bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Estimating Model-Based Oral Reading Fluency: A Bayesian Approach
Authors: Kara Yusuf , Kamata Akihito , Potgieter Cornelis , Nese Joseph F. T.
Published: January 2020

Oral reading fluency (ORF), used by teachers and school districts across the country to screen and progress monitor at-risk readers, has been documented as a good indicator of reading comprehension and overall reading competence. In traditional ORF administration, students are given one minute to read a grade-level passage, after which the assessor calculates the words correct per minute (WCPM) fluency score by subtracting the number of incorrectly read words from the total number of words read aloud. As part of a larger effort to develop an improved ORF assessment system, this study expands on and demonstrates the performance of a new model-based estimate of WCPM based on a recently developed latent-variable psychometric model of speed and accuracy for ORF data. The proposed method was applied to a data set collected from 58 fourth-grade students who read four passages (a total of 260 words). The proposed model-based WCPM scores were also evaluated through a simulation study with respect to sample size and number of passages read.
Effect of SWPBIS on Disciplinary Exclusions for Students With and Without Disabilities
Authors: Grasley-Boy Nicolette M. , Gage Nicholas A. , Lombardo Michael
Published: January 2020

School leaders react to inappropriate behaviors by excluding students, despite research suggesting an association with poor student outcomes. Students with disabilities are frequently subjected to these practices. One framework that has been proposed to reduce the reliance on reactive discipline procedures is schoolwide positive behavior interventions and supports (SWPBIS). In this study, we replicated several state-level quasi-experimental studies with discipline data from California. Using propensity score matching, we compared 544 schools implementing SWPBIS with fidelity and 544 schools that had never been trained. We found statistically significantly fewer out-of-school suspensions and days missed due to out-of-school suspensions across all students. Students with disabilities were statistically significantly less likely to be sent to alternative settings due to behavior in schools implementing SWPBIS with fidelity, with an effect size of −0.65. These results replicate and extend prior findings.
Predicting Special Educators’ Intent to Continue Teaching Students with Emotional or Behavioral Disorders in Self-Contained Settings
Authors: Bettini Elizabeth , Cumming Michelle M. , O’Brien Kristen Merrill , Brunsting Nelson C. , Ragunathan Maalavika , Sutton Rachel , Chopra Akash
Published: January 2020

Schools experience difficulty retaining special educators to serve students with emotional or behavioral disorders (EBD) in self-contained settings, as they have higher rates of burnout and attrition than other educators. Administrators could prevent these outcomes by improving working conditions, but research provides limited insights into which conditions are most important for these special educators. Using structural equation modeling to analyze data from a national survey, we found that special educators’ perceptions of adequacy of planning time, workload manageability, stress, and emotional exhaustion mediated relationships between other working conditions and intent to stay. Specifically, special educators who reported that they (a) spent more time planning outside school (b) supervised more paraprofessionals, (c) had limited access to curricular resources, and (d) served more heterogeneous instructional groups were more likely to report having insufficient planning time, unmanageable workloads, stress, emotional exhaustion, and intent to leave. Results imply that administrators should target planning time, curricular resources, and instructional grouping.
Use of case stories to explore the contextual application of cardiovascular health knowledge in Nigeria
Authors: Ezika Ejiofor A
Published: January 2020

Objective:

The objective of this study was to explore the impact of the use of case stories on promoting cardiovascular health (CVH) knowledge as well as determining the contextual application of CVH knowledge in an urban population in Nigeria.

Design:

Participatory action research.

Setting:

Urban setting in Nigeria.

Method:

Fifty participants were recruited through convenience sampling from an urban population in Nigeria. The researcher in collaboration with two faith leaders, a tribal leader and participants designed two case-based learning tools that were used to facilitate community health education that lasted for 16 weeks and which incorporated the promotion of physical activity and healthy eating twice a week over the same period. The impact of the health education intervention on knowledge concerning cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors was determined using McNemar’s test.

Results:

Overall, 34% of the participants were able to give relevant pieces of advice relating to the two case-based learning scenarios about improving CVH. This percentage is lower compared with overall 76% of the participants who identified modifiable risk factors contributing to CVD in a questionnaire format before the health education session. Although participants were able to identify correct responses in a questionnaire format, it appeared more difficult for them to apply contextualised knowledge using the case-based learning tools. This suggests that the use of case-based learning tools is more realistic to life experience.

Conclusion:

Raising awareness of modifiable risk factors that contribute to CVD using case-based learning can be an important approach to reaching urban communities. Case-based learning is a useful tool to promote CVH knowledge.
Military Technology and Human Loss in Intrastate Conflict: The Conditional Impact of Arms Imports
Authors: Mehrl Marius , Thurner Paul W.
Published: January 2020

Although often conjectured, there is a lack of empirical evidence whether international inflows of military technology render intrastate conflicts more violent. We address this question and argue that expansions in governments’ ability to fight aggravate the lethality of intrastate war. However, we expect this effect to be conditioned by rebels’ military endowments and their choice of tactics. Where rebels are weak, they avoid open combat, and additional governmental arms imports have no effect on the number of casualties. In contrast, governmental arms imports cause human losses to multiply when rebels have achieved military parity or superiority and, as a consequence, use conventional combat tactics. This hypothesis is tested on the number of battle-related deaths in intrastate conflict, 1989 to 2011, using, for the first time, data on governmental imports of both major conventional weapons and small arms. Results support our propositions and are robust to instrumenting for imports of both types of weapons.
Foreign Policy as Pork-barrel Spending: Incentives for Legislator Credit Claiming on Foreign Aid
Authors: Heinrich Tobias , Peterson Timothy M.
Published: January 2020

Foreign policy often creates geographically concentrated domestic benefits. A prominent example is the tying of development aid to purchases from the donor country. This feature of aid highlights the utility in examining foreign policy as an instance of pork-barrel politics. Considering tied aid in terms of legislators’ incentives to provide constituent benefits, we argue that people will support an increase in foreign aid spending more when it would promote local economic activity, while opposing aid cuts more when reduced local economic output would result. Crucially, we also expect that people will support their state’s US senator more when informed that the senator attempted to secure (or retain) locally beneficial funds. We find support for our expectations in a novel survey experiment of US citizens. Our results suggest that legislators’ electoral incentives, and consequential local spending, can help explain the adoption of foreign policies despite national-level public disapproval.
Civilian Victimization and Ethnic Civil War
Authors: Cederman Lars-Erik , Hug Simon , Schubiger Livia I. , Villamil Francisco
Published: January 2020

While many studies provide insights into the causes of wartime civilian victimization, we know little about how the targeting of particular segments of the civilian population affects the onset and escalation of armed conflict. Previous research on conflict onset has been largely limited to structural variables, both theoretically and empirically. Moving beyond these static approaches, this article assesses how the state-led targeting of specific ethnic groups affects the likelihood of ethnic conflict onset and the evolution of conflicts once they break out. Relying on a new data set with global coverage that captures the ethnic identity of civilian victims of targeted violence, we find evidence that the state-led civilian victimization of particular ethnic groups increases the likelihood that the latter become involved in ethnic civil war. We also find tentative, yet more nuanced, evidence that ethnic targeting by state forces affects the escalation of ongoing conflicts.
Reimagining “Kink”: Transformation, Growth, and Healing Through BDSM
Authors: Sprott Richard A.
Published: January 2020

This article introduces the special issue “Reimagining ‘Kink’: Transformation, growth, and healing in BDSM.” The article provides a description of the atypical sexual/erotic or leisure practices and interests that are labeled kink or covered by the acronym BDSM. The article presents a general overview of the prevalence of kinky fantasies, interests, behaviors, and identities built on these activities. A discussion of the importance of consent is also reviewed as a core feature of this type of sexual or leisure activity, which is assumed or discussed by all the articles in the special issue. An overview of the individual papers in the special issue is presented to highlight the ways in which kink sexuality can be an opportunity for peoples’ personal growth, self-actualization, healing, and transformation.
Preparing Teachers to Notice Race in Classrooms: Contextualizing the Competencies of Preservice Teachers With Antiracist Inclinations
Authors: Shah Niral , Coles Justin A.
Published: January 2020

Race-focused teacher education has centered on changing preservice teachers’ racial beliefs and attitudes. In this article, we build on this work by exploring how preservice teachers identify and address issues of race and racism in the everyday work of teaching and learning. To conceptualize these processes, we propose the theoretical framework of “racial noticing,” which extends the literature on teacher noticing to the consideration of racial phenomena. Using a comparative case study design, this study focuses on three elementary preservice teachers (two identifying as White, one identifying as Black) with antiracist inclinations. Findings show that they demonstrated generally strong competencies with racial noticing during a mathematics methods course, but that contextual factors influenced shifts in racial noticing during student teaching. We argue that race-focused teacher education centered on noticing the impact of race and racism in learning settings can make the practice of antiracist teaching more tractable for preservice teachers.
Validation of a cost-effective appendicectomy model for surgical training
Authors: Yiasemidou Marina , Glassman Daniel , Khan Khalid , Downing Justine , Sivakumar Rangasamy , Fawole Adeshina , Biyani Chandra Shekhar
Published: January 2020

Background

Appendicitis is a commonly occurring condition worldwide. The gold standard treatment is appendicectomy. Although training models are commercially available for this procedure, they are often associated with high cost. Here we present a cost-effective model.

Aim

To establish construct validity of a cost-effective laparoscopic appendicectomy simulation model.

Methods

Three groups of surgeons were recruited; novices ( n = 31), of intermediate expertise ( n = 13) and experts ( n = 5) and asked to perform a simulated laparoscopic appendicectomy using the new model. Their performance was assessed by a faculty member and compared between the three groups using a validated scoring system (Global Operative Assessment of Laparoscopic Skills [GOALS] score).

Results

One-way ANOVA test showed a significant difference in task performance between groups ( p < 0.0001). Post-hoc comparisons after the application of Bonferroni correction (statistically significant p value <0.017) demonstrate a significant difference in performance between all groups for all GOALS categories as well as the total score. Effect size calculations showed that experience level had moderate (Eta-squared >0.5 and <0.8) and significant (>0.8) impact on the performance of the simulated procedure.

Conclusion

The model described in this study is cost-effective, valid and can adequately simulate appendicectomy. The authors recommend inclusion of this model to postgraduate surgical training.
A multi-agent model of changes in urban safety livability
Authors: Lihu Pan , Xiaowen Li , Shipeng Qin , Yingjun Zhang , Huimin Yan
Published: January 2020

Urban livability is an important factor in decisions regarding modern urban construction. Based on multi-agent modeling theory, a model of the changes in urban safety livability is proposed to analyze the present situation and the trends in urban safety livability in complex urban systems. Considering safety as an example, five environmental indicators, namely public security, fire protection, traffic, emergency response, and residence, are selected. The interactive dynamic feedback mechanisms among resident decision-making behaviors and urban safety livability in the context of these five indicators and relevant policies are provided. A simulation of the changes in urban safety livability is implemented based on resident behaviors. The results show that the multi-agent modeling method is effective for analyzing urban safety livability and can provide decision support for urban development planning.
Theoretical analysis and simulation of twist blockage and yarn tension in a dynamic twist-resistant device
Authors: Shao Ruiqi , Cheng Longdi , Pan Ning , Xue Wenliang , Yu Yanping
Published: January 2020

In the ring spinning system, a dynamic twist-resistant device has been applied to improve yarn quality. In this paper, a mechanical model quantifies the relationship between twist blockage, yarn tension, and the parameters of the device and yarn when yarn passes through the dynamic twist-resistant device. During the modeling process, the force applied by the twist-resistant device was considered, and the twisting torque was precisely calculated by yarn tension rather than calculated by the assumption that yarn-twisting torque is linearly related to the yarn twist. Finally, twist blockage and yarn tension are given as a function of the normal force applied by the device, the radii of cylinders in the device, warp angle, deviation angle and radius of the yarn. The simulation results are presented and analyzed.
Peaceful legislatures? Parliaments and military interventions after the Cold War: Insights from Germany and Italy
Authors: Coticchia Fabrizio , Moro Francesco N
Published: January 2020

The article contributes to the growing debate on parliamentary war powers and shows how parliaments matter in shaping both force deployment and force employment. Through original analysis of the Italian and German decision-making on military interventions after the Cold War, the article illustrates how formal and informal constraints shape the opportunity structures faced by executives that are willing to undertake military interventions. Revisiting, and building on, the great deal of research recently emerged on institutional constraints to the use of force, the article details the types of costs – namely, transaction and audience costs – linked to involvement of legislatives in the decision-making and provides empirical support for theories based on parliamentary war powers, adding new dimensions of analysis.
Positive Emotions, More Than Anxiety or Other Negative Emotions, Predict Willingness to Interact With Robots
Authors: Smith Eliot R. , Sherrin Steven , Fraune Marlena R. , Šabanović Selma
Published: January 2020

Like early work on human intergroup interaction, previous research on people’s willingness to interact with robots has focused mainly on effects of anxiety. However, existing findings suggest that other negative emotions as well as some positive emotions also have effects. This article systematically examines the roles of positive and negative emotions in predicting willingness to interact with robots, using an integrative analysis of data across five studies that use diverse interaction conditions and several types of robots. We hypothesize and find that positive emotions account for more variance than negative emotions. Practically, the findings suggest new strategies for interventions, aimed at increasing positive emotions to increase willingness to engage in intergroup interaction. No existing work has examined whether positive emotions are stronger predictors than negative emotions for willingness for human intergroup interaction, an important topic for future research.
The Trouble with Race in Forensic Identification
Authors: M’charek Amade , Toom Victor , Jong Lisette
Published: January 2020

The capacity of contemporary forensic genetics has rendered “race” into an interesting tool to produce clues about the identity of an unknown suspect. Whereas the conventional use of DNA profiling was primarily aimed at the individual suspect, more recently a shift of interest in forensic genetics has taken place, in which the population and the family to whom an unknown suspect allegedly belongs, has moved center stage. Making inferences about the phenotype or the family relations of this unknown suspect produces suspect populations and families. We discuss the criminal investigation following the Marianne Vaatstra murder case in the Netherlands and the use of forensic (genetic) technologies therein. It is in many ways an interesting case, but in this paper, we focus on how race surfaced in science and society. We show that race materializes neither in the technologies used nor in the bodies at stake. Rather, race emerges through a material semiotic relation that surfaces in the translation that occurs as humans and things move across sites. We argue that race is enacted, firstly, in the context of legislation as biology reduced to bodily characteristics; secondly, in the forensic analyses as patterns of absent presence; and, thirdly, in society as a process of phenotypic othering.
The Dynamics of (De)Stigmatization: Boundary construction in the nascent category of organic farming
Authors: Siltaoja Marjo , Lähdesmaki Merja , Granqvist Nina , Kurki Sami , Puska Petteri , Luomala Harri
Published: January 2020

This study finds that it is possible for organizations in emerging categories to resist stigmatization through discursive reconstruction of the central and distinctive characteristics of the category in question. We examined the emerging market of organic farming in Finland and discovered how resistance to stigmatization was both an internal and an external power struggle in the organic farming community. Over time, the label of organic farming was manipulated and the practice of farming was associated with more conventional and familiar contexts, while the stigma was diverted at the same time to biodynamic farming. We develop a process model for removal of stigma from a nascent category through stigma diversion. We find that stigma diversion forces the core community to (re)define themselves in relation to the excluded community and the mainstream. We also discuss how notoriety can be an individuating phenomenon that helps categorical members conduct identity work and contributes to stigma removal.
Wittgenstein on ethics: Working through Lebensformen
Authors: Floyd Juliet
Published: January 2020

In his Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus, Wittgenstein conveyed the idea that ethics cannot be located in an object or self-standing subject matter of propositional discourse, true or false. At the same time, he took his work to have an eminently ethical purpose, and his attitude was not that of the emotivist. The trajectory of this conception of the normativity of philosophy as it developed in his subsequent thought is traced. It is explained that and how the notion of a ‘form of life’ ( Lebensform) emerged only in his later thought, in 1937, earmarking a significant step forward in his philosophical method. We argue that the concept of Lebensform represents a way of domesticating logic itself, the very idea of a claim or reason, supplementing the idea of a ‘language game’, which it deepens. Lebensform is contrasted with the phenomenologists’ Lebenswelt through a reading of the notions of ‘I’, ‘world’ and ‘self’ as they were treated in the Tractatus, The Blue and Brown Books and Philosophical Investigations. Finally, the notion of Lebensform is shown to have replaced the notion of culture ( Kultur) in Philosophical Investigations. Wittgenstein’s spring 1937 ‘domestication’ of the nature of logic is shown to have been fully consonant with the idea that he was influenced by his reading Alan Turing’s 1936/1937 paper, ‘On computable numbers, with an application to the Entscheidungsproblem’.
Neopragmatist epistemology for ethics and the sciences: An optimistic sketch
Authors: Müller Olaf L
Published: January 2020

Neopragmatist epistemology rejects any significant distinction between ethics and the sciences. The idea is that in ethics, we acquire knowledge in similar ways as in the natural sciences. Quine/Duhem holism applies to both fields, which explains why the aim of reaching reflective equilibrium is prominent in many meta-ethical accounts: As in the sciences, our ethical system of belief is constrained by logic, observation, coherence, simplicity and parsimony. Whereas considerations of beauty (an important ingredient of scientific methodology) are irrelevant in ethical epistemology, emotions play an essential role; these, in turn, do not matter in the sciences.
Passions, virtue, and rational life
Authors: Hacker-Wright John
Published: January 2020

Neo-Aristotelian ethical naturalists argue that moral norms are natural norms that apply to human beings. A central issue for neo-Aristotelians is to determine what belongs to the good human life; the question is complicated, since we take up a diversity of different lives, many of which seem good, and it seems unclear what the human species-characteristic life really is. The Aristotelian tradition gives some guidance on this question, however, because it describes us as rational animals with intellectual and appetitive powers; the perfection of those powers is what makes us good qua human. This is especially well spelled out in Thomas Aquinas; he takes moral virtues of courage and temperance to be perfections of our sense appetites, a power of going for things presented as good through our senses. These virtues thereby shape our passions, specifically the passions of fear, daring and concupiscent love, which are a result of the sense appetites pursuing what appears as good. This view provides a framework for virtue, which can then be taken as the perfections of distinct powers shared by all human beings, though actualized in a variety of ways. In this article, I will focus on the passion of fear, which I here describe, following Aquinas, as a movement of sense appetite away from evils that are difficult or impossible to avoid. My focus will be on showing that this passion is necessary, irreplaceable by our cognitive powers, and that the underlying sensitive appetites that produce fear must be perfected for any human being to count as good.
Children’s Adjustment to Parents’ Breakup: The Mediational Effects of Parenting and Coparenting
Authors: Karberg Elizabeth , Cabrera Natasha J.
Published: January 2020

Although past studies have shown an association between union instability (i.e., change in family structure) and children’s aggressive behaviors, the mechanism by which this occurs is less understood. This study ( N = 3,387) examined whether father and mother involvement, coparenting support, and maternal responsiveness explained the association between union instability in early life and children’s aggressive behaviors at 9 years, and whether relationship status moderated this association. Findings reveal that only coparenting support mediated this association and only for children whose mothers divorced (not for mothers who experienced a nonmarital separation), suggesting that when a divorce occurs, the relationship between partners (coparenting) is more important than the relationship with children (parenting) for children’s social adjustment.
ENT Mentorship Program for Preclinical Medical Students
Authors: Sethia Rishabh , Sheehan Cameron C. , Danforth Douglas , Essig Garth , Teknos Theodoros N. , Elmaraghy Charles A.
Published: January 2020

Objective

To provide preclinical medical students early access to otolaryngologists to learn about the specialty, facilitate acquisition of clinical skills, and provide one‐on‐one mentorship.

Methods

Students are matched with a single otolaryngology faculty mentor from The Ohio State University/Nationwide Children’s Hospital and attend 8 hours per month in the clinic or operating room, monthly lectures, and rounds, and they give a final presentation. Mentors complete performance evaluations, and surveys are administered longitudinally until Match Day.

Results

Thirty‐five students and 17 faculty members have participated in the program since 2015. All mentors and students found the program to be a valuable experience. When compared to nonparticipating students, participants had significantly higher confidence scores for clinical performance, knowledge of anatomy, and familiarity with the department of interest. All students felt the program prepared them well for third and fourth years, and all 8 of the initial program participants successfully matched into residency with 4 entering otolaryngology.

Discussion

Medical students face a competitive residency application process in otolaryngology with limited exposure, which creates an opportunity for guidance in the pursuit of matching into this field. This novel preclinical mentorship program prepares students for their clinical years and residency by facilitating acquisition of various competencies. Students gain hands‐on clinical exposure in a field of interest and support for navigating the application process.

Implications for Practice

The structure of this program can be applied to other medical schools or specialties if the individual departments contain adequate resources of teaching faculty willing to participate.
Occlusion and Functional Outcomes after Complete Temporomandibular Joint Resection with Soft Tissue Reconstruction
Authors: Lee Jake J. , Lander Daniel P. , Jackson Ryan S. , Zenga Joseph , Pipkorn Patrik
Published: January 2020

Reconstructive outcomes after complete temporomandibular joint (TMJ) resection, including the condyle and glenoid fossa bone, are poorly defined in the literature. We described our technique and reviewed occlusion and functional outcomes of 6 consecutive patients undergoing complete TMJ resection and reconstruction with anterolateral thigh free tissue transfer and intermaxillary fixation with elastic bands for 6 to 8 weeks. At median follow‐up of 14 months, median Mandibular Function Impairment Questionnaire score was 32 (range, 4‐38), indicating mild to moderate impairment. Subjective occlusion was normal in 4 of 6 patients. Premature occlusal contact was seen in 2 of 6 patients. Maximal interincisor distance and horizontal mandibular shift with jaw abduction ranged from 29 to 40 mm and 5 to 8 mm, respectively. Four of 6 tolerated regular diets while 2 adhered to mechanical soft diets; no patients were feeding tube dependent. Soft tissue–only reconstruction after complete TMJ resection resulted in good subjective and objective occlusion in 4 of 6 patients and no cases of severe functional impairment.
Effect of Diabetes on the Prognosis of Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss: Propensity Score Matching Analysis
Authors: Seo Hee Won , Chung Jae Ho , Byun Hayoung , Jeong Jin‐Hyeok , Lee Seung Hwan
Published: January 2020

Objective

The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical implications of diabetes for the management of idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss (ISSNHL).

Study Design

Retrospective study.

Setting

Tertiary referral center.

Subjects and Methods

ISSNHL patients (N = 403) who received inpatient management between January 2015 and December 2018 were analyzed. All were managed by a uniform treatment protocol of high‐dose steroid therapy and salvage intratympanic steroid injections. Treatment results were evaluated according to the American Academy of Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery’s criteria 3 months after the start of treatment. We compared the clinical parameters and treatment outcomes of ISSNHL with and without diabetes. We also evaluated the influence of diabetes on the prognosis of ISSNHL by propensity score matching.

Results

Overall, of the 403 ISSNHL patients, 94 (23.3%) had diabetes, and 11 were newly diagnosed with diabetes. The patients with diabetes were older than those without diabetes (P <. 001), and their initial hearing threshold was significantly higher (P <. 001). The diabetic patients were hospitalized for a longer period, and their hearing recovery rate was lower. However, when age, sex, and initial hearing level were adjusted by propensity score matching, the diabetic patients and matched controls yielded similar treatment results.

Conclusions

ISSNHL with diabetes usually presents with severe hearing loss and requires longer hospitalization. However, diabetes itself may not influence the prognosis of ISSNHL. Proper management must be provided in ISSNHL with diabetes.
Transoral Robotic Surgery for Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma: Improving Function While Maintaining Oncologic Outcome
Authors: Scholfield Daniel W. , Gujral Dorothy M. , Awad Zaid
Published: January 2020

The improved survival in patients with HPV‐positive (human papilloma virus) oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma as compared with HPV‐negative disease calls for treatment that preserves quality of life, particularly a functional swallow. There are several trials currently assessing treatment de‐escalation in terms of less invasive transoral robotic surgery, reduced‐dose radiotherapy, and omission of chemotherapy in this disease cohort. It is important for head and neck oncology surgeons to stay abreast of developments in this area to offer their patients the most up‐to‐date treatment and consider recruiting patients to trials at their institutions. For this purpose, we provide a summary of current trials and associated challenges in managing a disease with fast‐evolving treatment algorithms.
Toxic sights: The spectacle of hazardous waste removal
Authors: Balayannis Angeliki
Published: January 2020

This paper examines the geographies of hazardous waste removal. Over the past decade, studies of disposal have demonstrated the myriad ways in which things can never disappear – they can only be transformed, transmuted, combusted, combined or any other manner of material change. This paper aims to develop understandings of the material politics of disposal by considering the matter of representation. It does this ethnographically, by following a chemical stockpile though the process of removal from its storage site in Tanzania. In examining everyday disposal practices, this paper highlights the materialities of hazardous waste in ways that have been epistemologically side-lined. Locating the analysis at the intersection of matter and representation, the paper illustrates the centrality of paper-work, diagrams, photographs and standard operating procedures in performing removal. It argues that removal is achieved through a bureaucratic spectacle; a process which obscures lingering residues and compounds their toxic effects. By attending to chemicals through the mundane work of removal, this paper opens up different lines of inquiry for studies of waste, and enriches understandings of materiality by considering how visual representations make a difference.
The Influence of Smile Arc by Bracket Position Modification: A Prospective Clinical Study
Authors: F. Yunus Amin , R. Priya , R. Devaki Vijayalakshmi , Karthik L.
Published: January 2020

Objective: The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of McLaughlin, Bennett, and Trevisi Bracket Positioning in patients with ideal smile arc and to assess the efficacy of McLaughlin, Bennett, and Trevisi by modifying anterior bracket position among patients with flat smile arc in pretreatment and postalignment phases.

Methodology: A total of 30 subjects divided into 2 groups (group A: 15 subjects with ideal smile arc, and group B: 15 subjects with flat smile arc) were made to participate in this study. A flat smile arc was converted to an ideal smile arc in group B subjects by bracket position modification, and an ideal smile arc was maintained in group A subjects. While paired student t test was performed to find the level of significance in tip and torque values, Mann–Whitney test was used to find the mean difference in intercanine width and visual analogue scale.

Results: Wilcoxon signed ranks test was used to determine the statistically significant changes observed in torque in relation to all the maxillary anteriors. The results showed that tip values in maxillary lateral incisors and torque values in maxillary canines of group B were statistically significant.

Conclusion: A good amount of intrusion was seen in maxillary canines, which helped in the correction of the smile arc.
Trends in the Intake of Fatty Acids and Their Food Source According to Obese Status Among Korean Adult Population Using KNHANES 2007-2017
Authors: Ahn Jaeouk , Kim Nam Soo , Lee Byung-Kook , Park Kim Sunmin
Published: January 2020

Background:

Increasing obesity rates are related to energy intake with carbohydrate and fat ratio. Using Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2007-2017 data, we examined the hypothesis that the fat intake and food sources of dietary fats had changed over the last 10 years according to gender and obesity status in adult population ≥19 years.

Methods:

The food intake of each participant was collected by the 24-hour recall method, and nutrient intake including different fatty acids was calculated. The fatty acid intakes from 7 food groups were determined according to gender and obesity status.

Results:

Body mass index increased in both genders of the obese group over the decade, but it decreased in the normal-weight group. In men, energy intake was higher in the obese group than in the lean group, but the opposite trend was shown in women. Total fat intake including various fatty acids continuously and sharply increased in both men and women until 2016, then slightly declined only in men. The source of saturated fatty acid (SFA) intake was mainly from the animal food group in men and women regardless of obese status, and SFA and monounsaturated fatty acid from the animal food group gradually increased over time in both genders. N-3 fatty acid intake markedly decreased from fish and crabs and increased from sauces and nuts regardless of genders and the obese status from 2008 to 2017. Polyunsaturated fatty acid and N-6 fatty acid intake increased from bread, cookies, sauces, and nuts regardless of genders and obesity status.

Conclusion:

Fat intake was higher in obese men, but this was opposite in women. The N-3 fatty acid intake from seafood should increase, and the fat composition in sauce needs to be modulated to increase N-3 fatty acids.
New avenues in epigenetic research about race: Online activism around reparations for slavery in the United States
Authors: Grossi Élodie
Published: January 2020

In recent years, many studies invoking epigenetic mechanisms have focused on nutrition, studying the epigenetic incidence of stress in African-American populations who suffered the trauma of slavery or on prenatal stress transmitted from African-American mothers to their offspring. According to some studies, this traumatic memory is transmitted according to a transgenerational mechanism and induces a modification of the epigenome (which is to be understood as a key variable in the expression of an individual’s genes) of a large number of individuals whose ancestors – still according to these studies – underwent a metabolic change related to slavery, due, notably, to nutritional deprivations. While the transgenerational transmission mechanism of trauma is still being questioned by many epigenetic researchers today, and thus not universally accepted by the peer community, it is interesting to consider that activists in favor of reparations related to slavery, especially African Americans, as well as anthropologists and philosophers, are increasingly citing this reasoning of cause and effect as ‘proof’– which allegedly demonstrates that ‘race’ has indeed entered the body through the epigenome. This new research, coupled with its wide reception, have contributed to define biology as an object that is ‘social’, and which individuals can therefore exploit to their advantage in their demands for reparations. This article will therefore seek to cast light upon the complex intertwinement between the field of epigenetic productions and the circulation of theories and concepts in activists’ circles demanding reparations, as well as in newspapers featuring science columns.
Gut Microbiome Patterns Associated With Treatment Response in Patients With Major Depressive Disorder: Changements du microbiote intestinal associés à la réponse au traitement chez des patients souffrant de trouble dépressif majeur
Authors: Bharwani Aadil , Bala Asem , Surette Michael , Bienenstock John , Vigod Simone N. , Taylor Valerie H.
Published: January 2020

Objectives:

Compelling animal data exists examining the impact of the gut microbiome on the brain, but work is required to translate these findings in a clinical population. We sought to do this by exploring the effects of antidepressant medications on the gut microbiota, and establishing a baseline Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) gut phenotype.

Methods:

Participants with a primary diagnosis of MDD (n = 15) who were nonmedicated were recruited and followed over 6 months. Stool samples were collected prior to treatment initiation and 3 and 6 months following treatment. 16S rRNA sequencing was employed in order to analyze the gut microbial community profile. Symptom severity was measured by the Beck Depression Inventory. Alpha diversity metrics revealed no significant difference in the community diversity across any of the time-points.

Results:

Comparison of within-group versus between-group distances revealed a lack of clustering of samples based on time-point, suggesting no significant change in the microbiota across treatment duration. When analyzed based on treatment response, however, patients in the responder group exhibited greater phylogenetic diversity than non-responders (Mann-Whitney U = 5, p = 0.026). At 3-months, 35 Operational Taxonomic Units (OTUs) were significantly different between groups and at 6-months, 42 OTUs were significantly different between responders and non-responders.

Conclusions:

These observations indicate that antidepressant medications alter the gut microbiota of patients with MDD, with disparate effects in responders versus non responders. This supports the concept of a microbiota phenotype associate with treatment response in MDD.
A Combined Behavioral Economics and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Intervention to Reduce Alcohol Use and Intimate Partner Violence Among Couples in Bengaluru, India: Results of a Pilot Study
Authors: Hartmann Miriam , Datta Saugato , Browne Erica N. , Appiah Prarthana , Banay Rachel , Caetano Vivien , Floreak Rosii , Spring Hannah , Sreevasthsa Anurada , Thomas Susan , Selvam Sumithra , Srinivasan Krishnamachari
Published: January 2020

Hazardous drinking is an important contributing factor to intimate partner violence (IPV) occurrence. However, only a limited number of community-based alcohol reduction interventions have been tested in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) for their efficacy in reducing IPV. This pilot intervention study tested a 1-month combined behavioral economics and cognitive behavioral therapy intervention to reduce hazardous alcohol use and IPV in Bengaluru, India. Sixty couples were randomized to one of three study arms to test the effect of incentives-only and incentives plus counseling interventions compared with a control condition. Alcohol use among male participants was assessed using breathalyzer tests. Violence experienced by female participants was measured using the Indian Family Violence and Control Scale. Couples in the counseling arm participated in four weekly counseling sessions. Male participants in the incentive arms earned a reward for sobriety (breath alcohol concentration [BrAC] <0.01 g/dl). Results showed that while incentives reduced alcohol use, there was a greater proportion of negative BrAC samples among participants in the counseling arm compared with the control group (0.96 vs. 0.76, p = .03). Violence also decreased in both intervention arms. The estimated mean violence score for the counseling arm was 10.8 points lower than the control arm at 4-month follow-up visit ( p = .02). This study contributes important evidence to the field of alcohol reduction and IPV prevention approaches in LMIC settings and adds to the growing evidence that alcohol reduction is a modifiable means of addressing IPV.
Applying Socioecological Framework to Acid Attack Violence: An Exploration of Inhabitant Factors
Authors: Jabeen Sadia , Riaz Maria , Omer Sonia
Published: January 2020

This study focused on the phenomenon of acid attack violence by using the socioecological framework. It explored the personal, relational, institutional, and cultural factors that contribute toward the act of acid violence. By using the qualitative research design, 15 in-depth interviews were conducted from acid victims. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data. The main themes under the framework of social ecology focused on certain inhabitant aspects such as prevailing poverty, forced marriages, conflicting relationships, lack of social support, the falsified religious interpretation of violence, lack of medical assistance, and poor response of law enforcement agencies. This lack of social support is extended at an institutional level as well as where rehabilitative help and response were absent. This study concluded the complexity and interdependence of all levels factors contribute to the act of acid violence. Moreover, it emphasized the need to develop a biopsychosocial approach to address the issue.
Private humanitarian responses to disaster vulnerabilities: The Chernobyl children from Belarus in Italy
Authors: Zhukova Ekatherina
Published: January 2020

This article aims to understand how children’s vulnerabilities function in humanitarian aid programmes. Different types of vulnerabilities that emerged as a result of and in response to the consequences of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster (1986) during recuperation of the affected children from Belarus in their Italian host families are examined. It is shown that while the initiation of aid was based on directly disaster-related vulnerabilities (radiation-related vulnerabilities), the outcomes of this aid were influenced by indirectly disaster-related vulnerabilities (social vulnerabilities).
A magnetic shear thickening media in magnetic field–assisted surface finishing
Authors: Fan Zenghua , Tian Yebing , Zhou Qiang , Shi Chen
Published: January 2020

A novel surface finishing method named magnetic shear thickening finishing that combines the intelligent shear thickening fluids and magnetic field action is proposed. The magnetic shear thickening finishing media, which is a combination of carbonyl iron particles and SiC particles in a base medium of shear thickening fluids, is developed. The finishing processes were experimentally characterized to verify the performance potential of the proposed method and developed magnetic shear thickening finishing media. Experimental results demonstrated that the developed media is effective for surface finishing compared with finishing media without shear thickening fluids. The surface roughness value of the testing sample was reduced to 54 nm from an initial value of 1.17 μm. Scanning electron microscope observations showed that the scratches were removed obviously and a smooth surface was obtained.
Model-based transmission acoustic analysis and improvement
Authors: Cao Zhan , Chen Yong , Zang Libin
Published: January 2020

A model-based transmission acoustic performance has been studied. Both excitation source and structure-borne noise transfer are investigated. For excitation source, transmission error is the main cause. To reduce transmission error, the most effective method is gear micro-geometry modification. However, there is no direct mathematical model that could reveal the relationship between transmission error and gear micro-geometry parameters, especially in the context of transmission system with shafts, bearings and housings included. By using multiple variable linear regression method, the relationship between transmission error and gear micro-geometry parameters is connected. The optimised transmission error decreases from 9.34 to 5.65 μm at a typical working condition. For structure-borne noise transfer, the housing modal and transmission system modal have been analysed. Based on the simulation results, housing thickness around bearing assembly area is increased, and strengthen ribs are added at weak areas. As a result, the amplitude of housing vibration acceleration is reduced. Finally, the transmission noise sound pressure level at 0.3-m distance has decreased by 4.63 dB on average. The presented model-based transmission acoustic analysis work flow is demonstrated workable and effective.
Same Data Set, Different Conclusions: Preschool Delay of Gratification Predicts Later Behavioral Outcomes in a Preregistered Study
Authors: Michaelson Laura E. , Munakata Yuko
Published: January 2020

One simple marshmallow test in preschool children predicts an array of important life outcomes, according to multiple studies spanning several decades. However, a recent conceptual replication casts doubt on these famous findings. We conducted an independent, preregistered secondary analysis to test whether previously observed longitudinal associations between preschool delay of gratification and adolescent outcomes would be conceptually replicated. Associations were significant for three of the five outcomes we tested using the analytic approach employed in the original studies of the marshmallow test. Relationships between delay of gratification and problem behavior held in bivariate, multivariate, and multilevel models; in contrast, no significant relationships between delay and problem behavior were found in the other recent replication, even though both studies used the same data set. These relationships were better explained by social support than by self-control, suggesting that the marshmallow test is predictive because it reflects aspects of a child’s early environment that are important over the long term. This novel interpretation of the classic findings points to new directions for intervention.