Gay men’s experiences coming out online : a qualitative study

The current study employed qualitative methodology to investigate the experiences of 12 men who came out online, using Facebook. Analysis of coding data yielded several key themes. First, gay men discussed a range of experiences that influenced their online disclosure including homophobia, internalized homophobia, and previous salient sexual identity disclosures. Participants also commonly expressed a variety of goals and concerns about coming out online, including improving relationships and loss of friends. Finally, gay men identified several benefits to coming out on Facebook, including increased efficiency in coming out as compared to face-to-face disclosures, increased authenticity, and decreased ambiguity about their sexuality. Results are discussed within the context of literature on men’s coming-out experiences, men and masculinity and online identity management.Educational Psycholog

Gay men’s experiences of heterophobia : a mixed-methods investigation

Heterophobia, or gay men’s fear or avoidance of straight men, is an overlooked phenomenon that may contribute to gay men’s social isolation and disconnectedness (Haldeman, 2006; Provence, Parent, Rochlen, & Chester, 2018). The present study explored heterophobia in two distinct phases. Phase one employed structural equation modeling to examine associations between heterophobia and constructs relevant to gay men’s experiences of minority stress in a sample of 356 self-identified gay men. Variables included in the model were age, race, education, developmental experiences of rejection from straight men, degree of outness, number of straight male friends, internalized homonegativity, gay-related rejection sensitivity, conformity to masculine norms, experiences of heterosexist harassment and discrimination, gay group identity, and perceived social support. Phase two of my study used qualitative methodologies to interview 11 gay men who scored highly on a heterophobia measure in phase one. My findings are exploratory in nature and contribute to an emerging body of empirical research that` examines gay men’s concerns, fear, or avoidance of straight men. Findings are discussed in context of existing theory and research on heterophobia.Educational Psycholog

The dissolution behaviour of titanium oxide phases in synthetic Bayer liquors at 90 C

Many of the bauxites currently being processed to alumina contain titanium minerals, yet little fundamental knowledge is available regarding their dissolution behaviour in Bayer liquors. In this paper the dissolution of various titanium oxide phases (anatase, rutile, sodium titanate and calcium titanate) are presented. It is shown that rutile, calcium titanate and sodium titanate have the expected dissolution behaviour, which increases with free caustic concentration. Anatase, too, generally increases in dissolution with free caustic concentration. However, anatase is shown to have an anomalous behaviour when gibbsite co-precipitates. In this case, the dissolution of anatase does not follow the expected free caustic trend. According to the data presented, the most probable cause is an impervious aluminium/sodium titanate surface layer hindering further dissolution

Santa Clara University human powered vehicle 2013-2014

This document discusses the conceptual design for the 2013-2014 Santa Clara University Human Powered Vehicle. The objective of the Santa Clara University Human Powered Vehicle team is to design and manufacture a human powered vehicle that is practical, sustainable, and efficient. Key design features include a partial body fairing, tilt and ackermann steering, and cargo space. Ultimately we had to block out the tilt steering because its operation conflicted with the Ackermann steering. This vehicle\u27s design satisfies the primary needs of a commuter and ultimately serves as a practical alternative to an automobile. Finally, this design complies with the requirements set by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers for the 2014 Human Powered Vehicle Challenge West Competition

Flexible, High-Speed, Small Satellite Production

Planet’s first mission is to image the entire land mass of the Earth every day in an effort to make global change visible, accessible, and actionable. To do this, Planet designs and builds highly capable Earth-imaging satellites and today operates the largest Earth-imaging fleet in history. To support this mission, Planet had to develop an adaptable concurrent product development cycle associated with a unique assembly and manufacturing line to support the quick production and delivery of satellites. This paper introduces how Planet achieved that objective by building multiple spacecraft design iterations concurrently and how Planet orchestrates a production line for speed, flexibility, and high throughput of satellite delivery in just over a few weeks

Defying the Tone at the Top: An Analysis on the Effects of Board Characteristics on the Level of Tax Avoidance Across Philippine Publicly Listed Firms

Over the years, the growing culture of tax avoidance among multinational companies around the world has shed light on the importance of improving corporate governance mechanisms. In the Philippines, poor tax collection due to tax leakages has contributed to chronic fiscal deficits in the country. The literature argues that good corporate governance mechanisms (e.g., the structure of the board of directors) play a significant role in ensuring that the management acts in the best interest of the firm and shareholders, thus eventually helping to mitigate the incidences of corporate tax avoidance. Specifically, agency theory argues that the presence of more independent- and female-dominated boards lead to lesser corporate tax avoidance because such directors are stricter in monitoring management. On the other hand, the resource dependency theory posits that firms with boards having more independent, older, and business-educated directors are more likely to engage in tax avoidance because such directors have the experience, expertise, and knowhow to engage in tax avoidance strategies. This paper examines the impact of various board characteristics on the incidence of tax avoidance across nonfinancial and publicly-traded Philippine firms during the period 2003 to 2015. We use the residual book-tax gap, the cash-effective tax rate, and the long run effective tax rate to measure corporate tax avoidance, whereas board characteristics include board size, board age, board independence, CEO-Chair duality, gender diversity, and the educational background of directors. We employ the two-step Blundell-Bond System Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) estimation technique to address endogeneity issues that may confound the relationship between board composition and structure and the level of tax avoidance within the firm. Overall, we find no significant relationship between board characteristics and tax avoidance, as measured by the long-run cash effective tax rates. However, consistent with the agency and resource dependency theories, we find that board age is positively related with corporate tax avoidance, as measured by the residual book-tax gap, whereas board independence and the proportion of board members with post-graduate degrees in Business and Economics have a negative and positive relationship, respectively, when corporate tax avoidance is proxied by the cash effective tax rate. These findings suggest that the case for increasing the number of independent directors and reducing the number of older directors in boards of Philippine publicly listed firms may help reduce incidences of corporate tax avoidance