bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
What J.T. Fraser Gave the World
Authors: Turner Frederick
Published: March 2014

Abstract

This summary of the fundamental insights of J.T. Fraser dwells on four main themes. The first is the way that Fraser disposes of the ancient struggle between monism and dualism, with its related problem of ontology versus epistemology. His tree-like vision of the evolution of the many out of the one is both ordered and open-ended. The second is his critique of philosophy’s (and science’s) tendency to reify simple, defined, pure, and exclusive abstractions. Subjectivity, intentionality, consciousness, freedom, mind, cause, and the experience of time are shown by him to be composite, present in different degrees and kinds in different organisms and different times, constructed and complex. The third theme is Fraser’s decisive refutation of the metaphor of time as a line, as in clocks, calendars, and the t-axis in science. We must explore other geometries. The fourth theme is Fraser’s rehabilitations of the arts, including literature, as potentially legitimate ways of understanding the world and exploring the nature of time.
Life and Times: The Temporal Habitations of R. A. Kartini
Authors: Hawkins Michael
Published: March 2014

Abstract

This article explores the remarkable temporal perceptions and attempted historical habitations of a young Javanese noblewoman at the turn of the century in the Dutch East Indies. It examines the ways in which this young woman used the concepts of relative temporality, civilizational evolution, and stagist histories to challenge both the imposition of Dutch colonialism and the conventions of her indigenous culture. Her vivid and thoughtful correspondences reveal a greatly expanded realm of human agency with regard to perceived temporality and one’s mobility within evolutionary time. She demonstrated a much understudied aspect of colonial resistance that is at the heart of the temporal concept of modernity.
Wenn in Time: Linguistic Moments in Robert Schumann’s Dichterliebe
Authors: Mak Su Yin
Published: March 2014

Abstract

That song is both a concrete musical entity and an abstract metaphor for romantic subjectivity is the central paradox of musical lyricism. This paradox lends the lyric mode in music a self-consciousness that is, I believe, linguistic in character. It invites the listener to hear musical gestures both as signs that participate in the teleology of tonal discourse, and as sounds; and such sounds, in turn, are experienced viscerally at the same time that they serve as an abstract ideal of pure, natural expression. The present article examines, with reference to Schumann’sDichterliebe, the aesthetic and discursive bases for lyricism’s engagement with temporality. Two “linguistic moments” from Schumann’sDichterliebeillustrate how the dialectic between sign and sound plays with the various parameters of musical discourse, reflects or comments upon its own artifice, and breaks the illusion that music is a transparent medium of expression. Finally, the semiotic implications of lyricism’s engagement with temporality are explored with reference to Nietzsche’s conception of theAugenblick.
Augustine of Hippo’s Philosophy of Time Meets General Relativity
Authors: Minguzzi Ettore
Published: March 2014

Abstract

This paper proposes a cosmological model that uses a causality argument to solve the homogeneity and entropy problems of cosmology. In this model, a chronology violating region of spacetime causally precedes the remainder of the Universe, and a theorem establishes the existence of time functions precisely outside the chronology violating region. This model is shown to nicely reproduce Augustine of Hippo’s thought on time and the beginning of the Universe. In the model, the spacelike boundary representing the Big Bang is replaced by a null hypersurface at which the gravitational degrees of freedom are almost frozen while the matter and radiation content is highly homogeneous and thermalized.
Ecology and Vision
Authors: Eggemeier Matthew T.
Published: March 2014

This essay analyzes the significance of contemplative practice for the development of environmental ethics. The writings of Mary Oliver, Annie Dillard, and Tim Lilburn are examined as examples of the way in which the cultivation of a contemplative way of seeing the world constitutes an important environmental practice. While Oliver, Dillard, and Lilburn differ in the strategies they employ to facilitate this contemplative experience, they converge in their view that the work of learning to see the natural world with contemplative attention is a spiritual act that is not only significant in its own right but which also serves to support the development of an environmental ethics.
“When you have seen the Yellow Mountains”
Authors: Bruun Ole
Published: March 2014

This article reflects upon a visit to the Yellow Mountains (Huangshan) National Park, Anhui, China, a World Heritage site with millions of visitors each year. Visitors are guided through the same paths, where a series of prearranged sensations play on Chinese cultural themes framed in nature. The set routes and restricted atmosphere create a very different experience when compared to national parks elsewhere. Economic exploitation seems to have taken the upper hand to conservation. The article will expand on these immediate experiences taking into account the background of the park and historical uses of the mountains and examine the processes that have shaped the park’s present condition. The article will argue that coexisting approaches to nature are inherent in the history and culture of any complex society, including China, and point to their historical and present balance as well as to internal drivers of change as a pertinent focus of attention. When a utilitarian approach to nature is consistently enforced by state power, both explicitly in policy and implicitly in the form of religious intolerance and persecution, common modalities and balancing of perspectives in our relation to nature are distorted. Inevitably, conservation struggles reflect broader contentions in society, where moral and spiritual values are crucial to positive change.
Order in the “Arbitrary”: The Distribution, Content, and Temporal Cycles of English Merchant Tribute in Eighteenth-Century Yemen
Authors: Um Nancy
Published: March 2014

Abstract

Drawing on the documents of the English East India Company, along with comparative material from the Dutch East India Company and sources in Arabic, this article looks closely at the distribution, content, and timing of merchant tribute in relation to the practices of trade in eighteenth-century Yemen. The goal is to uncover the patterns surrounding English commercial gift practices at a time when European merchants were flocking to the southern Arabian Peninsula to procure coffee beans. This study casts gifts as central and regularized parts of the cycle of exchange, rather than as non-transactional or incidental social accessories of the Indian Ocean trade, thereby allocating an important place for gifts within early modern cross-cultural commercial interactions.
Kepler’s Theory of Force and His Medical Sources
Authors: Regier Jonathan
Published: March 2014

Johannes Kepler (1571–1630) makes extensive use of souls and spiritus in his natural philosophy. Recent studies have highlighted their importance in his accounts of celestial generation and astrology. In this study, I would like to address two pressing issues. The first is Kepler’s context. The biological side of his natural philosophy is not naively Aristotelian. Instead, he is up to date with contemporary discussions in medically flavored natural philosophy. I will examine his relationship to Melanchthon’s anatomical-theological Liber de anima (1552) and to Jean Fernel’s very popular Physiologia (1567), two Galenic sources with a noticeable impact on how he understands the functions of life. The other issue that will direct my article is force at a distance. Medical ideas deeply inform Kepler’s theories of light and solar force (virtus motrix). It will become clear that they are not a hindrance even to the hardcore of his celestial physics. Instead, he makes use of soul and spiritus in order to develop a fully mathematized dynamics.
Medical Topics in the De anima Commentary of Coimbra (1598) and the Jesuits’ Attitude towards Medicine in Education and Natural Philosophy
Authors: Sander Christoph
Published: March 2014

Early-modern Jesuit universities did not offer studies in medicine, and from 1586 onwards, the Jesuit Ratio studiorum prohibited digressions on medical topics in the Aristotelian curriculum. However, some sixteenth-century Jesuit text books used in philosophy classes provided detailed accounts on physiological issues such as sense perception and its organic location as discussed in Aristotle’s De anima II, 7–11. This seeming contradiction needs to be explained. In this paper, I focus on the interst in medical topics manifested in a commentary by the Jesuits of Coimbra. Admittedly, the Coimbra commentary constituted an exception, as the Jesuit college that produced it was integrated in a royal university which had a strong interest in educating physicians. It will be claimed that the exclusion of medicine at Jesuit universities and colleges had its origin in rather incidental events in the course of the foundation of the first Jesuit university in Sicily. There, the lay professors of law and medicine intended to avoid subordination to the Jesuits and thereby provoked a conflict which finally led the Jesuit administration to refrain from including faculties of medicine and law in Jesuit universities. Towards the end of the sixteenth century, a veritable Jesuit animosity towards medicine emerged for philosophical and pedagogical reasons. This development reflects educational concerns within the Society as well as the role of commentaries on Aristotle for early-modern learning.
International Law is Western Made Global Law: The Perception of Third-World Category
Authors: Ikejiaku Brian-Vincent
Published: March 2014

Abstract

The way in which international law has been constructed and reconstructed over the ages in favour of the Western countries has driven some Third-World scholars to perceive international law as ‘a global law made by the West’ for the purpose of controlling global undertakings. In the past, international law was used by the Westerners to legitimise colonialism and all their acts of exploitation in the developing countries. In the modern period, international law is predominantly used to protect, project and promote (3Ps) the interest of the Westerners. This includes their multinational businesses scattered globally, and protectionist bid against terrorist attacks. This paper uses theoretical, critical and multidisciplinary approaches to examine this perception of international law. It concludes that construction and reconstruction of international law in favour of Western countries has been one key instrument that perpetuate severe inequality between the Global North and Global South, which in turn hampers efforts toward global-peace and security.
Separation of Powers and the Application of the Political Question Doctrine in Uganda
Authors: Mhango Mtendeweka
Published: March 2014

Abstract

In Uganda, courts have considered and applied the political question doctrine since the 1960s. This article examines the case law development and trends in the application of the political question doctrine theme in Ugandan jurisprudence. This article discusses the history of the political question doctrine in Uganda. It examines the case law developments and trends around the application of that doctrine in Uganda, and argues that the doctrine is undoubtedly part of the constitutional law of Uganda.
The Relationship between the Constitutional Right to Silence and Confessions in Nigeria
Authors: Onoja Esa O.
Published: March 2014

Abstract

The extraction of confessions from suspects under torture by security agents is a notorious fact in Nigeria. Ironically, the Constitution of the country guarantees a right to silence, but courts in Nigeria predicate the admissibility of confessions on the common law-based Judges Rules and Evidence Act 2011 without linking it to the constitutionally guaranteed right to silence. This article reviews the legal rules on the admissibility of confessions in Nigeria and contends that without attaching constitutional flavour to the admissibility of confessions, the legislature and the courts in Nigeria unwittingly water the ground for the systemic extraction of confession from suspects in custody in Nigeria. The article suggests that the courts in the country consider the implication of the guarantee of the right to silence in the country’s constitution in the determination of the admissibility of confessions to promote fair trial in criminal cases in the country.
Crime and Public Support for the Rule of Law in Latin America and Africa
Authors: Smithey Shannon I. , Malone Mary Fran T.
Published: March 2014

Abstract

Crime poses a formidable obstacle to democratization in many parts of the developing world. New democracies in Central America and sub-Saharan Africa face some of the highest homicide rates in the world. Politicians, citizens, and policy-makers have raised the alarm about the growing tide of criminality. Public insecurity, coupled with inefficient and often corrupt justice systems, makes democratization uncertain. Even if new democracies do not revert to dictatorship, the quality of democracy may suffer if crime continues to rise. One particularly vulnerable component of democracy is the rule of law, as public insecurity may fuel support for extra-legal justice, and a willingness to disregard the law while aggressively pursuing suspected criminals. To test these relationships, we assess the ways in which criminal victimization, as well as fear of crime, affect citizen support for the rule of law. We utilize public opinion data collected in select countries in Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa through two widely used sources – the Latin American Public Opinion Project (LAPOP) and the Afrobarometer surveys.
Phenomenological Time, Historical Time, and The Writing of History
Authors: Blum Mark E.
Published: March 2014

Abstract

Contrary to Paul Ricoeur’s claim that there is an unbridgeable chasm between phenomenological time and historical time, my studies have shown me that the former is the cognitive foundation for the latter. The temporality formed in each sentential judgment can be discerned through a stylistic analysis of its grammar. This grammatical foundation which is established at the pre-reflective level of sentence formation becomes a basis in the maturing individual for conceptual preferences. How experience is organized informally and consequently reflected upon in the everyday judgment, or more formally in the writing of history, are outcomes of this grammatical logic. What I term one’s ‘historical logic’ differs in categorically interesting ways in each person; for each person it is an invariant grammatical organization that guides attended experience informing a person’s sense of ‘history’ and its meaning over a career of thought. The grammatical organization itself stems from varying part-whole organizations that perceptually provide the form grammar then instantiates. The epistemological basis of my approach is developed from Kant and Edmund Husserl insofar as their conceptions of temporal generation in judgment. My grammatical analyses rely upon the transformational grammar of Noam Chomsky.

In this essay, I show the invariant character of two distinct historical logics through the careers of thought of two Tudor-Stuart historians, G.R. Elton and his student Arthur Joseph Slavin, and two Tudor-Stuart personalities, Edward Coke and Francis Bacon. I have found historical logics to be intergenerational. Forms of historical logic are more than likely psycho-genetic, recurring in every generation. I have provided evidence for this claim in studies I have made of adolescents who have first come to master the well-formed sentence in personal expression.

Among the implications of the findings here are that ‘objectivity’ as well as ‘historical objectivity’ are better understood as ‘multiply valid’ among the judgments of equally informed and keen observers and interpreters. There is an unbridgeable foundation that differentiates one person’s conception of temporal organization from another. Synthetically, we are separated in our judgments, even when we can arrive at analytical understandings of these differences.
Assessing Impacts of Integrating MODIS Vegetation Data in the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model Coupled to Two Different Canopy-Resistance Approaches
Authors: Kumar Anil , Chen Fei , Barlage Michael , Ek Michael B. , Niyogi Dev
Published: March 2014

The impact of 8-day-averaged data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensor—namely, the 1-km leaf area index, absorbed photosynthetic radiation, and land-use data—is investigated for use in the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model for regional weather prediction. These high-resolution, near-real-time MODIS data are hypothesized to enhance the representation of land–atmosphere interactions and to potentially improve the WRF model forecast skill for temperature, surface moisture, surface fluxes, and soil temperature. To test this hypothesis, the impact of using MODIS-based land surface data on surface energy and water budgets was assessed within the “Noah” land surface model with two different canopy-resistance schemes. An ensemble of six model experiments was conducted using the WRF model for a typical summertime episode over the U.S. southern Great Plains that occurred during the International H2O Project (IHOP_2002) field experiment. The six model experiments were statistically analyzed and showed some degree of improvement in surface latent heat flux and sensible heat flux, as well as surface temperature and moisture, after land use, leaf area index, and green vegetation fraction data were replaced by remotely sensed data. There was also an improvement in the WRF-simulated temperature and boundary layer moisture with MODIS data in comparison with the default U.S. Geological Survey land-use and leaf area index inputs. Overall, analysis suggests that recalibration and improvements to both the input data and the land model help to improve estimation of surface and soil parameters and boundary layer moisture and led to improvement in simulating convection in WRF runs. Incorporating updated land conditions provided the most notable improvements, and the mesoscale model performance could be further enhanced when improved land surface schemes become available.
Characteristics of Cold Season Rainfall over the Yungui Plateau
Authors: Li Jian , Yu Rucong
Published: March 2014

The climatic features of the distinctive cold season precipitation over the Yungui Plateau of China and the corresponding circulation background are investigated. From daily rainfall data observed with a high-density station network, it is found that the highest rainfall frequency in southern China during November–February appears over the Yungui Plateau. The rainfall intensity in this region is fairly low, and there is no remarkable rainfall-amount maximum. In comparison with the rainfall in southeastern China, the precipitation over the Yungui Plateau is more concentrated in weak events, with 85.9% of rainfall days having daily precipitation amounts of less than 3 mm. By regressing the circulation field on the rainfall frequency index, a favorable climatic background for high rainfall frequency is explored. In high-rainfall-frequency years, the surface wind exhibits southwesterly wind anomalies west of 104°E and cold air penetrates from the north on the eastern side. These two branches converge on the eastern edge of the Hengduan Mountains. In the lower troposphere, southwesterly winds prevail and anomalous water vapor fluxes converge over the Yungui Plateau. In the middle and higher troposphere, the westerly zonal wind strengthens and leads to an anomalous divergence. These dynamic and moist conditions contribute to the formation of clouds and precipitation. The northward- and eastward-facing slopes of the Yungui Plateau uplift the shallow, cold air carried by the northerly and easterly winds, and the terrain effects trigger the precipitation process. The low temperature and small specific humidity over the Yungui Plateau modulate the rainfall intensity to a low level.
Gamma Distribution Parameters for Cloud Drop Distributions from Multicylinder Measurements
Authors: Jones Kathleen F. , Thompson Gregory , Claffey Keran J. , Kelsey Eric P.
Published: March 2014

The liquid water content and drop diameters in supercooled clouds have been measured since the 1940s at the summit of Mount Washington in New Hampshire using a rotating multicylinder. Many of the cloud microphysics models in the Weather Research and Forecasting Model (WRF) assume a gamma distribution for cloud drops. In this paper, years of multicylinder data are reanalyzed to determine the best-fitting gamma or monodisperse distribution to compare with parameters in the WRF cloud models. The single-moment cloud schemes specify a predetermined and constant drop number density in clouds, which leads to a fixed relationship between the median volume drop diameter and the liquid water content. The Mount Washington drop number densities are generally larger and best-fit distributions are generally narrower than is typically assumed in WRF.
Evaluation of Precipitating Hydrometeor Parameterizations in a Single-Moment Bulk Microphysics Scheme for Deep Convective Systems over the Tropical Central Pacific
Authors: Roh Woosub , Satoh Masaki
Published: March 2014

Cloud microphysics of deep convective systems over the tropical central Pacific simulated by a cloud system–resolving model using satellite simulators are evaluated in terms of the joint histogram of cloud-top temperature and precipitation echo-top heights. A control experiment shows an underestimation of stratiform precipitation and a higher frequency of precipitating deep clouds with top heights higher than 12 km when compared with data from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission. The comparison shows good agreement for horizontal distribution and statistical cloud size distributions of deep convective systems. Biases in the joint histogram are improved by changing cloud microphysics parameters of a single-moment bulk microphysics scheme. The effects of size distribution of precipitating hydrometeors are examined. Modification of the particle size distributions of rain, snow, and graupel size distributions based on observed relationships improves cloud precipitation statistics. This study implies that a single-moment bulk cloud microphysics scheme can be improved by employing comparison of satellite observations and diagnostic relationships.
Quality Control of Weather Radar Data Using Polarimetric Variables
Authors: Lakshmanan Valliappa , Karstens Christopher , Krause John , Tang Lin
Published: March 2014

Because weather radar data are commonly employed in automated weather applications, it is necessary to censor nonmeteorological contaminants, such as bioscatter, instrument artifacts, and ground clutter, from the data. With the operational deployment of a widespread polarimetric S-band radar network in the United States, it has become possible to fully utilize polarimetric data in the quality control (QC) process. At each range gate, a pattern vector consisting of the values of the polarimetric and Doppler moments, and local variance of some of these features, as well as 3D virtual volume features, is computed. Patterns that cannot be preclassified based on correlation coefficient ρHV, differential reflectivity Zdr, and reflectivity are presented to a neural network that was trained on historical data. The neural network and preclassifier produce a pixelwise probability of precipitation at that range gate. The range gates are then clustered into contiguous regions of reflectivity, with bimodal clustering carried out close to the radar and clustering based purely on spatial connectivity farther away from the radar. The pixelwise probabilities are averaged within each cluster, and the cluster is either retained or censored depending on whether this average probability is greater than or less than 0.5. The QC algorithm was evaluated on a set of independent cases and found to perform well, with a Heidke skill score (HSS) of about 0.8. A simple gate-by-gate classifier, consisting of three simple rules, is also introduced in this paper and can be used if the full QC method is not able to be applied. The simple classifier has an HSS of about 0.6 on the independent dataset.
Numerical Analysis and Diagnosis of the Hydrodynamic Effects Produced by Hurricane Gordon along the Coast of Spain
Authors: Diaz-Hernandez Gabriel , Mendez Fernando J. , Mínguez Roberto
Published: March 2014

This paper presents a detailed hindcast for the generation and propagation of sea state variables—significant wave height Hs, peak period Tp, mean direction θ, and spectral shape γ –σ —associated with cyclonic events to numerically diagnose their possible hydrodynamic effects over the northeastern Atlantic. An example of such cyclonic events is Hurricane Gordon, which occurred during the second half of August 2012. Extreme hurricane-strength winds produced new and atypically low-frequency (about 14 s) packs of energy. The preexistent wave spectrum suddenly experienced an addition of low-frequency energy along the coast of Cádiz, Spain. This study presents the results of a comprehensive analysis developed to reconstruct the events produced by Hurricane Gordon (2012) along the coast of Cádiz. The analysis features the use of (i) parametric models for the characterization of hurricane winds and pressure fields, (ii) implementation of the Simulating Waves Nearshore (SWAN) model for the generation and propagation of waves in the northeast Atlantic Ocean, and (iii) its coupling with the MOPLA—taken from the Spanish acronym for wave propagation model, current, and morphodynamic evolution of beaches—model for the evaluation of longshore currents. The numerical wave characterization, generation, and propagation were validated with instrumental data from deep-water and coastal buoys.
The Celebritization of Human Trafficking
Authors: Haynes Dina Francesca
Published: March 2014

Human trafficking, and especially sex trafficking, is not only susceptible to alluring and sensational narratives, it also plays into the celebrity-as-rescuer ideal that receives considerable attention from the media, the public, and policy-makers. While some celebrities develop enough expertise to speak with authority on the topic, many others are neither knowledgeable nor accurate in their efforts to champion antitrafficking causes. Prominent policy-makers allow celebrity activists to influence their opinions and even consult with them for advice regarding public policies. Emblematic of larger, fundamental problems with the dominant discourse, funding allocations, and legislation in current antitrafficking initiatives in the United States and elsewhere, celebrity activism is not significantly advancing the eradication of human trafficking and may even be doing harm by diverting attention from aspects of the problem and solution that sorely require attention.
Labor Migration and Trafficking among Vietnamese Migrants in Asia
Authors: Bélanger Danièle
Published: March 2014

Asia is known as a continent where human trafficking is particularly prevalent. Departing from the bulk of research on trafficking in Asia that focuses on illegal migration and prostitution, this article examines the embeddedness of human trafficking in legal temporary migration flows. This analysis uses survey and interview data to document the experiences of Vietnamese migrants who worked in East Asian countries. It identifies a continuum of trafficking, abuse, exploitation, and forced labor, and examines how exploitation begins at the recruitment stage with the creation of bonded labor. Guest-worker programs in destination countries put migrants in particularly precarious situations, which do, in some cases, qualify as trafficking. I argue that temporary migration programs may create the conditions that lead to extreme forms of exploitation among many legal migrant workers in the region.
The Experiences of Migrants Trafficked from Bangladesh
Authors: Joarder Mohammad Abdul Munim , Miller Paul W.
Published: March 2014

This article examines a variety of experiences that trafficked illegal migrants, who had returned to Bangladesh after working in another country, encounter. Using survey research, we document considerable variation across countries of destination in the cost of migration, the amount of bribes paid to facilitators, and the reasons for returning home. Such variation was related to migrants’ assets, age, gender, and education, as well as the nature of the migration contract. A majority of the respondents discovered that their travel documents were fraudulent; three-quarters reported a variety of adverse working conditions in the destination country; and almost all the female migrants had experienced sexual harassment or assault. We believe that carefully conducted survey research such as ours can provide insights into the mechanisms of human trafficking, the risks involved in migration, and reasons that migrants are willing to take such risks.
Estimating Labor Trafficking among Unauthorized Migrant Workers in San Diego
Authors: Zhang Sheldon X. , Spiller Michael W. , Finch Brian Karl , Qin Yang
Published: March 2014

Research on labor trafficking faces many methodological challenges, which make it difficult to provide reliable estimates of the problem. In this research, we applied respondent-driven sampling and unique access to migrant communities in San Diego County, California, to estimate the extent of trafficking violations in one of America’s largest Spanish-speaking immigrant destinations. We found that 30 percent of undocumented migrant laborers were victims of labor trafficking, 55 percent were victims of other labor abuses, and about half of these victimization experiences occurred within the past 12 months. The rate of trafficking violations varied markedly across business sectors that typically hire unauthorized migrant workers. Construction and janitorial services had the most reported trafficking violations and labor abuses. Findings in this study also suggest that the illegal status in the country is likely the most significant factor contributing to vulnerability to trafficking violations.
Sex Trafficking and Prostitution in South Africa
Authors: Gould Chandré
Published: March 2014

This article examines the complex arrangements within which women working in prostitution in South Africa find themselves, and documents their resilience in a hazardous work environment. Findings are drawn from a survey and in-depth interviews with sex workers in Cape Town that investigated the nature and extent of human trafficking in the sex industry, and from a separate survey of sex workers during the World Cup in South Africa in 2010. The findings provide the basis for a critique of Western rescue missions and the larger antitrafficking movement.
Conflict and Agency among Sex Workers and Pimps
Authors: Marcus Anthony , Horning Amber , Curtis Ric , Sanson Jo , Thompson Efram
Published: March 2014

The dominant understanding in the United States of the relationship between pimps and minors involved in commercial sex is that it is one of “child sex trafficking,” in which pimps lure girls into prostitution, then control, exploit, and brutalize them. Such narratives of oppression typically depend on postarrest testimonials by former prostitutes and pimps in punishment and rescue institutions. In contrast, this article presents data collected from active pimps, underage prostitutes, and young adult sex workers to demonstrate the complexity of pimp-prostitute dyads and interrogate conventional stereotypes about teenage prostitution. A holistic understanding of the factors that push minors into sex work and keep them there is needed to designand implement effective policy and services for this population.
Coercion, Control, and Cooperation in a Prostitution Ring
Authors: Morselli Carlo , Savoie-Gargiso Isa
Published: March 2014

Coercion and control are key components of the dominant narrative on sex trafficking, but the power and exchange relations between some of the key players in trafficking have not been carefully examined. This study is based on electronic surveillance data from a two-year police investigation of a prostitution network in Montreal. All of the prostitutes in the network had initially been recruited when they were minors. Whereas most of the writing on sex trafficking portrays pimps as being involved in highly exploitative and coercive relationships with prostitutes, we found that control was not always the sole purview of the pimps, that prostitutes often held key positions and privileged roles within the network, and that pimps’ and prostitutes’ relationships involved complex exchanges of network resources.
Unusual Parapharyngeal Extension of Peritonsillar Abscess to the Masticator Space
Authors: Hidaka Hiroshi , Ishida Eiichi , Suzuki Takahiro , Matsutani Sachiko , Kobayashi Toshimitsu , Takahashi Shoki
Published: March 2014

Objective:

The object was to describe 2 novel cases of peritonsillar abscess showing peculiar extension to the masticator space.

Methods:

The methods included clinical case records, including computed tomography and surgical approaches.

Results:

Both patients we encountered were suffering from systematic diseases, with case 1 involving a 75-year-old man with diabetes mellitus and case 2 involving a 90-year-old woman taking immunosuppressive medications. The abscesses were peritonsillar in origin, extending primarily to the parapharyngeal space, with unusual secondary extension to the masticator space. Extraoral drainage conducted in case 1 was useful for assessing the masticator space and surrounding spaces, but endoscopy-assisted intraoral drainage in case 2 was less invasive, obviating the need for identifying the facial nerve.

Conclusions:

It is important to bear in mind that patients suffering from systemic diseases may display unusual extension of deep head and neck infections, and enhanced computed tomography is a useful modality for evaluating such extensions.
Through the looking glass: Canadian identity and the War of 1812
Authors: Sjolander Claire Turenne
Published: March 2014

In 2012, the Harper government launched a national celebration of the bicentennial of the War of 1812, even though few Canadians were aware of the anniversary or of the war itself. While commemorating a largely unknown war might at first seem counterintuitive, this article argues that the focus on the War of 1812 represented an opportunity to engage in the construction of a different Canadian identity. In effect, the narrative surrounding the War of 1812 celebrations permitted the Conservative government to begin to establish a new “warrior identity” in contrast to the “peacekeeping identity” that has been associated with liberal internationalism and the Liberal Party. While liberal internationalism in both the study and practice of Canadian foreign policy contributed to a national identity framed around shared internationalist values, the narratives presented during the War of 1812 celebrations suggest an alternative understanding of the “true” nature of Canadian identity.
Old habits and new directions indeed
Authors: Nossal Kim Richard
Published: March 2014

Revisiting Canadian Foreign Policy: Old Habits and New Directions, Andrew Cooper’s 1997 textbook on Canadian foreign policy, in 2014 makes for compelling reading, not least because the subtitle is the perfect leitmotif to describe the considerable differences in Canada’s foreign policy between then and now. This review article argues that the main themes in Canada’s foreign policy that Cooper surveys so well are indeed regarded by the Conservative government of Stephen Harper as old habits, to be abandoned in its own search for new directions in Canadian foreign policy.
Study on T-bolt and pin-loaded bearing strengths and damage accumulation in E-glass/epoxy blade applications
Authors: Briggs Alexander JE Ashworth , Zhang Zhongyi Y , Dhakal Hom N
Published: March 2014

In this paper, the ultimate bearing strengths of pin-loaded double shear and T-bolt loaded connections were studied in thick composites, where the diameter of the pin equates to the thickness of the laminate. These bearing strengths were obtained for E-glass/epoxy laminates of [(±45, 03)n ,±45] and a Vf of 54%. It is found that the values for ultimate bearing failure and first non-linearity of pin-loaded connections should be reduced by 25% and 38%, respectively, when applied to T-Bolt connections. The failure modes prior to ultimate failure were primarily dominated by fibre matrix shear-out and delamination. As far as laminates with specific reinforcement architecture and a large percentage of reinforcement orientated to the load axis are concerned, the long-term service life of T-bolt connections may be impacted due to the visible onset of damage at a similar level to that accepted by Germanischer Lloyd for load introduction zones.
Person-Centered Spiritual Maturation
Authors: Kass Jared D.
Published: March 2014

Person-centered spiritual maturation has conceptual and historical roots in my work with Carl Rogers, as a staff member of the Person-Centered Approach Project. It is a person-specific process of psychospiritual development that can be mentored in communities where belief systems and cultural identities are diverse. It enables individuals to deepen engagement with contemplative practices from spiritual traditions that hold personal salience, while building inclusive, respectful communities. This multidimensional model emerges from three decades mentoring person-centered spiritual maturation with university students in the service of their growth as professionals and socially responsible citizens. Growth includes (a) behavioral self-regulation through mindfulness; (b) cognitive understanding of humanity’s chain of pain that supports social justice; (c) social–emotional development that repairs broken attachment templates and promotes compassionate attunement to self and others; (d) contemplative practice that strengthens secure existential attachment and taps the human capacity for unconditional altruistic love; and (e) formation of a resilient worldview, confidence in life and self, that helps people confront life’s existential, interpersonal, and intergroup tensions with sufficient internal composure to derive maturational growth. This model provides a cohesive multidimensional explanation of person-centered spiritual maturation that highlights its prosocial value, integrates relevant neuroscience, and offers researchers a conceptual framework for future investigations.
The Ultimate Resistance
Authors: Firestone Robert W.
Published: March 2014

Although resistance takes many forms, this article elucidates the primary source of resistance in psychotherapy as well as the fundamental resistance to leading a fulfilling life. The ultimate resistance to change, in both cases, originates in the anticipatory fear of arousing existential angst. To varying degrees, most individuals retreat from life and adopt defense mechanisms in an attempt to avoid reawakening suppressed feelings of terror and dread they experienced as children in early separation experiences, and, in particular, when they first learned about death. As clients dismantle their defenses during therapy and move toward increased individuation and self-fulfillment, these unconscious fears threaten to emerge into conscious awareness, and core resistances come into play. Certain events and circumstances, both positive and negative, arouse or intensify latent death anxiety, whereas other circumstances and defenses relieve it. There are numerous defenses that help ameliorate the core anxiety including the fantasy bond—an illusion of connection or fusion with another person, persons, groups, or causes—addictions, microsuicidal behavior, and literal and symbolic methods of denying one’s eventual demise. Although these defenses provide a measure of security and a sense of immortality, they adversely affect one’s psychological adjustment, emotional well-being, and interpersonal relationships.
The Use of Evidence-Based Practice Among Japanese Vocational Rehabilitation Professionals
Authors: Yaeda Jun , Iwanaga Kanako , Fujikawa Mayu , Chan Fong , Bezyak Jill
Published: March 2014

The current study surveyed 94 Japanese vocational rehabilitation (VR) professionals to determine their perceived self-efficacy, perceived benefits, perceived barriers, and readiness to use evidence-based practice (EBP). VR counselors in Japan generally see the potential benefits of using EBP to improve psychosocial and employment outcomes of people with disabilities. However, responses related to knowledge and skills were mixed with higher confidence reported in the ability to understand basic concepts of rehabilitation research designs, methods, and statistics but less confidence in the use of research databases to find empirically supported interventions and in their ability to understand the best evidence information from systematic reviews/meta-analyses. Perceived barriers to EBP were identified, including lack of support for the use of EBP from colleagues and senior management in the agency and not having supervisors who are experienced in EBP. As expected, Japanese VR counselors also reported EBP was not effectively used in VR service delivery practices. Implications for practice, education, and professional development are discussed
Paper-cuts in Modern China
Authors: Wu Ka-ming
Published: March 2014

In the twentieth century, paper-cuts have been variously regarded as a domestic craft, a site of rural purity, a marker of Chinese civilization, and more recently, a national intangible cultural heritage. This article analyzes paper-cuts not merely as a cultural practice but as a medium of articulation through which Chinese urban intellectuals have understood the countryside and traditions at specific historical moments. It also explores paper-cuts as a cultural medium through which urban elites have expressed their visions of the nation’s path to modernity and women’s liberation. During the Yan’an period (1937–1947), paper-cuts served as a Communist marker to distinguish an “art form of healthiness and honesty” from urban decadence under Nationalist rule. Since the 1980s, however, the art and practices of paper-cutting have come to share new discursive spaces: as the site of recovery of a lost Chinese civilization, an urban nostalgia for vanishing rural ritual practices, and most recently, a discourse of capital, profit, and personal success. By analyzing the shifting meanings assigned to paper-cuts, this article explores the relationship among the state, culture, and capital as it has been actively manufactured and negotiated through this folk practice.
Maximum-Likelihood Estimation of Noncompensatory IRT Models With the MH-RM Algorithm
Authors: Chalmers R. Philip , Flora David B.
Published: March 2014

In “compensatory” multidimensional item response theory (IRT) models, latent ability scores are typically assumed to be independent and combine additively to influence the probability of responding to an item correctly. However, testing situations arise where modeling an additive relationship between latent abilities is not appropriate or desired. In these situations, “noncompensatory” models may be better suited to handle this phenomenon. Unfortunately, relatively few estimation studies have been conducted using these types of models and effective estimation of the parameters by maximum-likelihood has not been well established. In this article, the authors demonstrate how noncompensatory models may be estimated with a Metropolis–Hastings Robbins–Monro hybrid (MH-RM) algorithm and perform a computer simulation study to determine how effective this algorithm is at recovering population parameters. Results suggest that although the parameters are not recovered accurately in general, the empirical fit was consistently better than a competing product-constructed IRT model and latent ability scores were also more accurately recovered.
The debate on religion, law and gender in post-revolution Tunisia
Authors: Grami Amel
Published: March 2014

In a society transitioning to democracy from an authoritarian regime, drafting a new constitution is an important step in the establishment of a civil and democratic state. Indeed, the demand of Tunisians to write a new constitution reflects their ambitions, aspirations and hopes; but reality shows a huge gap between the expectations of the majority of Tunisians and the result of the drafting process. The Tunisian transition is characterized by a fierce debate between the secular and the religious forces. This unfolding confrontation forms the backdrop to the process of drafting a new constitution, amid anxiety surrounding the place of Islam in the new political system. However, fears of the resurrection of a new theocratic dictatorship are mitigated by a dynamic civil society in which voices that were silenced or misused by the former regime of Zine Al-Abidine Ben Ali are becoming distinctly vocal. Their action has become increasingly visible, evolving around the place of religion, law and gender in the new constitutional framework. This article focuses on the debate on religion, law and gender in post-revolution Tunisia.
What Learning Environments Best Address 21st-Century Students’ Perceived Needs at the Secondary Level of Instruction?
Authors: Lemley J. Brett , Schumacher Gary , Vesey Winona
Published: March 2014

The purpose of a recent study was to determine what learning environments best address the needs of 21st-century students at the secondary level. This study concluded that the presence of a positive 21st-century learning environment is related to student satisfaction and student-teacher relationships. While the majority of the literature on 21st-century students concerns technology, this study found that students were not as concerned with technology as they were with autonomy, relevance, and connectedness.
Optimization of surgical ventricular restoration by in-silico simulations
Authors: Adhyapak Srilakshmi M , Menon Prahlad G , Parachuri Venkateswara Rao
Published: March 2014

Objective

A hypothesis on left ventricular aneurysms states that there is better preservation of contractile myocardium when the aneurysm geometry is rectangular as opposed to circular. Pre-surgical planning of surgical ventricular restoration was performed on the basis of this hypothesis.

Methods

The intraventricular patch used to exclude scarred or aneurysmal myocardium remains akinetic, hence it was used to define aneurysm geometry as circular or rectangular. Hausdorff distance analysis was carried out by mathematical computational methods on the baseline cardiac magnetic resonance images of 5 patients.

Results

The mean Hausdorff distance for the full range of frequencies was significantly greater after endoventricular linear patch plasty (0.474 ± 0.190 vs. 0.722 ± 0.221 mm, p = 0.047), whereas after endoventricular circular patch plasty, the difference was not significant (0.474 ± 0.190 vs. 0.594 ± 0.193, p = 0.175). The mean Hausdorff distance <0.5 mm was also significantly greater after endoventricular linear patch plasty than after endoventricular circular patch plasty: 0.258 ± 0.03 mm at baseline vs. 0.40 ± 0.16 mm after linear patch plasty ( p = 0.039) and 0.258 ± 0.03 vs. 0.32 ± 0.10 mm ( p = 0.130) after circular patch plasty.

Conclusions

In-silico technology using the Hausdorff distance enables pre-surgical planning and optimization of the technique for surgical ventricular restoration.