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Most Asian countries are regarded as Confucian countries although each has its own historical and cultural background. Little is known about how people in different Asian countries perceive their family boundaries. This study is an attempt to compare the perception of the family in China, Japan, and Korea. We examined the family perception and found substantial differences among the three. Chinese people showed the widest and paternally extended perception of family. Data from people in Korea nearly matched data from China, but family perception developed bilaterally. People in Japan, however, perceived only blood‐tied, intimate relations as family members. In addition, the perception of the family was not substantially different between the genders in Japan and China, but in South Korea, men perceived family boundaries more widely than women, implying that women have a greater family burden than men in Korea. Considering the heterogeneity in family perceptions in these countries, this paper tries to explain how social institutions interact with individuals and impact the perception of family. Finally, this paper concludes that it is inappropriate to tie the three East Asian countries as 'Confucian civilizations' in terms of family perception. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Observation bias and error characteristics are the preconditions for the effective assimilation of observation data. In this paper, the bias and error characteristics of the AHI (Advanced Himawari Imager (AHI) and AGRI (Multi-Channel Advanced Geostationary Orbit Radiation Imager (AGRI) data are compared and analyzed, with an emphasis on the observations obtained from land areas. The results show that the observation errors of the two instruments for the ocean area have a good channel consistency over ocean areas, which are all with errors of about 0.6 K; however, the bias and error are significantly affected by the land-surface types and terrain heights over land. For most of the AHI channels, the bias in urban-area bias is smaller than that of those of other surface types, while that of the AGRI data exhibits just the opposite trend, with obviously larger biases in urban areas. However, the observation errors of these two instruments in urban areas are significantly smaller than those of other surface types. The biases of the two instruments do not extensively change much with the terrain height, only slightly decreasing when the height is above 1000 m; however, the observation errors increase obviously with the increase of terrain heights. The difference between the two instruments is that the observation error of the AHI data tends to be stable and stabilizes above 1000 m, while that of the AGRI data is relatively stable below 500 m. The observation errors of the CO2-sensitive channels of the two instruments over the land areas are obviously smaller than those of other near-surface channels, which may indicate that the data obtained in these two CO2 channels have good application prospects for assimilation over land. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cross-cultural comparative research provides a powerful means of achieving better understanding of one's own practice. This article contrasts exemplary mathematics teaching, as highlighted in this special issue on its practice and development in East Asia, with the increasing emphasis on effective teaching in the West. It provides an overview of the papers in this issue and examines the similarities and differences between what is seen as exemplary practice and the ways in which its development is supported in the educational systems represented. It attempts to identify some of the cultural factors that influence our understanding of what constitutes exemplary practice and the possibilities for its development in the East and the West. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper estimates the possibility of currency crisis in Eastern Europe that can be triggered by monetary policy change in the key currency countries, such as tapering measure. We examine the crisis possibility in the five Eastern European nations-the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria and Romania-by performing a comparative analysis with East Asian countries before the 1997 currency crisis. For the analysis, we estimate how much the exchange rate deviates from the estimated equilibrium exchange rate, as well as the synchronicity of currency value towards some of the key currencies by creating market pressure index. The results can be explained in two ways. First, the market pressure in the Eastern Europe after 2012 is smaller than they were in East Asia before 1997. The crisis possibility especially intensifies when more the exchange rate deviates from the equilibrium value. Second, the monetary policy change in the key currency countries does not greatly affect the crisis possibility in Eastern Europe when their local currencies have the strong synchronisation with euro. Therefore, Eastern European countries show strong synchronicity towards the euro, so the crisis possibility may be alleviated if the Eurozone continues its expansionary monetary policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper contrasts the assumptions and methods used by quantitative criminologists with the approach to comparison pursued by the interpretive tradition in sociology. Whereas quantitative studies tend to conceal distinctive legislative or institutional responses in particular countries, interpretive studies make it possible to address internal debates about policy issues, as well as how practitioners exercise professional judgement. The paper considers a variety of ways in which the interpretive traditions of symbolic interactionism and ethnomethodology have approached comparison. It also considers the conceptual and practical issues that might arise in conducting a qualitative comparative study about juvenile justice within East Asia focusing on Japan, South Korea and Taiwan. Whereas quantitative studies tend to ask questions that interest Western researchers, interpretivism makes possible a dialogue between countries that have different institutions, philosophies and cultures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the L2 writing literature, there has been a rich history of scholarship in theory, research and practice since the 1960s. Two of the most prominent L2 writing approaches are process and portfolio pedagogy. The former approach promotes the use of diverse writing strategies (e.g. pre-writing) to enhance student writers’ expression and fluency. The latter emphasizes the documentation of student growth as writers through self-reflection. These two instructional approaches exhibit a range of divergent characteristics, including focus, construct, delivery, and application –especially when adopted in a wider East Asian educational context. Owing to the dearth of research comparing process and portfolio pedagogies, this paper critically reviews the theory, research and practice of these two approaches in L2 writing environments. Salient issues emerging from the analysis of literature include advocacy of an eclectic and context-sensitive approach to process and portfolio pedagogies; a need for more empirical research to substantiate how both approaches support writing improvement; and provision of training for developing knowledge and skills in understanding what process-oriented writing instruction entails. The paper ends with a discussion of implications for L2 writing research and instruction. Two research methods that could help investigate how writing improvement and self-regulated learning can be measured are qualitative and quantitative investigations, namely ethnographic and quasi-experimental studies. In the context of incorporating these pedagogies into other East Asian writing environments, teachers can be encouraged to align teaching, learning, and assessment of writing as regular pedagogical practices and engage in sustainable professional training in giving written feedback to support learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses different conceptual frameworks for measuring mathematics pedagogical content knowledge (MPCK) in international comparison studies. Two large-scale international comparative studies, Mathematics Teaching in the Twenty-First Century (MT21; Schmidt et al., ) and the Teacher Education and Development Study in Mathematics (TEDS-M; Tatto et al., ), were used for analysis. The challenges faced by these studies included the lack of elaborate conceptual frameworks for MPCK developed by non-Western scholars and the corresponding test items that were tied to the frameworks. In this paper, I introduce a conceptual framework developed by Hsieh ( Secondary Education, 63(3), 30-47, () in Taiwan relating to MPCK. The items of the 2 international comparison studies were reexamined according to Hsieh's model. A study based on Hsieh's model is introduced to manifest the existence of distinct or probably conflicting ideas between Taiwanese and Western countries regarding the scope and substance of different types of mathematics teachers' knowledge. Hsieh's model is a start toward searching for an East Asian identity in MPCK. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

East Asian countries are often characterized as productivist welfare states whose social policies are subordinated to economic growth. However, in the past decade, public pressure for welfare expansion (or welfarism) has built up across all East Asian countries - including China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Singapore. Therefore, this paper asks: How has pro-welfare civil society influenced welfare expansion in East Asia over the past decade? Addressing this research question will help fill the theoretical gap on the relationship between contemporary pro-welfare civil society activism and welfare state expansion in East Asian countries. I address this theoretical gap by devising the New Power Approach which argues that pro-welfare civil society is the main driver of welfare expansions when the incumbent government is conservative. By implication, the stronger the pro-welfare civil society in generating political impetus for reforms, the greater the extent of welfare expansion in the country with a conservative government. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comparative studies have gained significant influence in the last decades, and school systems of many countries have been revised referring to better results of other countries in international large-scale assessments. Authors of such studies commonly link their interpretations of the results to distinctions between 'Eastern' and 'Western' cultures, in particular with respect to the consistent and continuing outstanding performance of East Asian learners compared with their Western counterparts. One question is whether the same achievement pattern holds for future teachers and whether similar cultural differences may cause it. International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement's 'Teacher Education and Development Study in Mathematics' (TEDS-M) was the first comparative study that focused on the outcomes of teacher education with standardised testing. In this paper-based on the TEDS-M results-commonalities and differences in the achievement of future teachers from Eastern and Western countries are explored and related to a cultural perspective. Cultural differences between Eastern and Western approaches concerning mathematics, mathematics education and mathematics teachers are analysed with respect to the achievement pattern. The paper closes with reflections on possible consequences concerning the development of teachers' knowledge and teachers' expertise in mathematics education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper initiates a comparative analysis of the labour process in three different social systems in order to shed light on the singularities of East Asian social forms. The point of departure for the project highlights the place of substitution central to the labour process in the West. There time's flow entails the replacement of human ingenuity by mechanical power and so distils into Western culture a fascination with the possibilities of substitution that governs much private and public life. It suggests the problem of ‘Civilisation’ derives from this process. By contrast, social life in the South Pacific, amidst cultures historically contiguous with those in East Asia, focuses on flows from original conditions. In this context social life follows organising sequences, not substitution. There follows and features a mimetic singularity of ascribed, ranked socially appropriate and chained action and reaction. East Asia shares with the South Pacific a mimetic aesthetic of sequence, rank and singularity, but there social process transforms into a centralising mass defined by epochal discontinuities organising the flows of life: Understanding that result is the ‘problem’ of East Asian sociality. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Background: Media guidelines for suicide reporting are available in many countries. However, to what extent the mass media comply with the guidelines is unknown. Few studies are available that investigate systematically whether the mass media reflect the epidemiological reality of suicide deaths in their articles. Methods: Based on the WHO media guidelines, this study investigated the characteristics of newspaper articles of suicides in three Chinese communities, namely Hong Kong, Taiwan and Guangzhou. Epidemiological comparisons were conducted to identify the age and gender differences between the suicide victims as reported in the newspapers and the official records of suicide deaths in all three places. Results: The results found that one media characteristic complied with the WHO media guidelines (ie, only about 2% of the articles were printed on the front page), but there were a number of instances of non-compliance (ie, only 4--14% provided sources for help-seeking and 27--90% printed with photos). The epidemiological comparisons revealed an over-representation of younger suicides and an under-representation of late-life suicides in the newspapers of all three places. Furthermore, female suicides were found to be under-reported in Taiwan and Guangzhou newspapers, but not in Hong Kong papers. Conclusion: Non-compliant suicide articles are prevalent in the newspapers of these three Chinese settings. The observed media misrepresentations may potentially mislead the public and the policy makers about the actual risk for suicide in some demographic groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we argue that the path of economic development for would-be developers has changed fundamentally since the 1980s. Focusing on East Asia, and taking a broad perspective that spans the economic and social dimensions of development, we contend that the path charted by the 'late development' model has become all but impassible. The path is now better conceived as one of 'compressed development.' Key differences are 1) the extent and consequences of compression; 2) the primary mode of engagement with the world economy-via global value chains; and 3) the interaction of these. Compressed development forces states to address a number of simultaneous challenges, resulting in 'policy stretch.' We identify key features of an 'adaptive state' suited to navigating the path of compressed development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Private supplementary tutoring has long been a major phenomenon in parts of East Asia, including Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea and Taiwan. In recent times it has grown dramatically in other parts of Asia and in Africa, Europe and North America. The factors underlying the growth of private tutoring vary, but in all settings it has major implications for learning and livelihood. Families with the necessary resources are able to secure not only greater quantities but also better qualities of private tutoring. Children receiving such tutoring are then able to perform better in school, and in the long run to improve their lifetime earnings. By contrast, children of low‐income families who do not receive such benefits may not be able to keep up with their peers and may drop out of school at an earlier age. Tutoring also of course has a direct impact on the livelihoods of the tutors, providing employment and incomes for a range of professionals and amateurs of different age groups. The dynamics of inter‐relationships are complex, and vary from one setting to another. This paper argues that private supplementary tutoring deserves much more attention from policy makers and researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Genus Filipendula (Rosoideae, Rosaceae) comprises about 15 species and mainly distributed in Northern Hemisphere. The phylogenetic relationships based on the nrITS marker are not consistent with the traditional taxonomic systems of the genus. Here, we first analysed the complete chloroplast (cp) genomes of seven Filipendula species (including two varieties of F. palmate). Our results indicated that the cp genomes of Filipendula species had few changes in size, ranging from 154,205 bp to 154,633 bp and the average of 36.63% GC content. A total of 126 annotated genes had the identical order and orientation, implying that the cp genome structure of Filipendula species was rather conserved. However, the cp genomes of Filipendula species exhibited structural differences, including gene loss, transposition and inversion when compared to those of other genera of Rosoideae. Moreover, SSRs with the different number were observed in the cp genome of each Filipendula species and sequence divergence mainly occurred in noncoding regions, in which four mutational hotspots were identified. In contrast, only two positive selection genes (matK and rps8) were found. Phylogenetic and molecular-dating analysis indicated that Filipendula species were divergent from other genera of Rosoideae at about 82.88 Ma. Additionally, Filipendula species from East Asia were split at about 9.64 Ma into two major clades. These results provide a basis for further studying the infrageneric classification of Filipendula. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The genus Sanicula comprises ca. 45 taxa, widely distributed from East Asia to North America, which is a taxonomically difficult genus with high medicinal value in Apiaceae. The systematic classification of the genus has been controversial for a long time due to varied characters in key morphological traits. China is one of the most important distributed centers, with ca. 18 species and two varieties. At present, chloroplast genomes are generally considered to be conservative and play an important role in evolutionary relationship study. To investigate the plastome evolution and phylogenetic relationships of Chinese Sanicula, we comprehensively analyzed the structural characteristics of 13 Chinese Sanicula chloroplasts and reconstructed their phylogenetic relationships. Results: In present study, four newly complete chloroplast genome of Sanicula taxa by using Illumina sequencing were reported, with the typical quadripartite structure and 155,396–155,757 bp in size. They encoded 126 genes, including 86 protein-coding genes, 32 tRNA genes and 8 rRNA genes. Genome structure, distributions of SDRs and SSRs, gene content, among Sanicula taxa, were similar. The nineteen intergenic spacers regions, including atpH-atpI, ndhC-trnM, petB-petD, petD-rpoA, petN-psbM, psaJ-rpl33, rbcL-accD, rpoB-trnC, rps16-trnQ, trnE-psbD, trnF-ndhJ, trnH-psbA, trnN-ndhF, trnS-psbZ, trnS-trnR, trnT-trnF, trnV-rps12, ycf3-trnS and ycf4-cemA, and one coding region (ycf1 gene) were the most variable. Results of maximum likelihood analysis based on 79 unique coding genes of 13 Chinese Sanicula samples and two Eryngium (Apiaceae-Saniculoideae) species as outgroup taxa revealed that they divided into four subclades belonged to two clades, and one subclade was consistent with previously traditional Sanicula section of its system. The current classification based on morphology at sect. Sanicla and Sect. Tuberculatae in Chinese Sanicula was not supported by analysis of cp genome phylogeny. Conclusions: The chloroplast genome structure of Sanicula was similar to other angiosperms and possessed the typical quadripartite structure with the conserved genome arrangement and gene features. However, their size varied owing to expansion/contraction of IR/SC boundaries. The variation of non-coding regions was larger than coding regions of the chloroplast genome. Phylogenetic analysis within these Chinese Sanicula were determined using the 79 unique coding genes. These results could provide important data for systematic, phylogenomic and evolutionary research in the genus for the future studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper discusses the development of and policy towards biodiesel fuel (BDF) in the East Asia Summit (EAS) region (hereafter East Asia), with a focus on activities related to harmonizing BDF standards. To minimize problems with engines arising from the use of BDF, most EAS countries have established national BDF standards. However, these diverse standards cause barriers for BDF trade, and act against the regional interest in maximizing benefits from BDF production and utilization. Therefore, the East Asian policy-makers decided to harmonize BDF standards and a regional benchmark standard has been published. Through a comparative review of existing national standards against the benchmark, it finds that the harmonization is beneficial economically, and feasible technically, but stalled practically due to a lack of political determination. The key message from this paper is a call for political determination in East Asia to implement the harmonization. The findings of this paper may supplement the literature, enhance understanding of the East Asian case, and provide lessons and implications that may be helpful in advancing similar harmonization elsewhere. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

While the prevailing research interest in East-West comparative studies still seems to be on explaining the superior performance of East Asian students, the time has come for researchers from both areas to focus on what countries can learn from one another. This commentary cites some of the most significant lessons learned from the papers in this special issue and asks additional research questions that might be worth pursuing. However, learning does not end in articulating similarities and differences between cultures and adopting the best practices that these cultures offer. It is hoped that countries will continue to work for increased partnerships and collaboration, greater understanding, and deeper appreciation of individual countries' uniqueness with the end goal of improving the quality of mathematics teaching and learning for all. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we develop a performance efficiency value by using data envelopment analysis (DEA) to integrate five perspectives of CAMEL (Capital Adequacy, Asset Quality, Management, Earnings, Liquidity), which is used by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to evaluate banking performance. In addition, we utilize a tiered DEA to categorize banks into four groups. One-way ANOVA is used to analyze differences in CAMEL and intellectual capital (IC) variables across the four groups. CAMEL variables are manifested more strongly in highly efficient groups when compared with inefficient groups. The findings also reveal the importance of IC in achieving high levels of bank efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public policy courses have increasingly become an indispensible part of professional training programs in public affairs in East Asia in response to rapid changes in the political, social, and economic environment in the region. This paper examines the current trends in public policy education in East Asia through the lens of syllabi of public policy courses offered in graduate programs in leading universities in mainland China, Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan. The comparative analysis points to three main challenges in teaching public policy in East Asia: insufficient attention to policy knowledge rooted in the local context, inadequate teaching capacity, and under-representation of policy analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of China in East Asia's recovery from the recent global financial and economic crisis highlights China's position as an engine of growth for this region. From the viewpoint of China, there are many potential gains from entering into free trade agreements (FTAs) with its neighbors, who collectively form a large and fast-growing market. In this paper, we qualitatively and quantitatively assess the four main permutations of China's FTAs with East Asian major economies: China-ASEAN, China-Japan, China-Korea and ASEAN+3. We compare the effects of these FTAs on China's output and welfare. Our comparative analysis shows that China will gain from all three bilateral FTAs, while gaining the most from the ASEAN+3. Because forming a region-wide FTA, such as the ASEAN+3, is expected to be gradual and difficult, China should continue to engage in bilateral FTAs as a medium-term and alternative strategy. However, in the long term, China should pursue a region-wide FTA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The focus of this paper is on a comparative analysis of the dynamics of economic growth and development in sub-Saharan Africa and East Asia, with an analytical perspective on both regions, with a view to finding ways to scale up development in sub-Sahara Africa. In investigating this, the paper posits that in the 1950s and 1960s, several countries in Sub-Saharan Africa shared a similar development profile with many East Asian countries: a dynamic economic sector, characterized by high growth, driven by the agricultural economy. While many nations in sub-Saharan Africa adopted import substitution industrialization as the anchor of development agenda in the sub-region, the East Asian economies embraced a concept dubbed 'authoritarian developmentalism,' a phenomenon driven by export oriented strategies. In the view of paper the East Asian approach to development resulted in high economic growth sustained over the past several decades; furthermore the paper opined that the path to development in Asia has ushered in a period of unprecedented growth, allowing many nations in the region — Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and china and others — to become industrializing economies and as major players in the global market. The paper assert that on the other hand, a combination of bad policies and institutional failure has undermined growth in sub-Saharan Africa, particularly since the 1970s, accounting for the region's sustained economic underperformance; that the inability of most nations in the region to transform the economy has undermined sustained growth and development. The paper applies empirical data to examine the dynamics of economic growth and development in both regions and proffers pertinent recommendations featuring sustained economic reforms in sub-Saharan Africa necessary for economic growth and development, while drawing useful lessons aimed at replicating the export-oriented strategies of the East Asian economies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The analysis of the contemporary phase of internationalisation implies an assessment of the diverse processes of regional integration. They are key issues in the construction of post-Fordist regimes that can no longer be developed on strict national bases. Internationalisation is also stemmed by directly global developments interacting with regional processes. This paper identifies two ideal types of regional dynamic, which together account for the economic, politic and social dimensions of these processes. In each case, I specify the regional dynamics of convergence or divergence and discuss their stability. I then investigate how interactions with global trends can lead to hybrid forms of regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Review of Policy Research is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Abstract: Green roofs have multiple environmental benefits and are widely used around the world. In keeping with this mainstream movement, the use of green roofs has been increasing in Taiwan in recent years. This paper reviews policies promoting green roof development in Taiwan, and compares the environmental and economic performance of green roofs in Taiwan to those in East Asian countries and worldwide. National and regional government policies have stimulated the development of green roofs by establishing goals for reducing carbon emissions of cities, promoting green construction, mitigating heat island effects, and increasing urban flood control. Local studies of green roof performance are few, other than thermal investigations. These studies have shown that green roofs significantly contribute to thermal reduction and moderate temperature variations around buildings. One study sampled stormwater runoff from green roof sites and found that sediment and nutrient concentration on these roofs are up to ten times higher than on conventional bare roofs; however, acid rain can be neutralized by green roofs. Hydrographs have shown that reductions in runoff from green roofs are not as great as expected because retention and detention are affected by high rainfall intensity, which is the typical precipitation pattern in Taiwanese cities. Without additional maintenance, green roofs can contribute to nonpoint source pollution in urban cities in wet and hot weather zones, because of high runoff and associated mass loading. Moreover, the environmental benefits of green roofs in Taiwan may not be as significant as those in other countries in which utility costs are higher, where decreasing energy consumption and CO2 emissions would be of greater benefit. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Recreation ecology, the scientific study of visitor impacts and their effective management, has been developed largely in North America, Europe, and more recently in Australia, in response to growing impacts of visitor use to protected area resources. A body of literature has been accumulated that contributes to sustainable visitor management in protected areas. This paper traces the development of recreation ecology research in East Asia and examines the field''s relevance to East Asia''s protected natural areas which endure both a long history of human utilisation and contemporary recreation and tourism pressure, much of which originates from surrounding densely populated urban areas. The formative, expanding and strengthening stages of recreation ecology research in this region were identified through an extensive review of literature published in English and East Asian languages. Each of these three developmental stages was illustrated with examples and compared with the general state of research during the same period. Key challenges and opportunities for future recreation ecology research in the region are discussed in light of this review. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Despite several similarities in the rise and development of economic regionalism, widely different institutional arrangements have been formed in Europe and East Asia. Rational-functionalist approaches do not provide an appropriate explanation of why this is so. This paper seeks to answer this question by borrowing insights from historical institutionalist accounts. The research shows that economic interdependence and policy needs alone cannot explain the timing of regional economic initiatives and the path-dependent nature of institutional development. Historical and structural conditions including external pressures and their nature can have long-term effects on institutional forms. Human factors, however, including ideas and leadership can play a crucial role as well, especially in times of historical and structural changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Nominalization plays an important interactional role in East Asian languages. Informed and guided by the collective insight from Typological and Emancipatory Pragmatic approaches to grammar, this paper presents a comparative and historical pragmatic analysis of the preference for sentence-final nominal predicates in Japanese and addresses its communicative/interactional motivation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Copyright of International Economics (2110-7017) is the property of Elsevier B.V. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Abstract: The paper compares applicability of two sorts of ‘objective’ classifications of weather types (‘air masses’, AMs) for evaluating elevated mortality due to heat in Seoul, South Korea: the ‘Temporal Synoptic Index’ (TSI) and ‘Spatial Synoptic Classification’ (SSC). Several variants of the TSI classifications that differ in the selection of input meteorological variables and the number of AMs formed are examined. Oppressive AMs are identified as those associated with excess mortality. We conclude that the TSI classifications are superior to SSC with respect to the coverage of days with large excess mortality by the oppressive AMs; their application in models that aim at predicting increased mortality risks should be compared with SSC before the decision on the method used is made. Although the presented findings are derived for a specific location, they may have wider implications for the appropriate classification method employed in heat-watch-warning systems. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

For the first time, a comparative analysis of the tachinid fauna of the Phasiinae subfamily of the Russian Far East with the fauna of neighboring regions has been presented. The Phasiinae fauna of the Primorsky Krai (Far East of Russia) is characterized as peculiar but closest to the fauna of the southern part of Khabarovsk Krai, Amur Oblast and Eastern Siberia. The following groups of regions have been identified: Southern, Western and Eastern Siberia; Amur Oblast and Primorsky Krai, which share many common Holarctic and Transpalaearctic species. Special mention should be made of the fauna of the Khabarovsk Krai, Sakhalin Oblast, which are characterized by poor species composition and Japan (having a subtropical appearance). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Legal recognition of same-sex partnerships and marriages has been at the forefront of media attention in East Asian societies. For our comparative study, we carried out qualitative in-depth interviews with 31 gay men and lesbians to investigate the nuanced understanding of marriage, family and sexual citizenship within the context of debates on marriage equality across Hong Kong, Japan and Taiwan. Expanding on the theoretical concepts in Chen's 'Asia as method', Iwabuchi's 'inter-Asian referencing' and Yue and Leung's 'queer Asia as method', we aim to understand how the act of marriage is defined, conducted and rationalized amidst a web of social relations within each research locale. We argue that despite the variations in the structure and practice of kin relations, same-sex unions cannot be detached from the kinship institution in the three research sites. Our study points to a different perspective on same-sex marriage that goes beyond the binary of assimilation to/dismantling of the heterosexual marriage institution by attending to the structural and symbolic significance of the family and community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the prevalence of behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) in cognitively impaired elderly residents of long‐term care facilities in East Asia and to explore the factors associated with these patterns. Methods: This was a cross‐sectional survey of BPSD in cognitively impaired elderly residents of long‐term care facilities in Japan, South Korea, China, Taiwan, and Thailand. The Mini‐Mental State Examination, Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR), and Neuropsychiatric Inventory, Nursing Home version (NPI‐NH), were used to assess cognitive status, dementia severity, and BPSD, respectively. NPI‐NH subscale severity scores were multiplied by frequency scores to obtain the subscale scores and aggregated into two groups based on score (clinically insignificant = 1– 3; clinically significant ≥4). Results: Data from 662 people were analyzed. Median age, median Mini‐Mental State Examination scores, and median CDR scores differed significantly among the seven study sites. The prevalence of BPSD varied from 64% in Taiwan to 100% in dementia care units in Japan, and the median total NPI‐NH scores ranged from 2 in Taiwan to 14 in dementia care units in Japan. After stratification of the sample by dementia severity and clinical significance of NPI‐NH scores, differences in the prevalence of clinically significant BPSD were mostly observed among facilities dedicated to dementia patients in the CDR 1 group. In the CDR 3 group, the prevalence of some clinically significant BPSD, such as apathy, was high even among study sites with low median total NPI‐NH scores. Conclusions: Our findings may suggest referral and selection biases in the study sites. Future prospective studies are needed to address the impact of environmental and care factors on the occurrence of BPSD in Asian countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Documenta Praehistorica is the property of Documenta Praehistorica and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article addresses the emergence of “lowest-low” fertility in some countries, primarily in Southern Europe and East Asia, and poses the question of why we find such large differences in birth rates across postindustrial societies. A set of macro–micro mechanisms are identified, which are examined empirically using comparative data for seven countries from the Gender and Generations Survey. Social norms, and in particular social norms related to gender roles, are at the center of the analysis as a mechanism that conditions the translation of intentions into behavior. Societies that discourage gender equity in the private sphere of the household tend to be characterized by a strong breadwinner ideology. In these societies, the valorization of women’s role as household manager and mother is mirrored by the valorization of men’s role as breadwinner for the household. In these societies, there is a strong norm that a young man should be able to support a family prior to getting married and becoming a parent, that is, that males should prove themselves to be adequate breadwinners. When combined with changing structural conditions, such as high unemployment rates, prolonged periods of education, and increasingly insecure terms of employment in flexible labor markets, this norm will lead to declining birth rates. Hence, norms work as a mechanism that filters the effect of structural conditions so that structural constraints on fertility, such as limited labor market opportunities for young men, will affect fertility outcomes via the mechanism of gender-role norms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What drove the East Asian tide of democratization during the “Third Wave?” Instead of focusing on a single-factor explanation, we perform qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) on fourteen cases in the region of East Asia from 1980 to 2000 and find three parallel pathways: (1) overthrow model, which features the positive effects of mass mobilization against authoritarianism under a deinstitutionalized authoritarian regime; (2) urban pressure model that works under an institutionalized authoritarian regime; and (3) inside-out model, in which democratization is triggered by the joint forces of domestic and international conditions under both types of regimes. These results demonstrate that the authoritarian status quo ante is an important determinant of democratic transitions. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Large and systematic studies of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) in the Far East (FE) with good comparative data are scarce in the literature. In this study, five expert hematopathologists classified 730 consecutive cases of newly-diagnosed NHL from four sites in the FE (excluding Japan) using the World Health Organization classification. The results were compared to 399 cases from North America (NA). We found a significantly higher male to female ratio in the FE compared to NA (1.7 versus 1.1; p < 0.05). The median ages of patients with low-grade (LG) and high-grade (HG) B-NHL in the FE (58 and 51 years, respectively) were significantly lower than in NA (64 and 68 years, respectively). The FE had a significantly lower relative frequency of B-NHL and a higher frequency of T-NHL (82 vs. 18 %) compared to NA (90.5 vs. 9.5 %). Among mature B cell lymphomas, the FE had a significantly higher relative frequency of HG B-NHL (54.8 %) and a lower frequency of LG B-NHL (27.2 %) than NA (34.3 and 56.1 %, respectively). Diffuse large B cell lymphoma was more common in the FE (49.4 %) compared to NA (29.3 %), whereas the relative frequency of follicular lymphoma was lower in the FE (9.4 %) compared to NA (33.6 %). Among T-NHL, nasal NK/T cell NHL was more frequent in the FE (5.2 %) compared to NA (0 %). Peripheral T cell lymphoma was also more common in the FE (9.1 %) than in NA (5.3 %). Further epidemiologic studies are needed to better understand the pathobiology of these differences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Fluticasone furoate (FF)/vilanterol (VI) is a once daily (OD) inhaled corticosteroid/long-acting β2-agonist combination asthma therapy approved in Japan and the EU. FF/VI efficacy and safety data from asthma studies including patients in East Asia were evaluated to assess ethnic sensitivity.Methods: Randomized, double-blind, multicenter Phase IIb/III trials were assessed. Change from baseline relative to placebo or twice-daily fluticasone propionate 500 μg in trough FEV1 was compared between patients from Japan (N = 148) and Not-Japan (N = 3,066; three studies). Adverse events (AEs), laboratory results, and electrocardiograms were compared between patients from Japan + Korea (N = 188) and Not-Japan + Korea (N = 3,840; five studies).Results: For trough FEV1, improvements from baseline (least-squares mean difference [95% confidence interval]) were reported for FF/VI 100/25 μg OD versus placebo at Week 12 (Japan: 0.323 L [0.104-0.542]; Not-Japan: 0.168 L [0.095-0.241]). Improvements from baseline (least-squares mean change [standard error]) were reported with FF/VI 200/25 μg OD at Week 24 (Japan: 0.355 L [0.1152]; Not-Japan: 0.396 L [0.0313]). A greater proportion of patients from Japan + Korea versus Not-Japan + Korea reported AEs in all treatment arms including placebo (FF/VI 100/25 μg: 79% versus 57%; FF/VI 200/25 μg: 64% versus 45%; placebo: 41% versus 23%). There were no notable differences in treatment-related or class-related AEs. No clinically significant changes in electrocardiogram assessments or statistically significant differences in 24 h urinary cortisol excretion were observed between the Japan + Korea and Not-Japan + Korea cohorts.Conclusions: Good efficacy and an acceptable safety profile were observed for FF/VI 100/25 μg and 200/25 μg OD in East Asian asthma patients; these globally recommended doses are appropriate for asthma patients in Japan.Trial Registration: Clinicaltrials.gov registration numbers: NCT01165138 , NCT01134042 , NCT01086384 , NCT00603278 , NCT00603382 . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To examine the perception of nuclear energy risks among Asian university students following the Fukushima nuclear disaster, a standardized questionnaire survey was conducted since July 2011 after the Fukushima disaster. A total of 1814 respondents from 18 universities in China, Japan, Korea, and Taiwan participated in this survey. It showed that students with the following characteristics had a higher preference for “a clear schedule to phase out nuclear power plant (NPP)”: females (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 1.84, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.44-2.34), in Japan (aOR = 2.81, 95% CI = 2.02-3.90), in China (aOR = 1.48, 95% CI = 1.04-2.09), and with perceived relative risks of cancer incidence greaterthan 1 (aOR = 1.42, 95% CI = 1.07-1.88). “If nuclear energy were phased out,” the opinions on potential electricity shortage were as follows: Japan, aOR = 0.53, 95% CI = 0.40-0.69; China, aOR = 2.46, 95% CI = 1.75-3.45; and associated with academic majors (science/technology, aOR = 0.43, 95% CI = 0.31-0.59; medicine/health science, aOR = 0.64, 95% CI = 0.49-0.84). The results carried essential messages for nuclear energy policy in East Asia. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article examines the sources and consequences of East Asia's participation in global governance. Despite the rhetoric of global contribution, the article argues that global governance issues are reframed in East Asia to better suit domestic and regional priorities. Specifically, two underlying mechanisms are at work to complicate, and often render ineffective, East Asia's foray into global governance: (1) the conflicting identities of the three countries at the regional and global levels; and (2) the localization of global governance issues. By examining the global role of China, Japan, and South Korea in climate change, peacekeeping, nuclear nonproliferation, the article shows how the shared desire of enhancing global status in East Asia is tempered by the politics of dual identity and issue localization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Susceptibility measurements performed on initial short (~ 16 m) cores PG1351 taken from Lake El'gygytgyn exhibited a large range in values. This observation led to the suggestion of widespread magnetite dissolution within the sediments due to anoxic conditions within the lake. Rock magnetic properties and their comparison with magnetic susceptibility, total organic carbon (TOC), and bulk δ13Corg proxies in core LZ1029-7, taken from the same site as the previously drilled PG1351, provide an insight into the character of the magnetic minerals present within the lake and can further the understanding of processes that may be present in the newer long core sediments. Susceptibility measurements (...) of discrete samples corroborate the two order of magnitude difference seen in previous continuous susceptibility measurements (κ), correlating high values with interglacial periods and low values with glacial intervals. Hysteresis parameters indicate that the majority of the magnetic material to be magnetite of PSD size. TOC values increase while δ13Corg values decrease in one section of LZ1029-7, which is defined as the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), and help confine the age of the core to approximately 62 ka. Increases in TOC during the most recent glacial interval suggest increased preservation of organic carbon during this period. High TOC and low magnetic susceptibility during the LGM support the theory of perennial ice cover during glacial periods, which would lead to lake stratification and therefore anoxic bottom water conditions. Low temperature magnetic measurements confirmed the presence of magnetite, but also indicated titanomagnetite and possibly siderite, rhodochrosite, and/or vivianite were present. The latter three minerals are found only in anoxic environments, and further support the notion of magnetite dissolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is an overview of the types and level of institutionalization of party systems in seven young democracies in East and Southeast Asia. By applying Alan Siaroff’s typology of party systems, the analysis demonstrates that the party systems in Asia do not converge on a single format. The party systems under consideration also differ in the level of institutionalization. Party systems in Thailand, the Philippines and especially South Korea are stuck in an inchoate state. Even though there is considerable variation among the cases, the party systems in Indonesia, Mongolia and Taiwan can be considered as well institutionalized relative to the rest of Asia and moderately institutionalized when compared to Latin America. Furthermore, weak institutionalization correlates with volatile structures of party competition and cooperation in Thailand, whereas in South Korea and the Philippines party systems seem to be paradoxically stabilizing in a situation of protracted under-institutionalization, as both cases combine more or less stable party system patterns with weak institutionalization. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Information on dietary supplements, medications, and other xenobiotics in epidemiologic surveys is usually obtained from questionnaires and is subject to recall and reporting biases. The authors used metabolite data obtained from hydrogen-1 (or proton) nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) analysis of human urine specimens from the International Study of Macro-/Micro-Nutrients and Blood Pressure (INTERMAP Study) to validate self-reported analgesic use. Metabolic profiling of two 24-hour urine specimens per individual was carried out for 4,630 participants aged 40–59 years from 17 population samples in Japan, China, the United Kingdom, and the United States (data collection, 1996–1999). 1H NMR-detected acetaminophen and ibuprofen use was low (∼4%) among East Asian population samples and higher (>16%) in Western population samples. In a comparison of self-reported acetaminophen and ibuprofen use with 1H NMR-detected acetaminophen and ibuprofen metabolites among 496 participants from Chicago, Illinois, and Belfast, Northern Ireland, the overall rate of concordance was 81%–84%; the rate of underreporting was 15%–17%; and the rate of underdetection was approximately 1%. Comparison of self-reported unspecified analgesic use with 1H NMR-detected acetaminophen and ibuprofen metabolites among 2,660 Western INTERMAP participants revealed similar levels of concordance and underreporting. Screening for urinary metabolites of acetaminophen and ibuprofen improved the accuracy of exposure information. This approach has the potential to reduce recall bias and other biases in epidemiologic studies for a range of substances, including pharmaceuticals, dietary supplements, and foods. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Summer-time short- to medium-range predictability of precipitation, 500-hPa geopotential height, and wind fields over East Asia are investigated by comparing three ensemble forecast configurations: multi-analysis, multi-convection, and multi-model. These three systems are used in this study in order to assess initial condition uncertainties, model uncertainties, and a combination of initial condition and model uncertainties in an ensemble forecast approach. Each system has a set of six members. Ensemble forecast skill is verified in both deterministic and probabilistic senses using the European Center for Medium-range Weather Forecasting analyses and the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission Microwave Imager 2A12 rain estimates. The multi-model configuration, which considers both the initial condition and model uncertainties to predict weather phenomena over East Asia, is an optimal set of ensemble members. The bias-corrected ensemble and the superensemble (SE) show similar predictability, but slightly better skill is obtained from the SE forecasts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article systematically compares maritime territorial disputes in the East and South China Seas. It draws on the bargaining model of war and hegemonic stability theory to track the record of conflicts and shifts in the relative power balances of the claimants, leading to the conclusion that certainty and stability have improved in the South China Sea, with the converse happening in the East China Sea. To enrich the models, this article also considers social factors (constructivism) and arrives at the same conclusion. This calls for a differentiated methodological approach if we are to devise strategies to mediate and resolve these disputes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One prediction of the novel weapons hypothesis (NWH) for the dominance of exotic invasive plant species is that the allelopathic effects of successful invaders will, in general, be more biochemically inhibitory to native species and microbes in invaded regions than the native plants themselves. However, no study has compared biochemical concentrations, compositions, or effects of large numbers of native species to those of large numbers of invasive species. In this context we tested the allelopathic and antimicrobial potentials of nine native plant species and nine invasive species in East Asia by comparing their broad phenolic contents and the effects of extracts made from each of the species on target plants and soil fungi. Three of the invasive species, including Eupatorium rugosum, had higher concentrations of total phenolic compounds than any of the native species, and the mean concentration of total phenolics for invasive species was 2.6 times greater than the mean for native species. Only scopoletin was novel to the invasive species, being found in all of nine invasive species, but not in the native species. More importantly, the effects of the total suites of phenolic compounds produced by invasive species differed from the effects of phenolics produced by natives. Extracts of invasive species reduced radicle growth of the three test plant species by 60-80%, but extracts of native species reduced radicle growth by only 30-50%. Extracts of invasive species reduced shoot growth of the three test species by 20-40%, but the overall effect of native species' extract was to stimulate shoot growth. The antimicrobial activity of invasive species was also significantly higher than that of native species. It should be noted that phenolics are just one component of a plant's potential allelopathic arsenal and non-phenolic compounds are likely to play a role in the total extract effect. For example, extracts of P. americana contained the lowest levels of phenolic compounds, but exhibited the strongest inhibition effect. We could not determine whether the greater inhibitory effects of the extracts from invasive species were due to novel combinations of chemicals or higher concentrations of chemicals, but our results are consistent with the predictions of the NWH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on a policy analysis framework and on the recent experiences of developing and developed countries in Latin America and East Asia, the study attempts to explore the factors that led to the telecommunications reform and compare them by applying a typology of reform objectives. This article argues that the standard reform modalities, i.e., privatization, liberalization, or a combination of both, tell very little without considering the political economic environment. In contrast, this study sets out to explore the factors that led to telecommunications reform by approaching the policy-making process from the standpoint of Systems Theory, in order to identify its objectives on a case-by-case basis. In light of the typology, the analysis suggests the occurrence of a distinctive reform path in each of the selected regions, which may explain the different combinations of privatization and liberalization, implemented in each case. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]