bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Beyond the Initial Insult: Clinical Characteristics and Prognosis of Heart Failure with Improved Ejection Fraction
Authors: Gotsman Israel , Zwas Donna R. , Keren Andre , Amir Offer , Leibowitz David
Published: July 2024

Introduction: Heart failure with improved ejection fraction (HFimpEF) is a recently defined subtype of HF, characterized by an increase in ejection fraction (EF) after a prior diagnosis of reduced EF. There are limited data on the characteristics and outcome of this patient subset. The study aimed to investigate the clinical profile and prognosis of this patient group. Methods: HFimpEF patients from a large echocardiography database with comprehensive clinical and outcome data were evaluated for clinical characteristics and outcomes including mortality and cardiovascular hospitalizations. HFimpEF was defined as prior HF diagnosis with EF ≤40% followed by an EF increase of ≥10% to >40%. Results: The study included 2,883 patients with an EF ≤40%. 27% (777) fulfilled criteria of HFimpEF. Non-ischemic cardiomyopathy, female sex, and smaller left ventricular dimensions were associated with EF improvement. Median follow-up duration was 1,346 days. Patients with HFimpEF had a significantly improved prognosis compared to those without EF improvement. Patients with a significant improvement in the EF (≥50%) experienced a 30% lower mortality rate (HR: 0.70, 95% CI: 0.57–0.86, p < 0.001) and a decreased risk of cardiovascular hospitalizations. Conclusions: HFimpEF is a distinct clinical entity observed in 27% of patients with initially reduced EF and conveys a better prognosis. However, even with improvement, EF in most patients does not fully recover, and clinical events can still occur.
En busca del vínculo antrozoológico perdido: el perro fueguino fantasma
Authors: Anzoátegui Micaela
Published: July 2024

Resumen
En este artículo propongo revisar el caso del extinto perro fueguino a la luz de las nuevas perspectivas de la teoría de la coevolución. Un análisis así posibilitaría actualmente comprender de manera diferente el vínculo humano-canino, desde las innovaciones que introduce la teoría del conexionismo evolutivo. A su vez, este caso permite la constatación de la fragilidad de las redes que nos sostienen en vínculo coevolutivo y co-adaptativo con los demás vivientes, en relación a algunos aportes introductorios de la etnografía multiespecie y los estudios sobre extinción. El objetivo, entonces, es proporcionar mayor inteligibilidad al fenómeno de la existencia y extinción del perro fueguino, lograr desanclarlo de la serie de datos que ya se conocen, escapando de la tanatología y recuperando la biología.
Criações da cozinha: corpos, pessoas e relações em contextos indígenas, camponeses e quilombolas
Authors: Carneiro Ana , Santos Júlia Otero dos
Published: July 2024

Starting from the authors’ ethnographies, one carried out with farmers/family members of the Buracos people and the other with the Karo-Arara, an indigenous people who speak the Tupi Ramarama language, this article investigates the relationships elicited through female agency in the kitchen and production, circulation and sharing of food and drink. It is about crossing borders between two well-established traditions in Brazilian anthropology as peasant studies and indigenous ethnology. We seek to show how, in different indigenous, quilombola and peasant ethnographic contexts, the kitchen is a creative device through which bodies, people and communities necessarily involved in specific lands and territories are constituted, and also undone.
Jorge Furtado: tudo isso aconteceu, mais ou menos
Authors: Vicente Wilq ,   Universidade de São Paulo. Escola de Comunicações e Artes
Published: July 2024

O livro Jorge Furtado: tudo isso aconteceu, mais ou menos, organizado por Wilq Vicente é o décimo terceiro livro da Coleção CINUSP, projeto editorial do CINUSP “Paulo Emilio” iniciado em 2011 com o lançamento de Robert Bresson, de Daniel Ifanger e Ricardo Miyada. Seguindo o objetivo enunciado na ocasião, qual seja, o de “documentar, informar, propor reflexões e relatar fatos, histórias e estudos sobre a arte cinematográfica, seus criadores e suas criações”, todos os livros, disponíveis no Portal de Livros Abertos da USP, se debruçaram sobre aspectos essenciais da cultura cinematográfica, abordando temas e agentes importantes deste processo.
O desejo de não ser dominado e a experiência democrática em Maquiavel
Authors: Mendes Ricardo Polidoro
Published: July 2024

The conflict between the people and the grandi is central to Machiavelli’s work, as the conflicting dynamics between the desire of the people, not to be dominated, and of the grandi, to dominate, orders the social body through the institution of laws and ordinances. In this disunity, Machiavelli recognizes that the people’s desire is more reliable and in accordance with freedom, since it refuses the domination of the grandi and, therefore, does not allow freedom to be usurped. However, although the Florentine highlights the link between the people's desire and freedom, he does not clarify how the people produce laws and ordinances in favor of free life. Thus, to understand how the action of the people reorders the social body according to their desire, we will investigate the dynamics of this mood in its conflict with the great, in chapters 4 and 5 of the first book of Machiavelli’s Discourses on Livy, and we will then turn to chapter 40 of the first book of this work, as at this moment Machiavelli discusses a reorganization of Rome that opposed the common people and the nobles to understand the extraordinary action of the people and their desire in its dynamics with the desire of the grandi. Our proposal, therefore, is to show how the people reorder the city towards a democratic experience according to their desire not to be dominated.
A literatura depois do fim em O Mundo Desdobrável, de Carola Saavedra
Authors: Andrade Vanessa de , Valdati Nilcéia
Published: July 2024

The theme of this research focuses on the ways that Carola Saavedra proposes to think about the concepts of literature in her book of essays O mundo desdobravel – rehearsals for after the end (2021), thus marking other ways of thinking or even rethinking literature considering individual and collective memories and ancestry. As an objective, we intend to verify in the book how literature is crossed by not knowing, as well as identify the literary forces that were presented in the essays, as well as identify the elements that contribute to the formation of other paths to literature. The analysis was based on authors such as Agambem (2017), Candido (2004), Castagnino (1969), Compagnon (2009), Eagleton (2006), Fuks (2021), Garramuño (2014), Piglia (2004), between others. The article is divided into two parts, in the first, we revisit the concepts that literature already has for its field; in the second, we follow the literary development proposed by the author. The results indicate that Carola's thinking is not limited to conceptualizing literature or defining its power, because, by unfolding the world, it makes other possibilities and forces evident for what is called literature, marked, mainly, by not knowing.
Vozes de Maryse Condé
Authors: Pereira Viviane Araújo Alves da Costa , Lara Jéssica Andrade de
Published: July 2024

A obra de Maryse Condé faz ressoar uma multitude de vozes: as narradoras ficcionais dos romances caminham ao lado de autorrepresentações da escritora em seus textos mais marcadamente autobiográficos. Ainda podemos ouvir diferentes entonações da voz de Condé em textos de crítica, ensaios, entrevistas ao longo de uma trajetória de mais de cinquenta anos de presença no meio editorial. Neste artigo, propomos revisitar textos de crítica publicados por Maryse Condé em periódicos (Présence Africaine, 1975-1976; Yale French Studies, 1993), retomados na tese le Stéréotype du noir dans la littérature antillaise Guadeloupe-Martinique, e os entrelaçamentos possíveis com seus romances, especialmente Traversée de la mangrove (1989). No diálogo entre diferentes pontos de vista a partir de gêneros também diversos, buscamos refletir sobre a autorrepresentação de Maryse Condé na produção crítica, marcada pela valorização do novo (PERRONE-MOISÉS, 1994) e pela criação de um espírito de oposição, e sobre as ressonâncias de tais posturas em sua produção ficcional.
Loucura
Authors: Martelly Stéphane , Pereira Viviane Araújo Alves da Costa
Published: July 2024

Tradução do texto "Folie", de Stéphane Martelly
A vida e o futuro da crítica com Leyla Perrone-Moisés
Authors: Carra Gabriel
Published: July 2024

This text aims to present various responses from Leyla Perrone-Moisés to inquiries about the role of the literary critic, their profession, and their relationship with others who share their activity. To achieve this, we traverse her monographic production, especially Altas literaturas, Mutações da literatura no século XXI, and Texto, crítica e escritura, seeking reflections woven by the author over almost five decades. These reflections, due to their insistence on literature, resonate with those who share her passions and can be useful to future critics. Therefore, this article does not intend to formulate a thesis but merely to narrate the history of some concerns and the answers that the reading of Perrone-Moisés' books suggests.
Centros de sôro-profilaxia
Authors: Leal Rubens Azzi
Published: July 2024

É de observação bastante antiga que certas moléstias como a varíola, sarampo, coqueluche, etc., conferem ao indivíduo atacado imunidade sólida e duradoura, de sorte a constituírem raridade novas manifestações da doença em indivíduos anteriormente atingidos. Resultam certamente dessa observação as tentativas para tratamento de algumas moléstias infeciosas por meio de injeções· de sôro de indivíduos convalescentes. Devemos a Weissbecker (22) os primeiros ensaios nesse sentido em 1896, que redundaram em fracasso, muito provàvelmente devido à insuficiencia das doses injetadas. Pouco tempo depois, o recurso da sôroterapia é experimentado com mais êxito e, num progresso sempre crescente, chega até nossos dias.
Métodos de identificação de Bactérias do Gênero Salmonella
Authors: Assumpção Lucas de
Published: July 2024

The A. Describes the various methods for the isolation and identification of the genus Salmonella To simplifly the exposition the subject is divided under four headings> I--- considerations on the characteristics of the genus Salmonella; II --- methods for enrichment and isolation; III --- biochemical tests for the detection of the fenus Salmonella, IV --- serological classification in accordance with the DAUFFMANN-WHITE scheme. The first part gives a summary of the changes observed from year tho year in the definition of the genus Salmonella. the A. believes that the criteriou most gyenerally accepted is based on o9ne hand on the biochemical characteristics which up to a point. limit the genus and also on the study of their antigenic constituion. The methods of enrichmente such as those of KAUFFMANN and LEIFSON-SELENITO-F. are studied in the second part also isolation methods such as lactose- rosolic acid. KRISTENSEN-LESTER and JURGENS (modified by HORMAECHE)and the agar-lactose-sacchorose-brilliant-green-rosólic-acid method. This last suggested by A. renders difficult the growth of B. proteus and coli. The biochemical tests are considered in the third part, under the sub-division of preliminary and complete biochemical testes. In the fourth and last part the A. studies the serological classification and the technique for the preparation of pure factor antigens and also a brief investigation of the various antigens of greater importance included in the KAUFFMANN-WHITE scheme.
First record of Pieris napi L. (Lepidoptera: Pieridae) from Kashmir Valley, India
Authors: Rasool Firdousa , Altaf Hussain Mir
Published: July 2024

Pieris napi, a well-studied butterfly species distributed throughout the world, has remained undiscovered from Kashmir Himalaya to date. The present study reports the Pieris napi for the first time from Kashmir. This paper describes the diagnostic features and distribution patterns of the butterfly species in this region. It also includes specimen photographs and a distribution map of the species.
RNA Helicase DDX5 Maintains Cardiac Function by Regulating
CamkIIδ
Alternative Splicing
Authors: Jia Kangni , Cheng Haomai , Ma Wenqi , Zhuang Lingfang , Li Hao , Li Zhigang , Wang Ziyang , Sun Hang , Cui Yuke , Zhang Hang , Xie Hongyang , Yi Lei , Chen Zhiyong , Sano Motoaki , Fukuda Keiichi , Lu Lin , Pu Jun , Zhang Yan , Gao Ling , Zhang Ruiyan , Yan Xiaoxiang
Published: July 2024

BACKGROUND:

Heart failure (HF) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. RNA-binding proteins are identified as regulators of cardiac disease; DDX5 (dead-box helicase 5) is a master regulator of many RNA processes, although its function in heart physiology remains unclear.

METHODS:

We assessed DDX5 expression in human failing hearts and a mouse HF model. To study the function of DDX5 in heart, we engineered cardiomyocyte-specific
Ddx5
knockout mice. We overexpressed DDX5 in cardiomyocytes using adeno-associated virus serotype 9 and performed transverse aortic constriction to establish the murine HF model. The mechanisms underlined were subsequently investigated using immunoprecipitation–mass spectrometry, RNA-sequencing, alternative splicing analysis, and RNA immunoprecipitation sequencing.

RESULTS:

We screened transcriptome databases of murine HF and human dilated cardiomyopathy samples and found that DDX5 was significantly downregulated in both. Cardiomyocyte-specific deletion of
Ddx5
resulted in HF with reduced cardiac function, an enlarged heart chamber, and increased fibrosis in mice. DDX5 overexpression improved cardiac function and protected against adverse cardiac remodeling in mice with transverse aortic constriction–induced HF. Furthermore, proteomics revealed that DDX5 is involved in RNA splicing in cardiomyocytes. We found that DDX5 regulated the aberrant splicing of Ca
2+
/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase IIδ (
CamkIIδ
), thus preventing the production of CaMKIIδA, which phosphorylates L-type calcium channel by serine residues of Cacna1c, leading to impaired Ca
2+
homeostasis. In line with this, we found increased intracellular Ca
2+
transients and increased sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca
2+
content in DDX5-depleted cardiomyocytes. Using adeno-associated virus serotype 9 knockdown of CaMKIIδA partially rescued the cardiac dysfunction and HF in
Ddx5
knockout mice.

CONCLUSIONS:

These findings reveal a role for DDX5 in maintaining calcium homeostasis and cardiac function by regulating alternative splicing in cardiomyocytes, identifying the DDX5 as a potential target for therapeutic intervention in HF.
Novel Relaxin Receptor RXFP1 Agonist AZD3427 in the Treatment of Heart Failure: A Phase 1a/b, First‐in‐Human, Randomized, Single‐Blind, Placebo‐Controlled Study
Authors: Connolly Kathleen , George Richard , Omar Sami , Matsson Elin , Åstrand Magnus , Althage Magnus , Pettersen Daniel , Mohamed Esha , Fang Kelly , Lima Joao A. C. , Kujacic Mirjana , Ödesjö Helena , Turton Michelle , Johannesson Petra , Gabrielsen Anders , Ufnal Marcin
Published: July 2024

Background

Heart failure mortality remains high despite recent progress in pharmacological treatment. AZD3427 is a selective long‐acting analog of relaxin, a vasodilatory hormone with antifibrotic effects. We assessed the safety, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of AZD3427 in healthy volunteers and patients with heart failure on standard‐of‐care therapy.

Methods and Results

In this first‐in‐human, phase 1a/b, randomized, single‐blind, placebo‐controlled study, healthy volunteers were randomized 6:2 to receive a single dose of AZD3427 or placebo by subcutaneous injection in 5 mixed‐ethnicity cohorts (5, 10, 30, 90, or 270 mg) and 1 Japanese‐descent cohort (270 mg), or by intravenous injection in 1 cohort (15 mg). After confirming safety and tolerability in healthy volunteers, 3 cohorts of patients with heart failure and left ventricular ejection fraction ≤40% and 3 cohorts with ejection fraction ≥41% were randomized 6:2 to receive 5 weekly doses of AZD3427 (5, 15, or 45 mg) or placebo by subcutaneous injection. In total, 56 healthy volunteers and 48 patients with heart failure were randomized. AZD3427 was well tolerated at all doses. After subcutaneous administration, AZD3427 was absorbed slowly, and exposure was approximately linear across the dose range. In patients with heart failure, AZD3427 terminal half‐life was 13 to 14 days and there were numerical increases in stroke volume and estimated glomerular filtration rate. No treatment‐emergent antidrug antibodies were detected.

Conclusions

AZD3427 had favorable safety and pharmacokinetic profiles. Hemodynamic changes in patients with heart failure were consistent with the anticipated effects of a relaxin analog. These findings support further development of AZD3427 as a novel long‐term treatment for patients with heart failure.

Registration

URL:
https://www.clinicaltrials.gov
; Unique Identifier: NCT04630067.
Midterm Outcomes of Percutaneous Intramyocardial Septal Radiofrequency Ablation for Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy: A Single‐Center, Observational Study
Authors: Xie Xudong , Chen Siyuan , Cui Yawei , Zhou Zhenzhen , Lu Jianhua , Du Zhi , Ding Jie , Xing Kaidi , Zhang Yuesheng , Zhou Yijiang , Li Jun , Guo Xiaogang
Published: July 2024

Background

Percutaneous intramyocardial septal radiofrequency ablation (PIMSRA) has been reported to be safe and effective at midterm follow‐up to treat drug‐refractory hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy in a single center. However, data from other centers are lacking. This retrospective cohort study aimed to investigate the efficacy and safety of PIMSRA from another independent center.

Methods and Results

PIMSRA was performed in 76 patients with hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy in our center from April 2020 to June 2023. The primary outcome was the reduction of left ventricular outflow tract gradient after 6 months or more post‐PIMSRA. Secondary outcomes were periprocedural major adverse clinical events. Sixty‐one patients returned to the hospital for follow‐up 6 to 30 (median, 14) months after the procedure. At the last follow‐up of the 61 patients, the maximum septal thickness decreased from a median of 23.6 (interquartile range, 20.5–26.4) to 19.1 (interquartile range, 16.0–22.1) mm (
P
<0.001) and the left ventricular outflow tract peak gradient at rest decreased from a median of 70.0 (interquartile range, 29.1–107.5) to 20.0 (interquartile range, 10.8–48.8) mm Hg (
P
<0.001). The percentage of patients with symptoms of New York Heart Association functional class III/IV decreased from 51% to 0%. Of all 76 patients, there was no in‐hospital or 30‐day death, no right or left branch block, and no permanent pacemaker implantation. Six (8%) patients had pericardial effusion, with 1 experiencing cardiac tamponade and ventricular fibrillation, and 1 (1%) patient developed septal branch aneurysm that was treated with coil occlusion.

Conclusions

PIMSRA allows for the reduction in the left ventricular outflow tract gradient and enhances symptomatic improvement, with a limited incidence of adverse events and complications among patients with hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy.
Immediate effect of quadri-pulse stimulation on human brain microstructures and functions
Authors: Kimura Ikko , Hayashi Masamichi J. , Amano Kaoru
Published: July 2024

It remains unclear whether repetitive stimulation of a single brain area immediately alters brain microstructure. Thus, we investigated the immediate changes in human brain microstructures following repetitive extrinsic excitation of the left primary motor cortex (M1) through quadri-pulse stimulation (QPS). Sixteen right-handed healthy adults underwent excitatory (QPS5) and inhibitory (QPS50) QPS. Diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and resting-state functional MRI were conducted before and after QPS to detect microstructural and functional changes, respectively. No significant alterations in microstructural indices after QPS5 or QPS50 were observed in the cerebral cortex. The functional connectivity (FC) between the bilateral M1 was significantly decreased after QPS5, while it was not significantly modulated after QPS50. Microstructural changes exhibited no significant correlation with this FC change in any region after QPS5 or QPS50. Although no significant FC change was observed following QPS50, these results may suggest that repetitive stimulation of a single brain area can be insufficient to induce immediate microstructural alterations. This would be supported by demonstrating the lack of microstructural changes after QPS together with changes in cortical excitability of the stimulated region.
Bibliometric Insight Into Thyroid Cancer Research: A Comprehensive Review and Future Directions
Authors: Wu Christopher , Swann Sellers , Holland Michelle , Kasmirski Julia A. , Gibson Quince-Xhosa D. , Fazendin Jessica , Chen Herbert , Gillis Andrea
Published: July 2024

Introduction

In the past 3 decades, thyroid cancer research has surged, becoming the leading topic in clinical thyroidology. Despite this, there’s a lack of data identifying key articles, authors, and journals. This study aims to provide insights for authors, physicians, and research labs by highlighting the most influential journals, authors, and research topics in thyroid cancer.

Methods

A comprehensive search was conducted using the Scopus database, employing the medical subject heading (MeSH) terms “Thyroid” and “Cancer” in the titles, abstracts, or keywords of articles. The search was limited to English articles in academic medicine journals published between January 1993 and December 2021.

Results

The search yielded 21 472 articles across 3076 journals, authored by 13 974 senior authors. The number of journals publishing on thyroid cancer expanded from 29 in 1993 to 733 in 2021, marking an average annual growth of 14%. Article output on the topic increased from 54 in the initial year to 1580 by 2021, with an annual growth rate of 16%. A thematic analysis revealed 369 articles mentioning “BRAF” since 2004, 479 articles on “ultrasound” techniques, 325 on “ablation” methods, and 453 articles focusing on “genetics” in thyroid cancer. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism emerged as the most prolific, publishing 1017 articles over the 29-year period.

Conclusion

This study guides resource allocation towards impactful journals for thyroid cancer researchers, helps identify key contributors for collaboration or mentorship, and provides a framework for similar analyses in other fields.
The importance of being civilized: Opera houses as status symbols in International Relations
Authors: Leira Halvard , de Carvalho Benjamin
Published: July 2024

(Ouverture) By making the case for opera houses as symbols of civilized status in International Relations (IR), this article addresses the discrepancy between the waning popularity of opera and the veritable boom in new opera houses we are witnessing across the globe. We foreground the multivocality of status symbols—they may be intended to communicate more than one meaning, by and to more than one audience. Whether intended as vehicles of urban, regional, or national status ambitions, building opera houses has signaled civilizational achievements. After a brief exploration of status symbols, we explore opera houses in general, before turning to a more in-depth study of the recent Oslo Opera House. Through the empirical study we show how opera houses have been (and still are) complex status symbols, with multiple internal and external dimensions, straddling the line between getting other states to sing along or serving mainly for purposes of singing alone. Finally, we posit that the current international boom in opera houses is a testimony to the enduring importance of being perceived as civilized in IR—long after the standard of civilization has ceased to be explicitly applied.
Moral Salience, Situational Moral Evaluations, and Criminal Choice
Authors: Herman Shaina , Pogarsky Greg
Published: July 2024

Research increasingly aims to better understand criminal behavior in context. Invariably, this entails integrating sociological (and other) perspectives on structure and environment, with psychological and economic notions of individual decision processes. Unique among environmental influences on crime is the immediate context surrounding an offending opportunity. Here we focus on moral context. Perceived choice is often constrained by structural factors, such as concentrated disadvantage and social inequalities, which restrict prosocial opportunities and encourage offending. System 1 heuristic processes that involve moral salience can affect perceived choice sets as well. Such processes narrow choices by directing attention to one or a subset of behavioral options and away from others. They can also expand choices by counteracting the attention narrowing, criminogenic influences of competing heuristics such as temporally present orientation. Below we examine whether contextual circumstances can amplify the internal prominence of one’s moral self-conception, thus influencing moral judgements and related action. Using randomized experiments embedded in two online surveys, we assess the role of morally laden situational cues in choice processes.
Learning the Ropes of Life in Shanghai: Jewish Refugee Children in Second World War China
Authors: Cheng Kimberly
Published: July 2024

During the Second World War, approximately 17,000 to 18,000 central European Jewish refugees resettled in the semi-colonial, multiethnic metropolis of Shanghai, China. Given the city's lack of border control, Shanghai remained one of the only destinations in the world where refugees of all ages could go with their extended families. Comparing the experiences of younger refugees with those of their adult family members, this article explores how the young age of refugee children informed their sense of identity and belonging in Shanghai. Using memoirs, oral histories, and children's school materials, this study argues that Jewish refugee children often acclimated faster to life in China due to the knowledge they possessed. In Europe, refugee children had a greater sense of openness to living abroad, given that they knew less about the dangers of wartime Shanghai. In China, school and extracurricular youth activities quickened refugee children's adjustment to life in the city, facilitating language acquisition and exposure to other foreign cultures in the city. The density of the Chinese neighborhoods in which refugee children lived also allowed youngsters to learn more from their encounters with Shanghai's Chinese population. Ultimately, their greater understanding of life in Shanghai complicated notions of home and self for refugee youth.
Ironclad work overload: prevention of psychosocial hazards among union counsellors in Quebec
Authors: Lefrançois Mélanie , Trottier Mélanie
Published: July 2024

The role of labour union staffers-as-workers, crucial to the functioning of a union, involves a growing number of increasingly complex demands and requirements. A Quebec union concerned about the health of its members, union counsellors employed by another union, commissioned a study of a prominent psychosocial risk factor: work overload. A case study based on a mixed exploratory participatory design (qual→QUAN; 25 semi-structured interviews, 82 questionnaires) identified individual, interpersonal and organisational determinants, consequences, strategies and possible solutions for the prevention of work overload. The study specifies the workload associated with certain tasks, which are perceived as being more demanding both quantitatively and emotionally. High emotional exhaustion and poor work-life balance underline the urgency of preventing overload. The results point to solutions that mitigate collateral impacts and adopt approaches differentiated by sex/gender, career stage and work-life situation. These reflections on the prevention of a type of psychosocial hazard in trade union action emphasise the importance of understanding the components of workload, and may apply to other professional jobs involving care functions and the management of complex cases.
Increasing age and lethal opiate use
Authors: Hunter Jeremy WS , van den Heuvel Corinna , Stephenson Lilli , Elborough Lauren , Byard Roger W
Published: July 2024

Opioid abuse is a leading cause of drug-related morbidity and mortality worldwide. It has been suggested that the age of opiate users in Australia is rising. To evaluate this further in a local population, toxicology and pathology case files from Forensic Science SA, Adelaide, South Australia, were examined for all cases with lethal opioid levels from 2000 to 2019 ( n = 499; M:F 2.3:1; age range 18–91 years, median age 42 years). The median age of opiate deaths increased significantly by approximately 16 years ( p = 0.007, R2 = 0.34) with a significant increase in total deaths in the 45–54 years and 55–64 years age groups ( p = 0.009, R2 = 0.32) ( p = < 0.001, R2 = 0.54). Deaths due to heroin overdose showed the lowest median age (39 years, n = 184), with deaths from tramadol toxicity having the highest (50.5 years, n = 32). Recent changes in the demographic profile of opioid users in cases of lethal overdose involve an aging population. Forensic and clinical practitioners should be aware of significant opioid abuse in certain individuals at older ages as this raises the possibility that this may exacerbate the effects of age-related chronic diseases in this group and/or contribute to fatalities.
Why Voters Prefer Politicians With Particular Personal Attributes: The Role of Voter Demand for Populists
Authors: Miwa Hirofumi
Published: July 2024

Recent studies in democratic countries suggest that voters generally prefer candidates with specific personal attributes, such as being female and young. However, some of these patterns cannot necessarily be explained by voters’ expectations of candidates’ competence. Building on a growing body of literature that addresses populist attitudes as an important factor influencing voters’ political preferences, this study hypothesizes that candidates’ personal attributes shape voters’ perceptions of their populist attitudes and that such perceptions mediate the relationship between personal attributes and voter preferences. A conjoint experiment conducted in Japan showed that several personal attributes substantially influenced candidates’ perceived anti-elitism and people-centrism. An additional experiment to disentangle causal mechanisms suggested that, albeit inconclusive, young candidates were more likely to be preferred because of voters’ expectations of their populist tendencies. Methodologically, this study illustrates advancements in the conjoint experiment design to elucidate causal mechanisms, with a careful discussion of necessary assumptions.
The Continental Social Investment Turn: Sequencing Corrective and Transformative Welfare State Change in the Netherlands, Germany, and Italy
Authors: Di Carlo Donato , Hemerijck Anton , Karremans Johannes
Published: July 2024

European welfare states have experienced a binary transformation characterized by recalibration of traditional social protection programs and expansion of employment-oriented social policies, favoring the emergence of dual-earner families. This article sheds a new light on the pathways leading to these transformations in continental Europe. Theoretically, we characterize continental European welfare states as a configuration of complementary and interacting labor market and social policy provisions. We conjecture that such welfare state types are prone to evolve through a sequential process of institutional change where new social policy provisions emerge to correct and enhance the effectiveness of previously implemented labor market policies in pursuit of novel policy objectives. The timing and pace of this sequence is mediated by governments’ cognitive orientations and their responsiveness toward domestic societal interests. Through a qualitative comparative process analysis, we find evidence of our theorized three-pronged sequence of institutional change in the Netherlands, Germany, and Italy.
US State and Territorial Indigenous Consultation Laws: A Potential Strategy to Improve the Social Determinants of Health
Authors: Riley Lorinda , Hulama Kristina , Tapu Ian , Weightmann Anna , Louis-Perkins Tehani , Kajiwara Carly , Maldanado Kamaile , Ravida Meldrick
Published: July 2024

Objectives:

The United Nations (UN) has articulated the right to self-determination as a human right for Indigenous people; however, US states and territories have been slow to operationalize this aspect of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Indigenous consultation laws require all federal executive agencies to consult with tribal nations before implementing policies that have a “tribal implication,” and these form the cornerstone of US efforts to implement the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Despite these federal efforts, less is known about the degree to which state and territorial laws require consultation with Indigenous communities.

Methods:

We reviewed all Indigenous consultation laws identified through a search of 50 US states, the District of Columbia, and 5 territories to provide a holistic picture of how jurisdictions have regulated Indigenous consultation efforts.

Results:

Of the 56 states, 49 (87.5%) had at least 1 Indigenous consultation law; the remaining 7 jurisdictions had none. States engaged in Indigenous consultation in various ways, generally falling into 1 of 3 categories: (1) centralized consultation facilitated through an agency or department, (2) indirect consultation through a designated commission, and (3) fragmented Indigenous consultation through discrete laws. Important gaps were identified, including the lack of a definition for Indigenous consultation, the absence of an appeal process, and the need to train state officials on existing policies.

Conclusions:

The results provide a baseline on the degree to which US states and territories consult with Indigenous communities and can be used to identify gaps in US compliance with UN human rights mandates.
What Is Religious Fundamentalism? Asking Scientists Who Study the Construct
Authors: Phillips Russell E.
Published: July 2024

The purpose of the present study is to gain clarity into the definition of religious fundamentalism. Specifically, the goal of the current research is to engage in a multi-method study defining the various aspects of fundamentalist movements across cultures and religions. Social scientists from around the world with recent peer-reviewed journal publications concerning religion and fundamentalism ( n = 125) complete a survey where they define the construct and rate how representative 29 items distilled from the existing literature represent the term. Quantitative analyses reveal the scientists find Williamson et al.’s intratextual religious beliefs as the most important aspects of religious fundamentalism. Qualitative analyses reveal no theme is prevalent among the majority of scientists, with one category noted by 40 percent of participants, six by 20 percent to 39 percent of respondents, seven by 10 percent to 19 percent, and four reported in 7 percent to 9 percent of the sample. I integrate findings within existing religious fundamentalism theories and provide research suggestions with the purpose of creating a more comprehensive measure of fundamentalism that could be tailored to different cultural and religious contexts and used in future investigations to help applied practitioners better understand and interact with fundamentalists.
What Helps Muslim American Youth to Thrive? The Role of Maternal Promotion of Volitional Functioning and Religiosity in their Civic Engagement
Authors: Gürsoy Hatice , Cheah Charissa S. L. , Balkaya-Ince Merve
Published: July 2024

The role of diverse parenting practices and religiosity in Muslim American youth’s positive adjustment is not well understood. Drawing on a strength-based approach, the present study examined the mediating role of multiple dimensions of religiosity (religious attitudes, practices, and struggles) in the association between maternal promotion of volitional functioning (PVF) and Muslim American adolescents’ civic engagement. Two-hundred and twenty-one Muslim adolescents (13- to 18-year-olds; 59% girls) participated in an online survey and reported on their perceptions of PVF, their religious attitudes, practices, struggles, and their civic engagement. Our results suggested that for adolescents who receive maternal support for acting upon and exploring their interests, religious practices by themselves might be an indicator of the internalization of religious virtues that promote civic behavior. These findings highlight the importance of how maternal support for autonomy can promote specific aspects of religiosity and facilitate Muslim adolescents’ positive development.
Rediscovering the ‘Meaning of Science’? Hans Morgenthau and the ethics debate in quantum IR
Authors: Murphy Michael PA
Published: July 2024

The concept of science has long played an important role in defining the field of international relations, both in its broader epistemological debates and in the formation of distinct research traditions. I argue that the emerging quantum approaches to international relations theory destabilize the conventional bifurcations of scientific and humanistic approaches to international relations, and that paying attention to this uncertainty can help build a broader understanding of not only quantum international relations but the field as a whole. Through a close reading of Hans Morgenthau’s commentaries on science in Scientific Man Versus Power Politics and Science: Servant or Master, this article argues that the ‘ethics objection’ that Morgenthau leveled against scientism is in fact overcome by quantum international relations.
Ritual responses to environmental apocalypse in activist communities
Authors: Pike Sarah M.
Published: July 2024

This is the text of a keynote for the International Association for the Psychology of Religion Conference held in Groningen, the Netherlands in August 2023. The talk focuses on ritualized responses to grief around the climate crisis and other environmental threats, such as wildfires. I discuss two case studies: environmental/ climate protests and Indigenous-led restoration work as examples of “ecological rituals.” Protest-performances by the Red Rebel Brigade and Extinction Rebellion funerals for extinct species consecrate public spaces with gestures that invoke kinship and identification with vulnerable species. In similar ways, Indigenous-led restoration work makes visible often hidden losses, creates and expresses sacred relationships with other species, and remakes public spaces into sacred spaces of mourning and hope. Both of these cases, climate protests and restoration, are dynamic and complicated ritualized practices that express and constitute hopeful as well as painful relationships. These opportunities for ritual creativity and meaning-making in the face of climate catastrophe seem to offer participants effective ways of dealing with grief, shame, and loss
Intersections of Modifiable Risks: Loneliness is Associated with Poor Subjective Sleep Quality in Older Women at Risk for Alzheimer's Disease
Authors: Danish Madina , Dratva Melanie A. , Lui Kitty K. , Heyworth Nadine , Wang Xin , Malhotra Atul , Hartman Sheri J. , Lee Ellen E. , Sundermann Erin E. , Banks Sarah J.
Published: July 2024

We examined the relationship between subjective and objective sleep outcomes and loneliness in older women at risk for Alzheimer's disease (AD). Our sample consisted of 39 participants (aged 65+) with mild cognitive deficits who completed the UCLA Loneliness Scale, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and an at home sleep test, to determine presence of obstructive sleep apnea. Based on sleep quality scores, individuals categorized as “poor sleepers” had significantly higher loneliness scores than “good sleepers.” However, total loneliness scores did not significantly differ between groups with or without sleep apnea. We found that higher loneliness was significantly associated to lower habitual sleep efficiency and sleep duration and was also influenced by use of sleep medication. Our findings suggest that increased loneliness relates to worse subjective sleep quality, but not to sleep apnea. These findings suggest that combined interventions targeting loneliness and sleep quality may be important for older women.
Captain Mayor and Sergeant Councilman? An Assessment of the Reach of Military Politicization in Brazilian Politics
Authors: Piazza Kelly , Landy Jamie
Published: July 2024

Civilian control of the armed forces and the absence of military politicization are fundamental democratic norms. In recent years, some democratically elected national leaders, including former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro, have subverted these norms. In this article, we, first, evaluate whether the increased national political involvement of the armed forces in Brazil extends to the realm of local politics and, second, discern whether conditions- and demand-based theories explain local-level trends. To do this, we descriptively assess candidacies from 21st-century Brazilian municipal elections and estimate a series of municipality- and multi-level regression models exclusively for the 2020 round. We learn that national politicization has coincided with a marked increase in the number of military candidates, conceptualized as those who use military titles in their electoral campaigns, in Brazilian mayoral and city councilor contests and that municipal support for Bolsonaro is positively associated with military candidates contesting local elections, in line with conditions-based theories, sounding the alarm bells of civil–military weakening.
From Access Challenges (as Data) to Methodological Insights: Enhancing Qualitative Inquiries in Public Administration Research
Authors: Americo Bruno Luiz , Clegg Stewart , Tureta César
Published: July 2024

Little attention has been given to questions of blocked access in public administration research. We draw on past scholarship on access: qualitative research accounts in public administration that address access processes, problems, and possibilities; and our own experience with access challenges in a public school setting involving public sector employees. This allowed us to detail three methodological principles to facilitate the initiation of ethnographic research while access was constantly (re)negotiated: accounting for regulations, rules, and ruling artifacts; meaningful events; and routine and non-routine artifacts. We investigated public administration regulations, events, and artifacts, developing and employing an empirical method to collect data under conditions where access to primary field sites is blocked based on the boundary condition of our investigation. By describing the research findings and their applications, we demonstrate that conceptualizing access problems as multiple data layers can provide researchers with profound insights into relational dynamics, thereby enriching qualitative inquiry in public administration research. We conclude by arguing that this approach remains highly relevant even as field access is constantly negotiated.
Speaking with Devils: Sino-European Vernaculars and Translingual Communication before the Treaty Ports
Authors: Kubler Carl
Published: July 2024

This article examines the dynamics of Chinese–Western translingual contact in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, with particular attention to the problem of oral communication between native speakers of Sinitic and European languages. Despite a robust body of scholarship on the economic and political dimensions of Chinese and Euro-American interaction in the decades preceding the First Opium War, the routine linguistic practices and adaptations that mediated everyday commercial and social exchanges remain only superficially understood. Critical to such exchanges was the development, circulation, and adoption of Chinese pidgins (trade languages) as vernacular instruments for negotiating not just business matters but a range of grassroots interactions and relationships that developed out of the South China coast’s position as a nexus for global interchange. A deeper understanding of these linguistic dynamics provides new insights into the interwoven histories of trade, migration, and translingual enterprise and offers a more nuanced picture of Sino-Western relations before the First Opium War.
Functional Communication Training in Schools: A Systematic Analysis of the Evidence for Ecological Validity
Authors: Chezan Laura C. , Bauer Autumn M. , McCammon Meka N. , Drasgow Erik
Published: July 2024

Ecological validity refers to the meaningfulness or practical significance of research outcomes in everyday settings or the extent to which an intervention can be implemented by typical people during naturally occurring opportunities. In education, ecological validity may contribute to the adoption of interventions by teachers working with students in school settings. Our purpose in this review was to examine the evidence for ecological validity of functional communication training (FCT) used to address challenging behavior in school-age individuals with disabilities. We reviewed 19 single-case experimental design (SCED) studies published between 1985 and 2023. First, we used the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) Standards to evaluate the empirical evidence of each study. Second, we evaluated the extent to which behavioral assessment and FCT procedures were described in the 15 studies that met the WWC Standards. Third, we conducted a systematic analysis of the evidence for ecological validity of behavioral assessment and FCT. Results indicate that 95% of the SCED studies met the WWC Standards. The description of procedures was complete for 50% of the behavioral assessments and for 11% of the FCT. The overall evidence for ecological validity was moderate for 16.7% and low for 83.3% of the behavioral assessments. The evidence for ecological validity for all FCT procedures was low. Future research and implications related to ecological validity are discussed.
Serum Magnesium Concentration in Patients With Bell’s Palsy: A Case-Control Study
Authors: Demir Canser Yilmaz , Bozan Nazim
Published: July 2024

Introduction: Some conditions such as hyperglycemia, preeclampsia, migraine, inflammation, oxidative stress, and peripheral neuropathy are associated with magnesium deficiency and Bell’s palsy. To date, however, studies have not addressed serum magnesium concentration in patients with Bell’s palsy. In this article, we hypothesized that these patients may have a decreased serum magnesium concentration compared to healthy controls. Materials and Methods: In the study, a total of 24 patients with Bell’s palsy and 24 healthy individuals matched were investigated. Atomic absorption spectrometry was used to determine serum magnesium concentration. The groups were then statistically compared for demographics and serum magnesium concentration. Results: No significant differences were found between Bell’s palsy patients and healthy controls in age ( P = .846), sex ( P = 1.0), and body mass index ( P = .410). However, patients with Bell’s palsy had significantly lower serum magnesium levels (µg/dL) compared to healthy controls [11.44 ± 1.54 (8.9-15.8)] versus [27.35 ± 2.82 (24.3-36.2); ( P < .001)]. Conclusions: Our results suggest an association between decreased serum magnesium concentration and Bell’s palsy. However, this is the first study on the topic and its limitations should be considered.