Morality, Sociability, and Competence: Distinct and interactive Dimensions of Social Cognition

This research explores the structure of social cognitive judgments and the role of moral evaluations in everyday social cognition. In Chapter 1, I show that morality and sociability are distinct dimensions in lay theories of personality and stereotype content, contrary to dominant two-dimensional models of social cognition that consider these to be two closely related aspects of a superordinate prosocial dimension of judgment. In three studies, judgments of real targets’ morality and sociability did not factor together, differed in terms of mean levels, and did not correlate any more highly than they did with judgments of competence. An additional study found that cluster analysis differentiated judgments of social groups on the basis of their perceived morality and sociability, and that these dimensions of judgment differently predicted intergroup emotions. I also elaborate a functionalist account of why these three dimensions should matter in person and group perception. In Chapter 2, I build on this functionalist account, and show that morality is the only one of these dimensions that is unambiguously positive – five studies show that sociability and competence are seen as positive attributes contingent upon a target’s positive morality, and are seen as less positive, and sometimes as truly negative, in immoral others. Finally, in Chapter 3, I examine the importance of morality, sociability, and competence in the self. It is widely accepted that people primarily care about morality in others, but primarily care about competence in the self. I challenge this assertion, and show that morality is highly valued in the self. Three studies showed that people are often more upset by challenges to their morality than to their competence or sociability. Moreover, the third study shows that reactions to threats to one’s morality, competence, and sociability engage different negative emotions. I propose that morality is at least as central to people’s identities as competence, and that prior results suggesting that competence is primary are due to peoples’ high confidence regarding their own morality. This program of research emphasizes the importance of morality in everyday social cognition and the distinctness of morality from other evaluative dimensions, particularly sociability

Swanee Smiles

https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mmb-vp/2546/thumbnail.jp

Optimal Conditions for Environment-Assisted Quantum Transport on the Fully Connected Network

We present a theoretical analysis of the efficiency and rate of excitation transport on a network described by a complete graph in which every site is connected to every other. The long-time transport properties are analytically calculated for networks of arbitrary size that are symmetric except for the trapping site, start with a range of initial states, and are subject to dephasing and excitation decay. Conditions for which dephasing increases transport are identified, and optimal conditions are found for various physical parameters. The optimal conditions demonstrate robustness and a convergence of timescales previously observed in the context of light-harvesting complexes.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figure

Laughing Water : Characteristic

https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mmb-vp/1956/thumbnail.jp

The Efficacy of BRafeNHS Student Representative Coordinating Council A.Y. 2020-2021

The student council serves as the voice of the student body, enabling them to be engaged in tackling academic matters (Woods, 2002). With the implementation of online distance learning, the duties of the student council should not cease even with the new factors affecting their proceedings. This study aims to find out if the BRafeNHS Student Representative Coordinating Council is still functioning effectively amidst the set-up of online distance learning what is the student body’s perception of their performance, and how it differs from the student leaders’ perception. Researchers disseminated a survey questionnaire to 75% of the BRafeNHS student body to rate the performance of the Executive, Legislative, and Media Committee. In evaluating the student council performance, four variables were considered in this study (authority, communication with students, implementation of school rules, and project implementation and student involvement). Interviews were also held with selected students from the council and student body to provide a more in-depth inquiry. Results showed that the BRafeNHS-SRCC is still functioning very effectively based on the student body, and they share almost the same perception on the first two variables, although the same cannot be said for the latter two. Still, the research concludes that the BRafeNHSSRCC is functioning effectively amidst the implementation of online distance learning

CCNE1 Amplification as a Predictive Biomarker of Chemotherapy Resistance in Epithelial Ovarian Cancer

Ovarian cancer is the most-deadly gynecologic malignancy, with greater than 14,000 women expected to succumb to the disease this year in the United States alone. In the front-line setting, patients are treated with a platinum and taxane doublet. Although 40-60% of patients achieve complete clinical response to first-line chemotherapy, 25% are inherently platinum-resistant or refractory with a median overall survival of about one year. More than 80% of women afflicted with ovarian cancer will recur. Many attempts have been made to understand the mechanism of platinum and taxane based chemotherapy resistance. However, despite decades of research, few predictive markers of chemotherapy resistance have been identified. Here, we review the current understanding of one of the most common genetic alterations in epithelial ovarian cancer, CCNE1 (cyclin E1) amplification, and its role as a potential predictive marker of cytotoxic chemotherapy resistance. CCNE1 amplification has been identified as a primary oncogenic driver in a subset of high grade serous ovarian cancer that have an unmet clinical need. Understanding the interplay between cyclin E1 amplification and other common ovarian cancer genetic alterations provides the basis for chemotherapeutic resistance in CCNE1 amplified disease. Exploration of the effect of cyclin E1 amplification on the cellular machinery that causes dysregulated proliferation in cancer cells has allowed investigators to explore promising targeted therapies that provide the basis for emerging clinical trials

What Keeps Passion Alive? Sexual Satisfaction Is Associated With Sexual Communication, Mood Setting, Sexual Variety, Oral Sex, Orgasm, and Sex Frequency in a National U.S. Study

Passion and sexual satisfaction typically diminish in longer-term relationships, but this decline is not inevitable. We identified the attitudes and behaviors that most strongly differentiated sexually satisfied from dissatisfied men and women who had been together for at least three years (N = 38,747). Data were collected in 2006 from cohabiting and married men and women via an online survey on a major national U.S. news website. The vast majority of these participants reported being satisfied with their sex life during their first six months together (83% W; 83% M). Satisfaction with their current sex life was more variable, with approximately half of participants reporting overall satisfaction (55% W; 43% M), and the rest feeling neutral (18% W; 16% M) or dissatisfied (27% W; 41% M). More than one in three respondents (38% W; 32% M) claimed their sex life was as passionate now as in the beginning. Sexual satisfaction and maintenance of passion were higher among people who had sex most frequently, received more oral sex, had more consistent orgasms, and incorporated more variety of sexual acts, mood setting, and sexual communication. We discuss implications of these findings for research and for helping people revitalize their sex lives

Clinical Presentation and Bacteriology of Diabetic Foot Ulcers at Mulago Hospital: A Prospective Case Series Study.

Background: Diabetic foot ulcer is a common cause of mortality among patients admitted to Mulago hospital. Peripheral neuropathy and peripheral arterial disease are the major risk factors for diabetic foot ulceration and the severity of these two conditions may determine treatment options and ulcer outcomes. General objective: The study assessed the clinical presentation of foot ulcers in diabetic patients and identified the common bacterial isolates from diabetic foot ulcers and their susceptibility patterns. Methods: This was a prospective study involving 60 consecutive patients with diabetic foot ulcers admitted to the endocrinology unit at Mulago hospital between July and December 2010. Patients were recruited after the provision of written informed consent. Deep tissue swabs from the ulcers were then taken at debridement for both aerobic and anaerobic cultures and susceptibility tests using standard microbiological methods. Results: Of the 60 patients, 57% had neuroischemic foot ulcers, 18% had neuropathic ulcers, 18% had ischemic ulcers and 7% had unclassified ulcers. 98.3% of the samples grew 93 aerobic bacteria and no anaerobe was isolated. Polymicrobial infection occurred in 41% of samples of which 10% had mixed growth. 80.6% of the isolates were Gram-negative aerobes, mainly E.coli  Klebsiella, Pseudomonas, and Proteus while eighteen (19.4%) were Gram-positive, mainly Staphylococcus aureus and Enterococcus faecalis. The prevalence of MuMultidrug-resistant organisms (MDRO) was 84% and Methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) was 60% while Extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBL) was 43.5%. Conclusion: Diabetic foot ulcers were mostly neuroischemic with moderate neuropathy severity. Infection was mostly due to aerobic Gram-negative organisms with a high prevalence of MDRO, ESBL, and MRSA. Most isolates were susceptible to vancomycin, imipenem, and ciprofloxacin. Recommendation: Deep tissue culture and sensitivity tests should be done to make appropriate antibiotic choices for diabetic patients with foot ulcers