A Fast and Sustainable Route to Bassanite Nanocrystals from Gypsum

Calcium sulfate is an important construction material. More than 1600 million square meters of interior surfaces are covered with plasterboards in Europe each year. Plasterboard is manufactured by transforming mined or recycled gypsum (CaSO4 × 2 H2O) to bassanite (CaSO4 × ½H2O) in a time- and energy-consuming heating process. A fast and sustainable way to produce bassanite by solvent-assisted milling, thereby eliminating the need for energy-intensive dehydration, is described. The milling reaction is complete after ≈200 min. Kinetic studies revealed that gypsum crystals transform to bassanite by shear forces during milling. 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopic techniques and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) show that the resulting bassanite nanocrystals are stabilized by surface functionalization with the auxiliary solvent methanol. Bassanite particles produced over extended milling times of 990 min form long-term stable dispersions without stabilizers and no signs of precipitation. Addition of water to bassanite leads to instant agglomeration, followed by a phase change to gypsum. The dispersibility in volatile methanol and the elucidation of the crystallization mechanism allow also for applications of the bassanite nanocrystals in hybrid materials. © 2022 The Authors. Advanced Functional Materials published by Wiley-VCH GmbH

The general fault in our fault lines

Pervading global narratives suggest that political polarization is increasing, yet the accuracy of such group meta-perceptions has been drawn into question. A recent US study suggests that these beliefs are inaccurate and drive polarized beliefs about out-groups. However, it also found that informing people of inaccuracies reduces those negative beliefs. In this work, we explore whether these results generalize to other countries. To achieve this, we replicate two of the original experiments with 10,207 participants across 26 countries. We focus on local group divisions, which we refer to as fault lines. We find broad generalizability for both inaccurate meta-perceptions and reduced negative motive attribution through a simple disclosure intervention. We conclude that inaccurate and negative group meta-perceptions are exhibited in myriad contexts and that informing individuals of their misperceptions can yield positive benefits for intergroup relations. Such generalizability highlights a robust phenomenon with implications for political discourse worldwide

The general fault in our fault lines

A pervading global narrative suggests that political polarisation is increasing in the US and around the world. Beliefs in increased polarisation impact individual and group behaviours regardless of whether they are accurate or not. One driver of polarisation are beliefs about how members of the out-group perceive us, known as group meta-perceptions. A 2020 study by Lees and Cikara in US samples suggests that not only are out-group meta-perceptions highly inaccurate, but informing people of this inaccuracy reduces negative beliefs about the out-group. Given the importance of these findings for understanding and mitigating polarisation, it is essential to test to what extent they generalise to other countries. We assess that generalisability by replicating two of the original experiments in 10,207 participants from 26 countries in the first experiment and 10 in the second. We do this by studying local group divisions, which we refer to as fault lines. In line with our hypotheses, results show that the pattern found in the US broadly generalises, with greater heterogeneity explained by specific policies rather than between-country differences. The replication of a simple disclosure intervention in the second experiment yielded a modest reduction in negative motive attributions to the out-group, similar to the original study. These findings indicate first that inaccurate and negative group meta-perceptions are exhibited in a large number of countries, not only the US, and that informing individuals of their misperceptions can yield positive benefits for intergroup relations. The generalisability of these findings highlights a robust phenomenon with major implications for political discourse worldwide

The general fault in our fault lines

Ruggeri et al. tested perceptions of opposing political party members in 10,207 participants from 26 countries. Results show that beliefs about others are overly negative but could be more realistic with transparency about actual group beliefs. Pervading global narratives suggest that political polarization is increasing, yet the accuracy of such group meta-perceptions has been drawn into question. A recent US study suggests that these beliefs are inaccurate and drive polarized beliefs about out-groups. However, it also found that informing people of inaccuracies reduces those negative beliefs. In this work, we explore whether these results generalize to other countries. To achieve this, we replicate two of the original experiments with 10,207 participants across 26 countries. We focus on local group divisions, which we refer to as fault lines. We find broad generalizability for both inaccurate meta-perceptions and reduced negative motive attribution through a simple disclosure intervention. We conclude that inaccurate and negative group meta-perceptions are exhibited in myriad contexts and that informing individuals of their misperceptions can yield positive benefits for intergroup relations. Such generalizability highlights a robust phenomenon with implications for political discourse worldwide