bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Places Created and Peopled: “Black Women: Where They Be . . . Suffering?”
Authors: Williams Rhonda Y.
Published: January 2020

This essay is based on remarks given as part of “The Legacy and Impact of Arnold Hirsch” session at the Urban History Association conference in Columbia, South Carolina, in October 2018. My conference remarks were in part prepared outline, in part extemporaneous riff. This essay takes its cue from my conference remarks, in that it, too, is in flux, building on my prepared outline, my in-the-moment handwritten notes, my memory, and additional ideas postconference. Three themes structured my conference remarks: “making the second ghetto”; “black women: where they be . . . suffering?” and “today: neighborhood change & gentrification.” I maintain that structure here.
Some dilemmas of economic democracy: Indicators and empirical analysis
Authors: Zafirovski Milan
Published: January 2020

The article addresses certain current and recurring dilemmas concerning economic or industrial democracy in modern society. First, it identifies the main indicators and proxies of economic democracy. Then it undertakes an empirical analysis and calculation of levels of economic democracy among contemporary Western and related societies, specifically the OECD countries, and compares and ranks these accordingly. It concludes that the type of economy such as that denoted by the variety of capitalism primarily explains and predicts these variations in economic democracy among OECD countries. Specifically, a ‘rationally regulated social economy’ in the form of regulated, welfare capitalism determines and predicts the highest level of economic democracy. Especially the continental Western ‘European social model’ via welfare capitalism is determinative and predictive of the highest levels of economic democracy in its multiple dimensions, including high collective bargaining coverage, widespread codetermination, strong employment protection and others. Conversely, an unregulated economy such as unrestrained, plutocratic capitalism that the American model epitomizes tends to cause and predict the lowest level of economic democracy. A mixed economy such as hybrid or residual capitalism causes levels of economic democracy lower and higher than those of regulated, welfare and unrestrained, plutocratic capitalisms, respectively. Overall, the article builds on and contributes to the literature and analysis of economic and industrial democracy in modern society.
Holding On While Letting Go: Neocolonialism as Organizational Identity Work in a Multinational Corporation
Authors: Storgaard Marianne , Tienari Janne , Piekkari Rebecca , Michailova Snejina
Published: January 2020

This paper develops the idea of neocolonialism as organizational identity work in multinational corporations (MNCs). We argue that neocolonialism – the ethos and practice of colonialism and western superiority in contemporary society – is a means through which identity is worked on at MNC headquarters (HQ). In contrast to extant neocolonial studies of western MNCs, which focus on the subsidiaries (the colonized) and how their identities are shaped by the HQ (the colonizer), we analyse how the HQ is shaped by the subsidiaries. We elucidate two versions of neocolonialism at play: a traditional neocolonial ethos, which prevails at HQ, and a more contemporary version, which is silenced. Our findings show that nurturing a shared and enduring organizational identity across all units of an MNC is a quixotic task. Nevertheless, HQ managers in western MNCs keep attempting to do this, suggesting that neocolonial ethos and practice continue to be relevant in these organizations.
Grandparents’ Relationship to Grandchildren in the Transition to Adulthood
Authors: Wetzel Martin , Hank Karsten
Published: January 2020

This study investigates grandparent–grandchild relations in emerging adulthood, focusing on grandchildren’s transition to residential independence and the role of parents as mediators. Using three waves of the German Ageing Survey (DEAS), we estimate fixed effects models to assess changes in the frequency of contact and emotional closeness of 349 grandparents with 494 grandchildren aged 16 to 30 years. Grandparent–grandchild contact decreases during the transition to adulthood due to the middle generation’s declining ability to provide opportunities for intergenerational interaction as well as grandchildren’s new responsibilities after leaving the parental home. Grandparent–grandchild closeness does not change systematically in emerging adulthood, but is characterized by a high degree of temporal stability and independence of grandparent–parent contact frequency. Thus, even if contact decreases during the transition to adulthood, a continuously close emotional bond allows grandparents and grandchildren to (re)activate the support potential inherent to their relationship in times of need.
Familiarity and Separation in the Use of Communication Technologies in South African Migrant Families
Authors: Marchetti-Mercer Maria C. , Swartz Leslie
Published: January 2020

We explored the experiences of South African families across the racial divide regarding the burden of care of elderly parents of their emigrating children. The emergence of information and communication technologies has transformed these families’ abilities to stay connected despite distance and enables family members to maintain relationships of care in spite of physical separation. Total 23 families participated in the interviews of this qualitative study. We followed a family systems theoretical approached and analyzed the data according to the thematic analysis method developed by Braun and Clarke. The results reveal ambiguous relationships with technology, either positive or alienating and lacking intimacy. This article hopes to add to the emergent body of knowledge exploring the experiences of transnational families, as well as to underscore the manifold nature of human relationships in our increasing technological world.
Self-Regulation Strategies as Predictors: Managing Multimorbidities Among Community-Dwelling People Aging with Arthritis
Authors: Zhang Wenhui , Radhakrishnan Kavita , Becker Heather , Acton Gayle J. , Holahan Carole K.
Published: January 2020

Self-regulation (SR) has been defined as consisting of three basic strategies: selection, optimization, and compensation. This study investigates these three SR strategies as predictors of arthritis self-efficacy, quality of life (QOL), and health-care utilization in community-dwelling people aging with arthritis and comorbidities. One hundred forty individuals over age 50 years provided demographic characteristics and completed surveys on comorbidities, health resources, use of SR strategies, symptoms, arthritis self-efficacy, QOL, and health-care utilization. Multivariate hierarchical stepwise regressions were used to examine SR strategies as predictors for arthritis self-efficacy, and together with arthritis self-efficacy as predictors for health-care utilization, and QOL. Physical symptoms; SR strategies, especially optimization; and income adequacy significantly predicted arthritis self-efficacy. Arthritis self-efficacy and mental and physical symptoms significantly predicted QOL. This study adds evidence to support the role of SR strategies, especially optimization, in building arthritis self-efficacy for better self-management and QOL in persons with arthritis and multiple chronic conditions.
Systematic Review of Technology-Based Interventions Targeting Chronically Ill Adults and Their Caregivers
Authors: Irani Elliane , Niyomyart Atsadaporn , Hickman Ronald L.
Published: January 2020

The purpose of this systematic review is to synthesize the study design features as well as the attributes and outcomes of technology-based health interventions targeting chronically ill adults and their family caregivers. Twenty papers representing 19 studies met the inclusion criteria. Various theoretical foundations or approaches guided the interventions in 11 studies. Interventions either aimed to support patient self-management and improve patient outcomes or enhance shared illness management and improve patient and caregiver outcomes. The interventions included educational, behavioral, and support components and were delivered using various technologies ranging from text messaging to using the Internet. Overall, patients and caregivers expressed improvements in self-management outcomes (or support) and quality of life. Interventions with a dyadic focus reported on interpersonal outcomes, with improvements noted mostly in patients. This review captures an emerging area of science, and findings should be interpreted in light of the methodological limitations of the included studies.
An Analysis of State-Level Policies and Opioid Overdose Deaths
Authors: Adams Nicole , Gundlach Ellen , Cheng Ching-Wei
Published: January 2020

Many legislative and regulatory changes have occurred at the state level in response to the opioid crisis in an attempt to decrease overdose deaths. We conducted a negative binomial, regression-based, interrupted time series analysis to evaluate the effects of policies on opioid overdose death counts for 2008–2017 in five Midwestern states: Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, and Ohio. Except for the Good Samaritan laws in Illinois, no single policy change was statistically significant in decreasing overdose deaths. Governmental involvement as a whole was significantly associated with an increase in overdose deaths in Indiana. Policies created to address opioid overdose mortality have had minimal impact in these five Midwestern states. Most of the legislation and regulation that have been created lack educational components for prescribers and community members, which may explain why these policies have not had the intended effect.
Articulations and controversies in sex-work trans-activism
Authors: Espejo Beatriz , Cuenca Patricia Aljama , Tarrés Joan Pujol
Published: January 2020

Beatriz Espejo has worked in Barcelona as a trans-sex-worker since the 1980s, and in 1993 she founded the CTC, one of the leading activist organisations in the Spanish trans movement during the ’00s. The CTC had a direct impact on the definition of the Spanish law on gender identity. Although it may seem like a success story, this activist articulation has been conflicted and complicated: alliances between multiple and divergent political positions have proven difficult. This article explores the interconnections between personal experiences, implications of social policies, academic reflections and historical documents in order to unfold memories about im/possible articulations and dis/tensions between and among asymmetric positions; stories about how the sustainability of collective action may need institutional support and require unclear tactical transformations of political demands.
A Polish Approach for German Cities? Cement Old Towns and the Search for Rootedness in Postwar Leipzig and Frankfurt/Main
Authors: Demshuk Andrew
Published: January 2020

This essay explores the consequences of a hunger for history amid the architectural desolation that had blighted most German cities by the 1970s. After sweeping demolitions had wrought a so-called ‘second destruction’ that eclipsed the scale of wartime losses, Germans on both sides of the Iron Curtain steadily identified Poland as a model for humane reconstruction. Not just historic preservation but even historic replicas long rejected by preservationists as inauthentic were demanded as a way out of modernist anonymity and ugliness to make ‘home’ in an invented history. It was a trend as thoroughly comprehensible as it was problematic – for which history would one privilege? If modernism had encouraged an escape from the past, preservation or reproduction of choice monuments threatened to instill selective forgetting, a reinvention of the past that could marginalize or twist the lessons of wartime destruction. To grapple with these quandaries, this essay begins with an exposition of the increasingly lauded Polish solution through close analysis of the old town in Wrocław, the very ‘capital’ of so-called ‘Recovered Territories’ acquired from Germany after the Second World War. Having reviewed the genesis, realization, and shortcomings of Poland’s nationalized reinscription of urban space, German disappointment with modernist erasure will be examined in Leipzig and Frankfurt, each leading cities in their respective Cold War successor states that roughly paralleled each other in their increasing interest in Polish methods. After timid attempts at preservation and replicas in each city before the mid-1960s failed to satisfy the public longing for hominess, debates intensified about whether to replicate a sweeping array of monuments lost to war and demolition. Alienated in ‘their own’ cities, residents in Frankfurt and Leipzig incited discourse with contemporary ramifications about how to appropriate one’s surroundings as home.
Between Subordination and Symbiosis: Historians’ Relationship with Political Power in Communist Albania
Authors: Idrizi Idrit
Published: January 2020

Studies on Albanian historiography during communism have so far focused primarily on its main narratives. This paper shifts the research focus towards the actual conditions under which historiography was produced, paying particular attention to historians’ relationship with political power. It shows that Albanian historiography went through five stages, each of which substantially shaped historians’ positions, and that the relationship between the Party and historians was complex and bi-directional. The regime intimidated historians and strictly controlled their work, but also bestowed on them immense resources and high cultural authority. Historians, for their part, were interconnected with the regime in many ways and loyal to it, while simultaneously determined to make use of the conditions they found themselves in to advance their own interests. On the whole, historians’ relationship with political power was multifaceted and predominantly shifted between subordination and symbiosis.
Innovation systems and entrepreneurial ecosystems: Implications for policy and practice in Latin America
Authors: Freire-Gibb L Carlos , Gregson Geoff
Published: January 2020

This paper examines the concept of entrepreneurial ecosystems and the more established concept of systems of innovation and considers their application in Latin America, where many countries are currently experiencing political and economic upheaval. The paper finds that current entrepreneurial ecosystem literature is not directly applicable to most of Latin America, as it takes for granted features of an advanced economy, while the innovation system literature favours studies of well-functioning economies and innovation in high-technology sectors. Findings suggest that network and institutional perspectives may enrich both concepts in theoretical and analytical term and complementary innovation system and entrepreneurial ecosystem perspectives appear well suited in further defining the needs and demands of local production structures and existing resource and knowledge capabilities. The paper suggests the need for measurable transformations in Latin American production and support structures that include embracing social, organisational, and interactional innovation and socially oriented entrepreneurial activity. The paper encourages further research to identify the drivers and economic consequences of distinctive Latin American entrepreneurial ecosystems and for researchers to adopt an evolutionary perspective that acknowledges historical trajectories in different regions, where local social, political, and economic regimes will influence the trajectory and success of future innovation policy initiatives.
Public policy’s role and capability in fostering the emergence and evolution of entrepreneurial ecosystems: A case of ecosystem-based policy in Finland
Authors: Nordling Nadja
Published: January 2020

This paper explores public policy’s role and capability in fostering the emergence and evolution of entrepreneurial ecosystems. While the entrepreneurial ecosystem approach has focused on the ingredients and essentials of entrepreneurial ecosystems, the policy-focused dimensions are lacking, and especially insights derived through the “real world” policy efforts to develop entrepreneurial ecosystems. This paper contributes to the discussion by focusing on various actors’ roles in supporting entrepreneurship and facilitating interaction and collaboration within entrepreneurial ecosystems by taking a participatory action research approach to study the case of ecosystem-based policy in Finland. Findings illustrate that public policy may incubate and facilitate entrepreneurial ecosystems through regionally embedded actors. Through well-designed, sustainable and leadership-based innovation services, entrepreneurs are linked to co-creation processes, data, infrastructure and competencies to support new ventures whilst benefitting also the regional ecosystem. However, the challenge lies in embedding the processes in other regional contexts in which the organisations and institutional settings may be different.
Contact-aided invariant extended Kalman filtering for robot state estimation
Authors: Hartley Ross , Ghaffari Maani , Eustice Ryan M , Grizzle Jessy W
Published: January 2020

Legged robots require knowledge of pose and velocity in order to maintain stability and execute walking paths. Current solutions either rely on vision data, which is susceptible to environmental and lighting conditions, or fusion of kinematic and contact data with measurements from an inertial measurement unit (IMU). In this work, we develop a contact-aided invariant extended Kalman filter (InEKF) using the theory of Lie groups and invariant observer design. This filter combines contact-inertial dynamics with forward kinematic corrections to estimate pose and velocity along with all current contact points. We show that the error dynamics follows a log-linear autonomous differential equation with several important consequences: (a) the observable state variables can be rendered convergent with a domain of attraction that is independent of the system’s trajectory; (b) unlike the standard EKF, neither the linearized error dynamics nor the linearized observation model depend on the current state estimate, which (c) leads to improved convergence properties and (d) a local observability matrix that is consistent with the underlying nonlinear system. Furthermore, we demonstrate how to include IMU biases, add/remove contacts, and formulate both world-centric and robo-centric versions. We compare the convergence of the proposed InEKF with the commonly used quaternion-based extended Kalman filter (EKF) through both simulations and experiments on a Cassie-series bipedal robot. Filter accuracy is analyzed using motion capture, while a LiDAR mapping experiment provides a practical use case. Overall, the developed contact-aided InEKF provides better performance in comparison with the quaternion-based EKF as a result of exploiting symmetries present in system.
A New Approach to Prevent Crown Loosening and Caries in the AdvanSync2 Class II Corrector
Authors: Chitra Prasad
Published: January 2020

The AdvanSync2 Class II corrector is a modification of the original Herbst appliance with advantages of immediate placement in conjunction with fixed appliances. Though easy to place and activate, the molar bands have a possibility of dislodgement due to the vertical force component from the telescopic arms requiring immediate intervention from the orthodontist. An easy and reliable method to prevent molar band dislodgement is highlighted.
The Teaching of Khety Twice – A New Reading of oBM EA 65597 as a School Exercise
Authors: Jurjens Judith
Published: January 2020

The ostracon oBM EA 65597 contains two extracts from The Teaching of Khety, also known as The Satire of the Trades. It was used as a school exercise. On the recto a teacher wrote the first chapter of Khety in a small, neat hand. The text continues on the verso, but written by a student in an inexperienced hand. Various parallels are discussed, including the unpublished ostracon Cairo SR 12191, which joins oDeM 1218. On this ostracon a student has copied part of his master’s text. The discussed ostraca stem from an educational context and give us a glimpse into the didactic methods used in Ancient Egypt.
What Can Publicly Available API Data Tell Us about Supply and Demand for New Mobility Services?
Authors: Hassanpour Amir , Bigazzi Alexander , MacKenzie Don
Published: January 2020

Better understanding of the impacts of new mobility services (NMS) is needed to inform evidence-based policy, but cities and researchers are hindered by a lack of access to detailed system data. Application programming interface (API) services can be a medium for real-time data sharing and access, and have been used for data collection in the past, but the literature lacks a systematic examination of the potential value of publicly available API data for extracting policy-relevant information, specifically supply and demand, on NMS. The objectives of this study are: 1) to catalogue all the publicly available API data streams for NMS in three major cities known as the Cascadia Corridor (Vancouver, British Columbia; Seattle, Washington; and Portland, Oregon); 2) to create, apply, and share web data extraction tools (Python scripts) for each API; and 3) to assess the usefulness of the extracted data in quantifying supply and demand for each service. Results reveal some measures of supply and demand that can be extracted from API data and be useful in future analysis (mostly for bikeshare and carshare services, not ridesourcing). However, important information on supply and demand of most of the NMS in these cities cannot be obtained through API data extraction. Stronger open data policies for mobility services are therefore needed if policymakers want to obtain useful and independent insights on the usage of these services.
Modeling Framework for Capacity Analysis of Freeway Segments: Application to Ramp Weaves
Authors: Xu Dezhong , Rouphail Nagui M. , Aghdashi Behzad , Ahmed Ishtiak , Elefteriadou Lily
Published: January 2020

This research proposes a new modeling framework for the analysis of freeway segments. The framework provides a continuum from the operation of ramp weave segments to an equivalent basic segment serving the same traffic with the same number of lanes and free-flow speed. This approach distinguishes between congestion effects caused by high v/c ratios from turbulence caused by merging, diverging, and weaving traffic, thus greatly simplifying the model form, and its extensibility to other freeway segment types. The paper presents an application of this new framework to the analysis of ramp weaves, which were not sufficiently sampled in the development of the HCM6 methodology. The proposed model is shown to be superior to the HCM6 method both in relation to explaining field observations of speeds and in its simplicity in application. The results include a new formula for capacity estimation that is highly sensitive to segment length, and a speed estimation model that converges for low weaving volumes or at very high weaving segment lengths to that observed at a basic segment. Because the proposed model is calibrated with data mostly from North Carolina, it is recommended that data at additional sites be included in a larger calibration effort to ensure its applicability to a broader set of weaving segment configurations.
Bladder cancer genomics
Authors: Siracusano Salvatore , Rizzetto Riccardo , Porcaro Antonio Benito
Published: January 2020

Until recently, the treatment of bladder cancer, for several years, was limited to surgery and to immunotherapy or chemotherapy. Currently, the extensive analysis of molecular alterations has led to novel treatment approaches. The advent of polymerase chain reaction and genomic hybridization techniques has allowed to investigate alterations involved in bladder cancer at DNA level. By this way, bladder cancers can be classified as papillary or non-papillary based on genetic alterations with activation or mutations in FGFR3 papillary tumors and with inactivation or mutations involving TP53 and RB1 in non-papillary tumors. Recently, the patterns of gene expression allow to differentiate basal and luminal subtypes as reported in breast cancer. In particular, basal cancers are composed of squamous and sarcomatoid pathological findings, while luminal cancers are composed of papillary finding features and genetic mutations (FGFR3). In particular, specific investigative studies demonstrated that luminal cancers are associated with secondary muscle invasive cancer while basal tumors are related to advanced disease since they are often metastatic at diagnosis. Moreover, from therapeutic point of view, different researchers showed that mutations of DNA are related to the sensitivity of bladder cancer while performing cisplatin chemotherapy. In this prospective, the bladder cancer molecular subtyping classification might allow identifying the set of patients who can safely avoid neoadjuvant chemotherapy likely because of the low response to systemic chemotherapy (chemoresistant tumors). In this context, the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) project has improved the knowledge of the molecular targets of invasive urothelial cancers allowing the researchers to propose hypothesis suggesting that agents targeting the genomic alterations may be an effective strategy in managing these cancers, which occur in about 68% of muscle invasive cancers. A future goal will be to combine treatment strategies of invasive bladder cancers according to their genetic mutational load defined by molecular pathology.
Does Stockholm Syndrome Exist in Lebanon? Results of a Cross-Sectional Study Considering the Factors Associated With Violence Against Women in a Lebanese Representative Sample
Authors: Rahme Clara , Haddad Chadia , Akel Marwan , Khoury Chloe , Obeid Hala , Obeid Sahar , Hallit Souheil
Published: January 2020

The aim of this study is to validate the Stockholm syndrome scale (SSS) in Arabic, assess the correlation of the Stockholm syndrome in women who are victims of domestic violence, and evaluate the factors that enhance the level of violation among a representative sample of the Lebanese population. This is a cross-sectional study conducted on Lebanese women between September and December 2018. Participants enrolled in this study were from all of Lebanon’s governorates and selected using an equitable representative sample. Being divorced (β = 9.83); with low educational level (β = 5.47); having a partner that takes substance (β = 16.17); addicted to alcohol (β = 8.21); addicted to gambling (β = 11.91); have a history of threats, violence, assaults, and crimes (β = 17.83); higher stressful life experiences (β = 0.75); and higher SSS score (β = 0.04) were significantly associated with higher partner physical and nonphysical abuse scale. For the validation of the SSS, five items (items 3, 20, 30, 38, and 40) were removed because none over-correlated with each other ( r >.9), had a low load on the factors (<.3), or a weak commonality (<.3). SSS items converged on a seven-factor solution with Eigenvalues greater than 1, accounting for a total of 66.59% of the variance (α = .970). Our study revealed a positive association between the Stockholm syndrome and the violence against women and evaluated many factors that increase this association. Divorced women, with low educational level, having a partner addicted to alcohol, to illegal substance or to gambling, having a history of threats, violence, assaults, and crimes were more prone to experience physical and nonphysical abuse.
Relationship of Medicare–Medicaid Dual Eligibility and Dementia With Unplanned Facility Admissions Among Medicare Home Health Care Recipients
Authors: Wang Jinjiao , Caprio Thomas V. , Temkin-Greener Helena , Cai Xueya , Simning Adam , Li Yue
Published: January 2020

Objective: The objective of this study was to examine the effects of dementia and Medicare–Medicaid dual eligibility on unplanned facility admission among older Medicare home health (HH) recipients. Method: This study involves a secondary analysis of data from the Outcome and Assessment Information Set (OASIS) and billing records (i.e., International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision [ICD-10] codes) of 6,153 adults ≥ 65 years receiving HH from a nonprofit HH agency in CY 2017. Results: Among dual eligible patients with dementia, 39.3% had an unplanned facility admission of any type, including the hospital, nursing home, or rehabilitation facility. In the multivariable Cox proportional hazard model of time-to-facility admission, dual eligible patients with dementia were more than twice as likely as Medicare-only patients without dementia to have an unplanned facility admission (hazard ratio = 2.35; 95% confidence interval: 1.28, 4.33; p = .006). Discussion: Low income and dementia have interactive effects on facility admissions. Among Medicare HH recipients, dual eligible patients with dementia are the most vulnerable group for unplanned facility admission.
Voting behavior under proportional representation
Authors: Buisseret Peter , Prato Carlo
Published: January 2020

Understanding voter preferences in proportional representation (PR) systems is an essential first step towards understanding candidate selection and behavior. We unearth conceptual challenges of constructing a theory of sincere voting in PR elections. Using a rich but tractable framework, we propose a foundational theory of voting behavior in list PR systems. We show how voters’ expectations about the election outcome shape the relative salience of different candidates on a party’s ballot and ultimately determine their induced preferences over a party’s list. Our framework shows how voters allocate their attention across different ranks on a party’s ballot, and how this depends on each party’s relative popularity.
Preference vote and intra-party competition in open list PR systems
Authors: Cheibub José Antonio , Sin Gisela
Published: January 2020

Open list proportional representation (PR) systems require that candidates seek personal votes in order to be successful. This feature of the system is considered to lead to intense competition among co-partisans and, ultimately, to weak electoral and legislative parties, narrow public policies, localism, clientelism, and corruption. We examine the distribution of personal votes among candidates from the same party for seven elections to the Brazilian national chamber of deputies (1990–2014). These elections are widely seen as hyper-competitive, particularly among candidates from the same list. Yet, the patterns in the data are not compatible with such a view. We find that the level of overall competition is considerably lower than the absolute number of parties and candidates competing would suggest. More significantly, we find that the number of viable candidates within party lists is limited and that their votes are distributed in such a way that indicates a contained competition among co-partisans during the election. These findings add to recent work that builds a more nuanced view of ballot structure, competition, and personalism.
Mandatory theorizing and synthesis: A comment on Phaf (2020)
Authors: Trafimow David
Published: January 2020

Should mandatory theorizing be a condition for researchers to publish articles? Should more synthesis be required, perhaps with the aid of meta-analysis? This short comment focuses on both questions that arise from Phaf’s article, “Publish less, read more” (2020).
Holocene palaeoenvironmental records from the high-altitude Wular Lake, Western Himalayas
Authors: Shah Rayees Ahmad , Achyuthan Hema , Lone Aasif Mohmad , Kumar Sanjeev , Kumar Pankaj , Sharma Rajveer , Amir Mohd , Singh Atul Kumar , Dash Chinmay
Published: January 2020

We present a comprehensive record of Holocene (11,590–628 cal. yr BP) climate and hydrographic changes around the Wular Lake located in Kashmir Valley, India. Based on the multi-proxy investigations, we have identified three phases of wet climate conditions that prevailed from the commencement of the Holocene Epoch – 9000 cal. yr BP, 8100–6650 cal. yr BP and 6350–5000 cal. yr BP, whereas periods of dry climate were observed during 9000–8100 cal. yr BP, 6650–6350 cal. yr BP and ~5000 to 4000 cal. yr BP. The results also suggested that the lake widened and deepened significantly around 6350–5000 cal. yr BP. The results indicated desiccation and the exposure of the lake margin around 5000–4500 cal. yr BP. The sedimentation rate since 4500–628 cal. yr BP was quite low for detailed paleoclimate interpretations. Oscillations in lake extension and deepening appear to be due to changing intensity of westerly moisture in the region, and we correlate several of the low lake-level phases to the Bond events caused by North Atlantic ice rafting events.
Theological Talk in a Salsa Bar on Wigan Pier
Authors: Greenough Chris
Published: January 2020

Is bringing together Sarah Coakley and Marcella Althaus-Reid like mixing oil and water? An encounter between a systematic theologian and a contextual, queer theologian might seem artificial, but this article offers critical insights into the work of both scholars, revealing similarities within the tropes of their theological thinking. Aside from navigating sites of possible parallels and conflict between their work, this article springboards their settings by offering a new location – a salsa bar on Wigan Pier – to be able to do theology. Academic writing is largely characterized by adherence to rigour, order and structure but the whole point of queer is to disturb and disrupt established norms. Therefore, by mobilizing the work of Judith Halberstam, this article offers a rich dialogue combining scholars working in gender and sexualities in the form of a play script. Critical commentary on the play text demonstrates the necessity to continue to subvert dominant repetitions in theology.
Contemporary Muslim Male Reformist Thought and Gender Equality Affirmative Interpretations of Islam
Authors: Duderija Adis
Published: January 2020

A number of recently published studies by reformist-minded Muslim scholars have both questioned the normative nature of and emphasized the need to rethink some of the fundamental assumptions and interpretational models governing traditional Islamic legal theories and ethics. As part of this process they have emphasized the need to develop novel Islamic hermeneutics. One major element in this emergence of novel Islamic hermeneutics is the production of an increased number of what I term ‘gender equality affirmative scholarship on Islam’. What is particularly interesting, if not intriguing, from the perspective of the author of this article is that the scholarship on gender equality affirmative interpretations of Islam is theorized by reformist-minded Muslim male scholars at historically unprecedented levels which is what this study seeks to highlight. This article examines the arguments employed by three prominent contemporary Muslim male reformist scholars, both Shī ’ī and Sunnī, in developing gender equality affirmative interpretations of Islam – Nasr Abu Zayd, Mohsen Kadivar, and Khaled Abou El Fadl. The focus on male scholars in this article is intentional and seeks to highlight the most fundamental point and indeed the raison d’être behind it, namely to underscore the historically unprecedented support Muslim male scholars are providing to the development of feminist interpretations of Islam.
Theology of Resilience Amidst Vulnerability in the Book of Ruth
Authors: Panganiban Alicia Besa
Published: January 2020

This article explores Ruth’s theology of resilience amidst vulnerability: a resilience rooted in ḥesed (loving kindness, a generosity beyond the call of duty). Ḥesed is a powerful social force that could address current issues for those both in privileged positions and in vulnerable situations. A re-reading of Ruth offers modern theologians and serious students of the Bible pathways towards building resilience amidst vulnerability, and in caring for those in vulnerable positions. The text at hand offers a pathway to be true to one’s core values and character, even amidst desperate situations. In Ruth resilience is developed by caring for others, identifying with a particular faith community, and taking initiatives while maintaining integrity. The narrative unveils a sustainable life of resilience that happens when one’s private and public life is lived congruently to each other.

This article also reads Ruth’s narrative through a lens of a minority foreign woman that uses feminist and post-colonial approaches while looking at Ruth through a hermeneutic of trust. First, the author identifies her assumptions and considerations. Secondly, the article examines resilience as rooted in one’s identity and explores ḥesed under cultural and spiritual frameworks, within the narrative of Ruth and Naomi’s road scene from Moab to Bethlehem. Lastly, it examines resilience as rooted in ḥesed, within the narrative of the threshing floor scene encounter between Ruth and Boaz. The road and threshing floor scenes are decisive moments for Ruth. Her words and actions in each instance reveal her resilience: her strength of mind, emotion, and spirit, in spite of her vulnerability.
An Ecclesiology of a Queer Kenosis? Risk and Ambivalence at Our Lady, Trondheim, in Light of the Queer Theology on Kenosis of Marcella Althaus-Reid
Authors: Gunnes Gyrid Kristine
Published: January 2020

This article argues for the use of the queer kenotic theology of Marcella Althaus-Reid as a theological framework for analysing two stories of ambivalence and risk emerging from an ecclesial practice committed to hospitality. Following Natalie Wigg-Stevenson in envisioning theology not as proclamation but as conversation, the article is an example of what theology can look like when ethnographic material is juxtaposed with systematic theology. The empirical material is created using ethnography as a research strategy in the ecclesial practice of the Lutheran church of Our Lady, Trondheim, Norway. In 2007, this church reopened as an ‘open church’ for people who live with different kinds of marginalization. As the sacred medieval space encounters the messy and chaotic lives of people, a powerful displacement of space, practices and bodies occur. The article concludes by discussing how the empirical material feeds back to kenotic theology and queer theology.
Science, Technology and Food Security: An Introduction
Authors: De Raymond Antoine Bernard , Goulet Frédéric
Published: January 2020

After the 2008 food price crisis, food security once again became a priority on the international political agenda. This introduction to the special issue tackles the links between this reprioritisation of food security on the one hand, and science and technology on the other hand. First, this special issue introduces the new controversies emerging around food security. Trying to articulate food security with other global issues, actors involved into these debates have elaborated at least two new food security frames, global food security and food sustainability. Second, this issue highlights the role played by knowledge infrastructures in shaping debates on food security. The formal constraints of models or foresights tend to format our ability to assess and act upon food insecurity. A sociological analysis of knowledge infrastructures thus helps to democratise food policies. Third, technosciences are embedded in dense fields of meaning, moral values and contribute to the making of sociotechnical imaginaries. The articles in this issue show that food security research is not just about knowledge, but also about how life ought to be lived. Last, food security articulates science with politics and policies. In particular, the debates about technologies are complemented by disputes about the regulations that should encourage or oppositely restrict their implementation.
Technovisions for Food Security as Sweden Restores Its Civil Defence
Authors: Eriksson Camilla , Fischer Klara , Ulfbecker Ebba
Published: January 2020

After three decades of demobilising the Swedish defence sector following the end of the Cold War, Sweden recently revived civil defence planning, including new instructions to plan for food security in the event of war. This policy shift has raised questions as to how farming’s vulnerability to disruptions differs today from in the Cold War era, as well as how this vulnerability might best be mitigated. This article presents and discusses key vulnerabilities in Swedish farming as perceived by farmers and some technological solutions to these envisioned by rural entrepreneurs. The focus is on technologies that could increase farm-level self-sufficiency and decrease vulnerability to trade disruptions. Using a sociotechnical imaginaries framework, to which we contribute the concept of ‘technovisions’, we highlight how farmers’ perceptions of potential technological solutions are embedded in social, material and moral values. We conclude that the technovisions presented, based on the production of renewable fuels, can contribute to reducing dependency on imported fuel and fertilisers and thus decrease vulnerability, and that these technovisions are placed firmly within a productionist imaginary of how food security can be achieved.
Romancing the Brands on Social Media
Authors: Beig Faseeh Amin , Khan Mohammad Furqan
Published: January 2020

Previous studies on emotional attachment with brands have overlooked the importance of brand romance in such relationships. Research has provided ample evidence that suggests brand romance can also strengthen brand loyalty. With the emergence of social media marketing (SMM) in managing consumer-brand relationships, it becomes critical to study the role of SMM in building brand romance. This study is an attempt to study the influence of SMM on Brand Romance and Brand loyalty. Further, this study also examines the mediating role played by brand romance between SMM and brand loyalty. This research has measured SMM as a second order construct which also makes this study unique. This study used quantitative research design targeting luxury consumers in four metropolitan cities in India which has a growing luxury consumer population. This survey targeted 400 customers using convenience sampling method which resulted in 223 functional responses. Both reliability and validity tests were conducted on measurement scales before conducting factor analysis. The relationships were tested using path analysis in SEM which revealed the positive direct influence of SMM on brand romance, direct influence of brand romance on brand loyalty and positive direct influence of SMM on brand loyalty. The results also revealed the full mediation of brand pleasure and partial mediation by both brand arousal and brand dominance in the relationship between SMM and brand loyalty. This study has important marketing implication for marketers which are exploiting social media for promoting their brands and further cementing consumer-brand relationship. Future studies can extend this study to other product and service segments which are more experiential in nature.
Softening the Hearts of Business Students: The Role of Emotions in Ethical Decision Making
Authors: Jeong Sophia S. , Sun Cong (Timothy) , Fu Ping Ping
Published: January 2020

Business schools face a dilemma of promoting prosocial values while maintaining the principles of self-interest and profit maximization. In response to recent research suggesting that emotions may be the key to ethical decision making, we ask two basic questions: Do emotions make business students more ethical? Is business school education inhibiting ethical decision making? Drawing on theories on moral emotions and ethical decision making, we hypothesize that moral emotions will enhance ethical decision making, whereas hedonic emotions will diminish ethical decision making. Furthermore, we predict that a higher level of business school education will strengthen the negative relationship between hedonic emotions and ethical decision making while weakening the positive relationship between moral emotions and ethical decision making. Using a scenario-based repeated-measure design, we tested our hypotheses with 217 students from secondary schools, undergraduate business majors, and MBA programs in Hong Kong. Multilevel modeling results supported our hypotheses, suggesting that business school students may benefit from education on the unique roles of moral and hedonic emotions in the ethical decision-making process. We conclude with a summary of the theoretical and practical implications of our findings.
Adherence to Recommended Post-Splenectomy Immunizations to Reduce the Risk of Sepsis: The University of Washington Experience
Authors: Pozdeyev Nikita , Patel Arpit , Pottinger Paul S. , Leu Michael , Payne Thomas H.
Published: January 2020

Immunizations against Streptococcus pneumoniae, Neisseria meningitidis, and Haemophilus influenzae type b are recommended for patients undergoing splenectomy to decrease the risk of developing overwhelming infections. The authors sought to determine adherence to these recommendations by providers at UW Medicine. Regional immunization records for patients who underwent splenectomy between October 2015 and January 2019 were analyzed to measure compliance with immunization guidelines from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Among 253 patients who underwent splenectomy, 38 (15%) received all 7 immunizations against S pneumoniae, N meningitidis, and H influenzae type b recommended by the CDC; 95% of patients received at least 1 pneumococcal vaccine; 26% percent of patients did not receive MenB-4C vaccine. Many patients (3% to 10%) received redundant immunizations not in accordance with CDC recommendations. Development of state and national immunization registries and systems to improve adherence with post-splenectomy immunization guidelines may reduce risk for life-threatening infections.
Using Evidence to Design Cancer Care Facilities
Authors: Berry Leonard L. , Crane Jonathan , Deming Katie A. , Barach Paul
Published: January 2020

The nuts and bolts of planning and designing cancer care facilities—the physical space, the social systems, the clinical and nonclinical workflows, and all of the patient-facing services—directly influence the quality of clinical care and the overall patient experience. Cancer facilities should be conceived and constructed on the basis of evidence-based design thinking and implementation, complemented by input from key stakeholders such as patients, families, and clinicians. Specifically, facilities should be designed to improve the patient experience, offer options for urgent care, maximize infection control, support and streamline the work of multidisciplinary teams, integrate research and teaching, incorporate palliative care, and look beyond mere diagnosis and treatment to patient wellness—all tailored to each cancer center’s patient population and logistical and financial constraints. From conception to completion to iterative reevaluation, motivated institutions can learn to make their own facilities reflect the excellence in cancer care that they aim to deliver to patients.