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The study delves into the issue of anti-plane mode cracking in dissimilar structures, commonly encountered in welds, composites and functionally graded materials. Achieving an accurate representation of these structures involves acknowledging a gradual variation of elastic properties across interfaces, achieved by incorporating a non-homogeneous layer characterized by finite width and bounded variable elastic properties. The investigation builds upon a model previously developed employing a numerical solution to a singular integral equation using the Dugdale cohesive law. In this paper, a comparable model based on the finite element method, incorporating an implemented cohesive model is introduced. The primary focus is on calculating the fracture load, allowing for a subsequent comparative analysis of results. The ensuing discussion revolves around the calculated relative sizes of cohesive zones, considering the corresponding implications of small/large-scale yielding conditions. While both approaches yield sufficiently similar fracture load values for small cohesive zone sizes, noticeable scatter is observed in instances of larger cohesive zone sizes.

Some fundamental factors important for designing multistage face-to-face household surveys in the United States have not been reconsidered since they were established in the 1940s despite vast changes in all aspects of conducting these surveys. This research examines how some changes, particularly data sources and data collection costs, might affect sample designs. Modern data collection methods and tools, address-based household lists, multimode designs, and training and management methods are critical components in the cost structure of today’s surveys. We explore a sample design that uses Census tracts at the first stage rather than counties as traditionally used. The tract design then samples households directly without the additional stages of subsampling of segments in the traditional design. We present statistical and operational issues associated with the designs and discuss the cost implications. Our examination finds that, for household surveys in the United States that include face-to-face data collection, tract designs that have twice as many sampled first-stage units (but the same overall sample size) have roughly the same cost as the county design, with effective sample sizes in the range of about 25 percent higher to as much as four times higher than the county design.

The complexity of societal risks such as pandemics, artificial intelligence, and climate change may lead laypeople to rely on experts and authorities when evaluating these threats. While Siegrist and Cvetkovich showed that competence-based trust in authorities correlates with perceived societal risks and benefits only when people feel unknowledgeable, recent research has yielded mixed support for this foundational work. To address this discrepancy, we conducted a direct-replication study (preregistered; 1,070 participants, 33 risks, 35,310 observations). The results contradict the original findings. However, additional non-preregistered analyses indicate an alternative perspective aligning with compensatory control theory and the description-experience framework: experiences with insufficient personal control over a threat may amplify individuals’ dependency on powerful others for risk mitigation. These findings highlight the need to reevaluate how trust shapes risk perceptions. Recent societal and technological shifts might have heightened the desire for control compared to subjective knowledge in why people resort to trust.

ABSTRACTDisruptive behaviors are the most common clinical presentation in children and adolescents, particularly among disadvantaged youth referred to community mental health clinics (CMHCs). When left unaddressed, disruptive behaviors can increase the risk of adverse mental health outcomes. While parenting interventions are known to be efficacious and efficient treatment approaches, there are many barriers to involvement in such programs, particularly for disadvantaged populations. This pilot randomized controlled trial evaluated a technology-assisted parenting intervention (Parenting Wisely, PW) with therapist coaching compared to treatment as usual (TAU) at a CMHC. Participants included 53 caregiver-adolescent dyads and 13 clinicians recruited from a CMHC. Dyads randomized to PW + therapist coaching received a multi-component intervention that utilized a technology-assisted parenting program alongside therapist coaching sessions. Feasibility/acceptability assessments were conducted and preliminary findings on parenting outcomes and adolescent behavior outcomes were collected at 3- and 6-months post-baseline. Qualitative and quantitative results supported the feasibility and acceptability of the parenting PW + therapist coaching intervention as evidenced by caregiver engagement, therapist adherence, lack of treatment withdrawals, and satisfaction ratings. Exploratory analyses did not show differences between treatment conditions for parenting and adolescent behavioral outcomes. PW + therapist coaching may be better suited for early adolescents, who are at a critical period when disruptive behavior patterns are not yet ingrained, and parents have more authority and opportunity to address family interactions. Next steps for further evaluation include testing the effectiveness, predictors, moderators, and mechanisms of treatment outcomes of PW + therapist coaching as an adjunct to usual care.

A hierarchical- (or $\mathcal {H}$ -) matrix fast direct solver, utilizing a generalized source integral equation (IE) for essentially convex scatterers, that is suitable for both strong and weak admissibility settings, is presented. The IE assigns to each elemental source auxiliary sources that significantly attenuate its radiation into the scatterer. Choosing the auxiliary sources to effectively form impenetrable convex reflective “shields” in front of each source forces most interactions to be via creeping waves. This reduces the effective dimensionality of weak and strong admissibility interactions between source and observer regions that are smaller or comparable in size to the shield and enhances the low-rank (LR) compressibility of the corresponding moment matrix blocks. For strong admissibility interactions between larger subdomains, the singular values (SVs) are greatly attenuated but decay similar to their conventional IE counterparts. The enhancement of their LR compressibility is achieved by “dynamically” adjusting the truncation threshold to account for the attenuation, compared to the conventional IE counterparts, without increasing the solver error. A fast method is also proposed for avoiding the costly repeated computation of the modified IE kernel. It uses coarse and tailored sampling and interpolation of phase- and amplitude-compensated representations of the entire kernel or its components, in accordance with their ray-asymptotic behavior, in a region dependent manner. The results validate the proposed IE formulation and demonstrate the associated LR compressibility and fast direct solver performance enhancement.

Abstract:A popular (though not necessarily scientifically validated) theory holds that reading fiction builds empathy. Because literary characters are media representations, limited and defined by point-of-view, diction, and readers’ pre-existing stereotypes, they tend not to elicit empathy in a fair, even manner. This essay will explore such questions as whether certain characteristics elicit greater empathy than others and whether empathy is always genuine or the result of readers’ social pressure to react in a certain manner. To answer these questions, cognitive psychology theories are used to examine how empathy is created—or not created—for literary characters who experience trauma in Virginia Woolf’s novel Mrs. Dalloway. This analysis will involve two variables: the mental activity of readers and the mental activity of characters within a fictional text.

We study whether fund managers’ industry experience is an important source of value creation in hedge fund activism. We find that the targets of industry‐expert fund managers realize higher activism announcement returns and better operating performance, particularly when fund managers’ industry expertise is more valuable for targets. These targets also engage in more focused acquisition and divestiture activities in industries where fund managers have experience, allocate more employees to these industries, and cut investments more in the postacquisition period. The superior performance of targets of industry‐expert fund managers is robust to controlling for the endogeneity concern and the attrition bias.

Blockchains have been hailed as a game-changing institutional technology. Most of the analysis of blockchains focuses on their uses in the Global North. Though there is increasing consideration of their uses in the Global South, few studies consider the uses of blockchains in fragile states. In this paper, we consider the potential for blockchain deployments by governments, international organizations, and citizens in fragile states. We find that government deployments are unlikely in fragile states, though blockchains can be useful through their increasing use by aid organizations and by providing people with opportunities, such as access to cryptocurrencies. Blockchains may be revolutionary, but the extent to which they have improved the lives of people in fragile states is questionable.

A method for the fast computation of radiation by Gaussian windows, with controllable error, is presented. The computation aims to complement beam summation frameworks as an alternative to analytical propagators (e.g., the paraxial Gaussian beam and the complex source beam). Its accuracy in describing the off-axis fields is of particular interest for retaining a correct description of diffraction fields in complex scattering scenarios. The proposed method relies on the efficient sampling and tabulation of the phase- and amplitude-compensated fields produced by Gaussian window distributions, using analytical propagator expressions for designing optimal compensator functions. The reconstruction of the fields from datasets of samples is via low-order local interpolation, followed by restoration of the removed amplitude and phase. The method can be used for constructing a “dictionary” of beams, ranging in tilt and width, in accordance with phase-space lattices of interest, to be naturally integrated into Gaussian beam summation frameworks. Examples that highlight the need for the proposed technique and that demonstrate its performance are provided.

Climate change is one of the biggest threats to humanity. Scientists are well positioned to help address it beyond conducting academic research, yet little is known about their wider engagement with the topic. We investigate scientists’ engagement with climate change using quantitative and qualitative analyses of a large-scale survey (N= 9,220) across 115 countries, all fields and all career stages. Many scientists already engage in individual lifestyle changes, but fewer engage in advocacy or activism. On the basis of our quantitative and qualitative results, we propose a two-step model of engagement to better understand why. Scientists must first overcome intellectual and practical barriers to be willing to engage, and then overcome additional barriers to actually engage. On the basis of this model, we provide concrete recommendations for increasing scientists’ engagement with climate change.

Sexual harassment is pervasive in academic health fields. Although a predominantly female profession, early career academics and trainees in occupational therapy (OT) remain vulnerable to sexual harassment. We aimed to describe experiences of sexual harassment of female-identifying academic OT practitioners. We conducted surveys and interviews using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis to examine participants’ experiences. Ten participants completed the survey and/or interview. Experiences ranged from inappropriate comments to persistent sexual assault. Four themes (blurred lines, unbalanced consequences, “how did I get here?” and “we don’t talk about it”) were generated based on participant responses. Power dynamics and the cultures and values of the OT profession were underlying elements of all themes. The consequences of sexual harassment were severe and affected personal and professional growth. For OT research and education to thrive, stronger support for victims and consistent, appropriate consequences for perpetrators are necessary to minimize negative outcomes for victims.

Upon Mexico’s independence, its Regency dispatched commissioner Agustín Fernández de San Vicente to ensure the allegiance of officials and residents of remote Alta California. His strategies for this pivotal commission are analyzed for the first time here. Fernández, inspired by the grand style of the new emperor, Agustín Iturbide, designed a lavish presentation meant for mass appeal. Literature on the commission has been dominated to date by the biased and belated eyewitness testimony of Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo and Juan Bautista Alvarado, who depicted Fernández as a sleazy demagogue. This article critically examines their interventions and the conditions under which these were produced. Their stories about the commissioner drinking and gambling were probably exaggerated. Locals never found out that Fernández was lying about being a canon.

Behavioural science has yielded insights about the actions of individuals, particularly as consumers, that affect climate change. Behaviours in other spheres of life remain understudied. In this Perspective, we propose a collaborative research agenda that integrates behavioural science insights across multiple disciplines. To this end, we offer six recommendations for optimizing the quality and impact of research on individual climate behaviour. The recommendations are united by a shift towards more solutions-focused research that is directly useful to citizens, policymakers and other change agents. Achieving this vision will require overcoming challenges such as the limited funding for behavioural and social sciences and structural barriers within and beyond the academic system that impede collaborations across disciplines.

An integral equation formulation, using generalized directional sources, for 3-D scattering by impenetrable and essentially-convex bodies, is presented. This formulation increases the rank deficiency of moment matrix blocks representing interactions between nonoverlapping source and observer regions. Thereby, it enables enhanced low-rank approximation-based matrix compression and the development of corresponding fast direct solvers. The directional sources are constructed by augmenting the conventional basis functions with spherical absorbing 3-D shields, on which auxiliary source distributions are defined. The bottleneck arising from the need to integrate over these distributions upon computing the modified Green’s function (MGF) is removed by using efficient nonuniform sampling and tabulation of the MGF or its components, in a region-dependent manner. The formulation is studied and its favorable compressibility is demonstrated, for two fundamental types of compression strategies. The nonuniform sampling approach is employed also to facilitate the rank-revealing analysis of large off-diagonal blocks.

Palladium N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) complexes of the general type [(NHC)Pd(allyl)Cl] are investigated as precatalysts in the Hiyama reaction of aryl chlorides with phenyl trimethoxysilanes. High yields of biaryls products are obtained from aryl chlorides featuring electron withdrawing groups using precatalysts coordinated to NHC ligands with sterically smaller wingtip groups (IMes and SIMes). Unactivated aryl chlorides appeared to be poor substrates in this reaction. A mechanistic proposal which we believe explains this poor activity is outlined based on in situ analysis by 19F NMR spectroscopy where PhSi(OMe)3reacts nonproductively with fluoride, halting the reaction prematurely, via at least two different pathways.

ABSTRACTForgiveness is a foundational tenet across all religions that has consistently been shown to be related to positive health outcomes. Although specific theoretical dimensions of “forgiveness” have been proposed (e.g., decisional, emotional, dispositional), there is limited evidence to suggest that they are statistically distinct constructs. However, a recent factor analysis (Yoon et al., 2022) indicated that a frequently used measure of forgiveness (i.e., Trait Forgiveness Scale) is composed of statistically distinct behavioral (i.e., willingness to forgive) and affective dimensions (i.e., resentment). Given this finding, the current study determined how these empirically distinct constructs interact to influence health. Based on 322 primarily Christian undergraduate students the results indicated: 1) willingness to forgive and resentment are significantly negatively correlated but distinct constructs; 2) religiosity is related to forgiveness but not resentment; 3) forgiveness, resentment, and their interaction are all significantly related to mental (but not physical) health; and 4) resentment partially negates the positive effects of willingness to forgive on mental health. Overall, the results suggest the need to differentiate behavioral and affective dimensions of forgiveness, that religious beliefs may promote forgiveness but not reduce resentment, and that both willingness to forgive and reducing resentment are important in promoting positive health.

abstract:The grizzly bears on California's state flag and seal represent the state's natural history and, less obviously, the 1846 Bear Flag Revolt against Mexico. This Manifest Destiny-inspired action was celebrated by the delegates who defined the seal at the Constitutional Convention of 1849, and then by the legislators from the Native Sons of the Golden West who established the flag in 1911. These chauvinists concealed the beliefs behind their design choices by controlling the evidence they created. This article recovers their motive—racial domination—and its vehicle, the myth that the Bear Flag Revolt created California. Activists who disrupted the Bear Flag Sesquicentennial in 1996 expressed these concerns but lacked the primary source evidence cited here. The shared history of the seal and the flag compromises the suitability of the flag and seal as state symbols.

ABSTRACTDespite considerable growth in understanding of various aspects of sporting and exercise embodiment over the last decade, in-depth investigations of embodied affectual experiences in running remain limited. Furthermore, within the corpus of literature investigating pleasure and the hedonic dimension in running, much of this research has focused on experiences of pleasure in relation to performance and achievement, or on specific affective states, such as enjoyment, derived aftercompleting a run. We directly address this gap in the qualitative literature on sporting and exercise embodiment by contributing novel insights on the mind-body pleasures of running via focusing analytic attention towards the pleasures recalled by runners as experienced duringpositive, rewarding running experiences. Applying conceptual insights drawn from sociological phenomenology, we analyse data from an in-depth, event-focused interview study with distance runners who reported positive, rewarding experiences in recent recreational runs. Through reflexive thematic analysis, we present findings in relation to three themes: (1) ‘running feels like it should’; (2) sensory engagements; and (3) time out. The study contributes fresh perspectives, both conceptually and in relation to data-collection approach, to a small literature on the lived experience of pleasure in sport, exercise and physical cultures.

For over a decade, address-based sampling (ABS) frames have often been used to draw samples for multistage area sample surveys in lieu of traditionally listed (or enumerated) address frames. However, it is well known that the use of ABS frames for face-to-face surveys suffer from undercoverage due to, for example, households that receive mail via a PO Box rather than being delivered to the household’s street address. Undercoverage of ABS frames has typically been more prominent in rural areas but can also occur in urban areas where recent construction of households has taken place. Procedures have been developed to supplement ABS frames to address this undercoverage. In this article, we investigate a procedure called Address Coverage Enhancement (ACE) that supplements the ABS frame with addresses not found on the frame, and the resulting effects the addresses added to the sample through ACE have on estimates. Weighted estimates from two studies, the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health Study and the 2017 US Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies, are calculated with and without supplemental addresses. Estimates are then calculated to assess if poststratifying analysis weights to control for urbanicity at the person level brings estimates closer to estimates from the supplemented frame. Our findings show that the noncoverage bias was likely minimal across both studies for a range of estimates. The main reason is because the Computerized Delivery Sequence file coverage rate is high, and when the coverage rate is high, only very large differences between the covered and not covered will result in meaningful bias.

Arnicas Solidago microglossa DC. and Arnica montanaL. are easily-accessible plants used as natural medicines by the Brazilian population. These products are susceptible to contamination by elemental impurities that are harmful to the human health. In 2017, the United States Pharmacopeia (USP) published two new chapters for elemental impurities determination. The classical methods were replaced by advanced analytical techniques such as optical emission spectrometry and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP OES and ICP-MS, respectively). However, these are expensive and difficult techniques to implement in small laboratories. Dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction (DLLME) contributes to improve the limit of quantification (LOQ), allowing the use of alternative analytical techniques to ICP such as capillary electrophoresis, atomic absorption and UV–Vis spectrophotometry. This work described the use a design of experiment (DoE) for the optimization of DLLME applied to the determination of metallic impurities in arnica infusions. The replacement of toxic solvents (i.e. chloroform and methanol) for a combination of organic carbonates and ionic liquids, proved to be a promising green alternative as solvent mixture in DLLME technique. The enrichment factor in infusion was between 89 and 127. The method was validated by evaluating the following parameters: selectivity, linearity, precision, accuracy, limit of detection (LOD) and LOQ. The defined range was 5.0–100.0 µg L−1for cadmium and lead, and 1.5–30.0 µg L−1for mercury, with accuracy varying from 94 to 107% and RSD from 1.77 to 8.51%. Therefore, DLLME employing green chemistry solvents has proved to be applicable for the analysis of elemental impurities in infusions.

A fast method to assess and correct the domain misrepresentation of impedance matrix blocks, $\mathrm {Z}^{\mathrm {os}}$ , based on their row- and column-sampling, to ensure the accuracy of their low-rank approximation (LRA), is presented. The misrepresentation arises when auxiliary grid-based interaction matrices, $\mathbf {G}$ , of smaller dimensions are used to replace $\mathrm {Z}^{\mathrm {os}}$ to accelerate their LRA. Specifically, a recently introduced fast multilevel LRA algorithm, which uses truncated singluar-value decompositions of matrices corresponding to interactions between basis-functions and proxy grids, is shown to lose error controllability when used for vector basis/testing functions. A pre-processing stage that correctly and automatically sets the algorithm’s truncation threshold, $\tau _{\mathcal {G}}$ , for $\mathbf {G}$ , such that the domains of their truncated versions represent those of the blocks to the desired accuracy, is proposed. The method first analyzes small, randomly sampled portions of $\mathbf {G}$ and $\mathrm {Z}^{\mathrm {os}}$ , increasing the sample size until their spectrums converge; it then uses the converged spectra to gradually increase the rank and lower the truncation threshold, until the desired error level is achieved. The resulting truncation threshold, $\bar {\tau }$ , is then used for $\tau _{\mathcal {G}}$ across all algorithm levels. Representative examples validate the method and show its effectiveness.

Background: Despite continuing advancements in treatments for opioid use disorder (OUD), continued high rates of relapse indicate the need for more effective approaches, including novel pharmacological interventions. Glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RA) provide a promising avenue as a non-opioid medication for the treatment of OUD. Whereas GLP-1RAs have shown promise as a treatment for alcohol and nicotine use disorders, to date, no controlled clinical trials have been conducted to determine if a GLP-1RA can reduce craving in individuals with OUD. The purpose of the current protocol was to evaluate the potential for a GLP-1RA, liraglutide, to safely and effectively reduce craving in an OUD population in residential treatment. Method: This preliminary study was a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled clinical trial designed to test the safety and efficacy of the GLP-1RA, liraglutide, in 40 participants in residential treatment for OUD. Along with taking a range of safety measures, efficacy for cue-induced craving was evaluated prior to (Day 1) and following (Day 19) treatment using a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) in response to a cue reactivity task during functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) and for craving. Efficacy of treatment for ambient craving was assessed using Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) prior to (Study Day 1), across (Study Days 2–19), and following (Study Days 20–21) residential treatment. Discussion: This manuscript describes a protocol to collect clinical data on the safety and efficacy of a GLP-1RA, liraglutide, during residential treatment of persons with OUD, laying the groundwork for further evaluation in a larger, outpatient OUD population. Improved understanding of innovative, non-opioid based treatments for OUD will have the potential to inform community-based interventions and health policy, assist physicians and health care professionals in the treatment of persons with OUD, and to support individuals with OUD in their effort to live a healthy life. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT04199728. Registered 16 December 2019, https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT04199728?term=NCT04199728. Protocol Version: 10 May 2023