Search

In August 2018, Swedish teenager Greta Thunberg started to strike from school on Fridays to protest against a lack of action on the climate crisis. Her actions sparked a historically large youth movement, leading to a series of school strikes across the world. Over the course of one week in September 2019, striking school children, students and other grassroots movements, such as Extinction Rebellion, called for everyone to participate in a global Climate Strike. This paper is based on comparative research with climate protesters in six cities: Brighton and London (United Kingdom), Montreal (Canada), New Haven and New York (USA), and Stavanger (Norway). Based on original interviews with 64 protesters, the study examines their knowledge, emotions, motivations, and actions in relation to climate change, including any lifestyle changes they have undertaken before or after their protests. Our findings show that protesters have varying degrees of knowledge about climate change, and have taken a range of actions in their own lives to address climate change. They also manifest a wide spectrum of emotions about climate change, and different motivations for taking part in climate strikes. These features are under-studied and dynamically evolving at the present conjuncture. On this basis, we call for expanded academic attention to human, emotional, epistemic, and seemingly mundane aspects of climate protests, their structural tendencies and relational expressions, and the implications for our ability to address underlying drivers. © 2020 Elsevier Ltd

Flow harmonics (vn) of the Fourier expansion for the azimuthal distributions of hadrons are commonly employed to quantify the azimuthal anisotropy of particle production relative to the collision symmetry planes. While lower order Fourier coefficients (v2 and v3) are more directly related to the corresponding eccentricities of the initial state, the higher-order flow harmonics (vn>3) can be induced by a mode-coupled response to the lower-order anisotropies, in addition to a linear response to the same-order anisotropies. These higher-order flow harmonics and their linear and mode-coupled contributions can be used to more precisely constrain the initial conditions and the transport properties of the medium in theoretical models. The multiparticle azimuthal cumulant method is used to measure the linear and mode-coupled contributions in the higher-order anisotropic flow, the mode-coupled response coefficients, and the correlations of the event plane angles for charged particles as functions of centrality and transverse momentum in Au+Au collisions at nucleon-nucleon center-of-mass energy sNN= 200 GeV. The results are compared to similar LHC measurements as well as to several viscous hydrodynamic calculations with varying initial conditions.

We report results on the total and elastic cross sections in proton-proton collisions at s=200 GeV obtained with the Roman Pot setup of the STAR experiment at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC). The elastic differential cross section was measured in the squared four-momentum transfer range 0.045≤−t≤0.135 GeV2. The value of the exponential slope parameter B of the elastic differential cross section dσ/dt∼e−Bt in the measured −t range was found to be B=14.32±0.09(stat.)−0.28+0.13(syst.) GeV−2. The total cross section σtot, obtained from extrapolation of the dσ/dt to the optical point at −t=0, is σtot=54.67±0.21(stat.)−1.38+1.28(syst.) mb. We also present the values of the elastic cross section σel=10.85±0.03(stat.)−0.41+0.49(syst.) mb, the elastic cross section integrated within the STAR t-range σeldet=4.05±0.01(stat.)−0.17+0.18(syst.) mb, and the inelastic cross section σinel=43.82±0.21(stat.)−1.44+1.37(syst.) mb. The results are compared with the world data.

There is substantial difficulty with effectively, and meaningfully, engaging the public with community-based sustainability projects as a method to facilitate sustainable lifestyles. Individuals engage with community projects in numerous ways: cognitively (knowledge), affectively (emotions), and behaviourally (actions). One prevalent consideration that individuals consider is other peoples’ (lack of) engagement; given that the success of community-based approaches addressing climate change is dependent upon the actions, and participation, of all local residents. Findings from focus groups in seven urban communities in the UK are presented that illustrate clear elements of ‘Othering’ as part of individual engagements with community-based sustainability projects. Primarily, there is substantial consideration towards what other people within the community know, feel, and do to engage with community-based projects. Residents distinguish themselves in opposition to those they view as engaging, and not engaging, in the same way as themselves and indicate the need for equitable participation amongst all residents. These considerations have the potential to project particular barriers on wider community engagement if left to develop, cause tension, and are not resolved. Implications for participatory strategies to meaningfully and effectively engage individuals with community-based sustainability and transformational change are outlined. Insights into how considerations of ‘Othering’ can be overcome so as not to cause negative engagements with other residents and attempts to live sustainably as part of a community approach are illustrated. © 2020

In this article, I attempt to describe how language is reified, using the call center as an extended example. I take up recent debates regarding language and economic value, attempting to disentangle a by now substantial series of arguments about language and commodification. The theoretical core of the paper is drawn from the work of Georg Lukács, who provided the account of reification that was at the root of twentieth century critical theory. Following Lukács, I argue that what is indispensable in the process of reification is both a “contemplative stance” in relation to economic laws and the presence of “special partial systems” within the production process of commodities. These are particularly important considerations for what I refer to as the one-sided rationalization of language that occurs in call centers in particular, but also on a more widespread social basis. © 2020 Elsevier Ltd

The United States is in the midst of an opioid epidemic. The numbers of opioid-related deaths have been steadily climbing, magnifying the need for innovative intervention. Stigma is a set of preconceived, negative assumptions about a patient population or group. Stigma is a known deterrent to communication and the delivery of healthcare. Nurses serve as a primary contact for many marginalized patients within the healthcare system. The purpose of this scoping review is to gather known data on the use of educational interventions with nursing students to reduce stigmatizing tendencies. Inclusion criteria constituted an educational intervention involving student nurses and an effort to reduce stigmatizing attitudes toward patients who misuse opioids. The intervention must have taken place in an institute of higher learning between the years of 2003 and 2018. Exclusion criteria included community-wide studies. A single study was identified addressing nursing student reduction of stigmatization of the individual who uses opioids, and so, the search was expanded to include any student nursing intervention developed to reduce stigma toward any marginalized population. The following electronic databases were utilized in the search process: Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Google Scholar, Journal Storage, Microsoft Academic, and ScienceDirect. Reference pages of selected or related articles were reviewed in an attempt to identify additional pertinent literature through citation mapping. Fifteen studies were identified, each of which utilized a variable methodology for stigma reduction with varying levels of success. © Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

With the tremendous growth in online classes and programs at institutions of higher education, conflicting claims are increasingly being made on media and blog sites about the personality types that are compatible with this new learning format. The relations between the Five Factor Model of Personality (FFM) and linguistic styles with measures of academic performance in fully online asynchronous classes were examined. Consistent with findings based on research in face-to-face classes, Conscientiousness, Openness to Experience, and Analytic Thinking were associated with academic success. There was no support for the views propagated on the internet that extraversion, introversion, or anxiety hinder or foster online learning. The most robust predictor of academic performance throughout the semester, independent of the personality variables, was the number of words students contributed to the online discussions. These finding are interpreted within the Community of Inquiry framework (CoI; Garrison, 2003) and future lines of research are suggested. © 2020 Elsevier Inc.

The recent explosion of wearable technology and the associated concerns prompted the International Federation of Sports Medicine (FIMS) to create a quality assurance standard for wearable devices, which provides commissioned testing of marketing claims and endorsement of commercial wearables that test favorably. An open forum as announced in the conference advertising was held at the Annual Meeting of the New England Regional Chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine (NEACSM) November 7 to 8, 2019, in Providence, Rhode Island, USA for attending NEACSM members to voice their input on the process. Herein, we report the proceedings. The round table participants perceived the quality assurance standard to be important, but identified some practical process challenges that included the broad scope and complexity of the device universe, the need for a multiphase testing pathway, and the associated fees for product evaluation. The participants also supported the evaluation of device data analysis, behavioral influences, and user experience in the overall evaluation. Looking forward, the FIMS quality assurance standard faces the challenge of balancing these broader perspectives with practical constraints of budget, facilities, time, and human resources. © 2020 by the American College of Sports Medicine.

Vineyards in the New England region of the USA were surveyed for the occurrence of grapevine viruses. A total of ten vineyards were visited and 62 composite samples of leaves with the petioles were collected from symptomatic grapevines (Vitis spp.). All of the samples were assayed by double-antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (DAS-ELISA) using antibodies specific for four major grapevine leafroll-associated viruses (GLRaV-1, GLRaV-2, GLRaV-3, and GLRaV-4), grapevine fanleaf virus (GFLV), tobacco ringspot virus (TRSV), and tomato ringspot virus (ToRSV). Positive ELISA samples were further tested by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) with primers specific for each of the viruses to confirm the ELISA results. Twenty-two samples were infected with at least one of the viruses tested. GLRaV-3 (24.19%) was the most prevalent virus detected followed by GLRaV-1 (12.90%), ToRSV (3.23%), and GLRaV-2 and TRSV (1.61%). This is the first study reporting on the presence of grapevine viruses in New England. Extensive surveys need to be conducted to evaluate the prevalence and economic impact of these viruses on New England vineyards. © 2020 Elsevier Ltd

Economists have long been intrigued by an influential literature in psychology positing that monetary pay lowers performance on enjoyable tasks by crowding out agents’ intrinsic interest in them. But typical experiments in this literature do not report a full set of performance metrics, which might reveal conflicting evidence on crowding out. Further, they may suffer from confounds. To evaluate these issues, we review over 100 prior tests and run a field experiment building on the canonical two-session test for crowding out wherein agents receive pay for an interesting activity in session 1 that is withdrawn unexpectedly in session 2. We test whether pay harms performance using a comprehensive set of performance measures, and if so, whether unmet pay expectations might also contribute to this decline. Our results on output, productivity and quits are most consistent with a standard economics model than with a crowding-out one. Additional, though more speculative, evidence suggests that unmet pay expectations may harm output quality. © 2020 The President and Fellows of Harvard College and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Social workers have always worked with and within uncertainties in practice, but the COVID-19 pandemic is amplifying the frequency and degree of uncertainty across ecological levels. Social workers need enhanced capacity to work with these uncertainties and the impact on individual and collective wellbeing. The RE/UN/DIScover heuristic guides social workers’ responses to the wide range of practice uncertainties experienced in the moment and over time. Drawing on understandings of embodied wellbeing from interpersonal neurobiology and the power relations manifest in intersectional positionality, RE/UN/DIScover offers embodied, iterative practices to access the wealth of capabilities within self and others. IMPLICATIONS Disruptions and uncertainties connected with pandemics, economic recessions, continued systemic injustices and other human-made problems can challenge social workers and impact the wellbeing of individuals and communities. Heuristics are guides that sort, order, and inform decisions and actions. The RE/UN/DIScover heuristic uses knowledge about embodied wellbeing and various forms of power to guide social workers. RE/UN/DIScover offers social workers practices to use with uncertainties both in the moment and over time. © 2020 Australian Association of Social Workers.

Meta-heuristic search algorithms were successfully used to solve a variety of problems in engineering, science, business, and finance. Meta-heuristic algorithms share common features since they are population-based approaches that use a set of tuning parameters to evolve new solutions based on the natural behavior of creatures. In this paper, we present a novel nature-inspired search optimization algorithm called the capuchin search algorithm (CapSA) for solving constrained and global optimization problems. The key inspiration of CapSA is the dynamic behavior of capuchin monkeys.The basic optimization characteristics of this new algorithm are designed by modeling the social actions of capuchins during wandering and foraging over trees and riverbanks in forests while searching for food sources. Some of the common behaviors of capuchins during foraging that are implemented in this algorithm are leaping, swinging, and climbing. Jumping is an effective mechanism used by capuchins to jump from tree to tree. The other foraging mechanisms exercised by capuchins, known as swinging and climbing, allow the capuchins to move small distances over trees, tree branches, and the extremities of the tree branches. These locomotion mechanisms eventually lead to feasible solutions of global optimization problems. The proposed algorithm is benchmarked on 23 well-known benchmark functions, as well as solving several challenging and computationally costly engineering problems. A broad comparative study is conducted to demonstrate the efficacy of CapSA over several prominent meta-heuristic algorithms in terms of optimization precision and statistical test analysis. Overall results show that CapSA renders more precise solutions with a high convergence rate compared to competitive meta-heuristic methods. © 2020, Springer-Verlag London Ltd., part of Springer Nature.