'Enclaves of exposure' : a conceptual viewpoint to explore cross-ideology exposure on social network sites

Previous studies indicate mixed results as to whether social media constitutes ideological echo chambers. This inconsistency may arise due to a lack of theoretical frames that acknowledge the fact that contextual and technological factors allow varying levels of cross-cutting exposure on social media. This study suggests an alternative theoretical lens, divergence of exposure – co-existence of user groups with varying degrees of cross-ideology exposure related to the same issue – as a notion that serves as an overarching perspective. We suggest that mediated spaces, such as social media groups, can serve as enclaves of exposure that offer affordances for formation of user groups irrespective of offline social distinctions. Yet social elements cause some of them to display more cross-ideology exchange than others. To establish this claim empirically, we examine two Facebook page user networks (‘Sri Lanka’s Killing Fields’ and ‘Sri Lankans Hate Channel 4’) that emerged in response to Sri Lanka’s Killing Fields, a controversial documentary broadcast by Channel 4 that accused Sri Lankan armed forces of human rights violation during the final stage of the separatist conflict in Sri Lanka. The results showed that the Facebook group network that supported the claims made by Channel 4 is more diverse in terms of ethnic composition, and is neither assortative nor disassortative across ethnicity, suggesting the presence of cross-ethnicity interaction. The pro-allegiant group was largely homogenous and less active, resembling a passive echo chamber. ‘Social mediation’ repurposes enclaves of exposure to represent polarized ideologies where some venues display cross-ideology exposure, while others resemble an ‘echo chamber’

Improvement of a Phosphate Ion-selective Microsensor Using Bis(dibromophenylstannyl)methane as a Carrier

An ionophore-doped sensing membrane phosphate (PO4) microsensor based on bis(dibromophenylstannyl)methane (Bis microsensor) is described. The Bis microsensor showed a Nernstian response. The response of the Bis microsensor was log-linear down to a monohydrogen phosphate ion (HPO42−) concentration of 0.5 μM (corresponding to 1.0 μM of orthophosphate at pH 7.2), whereas the detection limit of PO4-microsensors based on trialkyl/aryltin chloride was 50 μM of HPO42−. The Bis microsensor showed excellent selectivity for HPO42− against nitrite, nitrate, chloride, bicarbonate and sulfate, as compared with PO4 microsensors based on trialkyl/aryltin chloride. Dissolved oxygen, which is known to interfere with the response of a previously developed cobalt-based potentiometric solid-state PO4 microsensor, had no effect on the response of the ionophore-doped sensing membrane-type microsensors described herein. Only OH− (i.e., pH) interfered with the ionophore-doped sensing membrane-type microsensors

A template for mapping emotion expression within hashtag publics

Current literature on networked publics lacks research that examines how emotions are mobilised around specific actors, and quantitative analysis of affective phenomena is limited to vanity metrics. We address this issue by developing a network analytic routine, which guides the attribution of emotions contained in hashtagged tweets to their sources and targets. The proposed template enables identification of networked inconsequentiality (i.e., inability to trigger dialogue), reply targets (i.e., individuals targeted in replies), and voice agents (i.e., senders of replicated utterances). We demonstrate this approach with two datasets based on the hashtags #Newzealand (n= 131,523) and #SriLanka (n= 145,868) covering two major incidents of terrorism related to opposing extremist ideologies. In addition to the methodological contribution, the study demonstrates that user-driven emergence of networked leadership takes place based on conventional structures of power in which individuals with high power and social status are likely to emerge as targets as well as sources of emotions

The Experiences of Children on Sri Lanka\u27s Tea Plantations: Labor and Sexual Exploitation, Violence, and Inadequate Education

This article explores the difficulties faced by children living in Sri Lanka’s tea plantation areas. Data from 150 children reveal high rates of poverty, violence, and school dropout. Children in tea plantation schools report bullying and stigma from teachers and students. Many children do not envision completing school due to inadequate resources, family income pressures, and the need to work. Children who drop out of school face abusive labor conditions and poor pay. Over 30% of all children report experiencing sexual abuse, often in their own homes. Those working face discrimination, physical abuse, and wage theft. Initiatives are needed to improve family incomes, reform schools, provide affordable childcare, enforce child labor laws, and raise awareness of safety and rights. Governmental financial support is required to improve housing, expand agriculture production to generate family income for schooling expenses, and provide training for teachers. Government interventions and creating coordination between agencies, NGOs, and tea industry stakeholders are vital to alleviate the hardships faced by Sri Lanka’s tea plantation children and create opportunities for them to realize their full potential

The relative importance of olfactory signaling to fly-moss spore dispersal network structure of two sympatric moss species in Newfoundland, Canada

In Newfoundland, Splachnum ampullaceum (herbivore dung scent mimic) and S. pensylvanicum (omnivore dung scent mimic) grow in bogs on summer moose (Alces alces L.) dung and via olfactory and visual deception have their spores dispersed to dung by flies. In Chapter 2, the addition of carnivore and herbivore-mimicking scent increased the number of visiting flies, and the addition of carnivore scent attracted carrion flies, and this effect was greatest for S. pensylvanicum. In Chapter three consecutive years of fly trapping data for both species of moss were compared using Network analyses. Results showed that both mosses attract a generalized fly fauna (lower network specialization (H₂average) 0.171), most of which are also associated with summer moose dung (average connectance low 0.799). Also, the fly faunas of S. ampullaceum and S. pensylvanicum did not differ from each other in all three years

Species Composition and Visiting Frequencies of Flower Visitors of Chromolaena odorata

Plant-animal interaction has been a major theme in ecology as it has helped ecologists to rule out different patterns they observed in the surrounding environments. Chromolaena odorata is another plant species that is studied extensively as it has become a major troublesome weed in many parts of the tropics. But, handful of studies are available on pollination of this invasive plant species in dry forests and its function as a pollinator sink in these environments. The current study was carried out in a dry zone secondary forest patch in North-Central Sri Lanka to assess the diversity, abundance, and pollination strength of flower visitors associated with the C. odorata. The results suggest that the diversity of Hymenoptera and Lepidoptera is higher than the other insect orders that visited C. odorata, but all species exerted equal pollination strength on the plant. The attraction of large numbers of insects is concluded to as one of the factors that contribute to the reproductive success of C. odorata in dry zone forests

Accessibility and Usage of Digital Technologies among Academics for Research: A Case of Selected Humanities and Social Sciences Faculties in Sri Lankan Universities

The Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS) involve understanding the human experience and the relationships between individuals and groups in society. The adoption of digital technologies has challenged the discipline of HSS, creating an entirely new environment for the study of human activities. This research aims to explore the employment of digital tools, resources and services in HSS research. Further, the use of digital methods (DM) throughout the research process; the impact of COVID-19 on the use of DM in research; the constraints of using DM in research were tested. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected from Colombo, Kelaniya and Sri Jayewardenepura universities targeting academics in Economics, English, English Language Teaching, Geography, History and Archeology, Buddhist Studies, Political Science, Sinhala, and Sociology. Considering the digital infrastructure facilities, most of the academics rated email (45.6%) and LMS services (46.7%) as excellent but maintenance provided by the institute was not adequate. Most academics rated good on access to data storage (37.9%); reference management software (27.5%); plagiarism detection software (29.1%); institutional repository (35.2%); and support to online publications (39.6%) provided by their institutes. 55.7% of surveyed academics in SS often use digital data collection methods while in the Humanities it was 43.4%. Online publishing was most often used by SS (50.9%) and only 39.5% by the Humanities. 53.8% of SS academics and 43.4% of humanities academics often use cloud storage. Findings confirmed the expansion of using digital research methods during the pandemic compared to the early pandemic situation. Collaborative research works, virtual conferences, citation databases and digital indexing were identified as popular trends. DOI: http://doi.org/10.31357/fhss/vjhss.v08i02.0

A STUDY ON THE STATUS OF FURNITURE MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES IN MORATUWA AREA

Moratuwa area has a long history of furniture industry in Sri Lanka. In the present study,furniture manufacturing industry (FMI) in Moratuwa was studied using twoquestionnaire surveys. The main raw materials. manufacturing process, technologicallevel, furniture designing methods, seasoning methods. waste disposal methods,educational and sociological aspects of workers of the FMI were studied. In addition, datawere collected on furniture marketing from the Ratmalana furniture permit-issuing centerof the Forest Department. Raw material supplies (timber logs) into the Moratuwa areawere also studied at five different locations including timber-checking stationsThe study revealed that the Moratuwa area consists of considerable amount ofmechanized carpentry sheds and some associate with furniture shops or saw mills. 83%of furniture is manufactured using heavy wood species and 17% using light wood species.Teak is the most popular timber species followed by Satin and Nadun. Most of thetimbers used in the industry are air dried, while others are kiln-dried. Three commonmethods are observed for designing of furniture: based on consumer preference,traditional designs by carpenters and use of designs from foreign catalogues. Furniturecan be categorized into six broad categories, based on their quality and finishing level.Semi- finished Furniture are mostly sold in bulk to furniture dealers in out side areas, andafter transportation, they are finished and sold based on regional requirements.The total number of furniture production per month is estimated as 63,612 units, when41 furniture items are considered. Teak Cabinets, Teak Elmira, and Teak Chairs are themain manufactured items. The overall monthly income from all the FMI of Moratuwaarea is estimated to be Rs. 54.05 million.Wooden wastes mainly consist of sawdust! slabs (2854 cum) and fuel wood (1850 cu.rn),which arc estimated to value approximately Rs. 569,270.00. 13 % of this wooden waste isused for cooking purposes in the FMI of Moratuwa area. 34% is used for other purposessuch as agricultural and poultry industries and as fuel for kilns of the brick industry.However 44% of wooden wastes is not utilized and is disposed by burning.The total number of workers is estimated as 3515 workers which comprises, skilledcarpenters (68%), semi skilled carpenters (11%), laborers (7%), other category workers(5%Y," managerS (4%) and supervisors (4%). The dominant age class-ilrthe"FMJ is"4F55 years, which represents 44 percent of the total workers. 192 children (out of 378) ofthe workers are employed in FMI; which accounts 51 percent children of the workers jointheFMI. The educational levels of the workers are low and they have gained their skills fromtheir fathers and forefathers