales of Mindfulness, Stress, and Resilience with Black/African American Women
Authors: Adkins‐Jackson Paris B. , Levine Elana R.
Published: July 2020

Historically, instruments normed on White people have been used with other populations implying the concepts measured are acultural. Similarly, instruments developed using both women and men have assumed there aren't differences between the groups that may be salient. However, nuances exist and pervade each assessment. This article examines the construct validity of three commonly used health behavior assessments: Five‐Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire, Perceived Stress Scale, and the John Henryism Active Coping Scale. With a sample of 223 Black/African American women living in the United States, the analyses used the Rasch's partial credit model as a measure of unidimensionality. The findings reflect the complexity of measuring subpopulations using instruments normed on one group or in aggregate. Many of the items misfit due to lack of predictability or the suppression of multiple dimensions. The items that did not fit the model described activities such as “control over irritations” and having “distressing thoughts” that are experienced differently due to the intersections of discrimination that disproportionately affect Black women in comparison to their White female and Black male counterparts. Subsequently, this article advocates for the development of tailored measures of health behavior when the construct or phenomenon is experienced differently.
The condition of asset poverty of the elderly In South Korea
Authors: Weon Soyoon
Published: July 2020

Recent studies on asset poverty of the elderly in South Korea have widely used the cross‐sectional method. Yet, the cross‐sectional approach is limited of use for understanding an important feature of poverty, such as changes in the poverty condition of particular individuals, as they grow older. To understand the actual living condition of the elderly over time, using the Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing (KLoSA), I examined the asset poverty condition of the elderly between 2006 and 2016 from both cross‐sectional and longitudinal approaches. In consideration of meaningful differences between different age groups, I divided the elderly population as "middle‐aged," "young‐old," and "old‐old." When using the cross‐sectional approach, findings showed that there were no substantial differences in the asset poverty across age groups although the income poverty rate of the old‐old was three times higher than that of the middle‐aged. Longitudinal analysis revealed that wealth mobility was more likely to occur among relatively younger age groups, and older people have difficulties in improving their poverty conditions over time. Our findings suggest that for the asset poor in the old‐old group, it is necessary to enhance the social security system in South Korea.
Functional diversity of phyllostomid bats in an urban–rural landscape: A scale‐dependent analysis
Authors: Ramírez‐Mejía Andrés F. , Urbina‐Cardona J. Nicolás , Sánchez Francisco
Published: July 2020

Urbanization is one of the most pervasive processes of landscape transformation, responsible for novel selection agents promoting functional community homogenization. Bats may persist in those environments, but the mechanisms responsible for their adaptability and the spatial scales in which the landscape imposes environmental filtering remain poorly studied in the Neotropics. We tested the hypothesis that landscape composition interacts with the spatial scale to affect the functional diversity of phyllostomids in an urban–rural gradient. Based on functional traits, we calculated indices of functional richness, divergence, evenness, and community‐weighted means of morphological traits, and classified species into functional groups. We evaluated the changes in those variables in response to forest, grassland, and urbanized areas at 0.5, 1.25, and 2km scales. The number of functional groups, functional richness, and functional evenness tended to be higher in areas far from cities and with higher forest cover, whereas functional divergence increased in more urbanized areas. Our results show that the mean value of wing loading in the assemblage was negatively associated with landscape transformation at several spatial scales. However, environmental filtering driven by grass cover was particularly robust at the 0.5km scale, affecting big‐sized species with long‐pointed wings. Retaining natural forest in cattle ranging systems at ~12 km2 appears to favor the functional evenness and number of functional groups of phyllostomids. Recognizing the scale of the effect on phyllostomid functional responses appears to be a fundamental issue for elucidating the spatial extent to which phyllostomid conservation planning in urban–rural landscapes should be addressed.

Abstract in Spanish is available with online material.
Floristics of forests across low nutrient soils in Sulawesi, Indonesia
Authors: Trethowan Liam A. , Eiserhardt Wolf L. , Girmansyah Deden , Kintamani Endang , Utteridge Timothy M.A. , Brearley Francis Q.
Published: July 2020

The island of Sulawesi formed from the joining of proto‐islands roughly three million years ago. Regions of zoological endemism, corresponding to the proto‐islands, have been reported. Sulawesi's tree communities, however, remain poorly documented. In better‐studied tropical regions, soil types similar to those found in Sulawesi often have distinctive tree communities. To gather data on Sulawesi's tree communities, we established ten (0.25 ha) plots on four soil types across three regions. We documented diversity, endemism, dominance, and species composition. Linear models of species composition showed greater influence of geographic distance rather than soil, and no relationship with climate. This suggests that the legacy of Sulawesi's formation may have influenced tree communities more so than the soil types we sampled. Most of our plots were on stressful soil types making it difficult to conclude on the importance of edaphic specialization in the Sulawesi tree flora. The lack of climatic effects reflects Sulawesi's position within the wet tropics where the small climatic differences are unlikely to have large influence on tree communities.

Abstract in Indonesian is available with online material.
Epidemiology needs more interdisciplinary teams with expertise in molecular systematics, public health and food safety
Authors: Allard Marc W. , Brown Eric W.
Published: July 2020

What are considered fundamental principles within the Willi Hennig Society and published in their journal are not always fully appreciated by many other biological fields that have not been schooled in these disciplines of systematics principles and the reasons for why these principles are important (Wenzel, Cladistics, 2020, in press). Natural history museums and their associated programs have been a traditional source of the dissemination and training on the uses of phylogenetic systematics. Systematists should do more to expand these interdisciplinary collaborations by reaching out and supporting their local and international collaborators in public health, food and water safety, and other microbiology applications so that critical life‐saving and timely phylogenetic‐based decisions can be made.
Trophic sources and linkages to support mesozooplankton community in the Kuroshio of the East China Sea
Authors: Karu Fukutaro , Kobari Toru , Honma Taiga , Kanayama Takeru , Suzuki Koji , Yoshie Naoki , Kume Gen
Published: July 2020

Many migratory fishes reproduce and recruit around the Kuroshio, and their survival of early life stages is supported by mesozooplankton. Mesozooplankton standing stocks and productivity equivalent to those on the continental shelf have been found in the Kuroshio; however, there is limited information on trophic sources and linkages to support the mesozooplankton community. Here, we evaluate mesozooplankton feeding on protists and their trophodynamics importance by removal bottle experiments in the Kuroshio of the East China (ECS‐Kuroshio). Pico‐ and nano‐autotrophs dominated chlorophyll a concentrations throughout the study sites across the continental shelf, within the Kuroshio path and in adjacent waters. Calanoid and poecilostomatoid copepods comprised more than 85% of mesozooplankton biomass. Significant mesozooplankton ingestion rates were found for nano‐autotrophs based on size‐fractionated chlorophyll; for haptophytes, chrysophytes, chlorophytes, and diatoms from pigment‐based phytoplankton analysis; and for naked ciliates in the microzooplankton. Based on the estimates of individual carbon budgets, nano‐autotrophs and naked ciliates ingested by mesozooplankton composed 39% of their food requirements, suggesting other available prey like nano‐heterotrophs. These results imply that mesozooplankton ingestion in the ECS‐Kuroshio has great impacts on protozoan and phytoplankton communities and their major trophic pathways are from nano‐sized auto‐ and heterotrophs and ciliates to copepods.
Kingdon's multiple streams approach in new political contexts: Consolidation, configuration, and new findings
Authors: Shephard Daniel D. , Ellersiek Anne , Meuer Johannes , Rupietta Christian , Mayne Ruth , Cairney Paul
Published: July 2020

There is a need to conduct more diverse cross‐case analyses in the Multiple Streams Approach (MSA) literature which originated in the United States, to show how key concepts, such as a windows‐of‐opportunity and the role of policy entrepreneurs, manifest in different political contexts. We apply Qualitative Comparative Analysis for a cross‐case analysis of a unique dataset representing 20 countries from four continents. This approach allows us to highlight distinct pathways to influencing policies. We identify four configurations for expanding civic spaces and two configurations for changing policies. We identify three findings novel to MSA: there are two distinctive policy entrepreneur roles involving local and international civil society actors; effective entrepreneurship is conditional on strengthening civic voice and creating civic space conducive to advocacy; and, therefore, effective entrepreneurs often must focus on expanding the civic space to discuss policy problems and the technical and political feasibility of policy solutions.
Equalities in freefall? Ontological insecurity and the long‐term impact of COVID‐19 in the academy
Authors: Wright Katharine A.M. , Haastrup Toni , Guerrina Roberta
Published: July 2020

This intervention focuses on the impact of the global crisis resulting from the COVID‐19 pandemic on existing racialized and gendered inequalities within the academy and in particular our discipline of Politics and International Relations. We argue that responses to recent crises within the academy have exacerbated ontological insecurity among minoritized groups, including women. When coupled with increased caring responsibilities, the current crises call into question who can be creative and innovative, necessary conditions for knowledge production. While university managers seek to reassure university staff of the temporary nature of COVID‐19 interventions, we argue that the possibilities for progressive leaps at a later state of institutional regeneration is unlikely when efforts to address structural inequalities are sidelined and crisis responses are undertaken which run counter to such work.
Beyond sleep duration: Sleep timing as a risk factor for childhood obesity
Authors: Skjåkødegård Hanna F. , Danielsen Yngvild S. , Frisk Bente , Hystad Sigurd W. , Roelants Mathieu , Pallesen Ståle , Conlon Rachel P. K. , Wilfley Denise E. , Juliusson Petur B.
Published: July 2020

Background

Ample evidence attests to the relationship between short sleep duration, sleep problems and childhood obesity. However, few studies have examined the association between sleep timing and obesity in children.

Objectives

To investigate how sleep duration, problems and timing relate to obesity and obesogenic behaviours in children.

Methods

Eighty‐five children (58.8% girls) with severe obesity and mean (SD) age of 12.1 (2.9) years, were matched by age and sex with peers with normal weight (n = 85,12.0 [2.8] years). Sleep and moderate‐to‐vigorous physical activity (MVPA) were measured via accelerometer for seven consecutive days. Children self‐reported emotional eating on the Dutch eating behavior questionnaire. Parents reported children's screen time and sleep problems.

Results

Children with severe obesity had significantly later mean mid‐sleep time, overall (36 minutes later, P < .001), on school nights (36 minutes later, P < .001) and weekend nights (39 minutes later, P = .002) compared to children with normal weight. Children with obesity had more sleep problems (P = .030), but no differences emerged in sleep duration or social jetlag. After adjusting for demographic factors, mid‐sleep time was positively related to screen time (P = .030). Mid‐sleep time and sleep duration were inversely related to time in MVPA (Ps ≤ .041). There were no other significant associations between the sleep variables and the obesogenic behaviours.

Conclusions

Later sleep timing was related to obesogenic behaviours in children and may represent an obesity risk factor.
Statistical Network Analysis: A Review with Applications to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic
Authors: Loyal Joshua Daniel , Chen Yuguo
Published: July 2020

As the coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak evolves, statistical network analysis is playing an essential role in informing policy decisions. Therefore, researchers who are new to such studies need to understand the techniques available to them. As a field, statistical network analysis aims to develop methods that account for the complex dependencies found in network data. Over the last few decades, the area has rapidly accumulated methods, including techniques for network modelling and simulating the spread of infectious disease. This article reviews these network modelling techniques and their applications to the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.
A novel circRNA, circNUP98, a potential biomarker, acted as an oncogene via the miR‐567/ PRDX3 axis in renal cell carcinoma
Authors: Yu Rui , Yao Jie , Ren Yu
Published: July 2020

In recent years, plenty of studies found that circular RNAs (circRNAs) were essential players in the initiation and progression of various cancers including the renal cell carcinoma (RCC). However, the knowledge about the circRNAs in carcinogenesis is still limited. Dysregulated expression of circNUP98 in RCC tissues was identified by the circular RNA microarray. RT‐PCR was performed to measure the expression of circNUP98 in 78 pairs of RCC tissues and adjacent normal tissues. Survival analysis was conducted to explore the association between the expression of circNUP98 and the prognosis of RCC. The function and underlying mechanisms of circSMC3 in RCC cells were investigated by RNAi, CCK‐8, Western blotting, bioinformatic analysis, ChIP assay, circRIP assay and dual luciferase reporter assay. CircNUP98 was up‐regulated in both RCC tissues and cell lines, and high expression of circNUP98 was correlated with poor prognosis of RCC patients. Silencing of circSMC3 inhibited the proliferation and promoted the apoptosis in a caspase‐dependent manner in RCC cells. Mechanistically, we revealed that silencing of circ NUP98 inhibited RCC progression by down‐regulating of PRDX3 via up‐regulation of miR‐567. Furthermore, STAT3 was identified as an inducer of circ NUP98 in RCC cells. CircNUP98 acts as an oncogene by a novel STAT3/circ NUP98/miR‐567/PRDX3 axis, which may provide a potential biomarker and therapeutic target for the treatment of RCC.
Association of IFN‐γ polymorphisms with ankylosing spondylitis risk
Authors: Liu Yanhui , Zhang Guohui , Guan Yulong , Zhao Xiaoliang , Wang Quan , Li Hua , Qi Jinhong
Published: July 2020

The case‐control study was designed to investigate the genetic effects of interferon‐gamma (IFN‐γ) rs2069727 and rs1861494 polymorphisms on ankylosing spondylitis (AS) susceptibility in a Chinese Han population. Blood samples were collected from 108 AS patients and 110 healthy controls. IFN‐γ polymorphisms were genotyped by polymerase chain reaction‐restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR‐RFLP). Hardy‐Weinberg equilibrium (HWE) test was performed in control group. Odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were calculated using chi‐square test to evaluate the association between AS susceptibility and IFN‐γ polymorphisms, and the results were adjusted by logistic regressive analysis. The frequency of rs2069727 CC genotype was much higher in cases than that in controls, suggested its significant association with increased AS risk (adjusted OR = 5.899, 95% CI = 1.563‐22.261; P = .009). In addition, C allele also showed close association with increased risk of AS (adjusted OR = 2.052, 95% CI = 1.286‐1.704, P  = 0 .003). While the genotype and allele frequencies of IFN‐γ rs1861494 polymorphism were not significantly different between patients and controls (P  > 0.05 for all), IFN‐γ rs2069727 polymorphism is significantly associated with increased AS risk in a Chinese Han Population.
Use of the single‐item Patient Global Impression‐Severity scale as a self‐reported assessment of insomnia severity
Authors: Snyder Ellen S. , Tao Peining , Svetnik Vladimir , Lines Christopher , Herring W. Joseph
Published: July 2020

We evaluated a single‐item Patient Global Impression‐Severity (PGI‐S) scale for assessing insomnia severity during the clinical development programme for suvorexant. The analyses used data from two randomised, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled, 3‐month, Phase III clinical trials of suvorexant in patients with Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders IV criteria insomnia. Patients assessed insomnia severity during the previous week using the PGI‐S, a one‐item questionnaire containing six response options ranging from 0 (none) to 5 (very severe), at baseline and at Week 2, and Months 1, 2, and 3 after randomisation. The seven‐item Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) and other subjective and objective assessments were also completed by patients. PGI‐S responses were compared primarily with the ISI using descriptive statistics and correlations. The PGI‐S demonstrated favourable measurement characteristics (validity, reliability, responsiveness and sensitivity). PGI‐S scores decreased from baseline to Month 3 in a similar pattern to the ISI total score, and the Spearman correlation coefficient between PGI‐S and the ISI was .73. An improvement of ≥2 points on the PGI‐S defined a treatment responder, based on comparison to the ISI definition of a responder (improvement of ≥6 points). Our present findings suggest that the PGI‐S is a simple but valid, reliable, responsive, sensitive, and meaningful patient‐reported assessment of insomnia severity. The PGI‐S may be particularly useful as a companion outcome to sleep monitoring using wearable sleep devices or smartphones in at‐home settings.
Growth and development with dual labor markets
Authors: Villamil Anne , Wang Xiaobing , Zou Yuxiang
Published: July 2020

This paper develops a formal growth model in an open economy environment that captures dual labour market characteristics. The mechanism involves economic growth driven by capital accumulation in a country with a Lewisian labour market leading to increasing labour participation at a near constant wage. The model shows that surplus labour plays a critical role in explaining different economic growth paths and structural changes in both developing and developed countries.
Unique Issues for Resettling Refugees from the Congo Wars
Authors: Mahoney Dillon , Baer Roberta D. , Wani Oline , Anthony Eka , Behrman Carolyn
Published: July 2020

In recent years, many anthropologists in the United States have become involved with organizations that serve newly resettled refugees, especially as budgets for the agencies have been severely cut since 2017. Here, we reflect on some of our experiences working with Refugees from the Congo Wars (RFCWs) and address some of the challenges we have faced as applied/practicing anthropologists and resettlement support personnel. Juxtaposing a larger southern city—Tampa—with a smaller rustbelt city—Akron—we see many commonalities but also a few differences that likely relate to host city size and existing diversity profiles. Drawing on almost 3 years of research, we offer some shared observations and comparative divergences among populations of RFCWs that shed light on issues of: timing of arrival in the United States, community and class, schooling, gender and family, and food and diet, for people working with this population.
The ontology of words: Realism, nominalism, and eliminativism
Authors: Miller J. T. M.
Published: July 2020

What are words? What makes two token words tokens of the same word‐type? Are words abstract entities, or are they (merely) collections of tokens? The ontology of words tries to provide answers to these, and related questions. This article provides an overview of some of the most prominent views proposed in the literature, with a particular focus on the debate between type‐realist, nominalist, and eliminativist ontologies of words.
Spinoza on the Limits of Explanation
Authors: Hübner Karolina
Published: July 2020

Commentators standardly ascribe to Spinoza a belief in an exceptionless conceptual closure of mental and physical realms: no intention can allow us to understand a bodily movement, no bodily injury can make intelligible a sensation of pain. This counterintuitive doctrine, most often now referred to as Spinoza's 'attribute barrier', has weighty repercussions for his views on intelligibility, nature of the mind, identity, and causality. I argue against the standard reading of the doctrine, by showing that it produces an inconsistent epistemological picture, contradicting Spinoza's theory of mind and his commitment to universal intelligibility. The alternative account I propose is also philosophically more compelling and plausible as an account of thought in its essential intentionality.
Too hot to handle, the adverse effect of heat stress on crop yield
Authors: van Es Sam W.
Published: July 2020

A major part of the human diet is made up by seeds such as wheat, rice and maize; both as staple crops and as raw material for livestock feed. The yield of these crops is highly dependent on successful flower development, pollination and proper timing of seed set. However, significant yield loss is caused by stress factors such as excessive heat and drought, which are being exacerbated by ongoing climate change (Zhao et al. 2017). Pollen development, in particular, is highly sensitive to heat stress (Mesihovic et al. 2016) and in an effort to enhance our understanding of plant responses to heat stress, with the view of aiding breeding efforts, Bheemanahalli et al. (2020) used metabolic and hormonal profiling to investigate the regulation of heat stress tolerance in two wheat genotypes.
Policy Learning and Information Processing
Authors: Nowlin Matthew C.
Published: July 2020

Policy learning is an important concept in the study of policymaking, yet it is difficult to model and empirically estimate. Additionally, work on policy learning has not fully drawn from the work on information processing in the policy process. In this paper, I propose a model of policy learning that incorporates the Advocacy Coalition Framework's notion of policy‐oriented learning and the theory of disproportionate information processing within a Bayesian learning framework. Policy learning through Bayesian updating occurs as individuals adjust their prior beliefs in light of new information, and in the approach posited here, learning is a function of the strength of prior beliefs and the weight given to new information. Additionally, learning is thought to occur only when subsequent beliefs move in the direction of the information. Then, I demonstrate the policy learning model using public opinion data about Yucca Mountain, a proposed repository site for nuclear waste. Finally, I conclude with suggesting ways in which the policy learning model can be incorporated into current policy learning theories and frameworks.
Boundary Spanning Through Engagement of Policy Actors in Multiple Issues
Authors: Brandenberger Laurence , Ingold Karin , Fischer Manuel , Schläpfer Isabelle , Leifeld Philip
Published: July 2020

Prominent current policy problems such as climate change, migration, or the financial crisis embrace a multitude of issues that are tackled within single‐ or multiple‐policy subsystems. However, interdependencies among actors that arise due to their multi‐issue engagement are often discounted when studying policy processes, including learning dynamics and alliance or trust formation among actors engaged in multiple issues. Various issues compete for actors’ attention, and actors need to choose an appropriate set of issues to deal with given their scarce resources. In this, why do actors engage in multiple issues? We present an innovative inductive approach that identifies policy issues related to Swiss water politics and actors involved therein. We use a two‐mode exponential random graph model to estimate actors’ multi‐issue activity. Results show that 39% of actors engage in more than one water‐related issue and that cross‐subsystem and homophily clustering and clustered issue popularity drive this issue engagement.