758 research outputs found
Understanding visual map formation through vortex dynamics of spin Hamiltonian models
The pattern formation in orientation and ocular dominance columns is one of
the most investigated problems in the brain. From a known cortical structure,
we build spin-like Hamiltonian models with long-range interactions of the
Mexican hat type. These Hamiltonian models allow a coherent interpretation of
the diverse phenomena in the visual map formation with the help of relaxation
dynamics of spin systems. In particular, we explain various phenomena of
self-organization in orientation and ocular dominance map formation including
the pinwheel annihilation and its dependency on the columnar wave vector and
boundary conditions.Comment: 4 pages, 15 figure
[Introduction] The future of childhood studies and Children & Society
No description supplie
‘Get yourself some nice, neat, matching box files’: research administrators and occupational identity work
To date, qualitative research into occupational groups and cultures within academia has been relatively scarce, with an almost exclusive concentration upon teaching staff within universities and colleges. This article seeks to address this lacuna and applies the interactionist concept of ‘identity work’ in order to examine one specific group to date under-researched: graduate research administrators.
This occupational group is of sociological interest as many of its members appear to span the putative divide between ‘academic’ and ‘administrative’ occupational worlds within higher education. An exploratory, qualitative research project was undertaken, based upon interviews with
27 research administrators. The study analyses how research administrators utilise various forms of identity work to sustain credible occupational identities, often in the face of considerable challenge from their academic colleagues
Blue Straggler Stars: Early Observations that Failed to Solve the Problem
In this chapter, I describe early ideas on blue stragglers, and various
observations (some published, some not) that promised but failed to resolve the
question of their origin. I review the data and ideas that were circulating
from Allan Sandage's original discovery in 1953 of "anomalous blue stars" in
the globular cluster M3, up until about 1992, when what seems to have been the
only previous meeting devoted to Blue Straggler Stars (BSSs) was held at the
Space Telescope Science Institute.Comment: Chapter 2, in Ecology of Blue Straggler Stars, H.M.J. Boffin, G.
Carraro & G. Beccari (Eds), Astrophysics and Space Science Library, Springe
Comparison of 3 Infrared Thermal Detection Systems and Self-Report for Mass Fever Screening
In a hospital setting, the systems had reasonable utility for fever detection
The Blue Straggler Population in Dwarf Galaxies
In this chapter I review the recent developments regarding the study of Blue
Stragglers (BSS) in dwarf galaxies. The loose density environment of dwarf
galaxies resembles that of the Galactic Halo, hence it is natural to compare
their common BSS properties. At the same time, it is unescapable to compare
with the BSS properties in Galactic Globular clusters, which constitute the
reference point for BSS studies. Admittedly, the literature on BSS in dwarf
galaxies is not plentiful. The limitation is mostly due to the large distance
to even the closest dwarf galaxies. Nevertheless, recent studies have allowed a
deeper insight on the BSS photometric properties that are worth examining.Comment: Chapter 6, in Ecology of Blue Straggler Stars, H.M.J. Boffin, G.
Carraro & G. Beccari (Eds), Astrophysics and Space Science Library, Springe
Using self-definition to predict the influence of procedural justice on organizational, interpersonal, and job/task-oriented citizenship behaviors
An integrative self-definition model is proposed to improve our understanding of how procedural justice affects different outcome modalities in organizational behavior. Specifically, it is examined whether the strength of different levels of self-definition (collective, relational, and individual) each uniquely interact with procedural justice to predict organizational, interpersonal, and job/task-oriented citizenship behaviors, respectively. Results from experimental and (both single and multisource) field data consistently revealed stronger procedural justice effects (1) on organizational-oriented citizenship behavior among those who define themselves strongly in terms of organizational characteristics, (2) on interpersonal-oriented citizenship behavior among those who define themselves strongly in terms of their interpersonal relationships, and (3) on job/task-oriented citizenship behavior among those who define themselves weakly in terms of their distinctiveness or uniqueness. We discuss the relevance of these results with respect to how employees can be motivated most effectively in organizational settings
Multidimensional Model of Racial Identity: A Reconceptualization of African American Racial Identity
Research on African American racial identity has utilized 2 distinct approaches. The mainstream approach has focused on universal properties associated with ethnic and racial identities. In contrast, the underground approach has focused on documenting the qualitative meaning of being African American, with an emphasis on the unique cultural and historical experiences of African Americans. The Multidimensional Model of Racial Identity (MMRI) represents a synthesis of the strengths of these two approaches. The underlying assumptions associated with the model are explored. The model proposes 4 dimensions of African American racial identity: salience, centrality, regard, and ideology. A description of these dimensions is provided along with a discussion of how they interact to influence behavior at the level of the event. We argue that the MMRI has the potential to make contributions to traditional research objectives of both approaches, as well as to provide the impetus to explore new questions.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/68695/2/10.1207_s15327957pspr0201_2.pd
Measuring Five Dimensions of Religiosity Across Adolescence
This paper theorizes and tests a latent variable model of adolescent religiosity in which five dimensions of religiosity are interrelated: religious beliefs, religious exclusivity, external religiosity, private practice, and religious salience. Research often theorizes overlapping and independent influences of single items or dimensions of religiosity on outcomes such as adolescent sexual behavior, but rarely operationalizes the dimensions in a measurement model accounting for their associations with each other and across time. We use longitudinal structural equation modeling (SEM) with latent variables to analyze data from two waves of the National Study of Youth and Religion. We test our hypothesized measurement model as compared to four alternate measurement models and find that our proposed model maintains superior fit. We then discuss the associations between the five dimensions of religiosity we measure and how these change over time. Our findings suggest how future research might better operationalize multiple dimensions of religiosity in studies of the influence of religion in adolescence
Multiple shades of grey: Opening the black box of public sector executives' hybrid role identities
Public sector reforms of recent decades in Europe have promoted managerialism and aimed at introducing private sector thinking and practices. However, with regard to public sector executives' self-understanding, managerial role identities have not replaced bureaucratic ones; rather, components from both paradigms have combined. In this article, we introduce a bi-dimensional approach (attitudes and practices) that allows for different combinations and forms of hybridity. Empirically, we explore the role identities of public sector executives across Europe, building on survey data from over 7,000 top public officials in 19 countries (COCOPS survey). We identify country-level profiles, as well as patterns across countries, and find that administrative traditions can account for these profiles and patterns only to a limited extent. Rather, they have to be complemented by factors such as stability of the institutional environment (indicating lower shares of hybrid combinations) or extent of reform pressures (indicating higher shares of hybrid combinations)
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