Social representations and the politics of participation

Recent work has called for the integration of different perspectives into the field of political psychology (Haste, 2012). This chapter suggests that one possible direction that such efforts can take is studying the role that social representations theory (SRT) can play in understanding political participation and social change. Social representations are systems of common-sense knowledge and social practice; they provide the lens through which to view and create social and political realities, mediate people's relations with these sociopolitical worlds and defend cultural and political identities. Social representations are therefore key for conceptualising participation as the activity that locates individuals and social groups in their sociopolitical world. Political participation is generally seen as conditional to membership of sociopolitical groups and therefore is often linked to citizenship. To be a citizen of a society or a member of any social group one has to participate as such. Often political participation is defined as the ability to communicate one's views to the political elite or to the political establishment (Uhlaner, 2001), or simply explicit involvement in politics and electoral processes (Milbrath, 1965). However, following scholars on ideology (Eagleton, 1991; Thompson, 1990) and social knowledge (Jovchelovitch, 2007), we extend our understanding of political participation to all social relations and also develop a more agentic model where individuals and groups construct, develop and resist their own views, ideas and beliefs. We thus adopt a broader approach to participation in comparison to other political-psychological approaches, such as personality approaches (e.g. Mondak and Halperin, 2008) and cognitive approaches or, more recently, neuropsychological approaches (Hatemi and McDermott, 2012). We move away from a focus on the individual's political behaviour and its antecedents and outline an approach that focuses on the interaction between psychological and political phenomena (Deutsch and Kinnvall, 2002) through examining the politics of social knowledge

The Evolution of Compact Binary Star Systems

We review the formation and evolution of compact binary stars consisting of white dwarfs (WDs), neutron stars (NSs), and black holes (BHs). Binary NSs and BHs are thought to be the primary astrophysical sources of gravitational waves (GWs) within the frequency band of ground-based detectors, while compact binaries of WDs are important sources of GWs at lower frequencies to be covered by space interferometers (LISA). Major uncertainties in the current understanding of properties of NSs and BHs most relevant to the GW studies are discussed, including the treatment of the natal kicks which compact stellar remnants acquire during the core collapse of massive stars and the common envelope phase of binary evolution. We discuss the coalescence rates of binary NSs and BHs and prospects for their detections, the formation and evolution of binary WDs and their observational manifestations. Special attention is given to AM CVn-stars -- compact binaries in which the Roche lobe is filled by another WD or a low-mass partially degenerate helium-star, as these stars are thought to be the best LISA verification binary GW sources.Comment: 105 pages, 18 figure

Algorithms for enhancing public health utility of national causes-of-death data

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Coverage and quality of cause-of-death (CoD) data varies across countries and time. Valid, reliable, and comparable assessments of trends in causes of death from even the best systems are limited by three problems: a) changes in the <it>International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems </it>(ICD) over time; b) the use of tabulation lists where substantial detail on causes of death is lost; and c) many deaths assigned to causes that cannot or should not be considered underlying causes of death, often called garbage codes (GCs). The Global Burden of Disease Study and the World Health Organization have developed various methods to enhance comparability of CoD data. In this study, we attempt to build on these approaches to enhance the utility of national cause-of-death data for public health analysis.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Based on careful consideration of 4,434 country-years of CoD data from 145 countries from 1901 to 2008, encompassing 743 million deaths in ICD versions 1 to 10 as well as country-specific cause lists, we have developed a public health-oriented cause-of-death list. These 56 causes are organized hierarchically and encompass all deaths. Each cause has been mapped from ICD-6 to ICD-10 and, where possible, they have also been mapped to the <it>International List of Causes of Death </it>1-5. We developed a typology of different classes of GCs. In each ICD revision, GCs have been identified. Target causes to which these GCs should be redistributed have been identified based on certification practice and/or pathophysiology. Proportionate redistribution, statistical models, and expert algorithms have been developed to redistribute GCs to target codes for each age-sex group.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The fraction of all deaths assigned to GCs varies tremendously across countries and revisions of the ICD. In general, across all country-years of data available, GCs have declined from more than 43% in ICD-7 to 24% in ICD-10. In some regions, such as Australasia, GCs in 2005 are as low as 11%, while in some developing countries, such as Thailand, they are greater than 50%. Across different age groups, the composition of GCs varies tremendously - three classes of GCs steadily increase with age, but ambiguous codes within a particular disease chapter are also common for injuries at younger ages. The impact of redistribution is to change the number of deaths assigned to particular causes for a given age-sex group. These changes alter ranks across countries for any given year by a number of different causes, change time trends, and alter the rank order of causes within a country.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>By mapping CoD through different ICD versions and redistributing GCs, we believe the public health utility of CoD data can be substantially enhanced, leading to an increased demand for higher quality CoD data from health sector decision-makers.</p

Mapping the geographical distribution of podoconiosis in Cameroon using parasitological, serological, and clinical evidence to exclude other causes of lymphedema

Background Podoconiosis is a non-filarial elephantiasis, which causes massive swelling of the lower legs. It was identified as a neglected tropical disease by WHO in 2011. Understanding of the geographical distribution of the disease is incomplete. As part of a global mapping of podoconiosis, this study was conducted in Cameroon to map the distribution of the disease. This mapping work will help to generate data on the geographical distribution of podoconiosis in Cameroon and contribute to the global atlas of podoconiosis. Methods We used a multi‐stage sampling design with stratification of the country by environmental risk of podoconiosis. We sampled 76 villages from 40 health districts from the ten Regions of Cameroon. All individuals of 15-years old or older in the village were surveyed house-to-house and screened for lymphedema. A clinical algorithm was used to reliably diagnose podoconiosis, excluding filarial-associated lymphedema. Individuals with lymphoedema were tested for circulating Wuchereria bancrofti antigen and specific IgG4 in the field using the Alere Filariasis Test Strips (FTS) test and the Standard Diagnostics (SD) BIOLINE lymphatic filariasis IgG4 test (Wb123) respectively, in addition to thick blood films. Presence of DNA specific to W.bancrofti was checked on night blood using a qPCR technique. Principal Findings Overall, 10,178 individuals from 4,603 households participated in the study. In total, 83 individuals with lymphedema were identified. Of the 83 individuals with lymphedema, two were found to be FTS positive and all were negative using the Wb123 test. No microfilaria of W. bancrofti were found in the night blood of any individual with clinical lymphedema. None were found to be positive for W. bancrofti using qPCR. Of the two FTS positive cases, one was positive for Mansonella perstans DNA, while the other harbored Loa loa microfilaria. Overall, 52 people with podoconiosis were identified after applying the clinical algorithm. The overall prevalence of podoconiosis was found to be 0.5% (95% [confidence interval] CI; 0.4-0.7). At least one case of podoconiosis was found in every region of Cameroon except the two surveyed villages in Adamawa. Of the 40 health districts surveyed, 17 districts had no cases of podoconiosis; in 15 districts, mean prevalence was between 0.2% and 1.0%; and in the remaining eight, mean prevalence was between 1.2% and 2.7%. Conclusions Our investigation has demonstrated low prevalence but almost nationwide distribution of podoconiosis in Cameroon. Designing a podoconiosis control program is a vital next step. A health system response to the burden of podoconiosis is important, through case surveillance and morbidity management services

The D4Z4 Macrosatellite Repeat Acts as a CTCF and A-Type Lamins-Dependent Insulator in Facio-Scapulo-Humeral Dystrophy

Both genetic and epigenetic alterations contribute to Facio-Scapulo-Humeral Dystrophy (FSHD), which is linked to the shortening of the array of D4Z4 repeats at the 4q35 locus. The consequence of this rearrangement remains enigmatic, but deletion of this 3.3-kb macrosatellite element might affect the expression of the FSHD-associated gene(s) through position effect mechanisms. We investigated this hypothesis by creating a large collection of constructs carrying 1 to >11 D4Z4 repeats integrated into the human genome, either at random sites or proximal to a telomere, mimicking thereby the organization of the 4q35 locus. We show that D4Z4 acts as an insulator that interferes with enhancer–promoter communication and protects transgenes from position effect. This last property depends on both CTCF and A-type Lamins. We further demonstrate that both anti-silencing activity of D4Z4 and CTCF binding are lost upon multimerization of the repeat in cells from FSHD patients compared to control myoblasts from healthy individuals, suggesting that FSHD corresponds to a gain-of-function of CTCF at the residual D4Z4 repeats. We propose that contraction of the D4Z4 array contributes to FSHD physio-pathology by acting as a CTCF-dependent insulator in patients