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Increased execution of replication studies contributes to the effort to restore credibility of empirical research. However, a second generation of problems arises: the number of potential replication targets is at a serious mismatch with available resources. Given limited resources, replication target selection should be well-justified, systematic and transparently communicated. At present the discussion on what to consider when selecting a replication target is limited to theoretical discussion, self-reported justifications and a few formalized suggestions. In this Registered Report, we proposed a study involving the scientific community to create a list of considerations for consultation when selecting a replication target in psychology. We employed a modified Delphi approach. First, we constructed a preliminary list of considerations. Second, we surveyed psychologists who previously selected a replication target with regards to their considerations. Third, we incorporated the results into the preliminary list of considerations and sent the updated list to a group of individuals knowledgeable about concerns regarding replication target selection. Over the course of several rounds, we established consensus regarding what to consider when selecting a replication target. The resulting checklist can be used for transparently communicating the rationale for selecting studies for replication.

Whether deserved on not, US Presidents often receive the blame or the credit for the nature of the economy and direction of the country. Therefore, the status of the economy and the country in an election year can be a very important factor in election success for an incumbent President (or his party if an incumbent is not running). This is especially true in ‘battleground states’ due to the presence of the Electoral College system where Presidential candidates need only win different combinations of states in order to become President. However, the 2020 Presidential election was vastly different from past election cycles in that an additional variable, COVID-19, was added to the decision calculus of voters. Eventually, the 2020 election came down to the extremely slim margins in three states (Arizona, Georgia, and Wisconsin) and thin margins in two others (Pennsylvania and Michigan). This paper shows that deaths from COVID-19 at the county level played a small role in demotivating voters to turnout in 2020 to cast their vote for Joe Biden as President. In other words, without Covid-19, President Trump’s losses within these five states would have been even larger.

Zirconium diboride (ZrB2) and silicon carbide (SiC) composites have long been of interest since it was observed that ZrB2 improved the thermal shock resistance of SiC. However, processing of these materials can be difficult due to high and different sintering temperatures and differences in the thermodynamic stability of each material. ZrB2–SiC composites have been processed in a variety of ways including hot-pressing, spark-plasma sintering, reactive melt infiltration, pack cementation, chemical vapor deposition, chemical vapor infiltration, stereolithography, direct ink writing, selective laser sintering, electron beam melting, and binder jet additive manufacturing. Each manufacturing method has its own pros and cons. This review serves to summarize more than 60 years of research and provide a coherent resource for the variety of methods and advancements in development of ZrB2–SiC composites.

Casual sex, also referred to as a hookup, has been associated with a range of negative emotional outcomes for women, including regret, anxiety, depression and social stigma. However, it has been argued that it is the nature of the sexual motivation, not gender that influences the emotional outcome. This study was designed to ascertain what motivates people to have casual sex, what emotional outcomes follow casual sex and whether there are gender differences among these variables. Seven hundred and one participants (47% men and 52.8% women) completed a 44-item online survey. Gender differences were found for both sexual motivations and emotional outcomes of casual sex, with women generally having more negative emotional outcomes than men. Additionally, a principal components analysis uncovered four reliable principal motivations underlying engagement in casual sex, and three principal emotional outcomes of casual sex. Predictors of negative emotional outcomes included being motivated to regulate negative emotions and to achieve positive emotions. No predictors (apart from being a man) were found for a positive emotional outcome. While the stigma surrounding female sexual agency is diminishing, results generally support the presence of a sexual double-standard which encourages male promiscuity but dissuades female sexual autonomy.

Cognitive and sensory abilities are vital in affecting survival under predation risk, leading to selection on brain anatomy. However, how exactly predation and brain evolution are linked has not yet been resolved, as current empirical evidence is inconclusive. This may be due to predation pressure having different effects across life stages and/or due to confounding factors in ecological comparisons of predation pressure. Here, we used adult guppies (Poecilia reticulata) to experimentally test how direct predation during adulthood would impact the relative brain size and brain anatomy of surviving individuals to examine if predators selectively remove individuals with specific brain morphology. To this end, we compared fish surviving predation to control fish, which were exposed to visual and olfactory predator cues but could not be predated on. We found that predation impacted the relative size of female brains. However, this effect was dependent on body size, as larger female survivors showed relatively larger brains, while smaller survivors showed relatively smaller brains when compared to control females. We found no differences in male relative brain size between survivors and controls, nor for any specific relative brain region sizes for either sex. Our results corroborate the important, yet complex, role of predation as an important driver of variation in brain size.

This work aimed to produce porous poly-hydroxybutyrate (PHB) pellets in order to evaluate the pellets as a support for immobilization of the metagenomic lipase, LipG9. Four types of pelletized PHB particles with different morphological characteristics were obtained using the double emulsion and solvent evaporation technique (DESE). The micropores of these PHB pellets had similar average diameters (about 3 nm), but the pellets had different specific surface areas: 11.7 m

Biochar amendments add persistent organic carbon to soil and can stabilize rhizodeposits and existing soil organic carbon (SOC), but effects of biochar on subsoil carbon stocks have been overlooked. We quantified changes in soil inorganic carbon (SIC) and SOC to 2 m depth 10 years after biochar application to calcareous soil. The total soil carbon (i.e., existing SOC, SIC, and biochar-C) increased by 71, 182, and 210% for B30, B60, and B90, respectively. Biochar application at 30, 60, and 90 t ha–1 rates significantly increased SIC by 10, 38, and 68 t ha–1, respectively, with accumulation mainly occurring in the subsoil (below 1 m). This huge increase of SIC (mainly CaCO3) is ∼100 times larger than the inorganic carbon present in the added biochar (0.3, 0.6, or 0.9 t ha–1). The benzene polycarboxylic acid method showed that the biochar-amended soil contained more black carbon particles (6.8 times higher than control soil) in the depth of 1.4–1.6 m, which provided the direct quantitative evidence for biochar migration into subsoil after a decade. Spectral and energy spectrum analysis also showed an obvious biochar structure in the biochar-amended subsoil, accompanied by a Ca/Mg carbonate cluster, which provided further evidence for downward migration of biochar after a decade. To explain SIC accumulation in subsoil with biochar amendment, the interacting mechanisms are proposed: (1) biochar amendment significantly increases subsoil pH (0.3–0.5 units) 10 years after biochar application, thus forming a favorable pH environment in the subsoil to precipitate HCO3–; and (2) the transported biochar in subsoil can act as nuclei to precipitate SIC. Biochar amendment enhanced SIC by up to 80%; thus, the effects on carbon stocks in subsoil must be understood to inform strategies for carbon dioxide removal through biochar application. Our study provided critical knowledge on the impact of biochar application to topsoil on carbon stocks in subsoil in the long term.

Materials capable of oxidizing in a protective manner at ultrahigh (>1700 °C) temperatures are needed to push beyond this barrier defined by SiC. Although possessing attractive mechanical properties and oxidation resistance, SiC-based materials are ultimately temperature limited by the melting point of SiO2. The vast array of ultra-high and high temperature ceramic literature indicates the majority of these materials, like borides, carbides, MAX-phases, and high-entropy ceramics, fall woefully short regarding oxidation resistance. However, for specific applications, like low-orbit aeropropulsion, high ballistics coefficient atmospheric re-entry, and hypersonic cruise, there are a few promising materials. In the present review, oxidation criteria are gathered to build application specific heuristics and are then applied to a multitude of ultra-high temperature ceramics to gauge material efficacy. Discussion of oxidation kinetics, mechanisms and reaction products is offered for each material, identifying strengths, weaknesses, and the remaining gaps in our knowledge.

Background Medical and surgical fields continue to be marred by gender disparities. The “leaky pipeline” effect, representing a gradual decline in female representation along the academic ladder, has been well documented in plastic surgery. However, gender differences in abstract presentation at national plastic surgery meetings and subsequent publications remains elusive. Methods We reviewed abstracts presented at the 2014 and 2015 annual meetings of the American Association of Plastic Surgeons (AAPS); American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), and the Plastic Surgery Research Council (PSRC). Several abstract characteristics including the names of the first and last authors were extracted. Genderize.io and Google search were used to identify the authors’ gender. Results We identified 1174 abstracts presented at the three identified meetings. Females comprised 29% of the presenters and 16% of abstract senior authors (ASAs). No gender differences were identified between the meetings, type of presentation (oral versus poster), and year of presentation. The only difference was in the subspecialty of the abstracts. Successful conversion to full-text articles was similar for male and female presenters (68% versus 62%, P = 0.065) but higher for male ASAs (68% versus 59%, P = 0.01). When an author change occurred, female presenters and ASAs were more likely to be replaced by males (P Conclusion Gender differences continue to be evident in academic plastic surgery with women constituting a minority of both presenters and senior authors on abstracts presented at national plastic surgery meetings. Future work should assess whether flexible and supportive work policies can foster greater female representation in academic plastic surgery.